“The future ain’t what it used to be.” That Yogi Berra quote summarized a presentation on Friday morning at the GRP Advisor Alliance Finnovation Conference at the Hotel Del Coronado in San Diego, about how technology is changing the way people age.
Bill McManus, Director Strategic Markets, Hartford Funds, shared a number of examples of how new and emerging technologies are impacting—or will soon impact—the way people are spending their retirement years.
Contrary to popular belief, older adults aren’t afraid of or averse to using new technology. McManus shared that at the MIT AgeLab, they find older people will spend more time learning how to derive the benefit from new technology than younger people. And older people, it can be argued, need it more.
As a senior ages and stops driving, think about the problems losing mobility presents that can be solved by apps and services such as Uber and Lyft, Amazon Prime or TaskRabbit, just to cite a few examples.
The retiree can’t drive, but by mastering a ride sharing app they can still get where they need to go when they need to be there. The retiree can’t drive to the store, but whatever they need can be delivered right to their door by Amazon Prime. The retiree may not be able to fix a problem at their house, but TaskRabbit will send someone right over to take care of that leaky faucet or electrical issue.
McManus pointed to data from AAA, stating that older Americans who have stopped driving are almost two times more likely to suffer from depression and nearly five times as likely to enter a long-term care facility compared to those who remain behind the wheel.
But if technology can dampen the negative impact of a significant life change like no longer driving, those chances of depression go back down.
Another way technology can help seniors is by the utilization of self-diagnostic technology, such as wearing a Fitbit or Apple Watch. While McManus says seniors may scoff at wearing the “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” necklace, they are not averse to these watches, which can also detect falls in addition to monitoring health.
From the financial advisor standpoint, McManus said finding your role in the “longevity economy” revolves around getting people to take action. One way is by sharing some of your favorite apps with seniors along with their value proposition, and Identifying apps that could be especially relevant to this audience, such as transportation, service providers or online learning.
As people live longer and typically want to “age in place,” technology can play a crucial role in helping them stay connected and healthy.