I should clarify something here. This is really a story in two parts. The first – “Helping you stay in touch” – covers precisely the issue you raised. The data suggests there is a real opportunity for less mobile, older Australians to use social media as a way of staying in touch with friends and often widely dispersed family. This, to me, is a really exciting opportunity and, I must stress, has nothing to do with marketing or commercial returns. It is purely raising a potentially positive social trend that emerges from the data.

By contrast, the second part of the article is unsashamedly a commercial observation. Clearly, a notable number of older Australians searching for information on certain types of products creates a marketing opportunity for companies offering those products.

In saying that, however, it might be worth referencing another article from the Social Media Report we’re looking to do in the next few days. This will explore whether the opportunity for marketers in social media is in ramming advertising down people’s throats or in helping them with information and other services when they need them, and by creating advocates by giving people what they want.

This is why we titled the second part “Helping you shop”.

I hope this clarifies the position and would love to hear more from you if you wish to reply further.

You touched on using social media as an outreach tool for the ageing population. Bloggers like Phyllis Greene with her Web90 blog or Facebook/Twitter aficionados such as the late Ivy Bean demonstrate a much better use – a vital communication tool for people with active minds but failing bodies.

Importantly, social media tools can be an excellent way to deliver carer services for people wanting to maintain their independence but needing additional monitoring in the home environment. A daily Facebook check-in alleviates concern where Twitter can be used to send a message when help is in need.

I’m disappointed to think we’re only going to recognise the importance of social media in the ageing population in commercial terms. Rather, I’d like to focus on how we can better serve these grand people as their needs change. Social media provides excellent outreach opportunities as well as service delivery options. Any marketer that views the ageing population purely from a commercial standpoint will be surprised to find out that while they’re not always steady on their feet, they certainly have no problem showing someone the door if they’re not providing value. In other words, just because someone is ageing, doesn’t mean they’re interested in marketing pander.