Get Over It and Accept the Senior Discount

By Teresa Ambord Believe it or not, many 50 year olds will simply not ask for or accept discounts they are entitled to. They dislike the term “senior discount,” and who can blame them?  We know we’re just getting started, truly in the prime of our lives, and before we even hit our 50th birthdays, AARP is pelting us monthly with solicitations. And some businesses have the nerve to define us fifty-somethings as already eligible for senior discounts. Rest assured, senior discount or not, you’re still in your prime. Age is relative, after all.   Whether you are 30 or 50, to a teenager you’re ancient.  And to a 65 year-old, you’re barely an adult.  But to pay more than you have to because you don’t want to admit you qualify for a “senior” discount is a needless expense. Senior Discounts are Smart Business If you’re 50 or older and think you are doing the retailer a disservice by accepting a discount that you feel you don’t deserve, you should rethink that. Offering these discounts isn’t something most businesses do out of the goodness of their hearts (though some do).  It’s a marketing scheme, and it works.  Of course, savvy retailers have picked up on our reluctance to be called seniors and come up with some feel-good name, like 50-plus discount.   The best senior discounts around are for travel.  Just about every chain hotel and car rental company has something to offer older travelers.  But restaurants and retailers are catching the wave and beginning to establish such discounts too.  It’s a way to build loyalty while boosting sales.   Here’s an example.  Burke’s Outlets has a chain of 34 Texas stores.  As part of a marketing plan designed to beef up sales traffic on Mondays― which have traditionally been their slowest days― they started the Monday Club.  Any shopper 50 or older who shops on a Monday gets an automatic 15 percent discount.  That’s a powerful incentive to rearrange your shopping habits.  The idea was so successful that Mondays are now their busiest days, bigger even than Saturday, and Burke’s has instituted special discount days for other groups. The only downside is, to take advantage of the 50+ discount, you have to swallow your pride and admit your age.   Here are examples of discounts offered by some major chains.  For all of these, the key age seems to be 55: • Denny’s restaurants have a senior menu for those 55 and over. • McDonald’s, Arby’s, and Burger King, Jack-in-the-Box and some Wendy’s allow those 55 and over to buy drinks at a discount (Wendy’s varies by ownership). • Carl’s Jr., Long John Silver, and some Wendy’s give 10 % off your entire order if you’re 55.   Many hotel chains give discounts to AARP members.  But does that mean you have to join AARP? Not everyone is a fan of the organization, because it is sometimes seen as controversial.  If AARP is not your cuppa tea, AAA members get many of the same discounts.  Or, check out an alternative to AARP called USA Next. It provides many similar benefits but without the controversy. USA Next Comments (0) >> Write comment Name Email Website Title Comment Write the displayed characters Add Comment

 

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