Skip to content Skip to footer
Why the 50+ market represents a significant opportunity for brokers
By Norman Costello, Director of Distribution, Aviva Life & Pensions Ireland
For years, the retirement conversation focused on one question: Are people saving enough?
It's an important question. But Aviva's Retirement Confidence Gap1 research suggests there's another challenge that deserves equal attention:
Many people are saving for retirement, yet relatively few feel confident about the decisions that come next.
For brokers, that creates a significant opportunity.
PDF (7.4 MB)
PDF (1.2 MB)
Why the 50+ market matters
The years between age 50 and retirement are some of the most important in a client's financial life. This is often when:
At the same time, people are living longer and spending more years in retirement than previous generations. The Society of Actuaries in Ireland has highlighted that a 65-year-old male has a 47% chance of living to age 90 or beyond, while a 65-year-old female has a 55% chance. In practical terms, many retirees may need their income to last 25 years or more.2
That changes the nature of retirement planning. The challenge is no longer simply helping clients build a pension.
Increasingly, it's helping them create sustainable retirement income, manage longevity risk and make informed decisions throughout retirement.
That's why the 50+ market represents one of the most important and fastest-evolving opportunities in the pensions industry.
The confidence gap is real
One of the most striking findings from the research is the disconnect between action and confidence.
Only 39% of pre-retirees believe they have done a good job preparing for retirement, compared with 68% of those who have already retired.1
The research also found that:
These aren't accumulation problems. They're understanding problems. And understanding is where advice creates value.
Retirement planning is changing
Historically, retirement advice was largely centred on accumulation. The key conversation was:
"How much have you saved?"
Today, clients are increasingly asking:
These are advice-led conversations.
They require guidance, reassurance and planning.
For brokers, this represents a significant opportunity to deepen relationships and provide value beyond traditional pension accumulation.
Advice remains an important part of the retirement journey
The research suggests there is a significant opportunity for brokers to engage consumers approaching retirement. While only 17% of adults aged 50+ had spoken to a financial broker in the previous 12 months1, 65% of pre-retirees said they would seek advice if planning their retirement today.1 Among those who had received financial advice, many reported positive outcomes, including greater peace of mind and feeling financially better off1.
Those findings are important because retirement decisions are rarely just financial decisions.
Clients aren't simply choosing products.
They're making decisions about:
Technology can deliver information. Your advice helps people understand what that information means for them.
From Pensions Coach to The Second Half
Retirement planning has many similarities to sport. Success is rarely about one decision. It's the result of preparation, guidance and making informed choices along the way.
That's why Aviva has partnered with rugby coach and former international Bernard Jackman, who turned 50 this year, to bring our new retirement platform, The Second Half - it's all to play for, to life.
Building on the foundations established through Pensions Coach, the campaign uses the idea of half-time to help consumers approaching retirement pause, assess where they are today and better understand the decisions that could shape their future.
As clients move through their 50s and into retirement, their needs become broader and more complex. The campaign focuses on helping consumers navigate the decisions that become increasingly important as retirement approaches, including:
The thinking is simple.
Retirement is no longer just about building assets. It's about helping people make the most of them.
Supporting brokers with consumer content
To support brokers in these conversations, Aviva has developed a suite of consumer-focused content informed by the Retirement Confidence Gap research.
The content addresses questions consumers are already asking:
Each piece is designed to help consumers move from uncertainty to action and create a natural pathway into broker conversations.
Watch our short video to learn more about this campaign
Bernard:
So Norman are in the Aviva Stadium this morning for the launch of the second-half campaign. Why was this the right time, do you think, to launch a campaign about retirement confidence?
Norman:
If you look at the second-half of a match, it's the business end of a match. So, it's when you re-evaluate how the first half went, set your goals for the second-half, look at the end game. That's exactly the idea of the campaign is to focus on your retirement planning a bit more than you would have in the first half of your life.
Bernard:
So, Norman, you spend a lot of time speaking to brokers. What are you hearing from them about people approaching retirement?
Norman:
It's all about confidence and confidence comes with knowledge. And really that's where the broker plays a pivotal role in dealing with their clients about approaching retirement.
Is there enough in the fund?
What will I do in retirement?
Will my lifestyle change?
Really, it's about empowering the client to make decisions along with the broker.
Bernard:
So Norman, as a coach, our role isn't to play the game for somebody else, it's to give them the tools to play it. And I remember Joe Schmidt used to say, clarity gives confidence. Do you see that the same in terms of broker's role with your clients?
Norman:
Exactly the same, Bernard.
Brokers won't make the decisions for clients. Clients will make those decisions themselves, but it's the coach's role or the broker's role to make sure the client is fully informed. It's not the how, it's the why. It's to give them the full knowledge of why they're doing this, how they're doing this, and how they'll reach the end game as well.
Bernard:
I just turned 50 in May. Obviously, you're a lot further down the track than me. You know, as we get into the second half of our careers. I mean, how important is it to ask the right questions around retirement?
Norman:
Yeah, I am a bit older than you, but does life of the old dog get is what I would say. Certainly, your perspective in life changes the older you get, the closer you get to retirement. You know, health becomes a focus on you. That great phrase don't let the old man in.
Because you're in the second-half of your working career and I'm probably in the fourth quarter of that, it's making sure your plan is on track to deliver what you wanted to deliver in retirement.
Bernard:
Would you ever come across clients who haven't got ahead of it on a 50? I just wondering, is it too late to get going?
Norman:
No. Certainly the earlier the better, but it's never too late to start is what I would say. I would hate for someone to start a pension at 40 years of age, contributing to a pension and not revisiting it until 60 because they're coming close to retirement. It needs to be revisited on a regular basis to make sure it's going to deliver what you expect it to deliver because you don't want to shock at 65.
Bernard:
So, Norman, what's the one conversation you're broker with your clients as they approach retirement?
Help them better understand where they are right now as they come closer to retirement and the choices they're going to have at retirement. So, you know, it's about knowledge and it's about resetting, having a look, making sure everything is on the plan, but it's really, imperative to have those conversations because things change. Knowledge is power, as I mentioned earlier, and
You know, the more knowledge clients have, the more they're in control of their own situation and their own destiny with their pot.
Bernard:
Okay, well, Norman, it's a great campaign and I wish you the very best of luck with it.
Norman:
Thanks very much, Bernard. Thank you.
Consumer content is available at:
Broker toolkits, campaign assets and engagement materials are available at:
www.avivabroker.ie/pensions-coach
Together, they provide brokers with practical resources to engage the growing 50+ market.
Making retirement simpler with Retirement Express
Helping clients make decisions is only part of the journey. Implementing those decisions should be straightforward.
That's why we've launched Retirement Express, our new digital retirement claims solution.
Retirement Express is designed to make retirement journeys faster and easier for brokers and clients through:
It's another step in our commitment to becoming the easiest company for brokers to do business with.
Full details can be found here
The opportunity ahead
The 50+ market is not simply a pensions market. It's a retirement-planning market.
Clients are looking for guidance on retirement income, estate planning, tax considerations and how to make their money last throughout retirement.
The encouraging message from the research is that people have not disengaged.
They're saving. They're planning. They're trying to make good decisions.
What many need is greater confidence in the choices ahead. That's where brokers are uniquely positioned to help. By combining advice, education and planning, brokers can help clients move from uncertainty to confidence.
And by supporting brokers through research, consumer engagement, Pensions Coach, The Second Half campaign and Retirement Express, Aviva is committed to helping make those conversations easier.
Because retirement success isn't measured solely by the size of a pension fund. It's measured by how confident people feel about the future that pension fund supports.
Sources
¹ Aviva Retirement Confidence Gap Research, conducted by RED C Research & Marketing among 512 adults aged 50+ in Ireland, including 255 pre-retirees and 257 retirees.
² Society of Actuaries in Ireland, Do People Have a Realistic Expectation of How Long They Are Likely to Live?
Warning: Past performance is not a reliable guide to future performance. Warning: The value of your investment may go down as well as up. Warning: If you invest in a pension you will not have any access to your money until you retire. Warning: If you invest in this product you may lose some or all of the money you invest. Warning: This product may be affected by changes in currency exchange rates. |
Aviva Life & Pensions Ireland Designated Activity Company, is a private company limited by shares, registered in Ireland No. 165970. Registered office at Building 12, Cherrywood Business Park, Loughlinstown, Co. Dublin, D18 W2P5. Tel (01) 898 7950, www.aviva.ie
Aviva Life & Pensions Ireland Designated Activity Company, trading as Aviva Life & Pensions Ireland and Friends First, is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.
