Advantages of Age was created as a website in March 2016 in response to the prevalent media narrative around ageing. Has its representation of older people influenced the way we view them and shaped our own attitudes towards ageing? Has the negative language commonly used to talk about ageing and the stereotypes associated with older people regarding their appearance and health created a distorted, one-sided view of what it means to be ‘old’. And in turn, has the population as a whole constructed a narrative that is skewed primarily towards the disadvantages of getting older, while ignoring the advantages?
Referenced by psychotherapists and by a growing community of people aged 50+, Advantages of Age is the first online UK site to give an active voice to a community of older people embracing ageing, while addressing the challenges of being older. We feature inspirational articles about ageing that brings together exclusive writing from established and previously unpublished writers, as well as articles curated from a diverse, broad range of publications across the web.
In October 2017 Advantages of Age was incorporated as a social enterprise and your membership will pay for:
- To work towards paying staff as we are all currently volunteers to run the organization and to maintain the website, together with our vocal Facebook group of over 3.3k people
- Campaigning to end the negative portrayal of older people in the media through speaking engagements, events, workshops, PR and marketing
- Hosting and other software subscription services
In return, we can offer our premium members:
- A profile page on our membership directory to market your services to our growing audience and to the general public (and improve your Google ranking in the process)
- Discounts to AofA events and to those of our partners (currently mainly London-based, though aiming to branch out in 2018 to other cities/countries)
- Great discounts on selected products and services such as cinema tickets, clothing, food, health & wellbeing products and much more!
- A monthly promotional post on our growing Facebook group plus a blog post on our website with links leading back to your website, improving your visibility online.
Currently accepting applications for the first 100 Founder Members at £4.99 per month (first month FREE) or £49.99/year (a savings of nearly £10). At Advantages of Age we are passionate about our mission to bring together and to inspire older people as they age.
“Ultimately, if we are to manage population ageing well, we need to acknowledge the impact of the media and marketers on shaping perceptions of ageing, and strive to reform the way they view and portray people living in this multifaceted stage of life.”
Global Population Ageing: Peril or Promise? (Harvard University)
