But!, there is now a website, the Grandparents Network, that caters to the ever growing trend in Australia of seniors taking up the internet, in fact the ABS states people aged between 65 & 74 years connecting to the internet at home in Australia has jumped 40 per cent in two years - the largest increase by any age group.
It’s not often that you hear of an internet site just for seniors, that’s because there isn’t actually anything on offer for them. Until now, this months launch of Australia's only online social network for seniors, grandparents, baby boomers and other members of this growing demographic within our country has been widely praised and needed.
Many of these new internet explorers find their way to locations such as Facebook and MySpace for the same reasons as their younger counterparts;
The Grandparents Network is a 100% free online social network for social and savvy grandparents (of children and 'critters'), and you don’t even have to be a grandparent to join, just old enough to be one. Since the launch earlier this month there have been over 156,000 hits and over 100 members have begun learning the ropes and discovering areas of the internet previously only understood by their grandchildren. Baby boomers are posting photo's, creating blogs and contributing questions and answers in the forum.
Joining the network is a simple, free and quick so members can begin socialising with other social and savvy seniors seeking a new way of meeting friends with similar life experiences. This network is sure to make the grandkids proud and a few parents ashamed of their own lack of internet ‘savvy-ness’
This widely needed network is the brainchild of ‘netprenuer’
“Their internet usage seemed quite solitary, and a Google search returned no results when looking for something similar for them to use. So I thought I would make one myself. It’s a love job!” said Leigh Kostiainen
The Grandparents Network is a place for older Australian’s to share a laugh, some travel tales and a recipe or too. There is a slightly serious side to the network where by members who are grandparents, and are in the situation where they are raising their own grandchildren, can share experiences and generally provide some necessary online support to each other.
“There is no need to worry if people are not familiar with computers, the internet or uploading photos as the network has tutorials that are simple to follow. And inexperienced members and visitors can’t break anything, so they can feel confident to give it a go” said the sites creator Leigh Kostiainen.
If you want to join Australia's newest growing online industry just log in at www.grandparentsnetwork.net or phone mobile 0417 230 682.
