Behind the scenes at Starts at 60

For those of you who have ever wondered a little about what’s behind Starts at 60, I’m going to take the opportunity today, on the week of our fourth birthday, to fill you in on what we’re doing, why we’ve done it and what we hope will come next. 

It’s four years ago today that I naively started Starts at 60 in the back-room of my house, with a big dream in mind: to give my parents’ generation the platform and services online that others apparently couldn’t be bothered to provide, and to do that with respect.

I was an optimistic marketer and writer who could see that the respect I had been taught for my elders was being lost in business and in the media. So I did something about it, launching a website and sharing stories, with my parents’ needs, wants and hopes in mind.  I gathered a community of other people who liked it.  They contributed their musings too. ‘I’ became ‘we’.

Since March 13, 2013, we have NEVER missed a day of publishing! Either myself or one of our ever-growing team has been there, on Christmas, on Easter, on Sundays, when magazine companies are closed and newspapers have just a skeleton staff, to provide you with a special place online that provides media … and what seems like so much more to us, and hopefully to you too. 

What started out as a night-time ‘passion project’ on top of my day job has changed, but the reasons behind it haven’t. 

I want the best for the over-60s online. I don’t want you to be fodder for the shysters and scumbags that lurk on the internet because no one gave you a better option. I don’t want companies to ignore you while telling themselves you’re not online, because no one had the wherewithal to bring you together there.  And I want you to have everything I get out of the internet, and more – funny videos, great laughs, intelligent debates, bloggers that look like you, deals designed for you, websites that are intuitive to use on your iPad, and online help when you need it. 

You need your own peer group online; your own conversation; your own ability to ask questions of others; and your own choice of content when it comes to reading about the things that matter. You need a platform to stand on and be counted that respects your voice, your dollar, and your life. 

Big media companies say they care but I don’t think they care like we do.  You can write for Starts at 60, share your opinions here, and even host an event.  You make us what we are, and in return we’re here for you!

So, that’s what Starts at 60 is.

I’ve never been shy about saying that I’m 41 and creating a media site for over-60s. That means that some people accuse me of having goals other than the good of the community at heart. The corporates of Australia can attest otherwise, though. We’ve turned away collaborations with businesses that approach this generation unethically and have quietly lost money for the past four years because we have a vision of working only with those who respect you, and we sought investment from one of the best brands in mainstream to build our offering big and strong.  

We want your feedback, your support and you egging us on to do it better (with kindness, please!). I started out thinking I could ‘change the world’ and, thankfully, I still do think I can do that, but not without the backing of the Starts at 60 community.

Keep an eye out tomorrow for the story of what I’ve learned in the process of building Starts at 60.

It’s Starts at 60’s fourth birthday this week so our founder, Rebecca Wilson, is bringing you several stories throughout the week about our site, our community and our learnings.  One thing that we do ask is that you join our site properly by clicking the “login” button on the website, so we can welcome you to our community and provide the honest services we aspire to.  This helps us help you.