Marketing segmentation wasn’t really used at all until the mid-70’s to deal with a period declining sales in the US economy. Old people weren’t even treated as a specific segment beyond 65+ until like 1990.
A very productive world existed without any significant marketing targeting other than geolocation and some other rough measures. Perhaps we are returning to such a state of things.
For a moment there, I thought the ad by Motor Institute of America shown on the page of Popular Mechanics you linked to, was also present in your second link to the The Ladies Home Journal, albeit with a different ad copy.
A very productive world existed without any significant marketing targeting other than geolocation and some other rough measures. Perhaps we are returning to such a state of things.