One of the most important life-altering decisions a person has to make is where to live once the family is gone. Seniors planning for retirement will probably want to delay the process. This will not be the easiest thing to do as there are so many factors to consider and unanswered questions such as:
- When will I be old enough for a retirement home?
- How long will I maintain my good health?
- When do I sell my house? And how long will that take?
- What do I do with all my furniture and belongings?
- How will I keep active?
- Where will I entertain my family and friends?
- When should I contact a retirement community?
- How will I find the right one for me?
Will I be able to afford it? How will these potential new residents search you out? Can you help them answer all of their questions? What will you ask them when they contact you for information? Marketing to an ever-aging population can be daunting especially if you've never had to sell before. In addition to understanding the daily operations of the facility, your managers and marketing teams will need to possess basic sales skills that will enable them to tour with confidence and fill your vacancies quicker.
As more and more retirement communities are built, competition increases for the current supply of accommodations making it more difficult to maintain a full occupancy level. Referrals are your best source of new residents. However, whether youre offering total Independent Living, Private Pay Assisted Living or Private Pay Licensed Care, your marketing and management teams must be pro-active in finding new residents.
A well-designed marketing plan should first target the specific type of seniors that will be most suited to your facility and level of services andamenities. In addition to any broadcast advertising and print ads in market/age-specific journals and magazines, the plan should also include a budget for a well-designed maintained website that is supported by online marketing strategies such as Search Engine Optimization to ensure high placement and frequent viewers. No doubt most seniors will have a younger family member assisting them in their search and possibly in the final decision. And rest assured that most if not all of them will be technology savvy!
Still have questions? Feel free to contact me in person via email to [email protected] or telephone me at 604.984.7445 and I'll help fill in the blanks.
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