Many senior living communities are struggling to generate leads and reach their sales goals. In-person events, cold calls, and direct mail campaigns have become less popular with the pivot to online lead generation and digital marketing. If you find yourself falling behind with the times, it’s time to shift your focus and try some updated strategies. Here are some assisted living sales tips to convert more leads for your community.
Prioritize Website Design
Most people’s first impression of your community will be your website. That’s why prioritizing website design is among the most important assisted living sales tips we can offer. The way your site is built will influence how people engage with your brand and whether they decide to commit to your community. This is your first opportunity to gain people’s trust. Here are some general rules of thumb to follow for website design:
- Keep messaging simple and easy to understand.
- Avoid overwhelming people with too much information at once.
- Use a clear call-to-action to guide people to the next step.
- Make sure your site loads quickly, otherwise people may click away.
- Use high-quality images of real residents whenever possible.
For more tips, check out our guide to using web design to drive conversions.
Incorporate SEO Into Your Marketing
SEO is a must for your senior care marketing strategy. Optimizing your website for SEO will help attract more relevant leads who will eventually take action to contact you or schedule a tour. Start by including common phrases or questions that someone might Google when searching for an assisted living community. Some keywords may make sense as a blog post, while others may fit best on your services page. An FAQ section is a great way to beef up your SEO.
Still unsure about how SEO works? Here’s how you can rank higher on Google.
Follow Up With Your Leads
This might seem like an obvious assisted living sales tip, yet many small businesses fail to follow up with leads after they’ve generated them. Creating an email lead nurturing campaign will keep you top of mind during the decision process. Honor people’s inbox by providing real value and directing them to your great content, like blogs or free downloads. Use newsletters to keep people up-to-date on what’s going on in your community. Encourage your leads to reach out to you with questions to keep the lines of communication open.
Use a CRM System To Track Lead Interaction
Whether staff interact with leads in person, via email, through a web form, or over the phone, track every lead, every time. A customer relationship management (CRM) system is the most effective way to do this. CRM software helps streamline your lead management process and ensure that valuable prospects don’t fall through the cracks.
Track Important Metrics
Your focus as a senior living community is likely occupancy rates. However, there are other operational and marketing-related metrics that will affect your business. Here are a few:
- Move-in and move-out rates
- Close ratio– the number of move-ins divided by the number of tours)
- Appointment ratio– the number of tours divided by the number of inquiries)
- Staff turnover rates– high staff turnover can lower the quality of care, impact your finances, and cost you residents.
- Activity attendance– increased attendance means that your residents are engaged and at lower risk of social isolation.
- Waitlisted resident engagement– your sales teams might miss conversion potential by neglecting those on the resident waitlist.
- Marketing and sales response time– the time it takes your team to respond to inquiries can make a difference for prospects early on in the sales timeline.
The assisted living sales tip to take away here is that you should approach analyzing your business holistically. Evaluate each department to see where there are inefficient processes and if your services and retention efforts could use a boost.
Improve The Tour Experience
Most people who are considering your community will want to see it in-person. The quality of the tour experience could make or break their decision to choose your community. Some things people are looking for is that the facility meets standards of cleanliness, care, and professionalism. But you should go above and beyond to make a positive and lasting impression.
Prior to the scheduled tour, gather as much information as you can on your prospect’s story. Ask questions about their interests, hobbies, careers, and what they’re looking for in a community. This allows you to create a more personalized and tailored experience on the day of the tour. When you meet in-person, they will feel like they already know you and your community will seem inviting.
During the tour, staff should be friendly, welcoming, and willing to answer questions thoughtfully. Families also love to see genuinely positive connections between your staff and residents. It helps them feel assured that their loved one will be in the right hands.
Highlight Your Community’s Difference
Our final assisted living sales tip might be the most challenging, yet crucial one yet. What makes your community different from your competitors? What do you offer that no one else does? You could offer nutritional plans for vegans or those with specific dietary needs. Maybe you target alumni from a nearby college and focus on offering continuing education. Perhaps your community is LGBTQ-friendly. Or you cater your programming to artists and creatives. Whatever that special thing is, make it central to your brand identity to make yourself stand out.
Your Guide Through The Digital Marketing Landscape
Our senior living marketing staff guides you to getting more leads. We want you to be proud of your image and attract new community members until you reach wait list status. We help you reach your goals and get the results you want. Contact us for a free consultation.
