We recently wrote an article about the top satisfaction drivers at independent and assisted living communities. The data at the heart of that article was from a survey conducted by Sensight Surveys. The survey also contained additional data exploring the most influential factors considered by prospective residents when choosing a senior living facility. Analyzing this data provides essential insights for senior living community marketing teams.

In this guide, we’ll break down the survey findings for senior living marketing and sales teams who are looking to update their strategies with powerful insights from the minds of prospective residents. Let’s get started.

How Prospects Choose Senior Living Communities

The “reason for choosing your community” statistics we provided below are based on 8,735 independent and assisted living resident surveys collected in 2021 from 57 senior living communities nationwide.

Recommendation from family and friends

Enrollment into a senior living community is a major decision for both seniors and their loved ones. That’s why many residents and their loved ones turn to those they trust when looking for the right senior living community.

Recommendations coming from those who have a personal connection to the community, such as a loved one currently living within the community, have more power than those that come from a sales representative. Nearly 17.23% of residents name recommendations as an influential factor in the decision-making process.

Marketing Tip: Don’t stop marketing to your residents. Keep them up-to-date on all the new things that you’re offering, from activities to the range of technology in place at your community. Frequent communication with family members sharing highlights and the positive news of your community will help ensure residents and their families are happy and willing to spread the word! See how Eversound communities showcase to prospects.

Community appearance

First impressions matter. That’s why it’s crucial to make a good first impression by showing your community in its best light.

Residents and their families touring the community will be drawn in if they like what they see whether the tour is in person or virtual. Residents participating in activities, interacting with one another, and attentive staff members are indicators of high resident satisfaction.

For touring prospects and visiting loved ones, these are signs that a senior living community is a good place to call home.

Marketing tip: One of the best ways to show off your community is through an engaging and thorough tour, so make sure you’re putting your best foot forward. Give families the option to opt-in to use Eversound’s wireless headphone system during the tour . This will help to actively demonstrate your community’s commitment to accessibility.

Additionally, make sure your community looks good online. Are the photos on your website up-to-date? Do the people you feature truly reflect your community? Take some time to update your community webpage with visuals that reflect everything your community can offer a prospective resident.

Location

Over 21% of senior responders named location as having a significant influence on their choice for a senior living community. This makes a lot of sense, considering that choosing a community closest to home usually means that loved ones can visit regularly.

This survey finding shows that your community’s location provides a significant, though limited, pool of prospects without you having done any work at all. However, having a favorable location doesn’t mean that you’ve sealed the deal with every prospect that books a tour.

It’s crucial to remember, the location may get people in the door, but once they are in — your community must shine to keep them there.

Marketing tip: Digital senior living marketing is more important than ever. It’s vital to build a strong online presence for your brand by creating a blog, providing resources, and pushing out ads. However, as location plays such a big part in choosing a community, very targeted, localized marketing is invaluable.

Direct mailings, advertising in local newspapers, radio and television, and a locally-focused PR effort can raise brand awareness. Sharing your positive news directly to members of the local community might greatly impact driving new residents.

Key Takeaways

Although new data and insights play a huge role in the strategies that senior living communities must employ to maintain and grow occupancy rates, the bottom line remains the same. Senior living communities must have high resident satisfaction rates to be successful.

Eversound can help you drive up resident satisfaction rates within your senior living community by improving resident engagement. With Eversound’s headphone and activity programming solution, senior living communities have seen engagement rates increase by 77%.

And with families wondering what will happen if another pandemic occurs, will they be able to visit their loved one’s? You can insure them that with Eversound’s connection package your community can facilitate high quality two-way communications during in-person safely distanced visits.

Want to learn more? Get in touch to discover what the Eversound solution can do for your senior living community. We can’t wait to hear from you.