Category: Seniors Housing

Guest post by Mary Muñoz, Senior Managing Director, Ziegler

This is certainly an interesting time for senior living — we’re moving away from COVID-19, although we’re not quite past it yet. The pandemic has taught us a lot about where we’re headed in the future, but there are also a lot of industry trends that have remained constant through it all. Let’s take a look at what’s trending in senior living right now.

Industrywide Growth and Consolidation

What hasn’t changed with COVID-19 is the population wave we have coming, with a surge in the 75- to 85-plus cohort. And with that, we still have many drivers that make our business an attractive one. For starters, there are those still living at home who don’t have anybody there to take care of them during the day. We have the dangers of social isolation among older adults. And there are those who can’t afford caregiving.

In addition, we’re seeing a consolidation trend across the industry. Why is this happening? Almost every transaction we’ve seen has involved a CEO retirement. We’re facing a labor shortage in care and dining, along with a shortage on the C-suite side, as fewer people are coming into the senior living business, although larger organizations have some advantages in recruitment and career path offerings.

Ongoing Labor Market Challenges

Speaking of which, let’s talk about the labor market a bit. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics is projecting almost 1.2 million annual job openings in senior living. Worldwide, we’ve already crossed the line in the past couple of years that there are fewer people under 5 than there are those 65 and older.* That means we literally won’t have the bodies to do things the way we’ve done in the past. So, we have to find ways to reinvent how work is getting done in our communities.

The pressures are coming from many different directions. We’ve got financial struggles, and the changing demographics of who’s coming into the workforce. Government reimbursement is under pressure, which in turn affects health care worker wages. The pandemic caused clients to lose employees because they refused to be vaccinated or simply burned out. Immigration was disrupted and a lot of the caregivers we get from across the border were affected. And then we have the lasting issue that senior services isn’t exactly a sexy line of work.

Stressors in Skilled Nursing

For post-acute care, I want to highlight the compounding challenges in the skilled nursing environment. COVID-19 definitely exhausted and burned out employees. There’s also the need for private rooms, which many communities did not offer pre-COVID. And a lot of the nursing communities are old, with declining occupancy, in part because we didn’t have assisted living and memory care until recent years. So, there were some people who didn’t need to be there and could be taken care of in a less acute setting.

All of these factors are leading to a downsizing of skilled nursing, and in some cases the transition of skilled nursing rooms to high-acuity assisted living. In fact, we’ve counted 35 Life Plan Communities around the country that have eliminated skilled nursing from their continuums in favor of high-acuity assisted living.** And there are many new communities being built right now that have no skilled nursing.

Technology as a Partner for Smarter Aging

There are many developing technologies that serve seniors in various ways. We’ve certainly had a dramatic rise in telehealth during the pandemic. Beyond that and electronic medical records — which most already have in place — there are resident engagement technologies, including dining reservations, menus and activities. There’s also been a focus on predictive technology, not only tracking footsteps but also predicting falls by tracking gait. That’s in addition to cognitive brain solutions, smart home technology and even robots. While robots probably won’t cure the labor shortage, we have seen communities using robots to deliver plated meals and bus plates in dining venues, for example.

These four takeaways are just the beginning of what’s trending as we emerge from the pandemic. For more information, feel free to subscribe to the Ziegler e-newsletter, refer to our white paper about health care technology or message me at mmunoz@ziegler.com.

*Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Percentage of World Population Under Age 5 and Aged 65 and Over: 1950-2050

**Source: Ziegler Investment Banking

Solo agers. Kinless seniors. Elder orphans. These buzzwords have entered the common vernacular, but they’re also describing a very real shift in demographics. The current generation of seniors contains more solo agers than ever before.

“Solo agers” are defined as those over age 50 who live alone, are not married or partnered in a long-term relationship, and have no living children. They make up 12% of the ages 50+ population in the United States, and this trend is increasing, as more baby boomers get divorced and fewer have children, and people live longer overall.

According to a recent report by Forbes, among adults 75 years and older (not boomers), 10.9% reported being childless; among those ages 65–74 (early boomers), 15.9% reported being childless; and among those ages 55–64 (late boomers), 19.6% reported being childless.

Right now, there are close to a million solo agers in the U.S., and as Generation X and Millennials head to retirement, that number could grow even larger. These generations are getting married even less frequently than boomers.

What does the trend toward more seniors without family ties mean for retirement communities? We hear a lot about “demanding boomers” and the high-end amenities they expect — but another audience to consider is diverse populations like these.

According to an article in InsideHook, kinless seniors often live alone and rely on appointments with doctors or encounters with cashiers to interact with other people.

What’s more, a Canadian study reported in the New York Times that those without partners or children had lower levels of self-reported mental and physical health, and higher levels of loneliness, which in itself has been linked to many health conditions. Even more worrisome, a decade after respondents’ initial interviews, more than 80% of seniors with partners and children had survived, compared with only about 60% of those without either.

In contrast, studies have shown that residents of Life Plan Communities tend to live longer than other people. So what better environment for solo agers than senior communities, where they can form meaningful friendships and live happier, healthier, longer lives?

Here are a few suggestions on ways to connect with kinless seniors — and to help them get the most out of your community once they join it.

1. The sales process

Typically, the salesperson must consider the influence of adult children on the sales process. But there are a growing number of prospects who will be trying to make these decisions on their own, and who will be looking for input and advice.

2. Online resources

Why not show that you understand this growing audience and their concerns by including solo ager-focused blogs and resources on your website?

3. Prospect events

Events can address issues that solo agers are coming to terms with, such as decision-making on one’s own, medical power of attorney, financial planning and loneliness.

4. Marketing materials

While married couples will always be depicted in brochures and ads, it’s also important to think about the diverse populations we’re serving and make sure they’re represented in marketing pieces.

5. Campus events

Since connecting with others is so important for kinless seniors, inclusive activities, events and clubs can help them feel a part of campus life. Shared meals with “friendship tables” open to all are also a great way to make solo agers feel welcome.

6. Celebrations

Holidays like Mother’s Day, when the mailroom is filled to bursting with bouquets and cards from children around the country, can be a time to also acknowledge those who don’t have children.

7. Support groups

Campus support groups that address the needs of solo agers can help them find a niche in your community.

Senior communities have always had a focus on supporting solo residents, but with the trend toward more divorces and lower marriage rates, combined with longer lifespans, this group will only continue to grow. In a society that doesn’t provide well for those without family ties, communities can be a powerful solution to help them thrive during their later years.

Google Analytics GA4 will be the only way to track website activity after July 1.

Don’t worry, we have the details you need and options to make your old data useable.

By now you’ve probably seen this banner or heard that if you use Google Analytics you need to migrate to GA4. If you haven’t, get in touch with your agency of record to make the move to GA4 today!

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions About GA4

Q. Who is affected?
A. Any property (website, software, app) using Google Analytics’ Universal Analytics (UA).

Q. Why do I need to be concerned?
A. GA3, more commonly known as Universal Analytics, is going away. Three things will occur when that happens:

1. UA data will stop collecting on July 1, 2023.
2. You will lose UA data. (No specific date has been given, other than October 14, 2023.)
3. If you haven’t already set up GA4, you will need to do so in order to continue to track and measure website activity

Q. Why is Google doing this?
A. Google is moving toward Google Analytics 4 (GA4), the next-generation measurement solution, because it takes a privacy-first approach to follow people the way they use technology today.

Privacy was just a glimmer in the eyes of web visitors when UA was released over a decade ago. Now more protections are expected and included. For example, GA4 tracks first-party cookies — meaning cookies placed by a website’s owner, not someone other than that site’s owner — thereby protecting visitors from invasive third-party cookies, which pose a security risk.

When Universal Analytics was created, we primarily explored sites using just one device (usually a desktop or laptop). Consumers are now more likely to start a website journey on their smartphone while watching TV, then move to a bed cuddled up with their tablet, and conclude their journey the next day on their laptop. GA4 is built to capture this entire cross-device consumer journey, giving marketers a complete and insightful picture of their online habits.

Q. What happens to my old UA data?
A. Google will only store your UA data for a period of time (not yet disclosed by Google at the time this article was published) and then poof, it is gone. To retain historical data, Google recommends that you export it. Can you imagine looking through spreadsheets to glean insights? Even in a pivot table would be a fast “no” from many people.

Many people started to record GA4 data by July 1, 2022, to have access to year-over-year data on the GA4 dashboard. However, if you didn’t — or if you want data that precedes GA4 (before October 14, 2020) — we have a solution for you.

Data expert/dashboard options

Before you start worrying about your data going to the spirit in the sky, relax — we have you covered. Varsity has partnered with our sister company, WildFig, which offers three GA4 solutions to fit your marketing needs and budget. Our plans capture data from the beginning of your Google Analytics history until the current day of export. Two options include an easy-to-use dashboard that displays standard metrics.

Standard metrics included (old GA terminology)

• Users
• New users
• Sessions
• New sessions %
• Average session duration
• Pageviews
• Pageviews per session
• Bounce rate
• Goal completions (if applicable)

Additional metrics may be added to the dashboard for a one-time fee.

Filtering options

• Date range
• Data will be aggregated to a monthly granularity
• Medium (Organic, PPC, Direct, etc.

Data export/dashboard cost

$500         Straight export of historical UA data

$2,920     Export and historical UA data dashboard + $50/month for dashboard storage/server costs

$8,750     Export and historical UA and live GA4 data in one dashboard + $50/month for dashboard storage/server costs

If you would like to see a demo or learn more, contact kpurcell@wildfigdata.com.

If you have not yet migrated to GA4, the train is leaving the station soon. Make sure that you make the move before July 1 in order to keep from losing your organization’s valuable data, and continue to be able to track and measure activity from your website visitors.

Resource: https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/11583528?hl=en&sjid=2711946442297389965-NA

I’m Stuart Jackson. executive vice president at Greystone. We are a development and operations consultant in all areas of senior living. We work with Life Plan Communities in over 40 states, and have consulted with well over 500 providers in our corporate history. We are often asked to come in and bring strategic thinking to help organizations grow, adapt and change.

Recently, Brad Straub, executive vice president at Greystone, and I presented “A Bird’s Eye View in Growth and Redevelopment” at the Greystone Sales Adventure event in Dallas. In this post, I’ll touch on some of the highlights, including trends within the space and how your peers are adapting their businesses to them.

An Overview of Our Current Environment

Our current environment has a lot of pressures and uncertainties. Inflation has had its impact. Labor has been difficult to come by. Interest rates are rising. Hopefully, we’re past COVID-19 to a degree, but that’s been painful and tough. Yet there are positive indicators, too, like demographic growth, economic improvement and a healthy real estate market  (depending on where you are). Cost of capital has historically been a positive indicator. Rates are rising, but availability is still relatively strong.

Demographics Remain Strong

I want to emphasize the positive indicators that make us excited for the future of senior living. There will be continued, sustained growth of the senior population over the next 20 years. The roughly 25 million 75+ year-olds in the U.S. will grow to roughly 45 million, remaining strong. By the mid-2020s, twice as many people will celebrate their 65th birthday than in the 1980s and ‘90s.

Households Age 75+ by Income

All of that is great, but you might ask, “Will this generation have the economic means to move into a retirement community in the future?” We looked at projections from 2016 as to how many households would meet income thresholds in 2021. When we compared them to the actual 2021 data, the number of seniors meeting those thresholds were actually 30% to 40% greater than projected. That tells us that when looking to the future, seniors will have more income and assets than they had before.

US Home Values Up 110% Since 2002

In some locations we’ve seen a decline in home prices. But we have to take a broader view. Seniors who have owned their homes for a long time have experienced significant run-ups in price. The value of homes post-COVID-19 has skyrocketed. That’s a positive indicator for entrance-fee-based communities, as seniors will have even more assets than anticipated.

Favorable Mortgage Rates

The bond market expects mortgage rates will average 5.6% in 2023. If you look at rates, they’ve risen sharply over the last nine months, but they are still at all-time lows. They’re projected to normalize in the 5% range. That’s great for a buyer looking to buy a senior’s home when they sell it.

Current Market Conditions

Sales and pricing conditions are slow or very slow in 64% of markets, down from 81% last month. 36% of markets are normal, which reflects 2–3-month sales per community with rising net prices. Homes are selling in around 60 days, which is pretty normal for this last decade.

What’s on Providers’ Minds Today?

Let’s shift to the current landscape and touch on the mindset of the customer. Even if people have a high-value home, that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re confident in selling their house and moving into senior living. They may be hearing about the economy and putting a pause on the decision-making process. So how do communities address planning for the future?

We’re seeing a range of methods to position communities for the future, including expansions of current campuses, new locations, satellite locations, acquisitions and affiliations. Let’s focus on a few.

Expansions

Expansions are a great way to incrementally innovate your campus, to better position yourself with current residents, and better serve future Boomer residents who may look to your community for aging well. We believe you should create projects in small phases that are both market- and financially supportable, in order for expansions to support themselves and generate benefits for your organization.

Independent living is the main focus. Creating larger accommodations has absolutely been a trend, because Boomers have more resources and are willing to pay for, or wait for, bigger accommodations. If you have one-bedrooms or studios, you may find those challenging to fill. If you have assisted living and/or memory care on campus, our view is to right-size those types of residences to benefit mostly your internal population, and have them fill those levels of living. Choice for the consumer is key. There is lots of focus on dining and amenity spaces, and how existing spaces can benefit new prospects. We’ve talked about pickleball more in the last six months than I think we ever have! That’s what we’re seeing a lot of, combined with great social spaces.

Canterbury Court is an example of a recent Greystone expansion. This Buckhead Atlanta community has a replacement healthcare building going in next to their existing towers. We’ve been helping them adjust by reducing their healthcare and adding more independent living.

Satellite Campuses

Another trend we’re seeing is the satellite campus. If you’re landlocked and have a difficult time adding more land to your campus, but you need more independent living to improve your offerings, the way to do so is with a satellite location. At Friendsview in Portland, we created an expansion of an existing satellite cottage community, about one-and-a-half miles from the main campus. This satellite community is also adjacent to the nearby college campus for lifelong learning opportunities. It’s already sold out and filled up.

Strategic Pricing

Another area we spend a lot of time digging into is strategic pricing analysis to really evaluate your market.

Nationally, the number of age-and-income-qualified seniors in the market has jumped 20% in the last two years. Your market can afford more. There is value in adjusting your entrance fees and monthly fees, and you can analyze your current pricing and compare it to the pricing of your competitors. Once you have that knowledge of your market, you can determine how to change your pricing and contract structures, and look at your healthcare benefit and refund options. This analysis can help your businesses with inflation and rising costs that are putting pressure on your operating margin.

One thing to do in any pricing analysis is prepare a penetration analysis. We actually test every unit, style and price point across monthly and entrance fees, to understand the market’s ability to afford those specific price points within your mix of units. That penetration rate shows either risk or opportunity in your marketplace.

I hope this analysis of the latest trends in senior living has been helpful to you. Today’s landscape has challenges, but there are many positive indicators that can help your community move forward to a successful future.

Guest post by Andrew Lock, author of  Walt Disney’s Way: How to Build a Better Business Using the Magical Marketing Strategies of Walt Disney. We were fortunate to have Andrew as the guest speaker at Varsity’s 150th Sales & Marketing Roundtable.

How My Journey Began

My journey with Disney started when I was a young child. I was sitting in a doctor’s waiting room and picked up a Reader’s Digest, which had an article about Walt Disney. His story really resonated with me, to the extent that I’ve studied Walt and The Walt Disney Company ever since. Throughout my life I’ve done a deep dive into understanding the practical lessons from Walt, who has been established as an incredible visionary and dreamer. For those in sales and marketing, there are so many lessons to learn from him.

Disney Today

Disney is an absolute Goliath of a business. They own 12 theme parks around the world, 40 hotels and resorts, movie studios, record companies, TV stations, cruise lines and more. Their annual revenue is $45,000,000,000.

What’s unique about Disney is that not only are they one of the most profitable companies in the world, they are one of the top five most admired companies.

“But Andrew, What Does My Business Have in Common with Disney?”

Since you are in senior living, you may be asking yourself, “What does my business have in common with a Disney theme park?” If you boil down the core aspects of running a business, you can identify a number of things that you have in common:

• You want to stay profitable
• You want happy clients
• You want to see enthusiastic, engaged and loyal staff
• You face competition and need to stand out from the crowd
• You continually face rising costs

The key is looking at the principles of what Disney does well, and adapting those into your business.

Principle 1: Deliver a Positive and Memorable Experience

The first principle is most important and it encompasses everything. For many years, customer service was the highest priority for a business. Now we’ve moved beyond it, and experience is the biggest thing that can separate us from other businesses. Customers might not be consciously thinking that they want an experience, but subconsciously, they do.

If we wow customers with a positive and memorable experience, then they will tell their friends. That is the best form of recommendation in any space and the easiest sale you’ll ever have. Walt knew that too, which is why 97% of visitors at Disney are repeat visitors.

Example: Droid Depot at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. Disney decided to sell remote control droids, from the Star Wars movies, but rather than just sell boxes in a store, they created an experience. A cast member helps you choose parts for your droid, assemble it and operate it. You have fun playing with it on the showroom floor. What’s even more amazing is that, not only does a droid cost $100 plus tax, but you have to make a reservation to have the privilege of buying it. They’re selling something so enjoyable that customers forget they’re there to buy.

The lesson? Think far beyond the normal boundaries in your industry, to realize how much further you can — and should — go to create memorable experiences.

Principle 2: Premium Pricing

Many people wrongly believe that price is the most important factor in making a buying decision. A lot of salespeople have trepidation because they think that customers are concerned about price. There’s a danger in dwelling too much on price when it is not the most important factor for most people.

Disney is proud of owning the highest priced theme parks, because they know that this enables them to provide a better product. This is really the biggest advantage of charging more.

So, sell with confidence and enthusiasm that you’re delivering an enormous value. Don’t be shy that you charge more because it enables you to deliver a better product. Be proud of being a premium provider at the top of your industry.

Principle 3: Mind Your Language

The third principle is all about the words that we use with customers. Walt invented the Disney language that he trained all of his staff to use. He wanted them to remember that they are putting on a show. Employees are called cast members, customers are called guests, a group of guests is the audience, the experience is the show, and uniforms are costumes. Rather than just being clever, Walt found that this terminology made a difference. When staff thought of customers as guests rather just a transaction, they became happier and more welcoming.

We’re not going to use the exact same terminology as Disney, but how can we follow this principle?

Examples:

What most say:                                      What you should say:

“Price”                                                           “Investment”

“Problem”                                                      “Challenge”

“No problem”                                                “You’re welcome/My pleasure”

“Sign up”                                                        “Register/Join”

“Contract”                                                      “Paperwork”

“I don’t know”                                               “Let me find out for you”

The words that we choose and use in our business really do make a difference.

Principle 4: The Power of a Name

Walt encouraged cast members to use guest names as much as possible. One of the ways Disney facilitates this is by giving out badges when you first get to the park. They have pins for birthdays, first-time visitors, honeymooners, anniversaries, family reunions, etc. And they write the person’s name on the badge itself. So later that day, a cast member might come up to a child and ask them by name how their birthday is going. The child may ask how they know their name and that it’s their birthday, and the cast member will say, “Disney magic.”

Disney realized that it’s very powerful when we learn and use clients’ names as much as possible. Even if we’re not good with names, we need to make the effort, as it’s so important.

Principle 5: Pay Close Attention to Details

When we are busy, it’s so easy to overlook the details. But our clients and guests do notice. I went into a chiropractor’s office and the first thing I noticed was there were a lot of marks on the walls. When I went up to the counter, I saw a computer monitor with a thick pile of dust that hadn’t been cleaned in years, and tangled cables spilling onto the floor.

I noticed all of these things as a first-time visitor, but if we aren’t walking in our customers’ shoes, we cease to register those details. But attention to detail matters, because guests do notice. Which is why to this day, on Main Street in Disney World, they repaint the lampposts every single night. Because they’re the first things people see when they come into the park. So, to stand out from the crowd, you need to pay attention to the smallest details.

Beyond Walt’s creative genius, he was a master marketer and understood the psychology of how to interact with people. I hope you’ve been inspired, and see how Walt’s principles can be applied in all aspects of your business.

From an upswing in sales activities to new concepts in senior living and positive attention from the press, there were lots of successes for our participants this February. However, some attendees struggled with challenges like sales slumps and poor Google reviews — and their fellow participants jumped in with some welcome advice.

Prospects Falling in Love With Communities
The month of love was very busy for Roundtable attendees. There was a major upswing in activity after the holiday slowdown with lots of tours, applications and move-ins. Many communities are at or close to full occupancy. But higher occupancy levels create their own unique problems.

“We’ve had so much success that I don’t have move-in-ready inventory, which is a challenge in itself.” (Missouri)

One creative working solution that an Illinois participant found was marketing guest suites for a trial stay of one to two weeks, in order to “allow those people [who are interested] to try it out for a week or two, and get a feel for living here.” (Illinois)

Unique New Approaches to the Senior Living Concept
Many of the Roundtable attendees had exciting and fresh takes on what senior living can mean, with upcoming projects and expansions underway.

Zen Community
One participant is involved in a “Zen” contemplative care community opening in California later this summer.

“The community will be a contemplative care community with a much different approach to assisted living and memory support than we’ve done in the past. There will be Zen teachers who live in the community, a tea room, and a fully vegetarian offering based on the Greens restaurant in San Francisco. It’s been 10 years in the making.” (Delaware/California)

An On-Site Dog Grooming Spa
One participant added an on-site dog grooming spa. “In one of our apartment buildings, we took over a floor and added a dog grooming spa where we will have a groomer assist residents on campus.” (Arkansas)

Hybrid Home Expansion
Another participant is involved in a “hybrid home” expansion project. “A hybrid home is really the best of an apartment and the best of a cottage or villa. It will be three stories high with an open floor plan. We often hear prospects say they wish they had parking or a garage, and this model has an underground parking structure where every resident can have one car, kept underground and out of the elements.” (Pennsylvania)

Memory Care Village
One participant from New Jersey has plans for developing a memory care village based on the Hogeweyk concept from the Netherlands. “It is a self-enclosed village concept with its own supermarket, cafe, etc., and everything right there on campus. We’re hung up on the zoning process right now and we expect the local town to contest it. The position of the model, that the residents get to live a natural life, is the hook that draws people in. It’s not just dementia care, but dementia living.” (New Jersey)

Media Coverage of On-Campus Fun
A number of participants were able to invite the media to their community, where they got some coverage for fun activities put on to chase away residents’ winter blues.

“We had our indoor snowball fight yesterday! We ended up on the front page of today’s local paper, the local televised news, and even on CBS and ABC news. (Illinois)

ADVICE FROM THE ROUNDTABLE

Navigating Difficult Conversations With Residents
Dealing with an unhappy resident can put staff in treacherous waters, and even more so when the resident is inciting a tirade against the whole community. One participant shared an experience dealing with one such displeased resident, and the Roundtable weighed in with advice.

The Situation:
“We had very little blowback [about rate increases]. The only negative feedback was from just one individual, who seems to have started a campaign with their family and friends to give us 1-star reviews on Google. A lot of it is just not accurate at all. So that’s been a little challenging.” (Arkansas)

The Advice:
“We’ve found that it’s best if the response is quick, and acknowledges what they’ve said — and if you extend the courtesy to please contact as soon as possible and show that you want to learn more about this situation. At that point, you’re really trying to influence the future visitors and viewers as opposed to what they’re actually doing to the Google ratings.” (Pennsylvania)

“Sometimes in those situations, just posting the response and being timely is important. Also, try to drive the conversation offline because what you’re trying to flag for those reading the 1-star reviews is that you care, and that there might be another side to the story.” (Bill Mulligan, Varsity)

Sales Cycle Slumps
One Pennsylvania participant enlisted the Roundtable participants for help with an issue with one of their sales counselors who is in a “slump,” asking, “What do you all do when you have a slow sales cycle and you want to get it kick-started?”

“Maybe you could have a heart-to-heart with them. Ask them if they’re feeling intimidated by an area, or what their knowledge level is, just work with that person.” (Washington state)

“Speaking from personal experience, a number of years ago when I was on the sales side, I went through a slump period. I tried talking to other people and seeing what they were doing, and analyzed my own weak areas. I discovered something about myself, that I spent too much time launching into our community offerings when talking with the prospect rather than getting to know their story first. When I turned that around and focused on the person and said, ‘Tell me more about you,’ it made a really big difference.” (Arkansas)

Learn from your peers at our weekly Sales & Marketing Roundtables. Join us on Thursdays at noon ET, 11 a.m. CT and 9 a.m. PT. For login information, email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

As a sales consultant, market researcher and mystery shopper with nearly 30 years of experience within the senior living industry, I visit many senior living communities every year. In my experience, I’ve identified some simple, affordable things you can do to make your community more appealing to potential residents. Even if you can’t afford to make significant updates to your campus and residences, here are some small changes that can make a big difference in the impression you make on prospects.

Be Responsive

• Keep a close eye on web inquiries. At a few communities, I filled out a website contact form and requested a tour at a specific time and day, but got no response to the request.
• Have a back-up team of individuals available to provide a tour whenever possible. After I received no response from one community and stopped by, no one was able to give me a tour and I was handed a brochure.

Enhance Curb Appeal

Just as in all real estate tours, you always want your property to wow the visitor at first sight. Some things to watch out for:

• Make sure the buildings are power-washed to fend off that dingy, old look.
• Keep your signage looking fresh — it should never be dirty, damaged, unreadable or have overgrown vegetation.
• Keep your landscaping well-groomed. Brown, patchy grass and scraggly bushes make a poor impression.
• It’s a nice touch to have a welcome sign at the main entrance for the visitor.
• Ensure light bulbs are not burned out or dead bugs visible in the light fixtures during the tour.

Start the Tour Off Strong

Take a look at your discovery room to make sure it’s warm and welcoming.

• Provide an area that’s conducive to intimate, private conversation.
• Keep the room clean, decluttered and neat.
• Offer your prospects a cold drink or a hot cup of coffee or tea.
• A large, mounted TV with a virtual sales platform sharing floor plans, amenities, site plan/campus can be a strong selling tool.
• Have documents such as floor plans, menus, fitness schedule, program/activity calendar, rate sheets readily available.

Make Affordable Upgrades to Residences

Even if you can’t afford to do a full-scale remodel on apartments or cottages/villas, there are cost-effective ways to show them to their best advantage.

• Ensure the front door to the residence is freshly painted and not damaged or scuffed. Place “Welcome Home” in the nameplate vs. nothing or the previous resident’s name.
• Declutter residences for a cleaner impression. Less is better.
• Remove all items left from prior residents.
• Ensure housekeeping cleans the residence prior to showing it. Ensure all available residences are cleaned on a regular basis.
• Stage your residences with new, modern furniture, rather than with furniture left by deceased residents.
• Remove or drywall over popcorn ceilings, which feel outdated.
• Update lighting. Large fluorescent lights in the kitchen feel institutional and not residential.
• Update everything at the same time for cost and time savings and a cohesive, modern look. For instance, in some bathrooms I toured, the lower-height oak cabinets were still in place; however, the kitchen cabinets were updated and modern.

Make It a Happy Ending

• At one community, tours ended in the performing arts center with an exit out the side door. I recommend ending the tour in the discovery center for a next-step discussion.
• Offer your prospects something to drink during the closing conversation.
• Consider leaving your visitor with a small gift — at one community I was offered eclairs branded with a ribbon printed with the community logo, and another offered me something from their cafe to take with me.

Follow Up Promptly

Make sure to follow up right away after the tour. I appreciated it when a sales director sent me an email the same day with videos of the apartments we toured, and also mailed a handwritten note a few days later.

Thank you for reading the insights I’ve gathered after mystery shopping many types of senior communities. If you have any questions about how to make your community more appealing during tours, please feel free to contact me at jgibble@varsitybranding.com.

Guest post by Van Cluck, President of L4 Lifestyles

Recently, Van Cluck, a leader in senior living for the past three decades, was a guest speaker at the Varsity Sales & Marketing Roundtable. Here are some words of advice he shared.

I have spent the last 30 years, really my entire professional career, in the senior living space. It’s been a true honor to work in this industry. Here is my perspective on what I’ve learned and observed in my 30 years.

1. It’s up to us to train the next generation.

When I started my very first role in senior living, I was a 24-year-old newly degreed accountant. I didn’t know much of anything, to be honest, when I went to work at the oldest and very first standalone independent living community in Nashville. Thankfully, a mentor came into my life very early on. He was executive director of that community, and he took me under his wing and taught me so much. I still think back on those lessons learned and their value.

That sense of family and mentorship is a real opportunity to impact the spaces we’re in. From that, I’ve tried to develop those mentor relationships, not just with my team, but with the industry as a whole. That has given me opportunities like being the chair of LeadingAge Tennessee. I just think it’s important to develop those who will come behind us. We don’t work in a space that is being trained well or frequently by academic institutions. So it’s really up to us to train the next generation.

2. Senior living is much more than housing.

One of the things I’ve learned in my career is that senior living is so much more than housing — or it better be, if we’re going to be successful. Layering the dimensions of who we are and what we do is such a huge part of the sales process. When it’s just about housing, we’ll only end up losing to the next community who is surpassing us, and we need to be more than that.

3. Have a healthcare and hospitality focus.

In my next role, I transitioned to a CCRC in Nashville where I spent 16 years as a CFO and then CEO, originally called Blakeford at Green Hills. There, we not only continued to develop and expand that community, but also grow some ancillary businesses. We launched Blakeford At Home, and our life care without walls product called LiveWell by Blakeford. Both are very successful today, and both also spoke to the dimensions of what we must do outside of just housing, by also being hospitality and healthcare. We want people to desire to be there, and we can create those dynamics where we are the community where people want to be when they need care services.

4. Help your residents age with purpose.

After my time at Blakeford at Green Hills, I had the opportunity to come home to Lebanon and work with a family group that owns senior living communities. The name of our company is L4 Lifestyles. I came up with the name and I’m very proud of it. As I reflected on the many residents and families I’ve served, I asked myself, “Who are those residents, from a purely anecdotal standpoint, who have aged the best?” And the commonality I’ve found is those who continued to live with purpose at every stage of their life. That was the question I developed to ask ourselves: “What are you living for, and what is your purpose?” So “What are you living for” — “living for” — became “L4.” That became the company brand, to really help us all to focus on the concept of purposefully aging. How are we touching all of our residents? Not just as a nice place to live, not just having great activities, but how are we impacting them purposefully? They are looking at us to be more than just a place to live, but a place to age well.

5. Encourage each other.

Let me emphasize how much value groups like this bring to us, because just today, hearing you talk, I wrote down three different things to bring back to our communities. We can’t minimize the importance of continuing to encourage each other, because in doing so, we will only serve our residents better.

6. Learn to overcome challenges — and make your residents part of the solution.

Recently at Cornerstone Place, our new master-planning project in Lebanon, someone on my team asked if I had considered the Spring Creek bladderpod in our planning. He said, “You better learn about it, because a lot of the 90 acres of land we’re developing is located there.” It’s a lovely little flower only found in very few areas of the country, and it’s protected by environmental guidelines. As we’re developing this property, we had to ask ourselves, “How will we protect this flower?” So our new logo features the Spring Creek bladderpod, and part of our residents’ role will be the protection of and care for the flower, which appears in various bodies of water on campus. I think the real lesson is that, whatever our challenges are, it is often our residents, who are right there in front of us, who are part of the solution.

In case you couldn’t make it to our December Sales & Marketing Roundtables, here are some of the trends we saw in senior living last month, and a look forward to 2023.

1. Holiday Conversations. New Year’s Conversions.

Many participants saw sales activity gaining momentum in December. At this time of year, children come home for the holidays and notice that Mom and Dad aren’t getting around as well as they used to, and might benefit from senior living options. Sales and marketing leaders saw leads pick up, which will hopefully become conversions in January now that the busy holiday season is over.

2. Connecting With Kinless Seniors

A frequent topic of conversation in December was “kinless” seniors, or seniors who do not have family support, whether it be because they never married, never had kids, are widowed, or for whatever reason don’t have a support network nearby. Kinless seniors can be uniquely limited in their caregiving support, and senior living communities can be well equipped to serve them.

“There are quite a few kinless folks who visit us. And I see them as very proactive, coming in and talking to us about their future plans, making sure they have their legal documents in order.” (Washington state)

3. Nearly Universal Rate Increases — and Tips for Communicating Them

Entry fees and monthly service fees are being raised for 2023 in most senior living communities.

“The industry standard is a 9% to 10% increase, on average this year. (Pennsylvania)

Sales and marketing leaders shared helpful tips on how to best communicate rate increases with residents. It was agreed that it’s best to be extremely transparent with why fees have to go up, and to go into detail about why.

“We were extremely clear about why we raised rates and broke down the pricing for our residents. We were clear on what we spent on renovation and really broke it down. We also showed figures of how the minimum wage is going up, how utilities have increased, how the food bills have gone up.” (Massachusetts)

When using this up-front approach, residents tend to have less pushback and are more accepting of the current situation.

4. Loneliness as a Public Health Problem

Americans are spending more and more hours alone than ever before. Our time spent alone has increased by over nine hours a week. This trend started well before the pandemic, although 2020 surely exacerbated it, and we know that time spent alone dramatically increases as we age. We discussed that it could be valuable for sales teams to convey that time spent alone can be dramatically reduced for people who live in senior communities.

5. Competition Changing to At-Home Options

Sales and marketing leaders agree that their competition isn’t necessarily the other community down the road — especially for independent living. More often, they’re competing against home health agencies and private duty care.

“I have always said that I feel like other communities aren’t our competitors. We’re all competing against the home and the prospect staying at home.” (Washington state)

“It’s when the home is no longer working for them that people start calling us.” (Massachusetts)

See what’s new in senior living for 2023 at our weekly Sales & Marketing Roundtables. Join us on Thursdays at noon ET, 11 a.m. CT and 9 a.m. PT.

For login information, email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

By Dana Wollschlager,  Plante Moran

This article was originally published by Plante Moran. Reprinted with permission.

The actions senior living leaders take now will set the stage for how their organizations transform and thrive into the future. Success will require a fundamental shift in the way leaders approach their business.

As senior living and care providers slowly pivot away from crisis-mode, it’s clear we’ll be facing a new normal rather than business as usual. The actions leaders take now will set the stage for how their organizations emerge from this crisis. Success will require a fundamental shift in the way leaders approach their business — a shift that may be especially difficult for those used to the slower pace of nonprofits.

Catalyzing Transformation

There are six ways leaders need to adapt their thinking to catalyze transformation within their organization.

Be bold — ask the critical questions

The first step to transformational growth is to ask the uncomfortable question, “What needs to change within our communities?” Leaders should scrutinize their operations, procedures, culture, technology, design and the built environment, unit mix, staffing model, pricing … the list should be exhaustive of every function of your organization. Just because you’ve always done something some way doesn’t mean it should remain that way. In fact, familiarity and longevity might make a process even more suspect.

Be thoughtful — start with strategic planning

Strategic planning is a critical first step toward meaningful transformation, allowing organizational leaders to align on the vision, goals, and objectives that will guide decision-making and hone priorities. This process requires an analysis of internal strengths and weaknesses and external opportunities and threats to guide planning that will transform your organization into a stronger, nimbler one. As part of those discussions, consider policies and regulations, economic trends, and broader senior living trends that may affect any long-term decision-making.

Be adaptable — consider diversification of portfolio and position

Does your organization have too much of one product and service? Many organizations are evaluating the produce and revenue mix in light of the pandemic. Especially as consumers in the market continue to show their preference for assisted living and independent living over nursing homes, you’ll need to consider reducing the number of skilled nursing beds  on your campus. A market study will shed light on the demand and supply metrics in your market to uncover where you may be overbuilt or missing opportunities.

Be inclusive — prioritize leadership diversification

According to research, diverse teams are better at making decisions 87% of the time over non-diverse teams. Diversity of skillsets, diversity of thought, and diversity of leadership will help make your organization stronger. Consider looking outside of our industry for new talent and broadening your diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives  for new leadership candidates.

Be educated — provide ongoing board education

Leaders must make ongoing education a priority for the organization’s board members. Your board members generally do not work in our industry, so they don’t have firsthand knowledge of the day-to-day operations and challenges we face. Making sure they are abreast of current factors influencing the senior living and care industry will go a long way to helping them make informed, timely decisions when necessary. We offer board retreats to bring your board members up to speed on important market trends.

Be prepared — think about succession planning

If you’d like to see your organization remain viable over the next 10, 20, 30 years, successful planning is key. Succession planning is often only addressed when change is imminent or in response to an unexpected crisis or staff departure. Starting early not only allows for better planning but fosters talent development at a more realistic and achievable pace. If your organization has not focused on building a team behind the current leadership, now is the time to build a plan. (Your DEI efforts factor into this as well!)

Leading the Change

Now more than ever, the market is demanding leaders adapt if they want their mission to survive and thrive. This kind of change will not happen overnight. The process to become more bold, thoughtful, adaptable, inclusive, educated, and prepared is one started with optimism and continued with intentionality. Senior living organizations will become healthier and stronger if we commit to shedding the expectations of the past, challenging the status quo, and blazing a trail toward transformation.

In case you couldn’t make it to our November Sales & Marketing Roundtables, here are some key takeaways from the month.

Rates Jump for 2023
Rate increases are expected to take a high leap in the upcoming year due to inflation and rising living expenses. Entrance and/or monthly fees are being raised across the board.

“Our rates are going up 7.5 to 8%, which is the biggest increase we’ve ever had that I can remember. Usually, it’s only 2 to 3%. I also heard the average rate increase in the country is 9%.” (Washington state)

“Yes, we’re raising our entrance fee as well, by roughly 10 to 15%.” (Arkansas)

GUEST SPEAKERS OF THE MONTH 

The Party is Over in Real Estate

Elias Papasavvas, CEO of Second Act Financial Services 

CElias spoke about the changing housing market and how it will likely impact the senior living industry. Seniors now have rising mortgage rates, lots of newer construction, and other factors that are putting the pressure on home sales and adding time to the selling process. This means it won’t be as easy anymore for seniors to sell their houses, and not as quickly as they did earlier in 2022 during the housing boom. Second Act is a senior-focused division of a Federal Savings Bank that offers a senior-focused Home Equity Line of Credit and bridge loan solutions. They work with senior living sales professionals to help with the home sale process for seniors looking to move into an LPC/CCRC.

“Studies show that if you embed the conversation with how to pay for senior living in the beginning of the journey, and communicate that you have the solutions if somebody can’t sell their home in time or doesn’t want to at their move-in time, it can increase sales by 6%,” says Elias.

Rethinking Resident Engagement

Shawn Richard, Vice President Strategic Accounts, Cubigo
Shawn spoke about rethinking resident engagement and the importance of resident experience overall. Senior living sales and marketing programs are shifting more toward selling a lifestyle, and how to tailor the resident experience to meet the needs of the baby boomers as they filter into the senior living space. Communities need to have programs and activities that are personalized to residents, as well as having the methods to track resident engagement and satisfaction. Cubigo is an app that residents can download on their device, where they can track events in their calendar, RSVP to activities, manage their transportation and dining, and more.

“A focus on resident experience is becoming more prevalent, and people are talking more and more about it overall,” says Shawn. “Programs are shifting to meet the needs of the new wave of seniors coming in. So we need a holistic and a personalized view on what they’re looking for, versus the broad brush we used to apply to it.”

“When looking at resident experience as a whole, it’s not just experience itself, but how you can tailor it to the individual,” Shawn says, “When you think about experience and selling lifestyle, there’s a company who does a phenomenal job of it, and that’s Margaritaville. They take their experience in resort living to apply to senior living, and these are properties pre-selling that are full before they even open.”

Selling Through the Holidays
After the slowdown of the summer and the mad rush of September/October, November is calming down but is still steady. Life Plan Community sales and marketing leaders are staying busy with planning for the upcoming new fiscal year, and preparing for the busy holiday season of events. Many are hosting open houses to invite people into their community during the holidays.

“We’re having a holiday dinner for residents, and that is always the event of the year. Anyone who is a depositor — whether they’re a resident, or not moving in for months — can come as a networking opportunity.” (Wisconsin)

“We’ve had snow the past few days, but we got in a turkey trot event before the snow came. We had residents from all levels of care doing laps on the grounds, dressed up as turkeys and other things.” (Illinois)

Many communities hosted successful Veterans Day events and invited military guest speakers, or even their own residents, to share about their military experience.

“We’re having a guest speaker from the local Air Force base coming out. We’ll recognize our veterans, of course, and we’ll do different military hymns. And the local ROTC will come out and do a presentation. We do offer a veterans’ benefit with a discount on their entrance fee.” (Arkansas)

Takeaways From SMASH
Several roundtable participants picked up new tools at the Senior Care Marketing & Sales Summit  (SMASH)

“Everything is all about local SEO, especially for standalone communities. Being local is so important, so [we’re] trying to have more of a focus that way.” (Wisconsin)

“Content is king. So much about the customer journey is having the right content, on the right platform, at the right time. Keywords aren’t the thing anymore, but key intent is, the intent of the person viewing your content.” (Washington state)

Join the conversation at our weekly Sales & Marketing Roundtables on Thursdays at noon ET, 11 a.m. CT and 9 a.m. PT.

For login information, email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

This article by Seth Anthony, Chief Revenue Officer at LW Consulting, Inc., was originally published at LW-consult.com and is reprinted here with permission.

Let’s be honest with ourselves.

For years, many organizations have viewed having a comprehensive compliance program as “check the box” activity. If there was a binder on the shelf labeled “Compliance Program,” then organizational leadership felt like they were covered.

Then, along came the role of Compliance Officer, and it became that person’s issue. Except, the comprehensive compliance program was one problem among many. While the compliance officer was busy putting out fires, programs moldered on shelves, with few tangible updates. Meanwhile, compliance requirements grew exponentially, with little opportunity for corporate leadership to integrate those changes into their daily operations in a holistic way.

Then, there was the pandemic. Businesses went from “firefighting” compliance into full operational triage. Now, as the pandemic fades, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of the Inspector General (OIG) and the Department of Justice (DOJ),  are getting serious about enforcing compliance failures.

And they are going to hold you personally responsible.

In the September 15, 2022 policy revision, DOJ made substantial changes relating to personal accountability, outside monitors, misconduct, voluntary disclosures, and expectations around the integration of compliance into the culture of an organization. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco made it very clear that a new era of “personal accountability” has dawned at the DOJ by stating, “[R]esourcing a compliance department is not enough; it must also be backed by, and integrated into, a corporate culture that rejects wrongdoing for the sake of profit.”

That is certainly some tough talk! But what should it mean to operators and leaders, especially those working in healthcare settings?

DOJ has said that when bringing a criminal complaint, their agents will consider a broad range of issues, including reward and compensation metrics tied to compliance, the imposition of financial sanctions for compliance failures, and the role leaders play in allowing those failures to occur. Active participation is no longer the key issue; passivity or inaction will likely be just as damning evidence going forward.

What’s a provider to do?

The answer is simple. Pick up that Compliance Program binder and get to work!

DOJ shared that an effective, updated, and independently reviewed compliance plan is the best strategy to ward off misconduct and such a plan will likely be considered if a compliance breach comes before DOJ officials. If your plan does not include actionable compliance incentives, such as those tied to compensation, promotion, and hiring practices, you are likely already behind the proverbial “8 Ball.”

Ethical behavior and compliance are no longer a “corporate” problem. It’s a “you” problem. Your career may be on the line for compliance failures if you do not take an active role, right now, in making sure your programs are comprehensive, effective, implemented, and enforced.

Is your Compliance Program up to date, or do you need assistance with reviewing your Compliance Program?  Contact one of the experts at LW Consulting Contact one of the experts at LW Consulting  to learn more about how they can help.

September is Happy Cat Month and Responsible Dog Ownership Month! To honor these observances, we would like to introduce you to the feline friends and canine companions of our staffers. In addition to contributing to a happier, longer  life for older adults, pets have a similar impact on our team. Without further ado, we present the pets of Varsity!

Rocky the Pillow-Fort Creator
Owns: Ellie Weaver, Account Strategist

“This three-year-old boxer makes pillow forts for himself out of the couch cushions. He barks at everything that moves and sometimes at nothing at all.

Louis the Snow Bunny
Owns: Emily Runyon, Account Strategist

Two-year old Louie, a mutt, was adopted as a puppy. This big, happy lazy boy is happiest sitting on your lap (all 75 pounds of him) or in the snow.

Loki the Rodent Connoisseur
Owns: Jace Dawson, Project Manager

Adopted from Heavenly Paws, this 12-year-old feline hates to be inside too long and is the best hunter Jace has ever had. (Loki prefers rodents to birds.)

Mia the Tennis Ball Fanatic
Owns: Emily Runyon, Account Strategist

Adopted as a puppy, five-year-old Mia is obsessed with tennis balls and will do anything for a treat or to bask in the sun.

Sebastian the Cat’s Best Bud
Owns: Jace Dawson, Project Manager

An eight-year-old German Shepherd, Sebastian is loyal to a fault and loves to be vacuumed.

Mila the ZZZ-Catcher
Owns: Renee Kelly, Art Director

Adopted at a year old, ten-year-old Mila made her way to central PA from a shelter in Ohio. She lives her best life through relaxation, naps and walks.

Keno the Complainer
Owns: Jace Dawson, Project Manager

The first (and probably last) pure bred Jace has ever owned, 12-year-old Siberian Husky Keno is bullheaded and loves to complain.

Kylo the Cuddler
Owns: Jace Dawson, Project Manager

This affectionate feline loves to cuddle up on the sofa and in bed, but doesn’t like to be picked up. His snores shake the earth.

That’s our pet project. Here’s to our beloved animals – and yours!

At last week’s Sales & Marketing Roundtable, we had a very special guest. We celebrated Martha B.’s 105th birthday! Martha has been an independent living resident of Parkway Village in Little Rock, Arkansas, for over 17 years.

After we sang Happy Birthday to her, Martha shared her perspective on life at a senior living community, her fondest memories, and some wise words on how to live a vibrant life, no matter your age.

Here are some questions Martha answered from participants, who were participating virtually everywhere on zoom.

What’s your favorite thing about being 105?
“I like to watch my grandkids and great-grandkids. It’s fun to watch them and see what they do. I have seven total grandchildren, and three are married now. I like to play bridge. But my big problem is being able to see, so I can’t do that as much any longer. Getting around is harder, too, but I always make it to bingo.”

What is the secret of staying so young and vibrant?”
“Well, I’ve always been active. I was always active in organizations at church. I knew the local high school principal well. After my children were grown, I went to work over there as a secretary for 22 years. Then, my husband had a small business and I kept the books. So, I did two or three jobs over the years and kept real active. I play bridge a lot, and I’ve always loved knitting and embroidery. After I retired, I did a lot of that.”

What’s the biggest change you’ve seen over the course of your life?”
“I’ve seen the invention of radios, TV, cars — my first car was a Ford that my dad had to crank in the front to go forward! That was the first car I can remember.  I’ve also seen a lot of change in home appliances. I didn’t have a washing machine or a dryer growing up, and those kinds of things are wonderful to have around the house.”

Do you have any fond memories of the last 105 years you would like to share?
“I have just enjoyed my life. I’ve always gone to Sunday school and church, and I’ve always stayed involved there. I love knitting, I do a lot of that at church. I play lots of bridge, and they say that’s very good for your mind. And I try to play bingo! When I moved here, I was very active and knew everybody and enjoyed all of the activities. Nowadays, things have slowed down because I can’t see as well, but I would still be doing everything if I could.”

What is the biggest historical event that stands out to you in the 105 years you’ve lived?
“Oh, goodness. It’s hard to think of one … I watched our church burn. I lived close enough to see the smoke. When I went over with my family, I saw it burning. That was ‘history’ to me.”

What is life like there at Parkway Village?
“It’s great, they’ve really taken care of me here. It’s been a perfect place for me. I moved here after I developed macular degeneration and I could no longer drive, so my son said I needed to be somewhere with people. Since I moved here, everyone has been wonderful to me. We have excellent security. The maintenance team comes as soon as you call. I have a housekeeper who comes to my apartment once a week, but other than that, I take care of myself and live independently. And I hope I can keep doing so!”

Do you have any advice for us on helping people make the decision to move to a community?
“People always say, ‘I’m not ready.’ But what I try to tell them is, ‘You will never be ready.’ But you just have to pick up and move. My son is a psychiatrist, and he made sure I left home, because I wouldn’t have been able to get along when I couldn’t drive anymore. So, you need to move somewhere to be with others. I think a lot of people wait until it’s too late.”

Is there anything else you’d like to share?
“I wanted to mention that Boston University has contacted me. They do work for a lot of senior organizations. They asked me to volunteer for their Alzheimer’s research, so I’m working for them. They have a number of people in my age group in the process of testing.”

Happy birthday to Martha! We are so grateful that you were able to join us on the roundtable today. You are a testament to all we do!

Please join our weekly Sales & Marketing Roundtables on Thursdays at noon ET, 11 a.m. CT and 9 a.m. PT.

For login information, email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

During the past quarter of the Varsity virtual roundtables, some common themes, challenges and frustrations seemed to come up over and over with our participants across the country. Here are some of the solutions they gave during our weekly brainstorming sessions.

l. How do you address staffing issues?

Many participants say staffing is a huge issue. “We have only been able to staff half the number of people that we actually need,” said one marketer. “It’s been very, very difficult to hire more people.”

      Solutions:

• Adjust compensation/provide sign-on bonuses

“Our staffing issues seem to be getting better slowly,” said one participant. “We’ve adjusted compensation to meet demand.”

• Brainstorm new tactics

“We have a task force that meets biweekly, and we’ve brainstormed new ways to recruit and retain,” said a marketer. “We’ve implemented gestures such as pizza parties and other events to show our appreciation to our employees.”

• Recruit displaced food service workers

“One organization recruited by going after the displaced and unhappy food service workers and housekeepers from the service sector,” shared Seth Anthony of LW Consulting. “Their ad was basically: ‘Do you want steady hours and benefits that you’re not getting at the restaurant? Come work in senior living!’ They actually managed to really backfill a lot of their staff by using that message and hammering it home.”

• Provide transportation

“I knew a place that offered employee transportation, where the routes were mapped in tandem with their staffing needs,” said a participant. “They provided the transport in urban areas, which allowed them to hire people who they would not have reached otherwise.”

• Plan innovative career fairs

“I saw somebody who did a career fair with a food truck,” shared another marketer. “I thought that it was creative and fun to combine the two events.”

• Get on TikTok

“We have a few employees at our building who graduated from dining services to becoming CNAs,” shared a participant. “They noted that being on TikTok is ideal for reaching the younger demographic.”

2. Should you put pricing on your website?

“We have put all of our pricing on our website, everything in detail for all levels of care,” a marketer shared. “We’ve done that for many, many years, and none of our competition around here has any of their pricing on the web — other than they have a ‘starting at’ or a basic range. We constantly hear from people that come in to see us that say, ‘I’m so glad you have that on your website because I knew exactly what I was getting into when I came here.’”

“I always use the analogy of when you’re going to a restaurant and you Google them, you look at the menu and they have no prices, you’re probably not going to go there,” shared another marketer. “You’re probably going to just move on until someone’s a little more transparent.”

3. How do you handle events in a changing COVID-19 landscape?

“If you have the ability to hold events in person, you may be able to offer hybrid options if people are still sensitive to the COVID-19 issue, even if regulations say that in person is safe,” shared Derek Dunham.

Another idea? Record the event. “We did a four-part dementia virtual series, and we recorded them,” said a participant from Washington state. “And we just had an email from somebody who couldn’t attend in person. They commented on how nice it was to be able to view the seminar recordings at their own pace.”

4. How do you encourage people to move from their homes when they don’t feel ready?

“I’ve had my directors use the phrase, ‘Beat the clock.’ If someone is reticent, or their body language is closed off, the directors will go into the ‘beat the clock’ conversation,” said a participant from Pennsylvania. “We phrase it as such: that they have to roll the dice, and hope they do ok in the future. We give them the statistics and introduce the gamble of risk and uncertainty.”

“One of our campuses has a ridiculously long waitlist. We initiated this new program called ‘Get Ready to Say Yes,’” shared a marketer in Washington state. “We do meetings with the people on our waitlist, so that when the time comes when we call, they’re prepared to say yes. We’ve had realtors and downsizers come in. It’s a way to engage waitlisters and get them ready to go.”

5. What skill sets do you look for in a sales counselor?

“All of our sales counselors are over 60, in their sixties and seventies,” said a marketer in Washington state. “I think that having the life experience and empathy, and having gone through it with their own parents as hands-on market experience, is so valuable.”

“I agree, I think the biggest deal is with the relationship,” said another participant. “We are very lucky here to have great salespeople with diverse backgrounds. They can learn the product, but you can’t teach that relationship-building aspect.”

“A couple communities I know had luck hiring people who were previously college admission counselors,” shared Seth Anthony. “I think it’s because it’s similar, where they’re selling something big, multi-dollar, kind of intangible, and heavy on their brand that comes with a lifestyle.”

Look for our next monthly roundtable recap in your inbox. Until then, please be sure to join our weekly Sales & Marketing Roundtable on Thursdays at noon ET, 11 a.m. CT and 9 a.m. PT.

For login information, email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

The Varsity team attended the 2022 LeadingAge PA Annual Conference June 22–24 in Hershey, PA. In case you weren’t able to be there, here are some of the top issues we heard about at sessions and in conversations around the conference.

1.Workforce issues

As with all other industries, the aging services field is having challenges finding good people and also retaining current staffing. Several communities noted that they have experienced situations where people have been scheduled for interviews and simply didn’t show up. Communities are looking to do outreach with students and interns, as well as expand marketing and advertising initiatives aimed at employment.

2. Transforming spaces/amenities to keep up with community expansions

Overall space planning is important. While focusing on a new expansion and new spaces, it’s an opportunity to reimagine existing spaces for new uses and to present a fresh look across the campus. For example, one community mentioned that they are opening a new building, including a new auditorium and wellness center, and they are now building out the existing fitness center and auditorium as a new dining venue and pub, as well as other common use spaces.

3. Opportunities for growth through acquisitions, affiliations and mergers

All organizations are trying to stay profitable as they navigate the current landscape. Acquisitions, affiliations and mergers may present opportunities for communities to grow and be well positioned for the future, in the face of new for-profit rental communities.

4. Compliance and IT

The technology at a senior living community, just like at any organization, is vulnerable to malware attacks. We heard about the importance of protecting the system through cybersecurity. Everything from a smart light bulb to an adult child connecting to Wi-Fi can be a gap in the armor, and can create complications for IT from a security perspective. 

5. Midyear rate increases

Annual rate increases are standard for communities, but given the current environment of inflation and need for PPE (along with other, unexpected expenses), communities are considering — and some are implementing — midyear rate increases.

6. Innovations in technology

Demonstrated technology included robot-like Roombas that serve food, in-room Wi-Fi service providers that residents can log on to, and listings of the community’s activities that families can access through their TV screens. These innovations for the future can revitalize senior living, but there are challenges in implementing them for less tech-savvy residents and communities.

7. Digital marketing techniques for generating new leads

Lifestyle assessments, surveys and quizzes can effectively reach leads who are not yet ready to communicate directly with a sales counselor. Questions can be tailored to the navigation bar of the community’s site, the blog content they accompany, etc. — and, of course, can capture user information for future engagement. Examples of survey topics include: “Is it the right time for senior living?” “Is this dementia?” “Is it still safe for you to drive?”

As part of a recent online conference held by Careers to Love PA, LeadingAge PA’s effort to help communities find team members, I conducted a webinar on online reputation management. Here’s a recap of the top-line thoughts I shared. I hope you find these tips helpful in enhancing your community’s image. 

The internet is the first source of information for many consumers. And because so much of what we know and learn about a retirement community is housed online, that means your community’s reputation is largely composed of the information and reviews found on the internet. That’s why having an active online reputation management program is important.

What is Online Reputation Management (ORM)? 

There are conversations happening almost every day online about your community. Some are positive, some are neutral and some are negative. ORM means getting involved in conversations to position your community in the best possible light. It can take many forms, including the management and monitoring of online reviews.

In the end, ORM is about creating balance, counteracting misleading or inaccurate opinions in reviews and allowing your community to put its best digital foot forward.

Effective online reputation management starts with a four-step program.

Step One: Monitor your reviews

The first step in any ORM program is recognizing the importance of reviewing and responding to reviews of your community and then putting into place a process to do those reviews on a regular basis.

There are two ways to conduct those reviews:

• MANUALLY – You can scour the many different websites that collect reviews on a regular basis. With more than a dozen potential sources out there – including Facebook, Yelp, Foursquare, Caring, Senior Advisor, Zillow and many others – manually reviewing can be very time-consuming.
• AGGREGATOR TOOLS –The easiest way to track reviews is with an aggregator tool like Reputation.com (which is what Varsity uses). Reputation.com streamlines the process and allows communities to track, manage and respond to reviews from one platform.

What we like about Reputation is that it allows you to set up alerts so that you get an email when new reviews are posted about your community. With one click from the Reputation interface, you can post a response to that review.

Step Two: Respond to your reviews 

If the first step in an effective ORM program is monitoring reviews, the second step – not far behind – is responding to reviews. Unfortunately, it’s a step many communities don’t always take.

The most important reviews any community or brand can respond to are negative reviews. There are two reasons why responding to negative reviews is vitally important:

1. It allows you to have a one-to-one conversation with a dissatisfied customer and directly address some of their concerns. They might not EXPECT a response from your community, but giving them one could go a long way toward making them less angry and may even prevent them from leaving other negative reviews in the future.
2. It allows you to tell your side of the story for people who might be reading the reviews. You also want your community to appear compassionate and trustworthy, and a genuinely caring response will accomplish that.

Bottom line: Responding to negative reviews is just good customer service. Addressing the concerns of unsatisfied customers shows that you care for your residents and you care about how your community and its employees are perceived.

Step Three: Solicit positive reviews 

One of the most effective ways to offset negative reviews and boost your community’s online reputation is by actively soliciting positive reviews from satisfied residents, their family members and employees.

To get those positive reviews you need to put a requesting system in place that asks for reviews on a consistent basis.

You should include requests for reviews in emails sent to community members, via signage in key places or casually in face-to-face conversations with happy residents and their family members.

Make sure to ask for honest reviews. Never try to coax reviewers into providing a positive review or submit a review that’s counter to their actual experience. Let potential reviewers know that you value their feedback and will use their input to help make the community a better place.

Step Four: Make changes in response to negative reviews  

Most negative reviews have a kernel of truth to them. The final step in your community’s ORM program is to take a hard look at negative reviews and make actual changes at your community to address those reviews.

Those planned changes can be noted in your community’s response to the review. The changes will also help create a better living environment and reduce the likelihood of similar negative reviews in the future.

Hello, I’m Jodi Gibble, a sales and marketing consultant with more than 28 years of experience in the senior living sector. As part of Varsity’s sales consulting team, in addition to sales and marketing support, audits and training, I conduct market research and mystery shops. I’ve mystery shopped  in person, via the telephone and on the websites of 60 senior living communities in several states over the past six months.

During my mystery shop tours and calls, I noticed that some no-brainer rules of sales and marketing weren’t always being followed. I shared these insights with participants at the Varsity Sales & Marketing Roundtable.  I’m expanding on that presentation here, in case you’d find such insights helpful as well.

As sales professionals, we all know these basics, but sometimes we need a refresher — or maybe there’s a new team member at your community who could use this advice.

No-brainer rule #1: Pick up the phone.

We all know that first impressions start way before a visitor sets foot on your campus. Your responses to phone calls, emails and website requests are even more important. Many people will not leave a message and will give up if you don’t promptly follow up on their request. However, it was surprising that only one-third of my first phone calls connected with an actual sales counselor.

No-brainer rule #2: Have sales counselors available.

When I called one community on a Monday, I was told the salesperson only works on Tuesday through Saturday and that she would call me the next day. If your sales counselor is off or they are on a tour, ensure that someone can take the phone call or at the very least have someone call the prospect back the same day. I feel that more people will probably want to visit during the week. Having limited hours is a missed opportunity.

No-brainer rule #3: Know your community.

I called several multi-site communities where the calls go to a central call center. The actual person was often unfamiliar with the community, other than rates and levels of care fees. In some cases, they mispronounced the community name, or didn’t know what state it was in! Solution: Make sure to properly brief the call center staff; they should know as much as possible about each individual community.

No-brainer rule #4: Get backup.

In some cases when the sales counselor wasn’t available, the receptionist, concierge or business manager did a great job  answering my questions. The sales counselor followed up later. Make sure there is someone (a backup team) to answer the phone when the salesperson is not available and that he or she knows the basics about the community. Train weekend managers and weekend/evening receptionists on what questions to ask prospects so that they can gather needed information for you to follow up.

In my next post,  I’ll share no-brainer rules for a successful tour and follow-up.

One of the most mispronounced words of 2021 is disrupting senior living communities in 2022.

Near the beginning of December, our participants had heard about the Omicron variant, but it wasn’t impacting them much yet. One marketer said, “The last data I heard was yesterday in our area that there were only nine cases of COVID-19 in our hospital, which is the lowest it’s been since the beginning of the pandemic.”

Another participant commented, “Right now we’re preparing for ‘just in case’ mode, making sure our communities and departments have rapid tests and enough PPE.”

Even during the second week of December, the focus was on planning and throwing holiday parties, not on Omicron. One roundtable participant said, “We’re having all kinds of holiday activities, and it has been fun to come together as a community to do this.”

And when we asked if the Omicron variant was an issue? Responses included:  “I haven’t heard a thing” and “not yet.”

The Holiday Gift Nobody Wanted

Later in December, concern began to mount. “We’re getting anxious about the Omicron variant,” said one participant. “We’re asking families to be cautious and test before visiting. We’re reloading on PPE and N95 masks to use in the buildings for a few weeks. We’re trying to keep things safe through this surge.”

A roundtable member in Arkansas commented, “A lot more folks are taking it more seriously. People are masking up more in the community.” A participant in Illinois added:  “There is an uptick in the Omicron variant around here. We’re offering free testing for the community.” From Wisconsin, we heard: “We’re going to get through Christmas and keep moving forward until after the holiday. We held a clinic last week where 75 people got boosted, including both residents and employees. Everyone is nervous about what’s going to happen with the new variant.”

New Year, New Cases

By the end of the month, communities were shutting down New Year’s Eve parties. One couple received a celebration kit complete with filet mignon, a dessert sampler and party hats after the community’s bash was canceled due to an outbreak among the staff.

Now that Varsity has held its first post-holiday roundtable on January 6, the situation has blown up. With Omicron surging, many communities feel like it’s Groundhog Day — they closed, they opened, and now they’re closed again.

One marketer commented, “COVID-19 has definitely hit here for staff as well as our residents, and all of our areas of long-term care as well as independent living. All of our events where we’re bringing people on-site have been canceled at this time. Private appointments or tours are on a case-by-case basis.”

Reports were similar at another community: “We’ve been hit hard with lots of cases of COVID-19. The state has surged in a big way, like everyone. We’re owned by a hospital system and they offered a drive-through testing to the community. 42% tested positive.”

What Are Your Resolutions for 2022? 

With communities across the country dealing with Omicron, one participant said, “I hear a lot of defeat in people’s voices. We can be very grateful for a lot.”

Another marketer commented, “It’s been a challenging time but there is a lot to be thankful for. We have had a really good year and I think we can have that again. I think the pandemic has caused a lot of fear, but I think it’s more about being cautious. Another participant added, “Once people got vaccinated, things got into a bit more normal living. And now it’s taken a big swing back right now. It isn’t going to be like this forever.”

Some roundtable members felt that we’ll get used to it. “Hopefully it will be like the flu in the future and we just get a booster shot, just like the flu has a different variant.” And one last comment: “I think we will just start accepting this new reality for restrictions for safety.”

Let’s all resolve to think positive and support one another in 2022! We’re looking forward to coming together this week. You’re welcome to join our Sales & Marketing Roundtable on Thursdays at noon ET, 11 a.m. CT and 9 a.m. PT.

For login information, email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

This November, many participants in our Thursday roundtables commented that leads are still pouring in. One marketer said, “We’re getting inquiries like crazy.” Another agreed, “It’s been our strongest year in 10 years.”

But even the busiest communities are working hard to capitalize on every lead and plan for the future. While other people were getting ready to pass the potatoes, our participants were passing around both new and tried-and-true sales and marketing approaches that are working for them:

1. Keep resident encounters casual. “We are seeing success with holding more casual events where prospects can mingle with residents versus having a more formal resident panel (which can be viewed as too scripted), so prospects can ask more specific questions about things not being presented here.”

2. Stay in touch. “There are usually about eight to nine articles in the marketing newsletter highlighting all the things we’re doing within the community,” said one participant. “Our sales team says prospects comment on it all the time.”

3. Stop talking, start listening. “People need someone who listens, not somebody who talks,” said a marketer. “I worked with a sales guy who was a master of the art of silence. He’d ask a question, and he’d stop talking. If you can stop talking long enough, the other person will start talking and open up.”

4. Overcome objections. Now that COVID-19 is slowing down, people are back to the classic excuses for not making the move. Here are some comebacks our participants found effective:

Objection: “I’m not ready yet.”

Answer: “I completely understand; however, can I ask what your hesitation is?”

Objection: “Wow, there’s a lot of old people here.”

Answer: “That’s because we take such good care of people, they live to a ripe old age.”

5. Update your floor plans. “We’re filling larger apartments, but it’s the smaller apartments that are harder to sell,” said one marketer. “We’re having work done, taking a wall down to make a bigger living space. People want their kitchen table, they don’t need that second bedroom.”

6. Offer trial stays. “There is a program that a community offers where if they stay one month, they get the second one free. Marketing it that way has been successful for them,” said a participant. “There is also a community that does a Safe & Warm program, which has been very successful for them when offering people to come in and live at the community on a trial basis during the winter months.”

7. Automate insights. “We’re trying to wrap up and create a sense of urgency now, so people move in the beginning of the year,” said one marketer. “We integrated some automated marketing in our database, and that’s really delivered some tangible results from our sales team. It’s giving us insights into our inquires and visits to our websites.

We’d like to leave you with one final thought: Normalize life again. “We need to remind people that there is a life to be lived,” said one participant. Another said, “It’s not entirely business as normal, but the more we act like it is, the better.”

Look for our next monthly roundtable recap in your inbox. Until then, please be sure to join our weekly Sales & Marketing Roundtable on Thursdays at noon ET, 11 a.m. CT and 9 a.m. PT.

For login information, email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

Today we’re talking to Sadiya Abjani, Director of Learning & Equity at SAGE, the world’s largest and oldest organization focused on advocacy and services for LGBT elders. SAGECare, SAGE’s cultural competency training and credentialing program, provides training and consulting services to elder care providers. SAGECare also offers the added benefit of providing qualifying agencies with a national accreditation to highlight the percentage of trained staff.

Sadiya was kind enough to answer some questions about SAGECare and its training program.

Why should your organization hold LGBT trainings?

“There are many reasons why LGBT training courses are incredibly important for elder care providers,” says Sadiya. “The SAGECare mission is in line with that of elder care communities, to make sure LGBT people are taken care of, that elders are aging with grace.”

“There are many community members that have experienced a great deal of violence and discrimination, and some of that discrimination comes at the hands of medical professionals,” she continues. “Up until 1973, homosexuality was a diagnosable medical condition. An individual could lose everything after that diagnosis. That stigma and fear doesn’t go away. Decades of lack of access to treatment, and mistreatment, are causing people to fear accessing care. Folks are delaying care because they don’t think healthcare providers will treat them with dignity and respect. There is a deep feeling of ‘I won’t feel safe.’ SAGECare training will walk you through preparing for and working through all of that with your clients.”

Although the primary mission in these trainings isn’t monetary, there is a financial component, explains Sadiya. “Boomer consumers are values-based consumers. It’s a huge market and it’s constantly growing. In the under-40 segment, the percentages of LGBT population are even higher,” she says. “Over the next 20–25 years, that market will grow even more. It’s better to do that work early and set your company up for success in the long run.”

What are some of the benefits of getting the SAGECare credential?

“The biggest benefit is that SAGECare is the oldest and largest national credential,” Sadiya says. “Elders reach out to us for care, services and information. Getting the credential on an organization’s website becomes incredibly useful. Folks are also going to our website and are searching for credentialed providers in their area. SAGECare provides that repository of physicians who have been trained to take care of LGBT elders.”

Can you talk about your background and why you work at SAGE?

“I have been in the social justice field for my entire adult life,” says Sadiya. “Previously, I developed training curriculum around fair housing, disability justice, and immigrant rights, and worked on issues related to the shelter systems. While doing this work, I was connected with SAGE through a toolkit I built for a study they had just done about housing discrimination. I started doing trainings for SAGE, and I fell in love with the people that work here and the organization. I saw a job opening and I applied, and it changed my life. I’ve worked here for six years. I love the individuals I get to work with. I learn and I grow every single day. Our mission is to ensure that those individuals who struggled and fought and sacrificed so much for dignity, for justice — those individuals who have paved the way for me to live my identity — get the best care. And it’s not just for them. All of us age. I’m working for a better future, so that I can live my identity out loud. I want to age safely; I want to have good care. This mission resonates with me in many ways.”

What is the most important thing we need to know about LGBT training?

“The most important thing is that this community exists, they are aging, and they are not being cared for in the way that they need,” says Sadiya. “This training sets you up to do your job well for this population.”

In part II of this series, we’ll cover nine truths you need to know about LGBT training. Click here to read the post.

For more information or if you’d like to schedule a training for your organization, email sabjani@sageusa.org.

The treats for senior living communities this October included lots of interest from prospects. The tricky part? Staffing issues and COVID-19-related restrictions made it tough for some organizations to take advantage of the momentum.

The Treats: Lots of Tours, Applications and Deposits 

A participant in Washington state said, “Four of our areas (apartments, memory care, assisted living and duplexes) are all 100% full, and I’m not sure that’s ever been the case.” Another marketer in California agreed that business continues to be strong. “We’re going to have 10 move-ins in October. It’s really exciting to see.”  And there’s good news from Arkansas as well:  “Sales for our new neighborhood are good, with 43 of 53 units sold.”

Communities are also trying creative new tactics for bringing in business. One participant from Wisconsin said, “We’ve been really rocking and rolling. For the first time, we offered a promotion of 10% off the entrance fee to people who sign up now, and we’ve had lots of success with it.”

The Tricks: COVID-19 Restrictions and Staff Shortages

Scary Shutdowns 

Something that could scare off prospects: Communities shutting down to visitors because of local COVID-19 restrictions. One marketer shared, “We’re talking about taking everything online again.” A second participant said, “We’re unable to do events, so it’s frustrating.” And a third marketer added, “I’m seeing more restrictions. It’s sad having to see people tap the brakes.”

In some cities, however, it’s nearly business as usual. One participant from Virginia said, “Our team members are all fully vaccinated — it’s a requirement, and I think that’s helped because a lot of prospects asked that question. We’ve been busy giving tours and adding people to the waiting list.”

Creative Hybrid Events

One way of solving the dilemma when prospects are worried about attending in-person seminars: Hold a hybrid event. “As far as marketing events, we have a hybrid event — in person and on Zoom as well, so people can choose to do either,“ a participant shared.

Industry-Wide Staff Shortages

Staffing shortages continue to be a roadblock to sales. One marketer shared, “We’re getting calls and inquiries, but we don’t have enough staff to keep up with the volume …  we had to turn down seven people last week who wanted to move in!” A participant in Arkansas agreed. “Our nursing home is desperately looking for staff and we’re having a difficult time finding applicants.” Another marketer shared, “This is the #1 thing on everyone’s minds — how will we deal with this?” One final comment: “We have a waitlist that’s two pages long. We don’t have the staff at the higher levels of care to cover all the interest.”

Innovative Solutions for Recruiting Staff

When we asked participants if they’d found any effective methods for recruitment in these challenging times, they shared these creative ideas:

• Drive-through career fairs: “We had another drive-through career fair in August, which was successful. They have been fun and an interesting way to get people onto campus.”
• Diversity and inclusion: “We have a resident committee here working hard at looking at diversity and inclusion.”
• Salary hikes: “The board moved our minimum starting wage to $15 per hour, so some will get up to a 40% raise in November.”
• Using staffing firms: Several firms participated in the recent LeadingAge conference, including: Fusion Medical Staffing, Gale Healthcare Solutions, Hireology, OnShift, Intelycare, Prime Time Healthcare  and ShiftMed.  (Varsity is not endorsing any of these firms; rather, merely providing information.)

Holiday Tactics for Targeting Adult Children

Heading into the holidays, some communities are targeting adult children (but not necessarily with in-person events). One participant shared, “We changed our media messages to target adult children more.” Another marketer said, “We put together a one-sheet guide of tips on how to talk about things with your parents.” A third community published an article in a local magazine about ways to connect with adult children who are raising their kids and caring for their parents as well.

Notes From the 2021 LeadingAge Conference

Held October 24-27 in Atlanta, Georgia, the first LeadingAge conference since COVID-19 had lighter attendance than usual, but some fascinating presentations. The major focus? “Technology, technology, technology,” said Derek Dunham, who attended with his Varsity colleagues. For instance, Amazon launched its new senior living product with an enterprise solution. You can read about it in this Senior Housing News article. Varsity, sister firm WildFig Data and Ingleside also presented a session with a technology focus: “Predictive Analytics: Connecting Past Performance to Future Success.”

Look for our next monthly roundtable recap in your inbox. Until then, please be sure to join our weekly Sales & Marketing Roundtable on Thursdays at noon ET, 11 a.m. CT and 9 a.m. PT.

For login information, email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

Guest post by Andrew Leech, Vice President, Operations Management Services, Greystone Communities

Today Andrew Leech is expanding on some of the ideas he shared in his recent presentation at The Greystone Event 2021, “The Art of the Pivot: Addressing Operational Challenges.”

With all the tragedy that has come with the pandemic, we’ve learned a couple of things. In a 24/7 operation, we never have the opportunity to retool and reopen and reboot. COVID-19 has been awful and terrible for our residents and industry, but one of the positives coming out the other side is the lessons we’ve learned. It would be a real shame to go back to the old normal.

Some of the lessons communities have learned:

• Residents can adopt and use technology far faster than we gave them credit for.
• Society is more open to doing things a little differently now than it did a year-and-a-half ago, so why waste this opportunity to improve and secure the future of our communities?
• In every facet of our operations, now is the time to change.

One caveat: There is a strong regulatory component in what we do, which means some things are not going to change as fast as we’d like them to. Guidelines and restrictions are going to impact our changes.

Here are some areas that I feel communities should be looking at:

Recruiting

We’ve had hiring challenges in health care for many, many years. There has been a nursing shortage and not enough nurses to replace those that left. Now the challenges are even greater, with other industries raising their wages during COVID-19. How are we going to compete for talent with other sectors? How can we help lower costs to help pay for talent? We’ve often pitched how strong our operations were, saying things like: “You would be lucky to come and work for such a fine organization that treats employees well.” In this market, rather than say, “You’d be fortunate to work for us,” it’s a natural shift to say, “We would really love the opportunity to have you be a part of our team.”

We need to change our approach to how we’re recruiting talent in a market this tight. We spend an awful lot of time and money to attract residents and get them through the sales process. We need to start to take some of those funds and have the same vested interest in appealing to employees. Some specific tactics communities can implement:

• Pay for time spent during the screening process
• Make sure your community has a director level position for HR
• Partner with a Professional Employer Organization (PEO)
• Text candidates within five minutes of their application hitting the portal (the younger generation doesn’t read emails)
• Offer seven days on and seven days off in skilled nursing care, or four days of 10-hour shifts — think creatively about how to offer work/life balance.

Retention

We have teams that have been through hell and back during the last 18 months to two years. We need to show them that they’re appreciated for the sacrifices they’ve made. And we also have to be realistic about our expectations for retention: A year for a certified nurse’s aide or a server is actually quite good.

Ideas for retention will vary in every single market. Offering employee meals is a great start — but we can’t just stop there. Here are some other options, many of which are also strong recruitment tools:

• Retention bonuses. We believe that a better approach to bonuses is to space them out and incentivize even further someone’s desire to stay with the company. Part of the bonuses may come at three months, six months, nine months, a year.
• Day care. Some communities are looking at spaces on their properties for day care and figuring how to license and run a center. We’re in the research stages, and I do have leaders of communities telling me that day care would make a huge impact. Having day care on-site simplifies people’s lives. Imagine being able to drop your child right at your workplace and go into your job each day.
• Flexible schedules. Gone are the days that if an employee can’t work weekends, they can’t be a part of your team. Now it can be mutually beneficial to be flexible to meet the needs of each individual. We can give team members the life balance that they’re looking for, and they can provide excellent experiences to the residents.
• Attractive employee lounges and locker rooms. We need to evaluate employee areas and solicit team feedback to determine if they are welcoming.
• Fee structure reviews and involvement of residents. COVID-19 strengthened that desire to help, because folks have very strong ties to members of the staff and their teams. The pandemic made us all re-evaluate what’s important. The residents have realized that their communities are not the same without these amazing team members who are working hard and sacrificing day in and day out. We had actually proposed a rate increase at one of our communities, and one of the members of the resident council came to the director and asked whether that number was going to be sufficient to pay their staff a living wage. He was invested in making sure the staff were well taken care of.

Infection Control

Because of the extra precautions communities have taken during COVID-19, we’ve had tremendous success in keeping the flu at bay this past year. Through tools like visitation restrictions, PPE and social distancing, we’ve shown we can control infections very, very effectively. That’s going to be the expectation moving forward. The challenge is, how do we eliminate the spread of infection, while still having communities that are more open with visitors?

Finding Efficiencies

Here’s an example of how we need to work more efficiently: If you have a housekeeper going to three different floors in a main building, as well as villas and cottages and garden homes, are you sacrificing a lot of time and energy in having that person traveling from place to place? This is now an opportunity to reboot services like housekeeping. Let’s break out the community in a way that is far more efficient for travel time. We’re looking for little opportunities to do things smarter.

Dining Innovations

Before COVID-19, dining in was not heavily utilized — and was not experientially the best. What we did learn during the pandemic was that there’s a way to do it well and inexpensively. We strongly believe, moving forward, that there is going to be demand for in-room dining to augment regular dining. We see this through the success of services like Grubhub, Door Dash and Uber Eats. Customers are looking to have great dining experiences with gourmet food in the comfort of their own homes — and seniors are going to be no different.

Stay Virtual

What we’ve learned from our residents’ eager adoption of technology is that virtual programs will always be in demand. Make sure your community keeps up by continuing to offer them and learning to do them better.

These are just small examples of how the need to change runs throughout the entire operation. It could be that in five to 10 years, our community buses will be driving themselves. Something along those lines is coming, so we’d better be ready.

People are more receptive to new ideas than they have been in years, so let’s take advantage of that opportunity. We don’t want to lose the chance to change and go back to doing things the way we’ve done for years and years and years. However, we also don’t want people to run to their communities with all these ideas and try to cram them all in at once. That’s not going to be successful for them. Each market may have different demands.

Fast and Simple Changes

Our focus is on providing small takeaways that everyone can do something with. For example, when was the last time you did a wage analysis in your market? If it’s a year old, the analysis is highly out of date. If it’s not done in the last 90 days, you can’t trust it.

Those are quick, easy things you can do: reviewing fees, involving residents, reassessing culture, looking for opportunities to be more efficient — those are actions that would be advantageous to any operation. It’s important to do the work to figure out what’s going to be most impactful to your team and operations. Now is the time to start to ask these questions and look into these issues.

A Short Window of Opportunity

You have a window of time to make these changes. You have receptive residents, prospective residents and staff. The trick is, you can’t sit on your hands and not do anything or the window will close. Eventually people will wipe these circumstances from their memories and we’ll continue on like we did before.

Our call to action is: “Please don’t do nothing.” If you do nothing, you’re going to be left behind. You can’t waste this opportunity, and if you do waste it, it will have longstanding effects on the financial health and stability of your community for years to come.

Seeing the Glass Half Full

I’d like to end this on an optimistic note. Should we feel optimistic or pessimistic about the future, knowing all that has happened? I choose to look at this through a positive lens. We have had some teams that went through some extremely difficult, once-in-a-lifetime challenges, and the people who have stuck around have built more stamina and become more capable, more resilient and more optimistic. We now have these folks on our team who have managed through a huge crisis, and they will be able to draw on these experiences should, and when, the next crisis comes along. This is an industry that has been challenged by many, many things, from 9/11 to the Great Recession and now COVID-19. There are always going to be challenges. We need to take away what we excelled in and what we learned during this crisis to help our operations get stronger and more secure in the future. We believe that the future is bright.

Q&A with CC Young Resident Advocate Dess Rolfe

Can you give an overview of what a resident advocate does?

The role of the resident advocate at CC Young is to represent the residents and their families in expressing unresolved issues and concerns, taking them to management, and bringing those concerns to a timely solution. I listen, observe, interact, communicate and resolve.

How do you get in touch with residents?

I attend meetings and functions where they are present. Because I conduct surveys on the services we offer, I am in touch with many of them daily. Also, for the convenience of residents and families, we make information about me and the advocate position readily available on our website, in the resident handbook, and other CC Young publications on campus. I also hand out a lot of business cards, and my cell number is on the card.

My goal is for our residents to view me as a friend. If they have an issue that cannot wait until business hours, I want them to feel free to call me anytime.

How was the resident advocate position created?

Shortly after Russell Crews became CC Young’s President and CEO, he talked to me about a role he had in mind for me. We had worked together at another company, and he knew my background and work history. We talked about what he envisioned and what this title might be for this particular role. At that time, he said my main responsibility would be “to make the residents happy.” We began there and went forward. Over the past eight years, my responsibilities have evolved around this original concept.

Why is it so important to have a resident advocate?

The residents respond in a positive way to having their own advocate on campus — someone they know and trust who will always have time for them. In being available and listening to the residents and sometimes families, issues can be broken down and resolved before they grow in dimension.

What do you hear from residents?

The residents tell me they are happy that I am here to help them. They know they can call me, and together, we can get to the bottom of any concern and solve it quickly. They also tell other people. Many times, when I meet a visitor or new resident, they say, “I’ve heard of you. You helped my relative when they were here at CC Young.”

What is a typical day?

There are no typical days. While there are scheduled meetings, events and activities, the balance of my time is spent in relationship-building and problem-solving.

What advice would you give communities?

To have an advocate who is immediately available when an issue arises and one who proactively reaches out to residents and families very quickly. It’s important in this role to be a good listener, have empathy for the situation, look into the matter, and follow up with an answer.

What is your background?

I’ve been at CC Young for 12 years, and in this role for eight. I believe many of my previous positions have prepared me for the resident advocate position. My first summer job in high school was at a small hospital of 25 beds. Later, I became a certified medical secretary, and was a family service counselor at a local funeral home. I’ve also worked for several physicians and psychiatrists. A few years ago, I became a Texas certified mediator.

Most recently, I was asked by CC Young to teach the customer service/hospitality module in orientation to all new employees.

What is CC Young’s point of view on customer service?

Our vision is to enhance the quality of life for all we serve. We put the residents first. It is very important to build relationships through our respectful and caring approach.

What’s the most rewarding thing about your job?

Seeing that the residents and families are happy, with as little stress as possible, and that their issues are resolved quickly — to serve in such a manner that their lives are enriched because I was there to help.

The senior living industry is regaining speed after COVID-19, with some good surprises — and some challenges. One participant had a conversation recently in which she compared the current industry environment to a train, saying, “It takes a little time to get it going, but we continue to chug along, and we’re getting there.”

Read on for 7 takeaways from a month of conversations with communities across the country.

1.  Leads are flooding in, especially in independent living.

Communities are seeing a lot of activity — even if they’re not holding events yet.

2. The American Rescue Plan gives communities the opportunity to get funds from local government.

A lot of dialogue this month centered around the  American Rescue Plan and how senior living communities can get a stake of those funds. The money can go to any community, but nonprofit organizations have a strong story to tell. So if you fall into this category and serve seniors, you are positioned well to receive funding, as long as you know who to ask, according to Seth Anthony, a roundtable participant and Marketing & Business Development Manager at LW Consulting.

If you’re interested in learning more about how to receive these funds,  click here or contact Seth directly.

3. Marketing higher levels of care is a challenge.

Leads and sales for care higher up the continuum are improving, but lagging behind independent living. One reason for that is competition with communities that have lifted restrictions.

Another roadblock is staffing issues. One participant shared about having trouble hiring enough employees to meet staffing requirements for a higher level of care.

4. COVID-19 safety concerns are down.

Prospects’ concerns about safety and precautions related to COVID have lessened considerably.

5. Questions about the post-COVID experience are up.

Many prospects are now concerned about whether restrictions on dining, programming and visiting have been removed. They are ready to get back to normal. One roundtable participant said, “COVID-19 seems to be out of the picture, but our team is getting questions such as, ‘Can I visit as a prospect?,’ ‘Can family visit me if I move in?’ and ‘Are your dining rooms open?’”

6. Communities are offering incentives for staff vaccinations.

More team members have gotten the vaccine, but the percentages are still lower than for residents. Communities are using tools such as education, one-on-one meetings and incentives to boost participation rates.

7. Some communities have seen leads and move-ins skew younger.

Some participants are noticing that the average age of leads and move-ins is lower than it’s been in the past few years. One marketer said, “We’ve had several (new residents) in their 60s and early 70s. We’re definitely seeing a trend here. There is some feeling that after being cooped up during COVID-19, people are drawn to this environment.”

All in all, it’s been a great month! Sales counselors are busy, phones are ringing, events are well-attended and communities are filling apartments that have been empty for a long time. One participant even said, “I’ve been here 17 years and I can’t remember a time where we’ve seen the interest we have recently.”

Look for our next monthly roundtable recap in your inbox. Until then, please be sure to join our weekly Sales & Marketing Roundtable on Thursdays at noon ET and 11 a.m. CT.

For login information, email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

Many people thought it would take senior living years and years to recover from the COVID-19 virus. But this May, Varsity’s Sales & Marketing Roundtable participants were feeling resounding optimism! Their positive experiences with leads and move-ins are echoed in communities across the country, as we found through a presentation by Lana Peck of the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC) in our last roundtable of the month, where she shared statistics about the  state of senior living.

Here are 10 takeaways from this month’s roundtable:

1. Momentum is positive. Leads and move-ins are on the upswing. One participant in New Jersey said, “We have a small memory care wait list, which we haven’t seen since the pandemic started!” Another participant in Arkansas said, “Tours are way up. Leads are coming in strong.” From Pennsylvania, the news was, “IL is booming. Our small carriage home project is going well with 15 of 16 reserved.” And from Washington state: “We’re also super busy moving in people. There’s so much going on, our sales team can’t even keep up with it.”
2. Staffing issues are still challenging. One participant said, “We are definitely having challenges. We used to struggle with nursing positions, but now it’s across all departments. We’ve been offering between $2,000 and $5,000 [as a] signing bonus. Another community shared a tip: “We held our Drive-In Career Fair yesterday and had 27 candidates show up.”
3. The hot housing market helps. “The housing market is really hot and there are not enough houses, removing the challenge of selling your home,” said one participant from Illinois.
4. People are “Zoomed out.” But that’s OK, since in-person events, especially outdoors, are back! “The turnout for in-person events has been strong and there’s a lot of interest,” said one participant.
5. Mask updates are confusing. “Some of our campus is under one set of guidelines and some is under another set of guidelines,” said one attendee in Washington state. “It’s really confusing. We’re developing bullets to outline what our residents can and can’t do, depending on what buildings they are going in and out of.”
6. Communities have to get used to holding in-person events again. “We had our first in-person event yesterday after a year and three months,” said one marketer. “It went OK — you forget things like putting pens and pads on tables — it’s been a long time! It was very well received. We just had some minor hiccups and need to remind ourselves of how to do in-person events again.”
7. More team members are getting vaccinated. “Our staff is showing more interest in getting vaccinated and we’re at 66% right now. We think they are feeling more comfortable now that they’ve seen [that] others haven’t had negative reactions,” said one participant. Other communities are providing cash incentives and not requiring weekly tests if employees are vaccinated. One community even created videos of staff members explaining why it’s a good idea to get the vaccine. “It helped get us over 70%,” the participant said.
8. There’s a lot of buzz around mandating the vaccine. There’s a desire to mandate the vaccine, and some communities have started to do this, but our prediction is that we’ll be hearing much more about this, especially the legal implications.
9. It’s a struggle to re-engage residents. As discussed on a call with LeadingAge D.C., there’s a current struggle in getting Memory Care residents to re-engage because they’ve been in their rooms for 14 months.
10. Move-ins are trending higher. Findings presented by Lana Peck of NIC back up participant experiences: Across all three levels of care, move-ins are up, move-outs are down, and traffic and leads are strong. Details below.

NIC Executive Survey Insights with Lana Peck

• Lana Peck, Senior Principal from the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC), attended the roundtable and shared insights from the latest wave of NIC’s Executive Survey.
  • A few high points:
    • Nursing care occupancy fell more than IL and AL — 12.5 points vs. 8.7 points. Senior housing declined 8.7 points over the course of the pandemic; that includes IL and AL. Nursing care fell the most, by 12.5 points. So, COVID-19 hit nursing properties especially hard.
    • Vaccinations have fallen off — right now, they are at 90% for residents and about 65% for employees.
    • A smaller share of properties have 90% or more occupancy — only 24% in the first quarter of 2021 versus 54% in the first quarter of 2020.
  • On the bright side:
    • An acceleration in the pace of move-ins is clearly trending, and the pace of move-outs is either staying the same or decelerating.
    • In March, we may have reached an inflection point in occupancy.
    • In IL, 56% of communities said they have seen an increase in occupancy.
    • Lead volume is increasing. Encouragingly, we’re seeing a growing number of organizations reaching lead volumes at pre-pandemic levels.
    • Rent discounts, free rent and rent freezes have been increasingly used as incentives to boost occupancy. Most of the C-suite operators and owners who were questioned believe that occupancy will reach pre-pandemic levels in a year or two.

See more details of Wave 28 of the NIC survey here.

We hope that move-ins, reopenings and vaccination rates continue to rise in June. Look for the next monthly recap of our roundtable discussions in your inbox.

Until then, please be sure to join our weekly Sales & Marketing Roundtable on Thursdays at noon ET and 11 a.m. CT.

For login information, email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

At our 46th Sales & Marketing Roundtable, professionals around the country shared the latest news at their communities: Virtually all residents are getting the vaccine, families are impatient with CMS regulations, and prospects are slowly opening up to the idea of a move.

Please check out the recap below, and join us for our next roundtable this week.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, March 4, at noon ET. For login information, please email DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

During our 45th weekly Sales & Marketing Roundtable, we heard positive news: The vaccine is working, cases are down and marketers are feeling optimistic overall, although they’re adjusting sales goals because of the pandemic.

Check out the recap below, and please join us for our next virtual discussion this week.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, February 25, at noon ET

For login information, please email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

During our weekly Sales & Marketing Roundtable, communities shared how they are struggling to manage family and resident expectations amidst shifting state and national quarantine policies.

Check out the highlights below, and please join us for our next virtual lunchtime session this week.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, February 18, at noon ET.

For login information, email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

As the long-awaited vaccine arrives in senior living, some communities are using access to it as a selling tool to attract potential residents. But should they proceed with caution?

This topic, which has come up in Varsity’s Sales & Marketing Roundtable, has also caught the attention of McKnight’s Senior Living. In this recent article, they reached out to Derek Dunham, Varsity’s VP of Client Services, for his take on the issue. Read the full story here.

During our 43rd Sales & Marketing Roundtable, participants from California to New Jersey shared tips for getting employees to take the vaccine, lead generation tactics and hopes for reopening.

Get the roundtable recap below, and please join us for our next 30-minute virtual lunchtime meeting this week.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, February 11, at noon ET.

For login information, please contact DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

At our 42nd sales and marketing roundtable, we learned how residents are eagerly getting the vaccine (and communities are telling the world), but team members are dragging their feet.

Check out the recap below, and please join us for our next virtual discussions this week: our new Continuing Care At Home Roundtable, to be held the first Wednesday of the month, and our regular weekly Sales & Marketing Roundtable every Thursday.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, February 4, 2021, at noon ET.

We will also be starting a similar Continuing Care At Home Roundtable discussion, to be held the first Wednesday of the month. Our first meeting will be Wednesday, February 3, at noon ET.

To receive login information for one or both roundtables, email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

At our 41st weekly sales and marketing roundtable, the mood was on the upswing as the vaccine gave inquiries and sales at communities around the country a boost.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, January 28, at noon ET.

For login information, email DDunham@varsitybranding.com.

At our first sales & marketing roundtable of the new year, communities discussed the exciting news of the COVID-19 vaccine and shared tips for virtual events and video floor plans.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, January 14, 2021, at noon ET.

For login information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

I’m Renee Kelly, and I’m an art director at Varsity. I design all kinds of  advertising for Varsity’s clients — including the blogs for the weekly COVID-19 sales & marketing roundtables. Attending the roundtables has impacted my point of view on the pandemic: I’ve seen up-close its effects on communities, staff and vulnerable residents. For me, the last 9+ months of roundtables have become an unofficial timeline of the COVID-19 crisis in our industry.

When the pandemic first hit, there were so many unknowns. We didn’t know how bad it would get, or how much it would impact seniors. Marketing came to a halt when everyone quickly realized that the traditional tools like tours and in-person events wouldn’t work. The focus shifted to be less on occupancy and more on keeping residents safe and healthy. At Varsity, we also had to quickly shift our focus to better suit our clients’ changing needs.

One thing that struck me from early on were concerns about isolation, especially for residents in memory care. One quote:

WEEK 3: “Those with cognitive impairment don’t understand the situation and feel that they are being punished in their rooms.”

That was specifically the quote that hit me the hardest, and has stuck with me over the last nine months.

Soon after that, communities started reporting their first cases in residents and staff:

WEEK 4: “We have our first positive case and we are working with Varsity on a communications plan.”

Through all of the uncertainty, communities (even competitors) were working together. A community on the West Coast and a community on the East Coast even planned to connect after one call to discuss a shared challenge.

We gradually got into the groove of the “new normal” and communities started to plan virtual events. At a little over three months, we realized we were probably in it for the long haul.

WEEK 14: “There is no ‘end of COVID’ that we can see.”

The issue of family, and how to safely visit, came up time and time again. From drive-by visits to video calls, communities tried everything.

WEEK 22: “Residents are lonely and want to be around family.”

The next few weeks added additional stresses to 2020.

WEEK 26: “We’re discouraged — now we have fires! One of the fires is cutting off the entrance of our new community, so people can’t visit.”

COVID-19 had crept into a few of the communities of those on the calls.

WEEK 34: “I feel blessed and fortunate. We’ve only had 6 cases, 5 of which were employees. Cases are going up around us, but we’ve managed to stay safe.”

We were hearing a broad range of emotions. People wanted to be optimistic, but were fearful of letting down their guard. And, as communities found creative ways of reaching seniors who were feeling isolated at home, occupancy began to rise.

WEEK 35: “We’ve sold four apartments in October due to concessions offered, eight since we started the concessions at the end of August.”

Where are we now? In many states, the numbers are going in the wrong direction.

WEEK 36: “We were so proud that we kept COVID-19 out of here until this last week. It’s having a whole new impact on us.”

But communities are feeling hopeful as the vaccine has received approval.

 WEEK 37: “We’re hoping that a vaccine can help us turn the corner.”

During the COVID-19 pandemic, I feel that Varsity’s roundtables have given communities a place to come together to share ideas, successes and concerns, or just vent. And the emails and survey responses people have sent seem to confirm that:

“Appreciate you and the Varsity team taking the time to coordinate these calls and share with all of us!”

“Thank you for setting up these very informative roundtable discussions. We will be applying much of what you have recapped.”

“I greatly appreciate the communication and listening to peers facing the same challenges.”

“Thank you for hosting this. Got some great ideas that I hope we can implement with the city on Safer at Home order. Nice to learn what other communities are doing.”

“This roundtable has grown into a staple for these times and I think that everyone is enjoying the opportunity to share and learn.”  

“I am buoyed by reading the notes from the meetings knowing we are all in this together.

Personally, the roundtables have had far more of an impact on me emotionally than I thought they would, and I’ve put that emotion behind the work we’re doing. With everything that our clients are now facing, I’m proud that Varsity is part of the ongoing solution. I know that my co-workers at Varsity feel similarly.

Here’s to a new year filled with happy news, and we hope you can join the conversation as we continue our roundtables in 2021. To join us on Thursdays at noon ET, email DDunham@VarsityBranding.com for login information.

During our final roundtable of the year, communities shared what they learned in 2020 and how they’re anxiously awaiting the vaccine.

Check out the highlights below, and please join us for our first roundtable of 2021 after the holiday break.

Please join our first roundtable of the year on Thursday, January 7, 2021, at noon ET.

For log-in information, contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

At our 37th weekly sales and marketing roundtable, communities discussed the light at the end of the tunnel and shared how they’ll be implementing the vaccine.

Dig into the recap below, and please join us for our next roundtable this week.

Please join our last roundtable of 2020 on Thursday, December 17, at noon ET.

This will be our last discussion of the year, but we will start back up in early 2021!

For login information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

As they deal with cases and closures during the holidays, participants of our weekly sales and marketing roundtable are experiencing a mix of emotions: worry about current COVID spikes and hope for the coming vaccine.

Check out the recap below, and please feel free to join us for our next roundtable, later this week.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, December 10, at noon ET.

For login information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

At our 35th weekly sales and marketing roundtable, communities shared the spiking COVID rates in their respective states, and how they’re marketing differently in this environment.

Please check out the recap below. We also invite you to attend our next roundtable, the Thursday after Thanksgiving Day.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, December 3, at noon ET.

For login information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

At our 34th sales and marketing roundtable, we shared our successes and setbacks during the pandemic. We were also fortunate to have one participant share takeaways from this year’s SMASH conference.

Check out the recap and conference takeaways below. We also invite you to attend our next roundtable this week.

Takeaways from the SMASH Conference 

Over 200 sales and marketing professionals from senior living organizations of all sizes across the U.S. participated. One of our roundtable attendees shared these takeaways:

Biggest Sales and Marketing Trends

1. Since COVID-19, leads and occupancy have plunged across the board.
2. The deepest occupancy decreases have been in assisted living, with the toughest objection being “Why would I move my mom into assisted living when I know I won’t be able to see her for months?”
3. Marketing budgets are not being cut and, in many instances, they are being increased.
4. Marketing dollars are being reallocated from events and on-site activities to digital, SEO/SEM, virtual tours, videos and webinars.
5. Marketing automation (automated lead nurture) is by far the #2 marketing priority after digital paid search and search engine optimization (SEO/SEM).
6. Marketing messages have pivoted for assisted living and memory care to safety and security. IL messages are still about lifestyle, with a bit of safety and security in the message mix.
7. Website — making sure the messages are appropriate/correct for the times. For most senior living communities, COVID-19 info has recently been moved from front and center to a smaller tab on the homepage, still easily accessible.
8. Salespeople across the board are still focusing 100% of their time on sales, including nurturing the wait list/depositors, cold calling, working through the database, delivering treats/meals to depositors, virtual tours, apartment tours, answering website/call leads, etc. Activity team members, as well as social workers and front desk team members, are taking care of all window/outside visits, temperature taking, Facetime/Skyping with family members, virtual doctor visits, etc.
9. Sales messaging, especially for assisted living — do not lead with COVID-19. We are living with COVID-19 24/7; however, prospects are calling us because mom/dad needs more help. They want to know how we can help them first and foremost.
10. “Backstage Pass” — can’t tour the community, but can tour individual apartments.

Interesting Sales and Marketing Stats

• New reality — 90% of prospects do not want to talk with us. They just want more information (which they are finding digitally via Google, website, videos, Facebook, Instagram, etc.)
• Across the U.S. in CCRCs:
  • 43% increase in cost per conversion in digital search
  • 39% decrease in goal completion (filling out a form, calling, etc.)
  • 103% increase in phone calls (these are not all sales calls)
• 70% of adult daughters find care for their parents through digital (up from 50% not so long ago)
• Google will drive 90% of digital leads
• 77% of searches for senior care begin online … even for skilled nursing
• 80% of senior living search online is Google, Facebook and individual community websites
• 6 billion minutes of content per week are consumed via video
• 3 connected devices per person — and we switch between them all day long
• Average number of brand touchpoints = six per person … up from two 10 years ago.
• 92% of consumers begin their healthcare search online — with 6,000 searches related to long-term care EVERY HOUR
• 88% of residents overall would recommend LTC. (Perception: 24% of seniors don’t want to move to LTC. Reality: 88% who live in LTC really love it.)

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, November 19, at noon ET.

For login information, please contact DDunham@Varsitybranding.com.

At our 33rd weekly sales & marketing roundtable, we shared how we’re feeling this week. We also discussed a plastic wall that was set up by one community to allow residents and family to hug, shown below.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, November 12, at noon ET.

For login information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

At our weekly sales & marketing roundtable, we all shared creative tactics we’re using to attract prospects as COVID-19 rates spike in some areas. We’d especially like to thank Lana Peck, senior principal at the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC) for sharing the latest insights from executive surveys completed since the pandemic hit.

Check out the insights and survey results below. We also invite you to our next roundtable this week.

NIC Executive Survey Insights with Lana Peck

The full report is on the NIC website. Wave 14 findings can be found here.

We had 70 organizations respond to wave 14:

• Not the same 70 for every wave, but 60–70% are repeat takers, so there is some continuity.
• Geographical dispersion of respondents:
  • There’s a slight underrepresentation in the Northeast compared to national coverage of the NIC map.
  • For the most part, participants are coming from all over the country.
• We’re promoting this more strongly with operators, as we’re getting some national media exposure.
  • It is important for operators to know that, by participating in the survey, they have the opportunity to ensure that the narrative is accurate.

‘

• We went from ⅓ in wave 10 (early August) to just under ⅔ in the most recent wave — a lot more organizations are offering rent concessions.
• 90% of organizations are paying overtime to mitigate staffing issues.
• Staffing/temp agency usage has grown throughout the pandemic.
• About ⅔ of organizations that have IL in portfolio are offering rent concessions.
• Organizations with nursing care are less likely to offer rent concessions.
• Discussion from the group:
  • We are giving concessions on entrance fees and support on moving services.
  • We are offering $3,000 toward moving expenses and incentives to get people to move more quickly.

• Organizations reporting no change in pace have been growing. It’s the highest it’s been in wave 14.
• Deceleration of move-ins is lower in IL, AL and MC in wave 14.
• Most respondents are citing increased resident demand (increase in move-ins).
• Fewer organizations with nursing care beds in wave 14 reported acceleration in the pace of move-ins, with the fewest respondents citing hospital placement since wave 7 surveyed mid-May — presumably due to anecdotal reports of hospitals sending patients straight home to recuperate from surgeries or illnesses with in-home health care.
• A quarter of organizations have a backlog of residents waiting to move in.

• Organizations may be providing incentives. The month-over-month change in occupancy has been starting to rise.
• About ¼ of the organizations that have IL in their portfolio; ⅓ of those with AL; ½ of those with MC; and about ½ with nursing care are seeing an upward change in occupancy rates in the past 30 days.
• Fewer folks that have IL are seeing a decrease in occupancy.
• 48% in nursing care are seeing increases, and 37% are seeing decreases.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, November 5, at noon ET.

For login information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

At our 30^th weekly sales and marketing roundtable, communities shared out-of-the-box, socially distanced ideas they’re using to get people to campus.

Find out how to make these ideas work at your community by checking out the recap below.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, October 22, at noon ET.

For login information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

Last week at our virtual sales and marketing roundtable, participants shared that they are trying new sales strategies and working to debunk the myths of COVID-19.

Dig into the recap below. Please also join us for our next roundtable, coming up this week.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, October 15, at noon ET.

For login information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

Robert Speker, Activities Coordinator at Sydmar Lodge  in Edgware, North London, UK, and his residents have passed the time through lockdown by recreating famous album covers. Posing while wearing similar clothing, makeup and expressions, the residents (and the caregivers as well) have redone album covers by the Beatles, Lady Gaga, Adele, Bruce Springsteen, Michael Jackson, The Clash, U2, Elvis Presley, Madonna and others. And they’re still going.

Robert started this project to keep residents engaged and entertained during social distancing. Rather than passing the time playing bingo or watching TV, he felt they needed something more inspiring to do. It was a huge surprise to all of them when the project quickly went viral on social media and gained international recognition. Robert has done 80 to 100 TV and print interviews, and was gracious enough to talk to Varsity. See his ongoing artistic collaborations with residents at @RobertSpeker on Twitter.

Why did you begin this project?

It was something I’d long thought about, but I don’t usually have a lot of time. However, during lockdown, I had more time to put on different activities with the residents particularly when no family visits were allowed. That was the impetus for me actually starting the project. Once I had explained to each resident what I wanted to do, they got on board really quickly, with great enthusiasm.

What have been some of the highlights of the experience?

There have been many. David Bowie’s widow Iman retweeted it.  It’s just a phenomenal thing to know that the love of his life has seen this project and has liked it.

Midge Ure challenged me to do the Ultravox album cover of Vienna, which was just celebrating its 40th anniversary. So I felt the need to be able to do it. After I sent the photo out, he sent a really lovely message. As a special surprise for resident Sheila Solomon’s 92nd birthday, I’d arranged for her to meet Rag’n’Bone Man backstage before one of his concert. He was really lovely with her. He is a huge guy… he gave her a signed album. It was the one with the tattoo, so I knew that I had to get her doing this cover, complete with tattoo, temporary in Sheila’s case.

Sheila also recreated the Clash cover (a redo of an Elvis Presley album). She’s a real character. There’s not many 94-year-olds that still like going to rock concerts! She’s just waiting for lockdown to end so she can go and see Ed Sheeran. 

How did you choose the residents and carers for the photos?

It was partly on their look, say, if they had a similar hairstyle, but also based on music preference. They had heard all of the artists⎯they might not know exactly the song, but they all know and have listened to all of the different artists. So it was a case of showing them the album covers. It was interesting to discuss different covers and see how the image appears to someone in their 90s, and then it was a case of matching it in that way and taking some photos.

How did you choose the album covers?

I wanted the covers to be ones which were easily recognizable ⎯ the word “iconic” springs to mind. Even if the photo won’t have the name of either the singer or the group, you’ll know almost immediately who that artist is.

What impact has your project had on morale among residents and staff?

Well, they really have loved doing it. And obviously the global response has just been overwhelming. It’s been absolutely awesome, really phenomenal and so positive. They loved seeing the coverage on TV and in the press. For the residents and the staff to receive such warm wishes from around the world is really heartwarming ⎯ especially in this time when we are still in lockdown. Residents are only seeing their families maybe a couple times a week, if that, literally for 20 minutes, at two-meter distances, with masks on. The positivity was really needed. And while I was doing it just to create some smiles, it has also raised awareness of care homes—the people who are living and are working in them.

Did that play a role in changing the perception of older individuals?

It certainly did, because it made people realize that care homes aren’t this stagnant environment where residents just sit around in a circle, either sleeping or watching television. We try to encourage them to do as much as they possibly can. My mantra is: Use it or lose it. So often I say, if you can do it yourself, do it, because you don’t want to get to that stage where you actually aren’t able to do it; so once you can still do something, do it. And with these photos, they were all able to do it, they all enjoyed doing it. So it was that kind of feeling of knowing how care homes are perceived not only in the UK, but obviously in America and other countries, and we’re trying to knock that theory out of the window.

Are there any residents who said, “Hey, I want to be included”?

Yeah, we had a few, and their family members would get involved by saying, “I think Mummy would be good at this.” Or, “Why don’t we use Dad for this?” Then we’ve got residents saying, “What am I going to do? When am I going to be photographed?”

How did people find out about it?

Initially I sent it out on Facebook, to the families, and then posted on Twitter and Instagram. On Twitter, that’s where it went really completely crazy—just to learn who had seen it and how many people had seen it. I said to the residents, over 11 million people have seen these photos. It’s quite unbelievable. 

How were you able to do all the makeup, hair, body painting, photography and editing?

When I’ve got an idea such as this in mind, I like to do it myself, because I know what I need to achieve, rather than trying to explain it to someone else. Also, I didn’t want a lot of people knowing about it, just so that it could be focused on that individual. I could just take them off quietly. There’s no hoo-ha about it. I’d spend 30 minutes or an hour with them. Doing the makeup or the set or the hair.

Can you talk about why you made some of the details in the photos different?

Martin, the gentleman in the Springsteen photo, he’s got his own baseball cap, so I thought, I’m going to use that cap. And I’ve tried to do that throughout, so if there’s an item of clothing that the actual individual has already, then I want that to be in the photo. Sheila had a jumper similar to Rag’n’Bone Man’s, so that’s what I got her to wear. For Hilda and Blink-182 — the model is wearing a red bra, which wouldn’t have been appropriate for her. I showed a lovely red jumper of Hilda’s. Whether it’s an item of jewelry or a piece of clothing, I use things that belong to the residents, to make sure that it’s about them in the photo, not just their body, but also other aspects of their personality.

 Have other communities reached out to you about your project?

Yes. Another care home messaged me and said, “We hope you don’t mind, we saw what you did, and we’ve also tried to have a little go at that.” I think that’s a wonderful thing — especially during this time, when other care homes are in isolation — we need to be sharing ideas. And if this can work in other settings, then I’m all for it. It’s not a competition about who can do the best; it’s about making sure that seniors are engaged and have activities to do.

What has been your favorite thing about the project?

Suddenly, our residents are in the spotlight; they are the main talking point, having done something absolutely phenomenal. They have been able to talk so much about this to their peers, to family, to staff. It’s amazing that it’s still carrying on. Which is a beautiful thing. 

It’s not only just making somebody smile, it’s the fact that residents are talked about. And it’s not about the famous singers, it’s about our residents. It is really humbling personally for me. I never expected the impact and the response. I’m really overwhelmed, and the residents just absolutely love receiving the messages and can’t quite believe that people in America, Australia and all over the world have seen these photos and want to connect with us.

It has been a lovely ride that we’ve all been on. I’ve really shared it, the whole way, with the residents, which is just a lovely thing.

During COVID-19, Robert and the residents of Sydmar Lodge Care Home are helping others by raising funds for three charities: DementiaFriends.org.uk, Alzheimers.org.uk and AgeUK.org.uk. You can join the cause by donating through their GoFundMe page or by ordering a charity calendar they’re creating. Watch Robert’s Twitter page (@RobertSpeker) to see when the calendar comes out and how to order it. 

At Roundtable #28, community marketers shared their feelings about the pandemic and explained why some are seeing a sales spike this fall.

Dig into the takeaways below.  Please also join us for our next virtual roundtable this week. For log-in information,  contact DDunham@Varsitybranding.com.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, October 8, at noon ET.

Get log-in information here.

At our weekly sales and marketing roundtable, we all shared creative tactics we’re using to attract prospects as communities gradually open back up.

We’d especially like to thank Lana Peck, Senior Principal at the National Investment Center for  Seniors Housing & Care (NIC) for sharing insights gleaned from 11 waves of executive surveys, all completed since the pandemic hit.

You’ll find discussion highlights and survey results below. We also invite you to join us for our next roundtable, coming this week.

NIC Executive Survey Insights

We were joined by Lana Peck, Senior Principal at NIC.

Lana:

NIC is a nonprofit organization with a mission to enable access and choice for America’s seniors through data, transparency and making connections.

We’ve been doing our executive survey, since 3/24/20, with 11 waves of data so far. Our audience is C-suite executives and owners/operators of senior housing properties across the country.

We would encourage each of your executives to email insight@nic.org to take the executive survey.

Some highlights from the results so far:

• Wave 10 = 53% (mid- to late July)
  • About half of organizations with more than one property are easing restrictions
• Wave 11 = 63% (late August)
  • Even more are easing move-in restrictions

Note: blue = good; orange = bad

• Wave 8 (around Memorial Day)—we start to see an improvement and a downward trend in decreasing occupancy (directional changes in occupancy by care segment across the respondent’s portfolio of properties—single-property operators included)
• Mid- to late August sees pullback in move-ins for AL

• Note: blue = good; orange = bad
• Across the board, the pace of move-outs hasn’t changed tremendously (gray bars)
• Around Memorial Day, we see some improvement, with fewer organizations reporting acceleration in move-outs
• In mid- to late August, we see a pullback in acceleration again

• The recent decline in a slowdown in leads/conversions is due to easing moratoriums and pent-up demand (especially in IL) when doors opened, and people waiting in the wings could actually move in
• When the blue line goes down, that’s a good thing—it’s a reverse in the slowdown of leads and conversions
• The orange line has been trending lower—about half of organizations eased move-in restrictions
• Yellow line—only about half of organizations initially felt that resident or family member concerns contributed to deceleration of move-ins, but this has increased quite a bit, possibly due to a resurgence of COVID-19 or issues of residents not being able to see family members. This is a significant factor in more recent waves of the study.
• This slide is aggregate and shows all care segments
• Leads, conversions and sales are happening more frequently as of more recently. Before, there was an inability to have people on campus to make sales.

• This shows the toll of the pandemic on organizations—how many are feeling the need to provide incentives to bring residents in. For the most part, most are not reducing rents or fees at this time.
• The majority of respondents don’t have a backlog of residents waiting to move in.

Valuable Resources NIC Offers:

• NIC’s Fall Virtual Conference. The conference will start on October 3. Week 1 will focus on education. Week 2 will be about making connections and business contacts in peer-to-peer discussions. Anyone who signs up for the conference will be able to participate in Community Connector—essentially a LinkedIn for senior housing.

• COVID-19 Resource Center.  Data, analytics and connections to help provide transparency to the sector and keep  communities informed.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, October 1, at noon ET.

 For log-in information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

At our virtual sales and marketing roundtable, we brainstormed tactics to help prospects overcome their reluctance to move during a pandemic.

Check out the takeaways below. Please also join us for our next roundtable, coming up this week.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, September 24, at noon ET.

We’ll be joined by Lana Peck, Senior Principal at the National Investment Center for Seniors Housing & Care (NIC). She’ll be discussing insights from NIC’s ongoing executive survey. NIC has conducted 12 waves of surveys with C-suite execs, across senior living, with near real-time data on the pulse of the market and the fundamentals of senior housing. The study includes topics like changes in occupancy, how communities are supporting staff and reasons for acceleration and deceleration of move-ins (among other topics).

For log-in information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

Today I’m talking to Joe Gorman, Division President East at Morrison Living. Morrison Living provides culinary, design, wellness and environmental services to 450 clients in 41 states, including some of the most prominent senior living communities in the United States.

How are you keeping things safe at the communities you partner with?

At Continuing Care Retirement Communities, we have an in-depth checklist to make sure that associates are safe; that the environment is clean, sanitized and effective; and that we’re thinking through all the elements so that, when communities are getting ready to restart and reopen, they’re in the best possible situation.

We’re doing some unique things—working with different types of communities that are having challenges. They’re looking for the expertise, help and compassion we can provide.

If they need to make design changes, they can turn to our subject-matter experts. We can also help them as they make labor changes so that they can be both efficient and sensitive to what residents need.

Communities may have had two dining services a day. Now, to keep people socially distanced, they have four or five services, as well as a dining room functioning at 25 to 50 percent capacity. They need resources and tools to manage these challenges. We have a robust restart program that addresses these areas, so no one feels alone.

We’re also getting calls from clients asking, from an environmental perspective, what should we be doing? What about disinfectants? We’re enhancing our environmental teams and restructuring to make sure that we can fulfill the needs of all these communities in various geographic areas.

How does your parent company, Compass Group, help you support your communities?

Compass Group, a best-in-class organization, provides food and support services to millions of people across the globe. They’ve published a guide to helps their 25 business sectors deal with the COVID-19 environment. Called “Stay Safe, Eat Well,” the guide is comprehensive, because it has to address the COVID-19 issue in every sector. It gives us resources, technology, design and wonderful tools that can cross over every sector. One of my favorites is ChefNet, a network of local and celebrity chefs who make virtual appearances at communities. They teach kitchens to lift residents’ spirits and show them how to make exciting new dishes.

How are you restarting and reopening communities?

We have a robust platform: ReSTART + ReNEW. In our industry, as the virus changes, reopening practices have to match the needs of different states and counties, at different times. Our plans have to be flexible in addressing the ever-changing environment. When COVID-19 started, we collaborated with our best subject-matter experts in all categories. We immediately looked at how to handle this situation. Now, we have an in-depth formula that we follow depending on the level of care required.

We’ve reopened multiple communities in the middle of this pandemic. One innovation is at The Templeton of Cary, a brand-new CCRC, where residents are moving in right now. We’re introducing a robot that is helping staff by clearing plates, so employees aren’t handling multiple plates, and they can spend more quality time interacting with residents. Learn more about Penny,  the self-driving robot.

What kinds of design changes are you making?

We have a robust team of culinary innovators and designers. They work with design companies and architects to enact multiple changes. As self-service, with beverages and salad, goes away, for social distancing reasons, we’re coming up with different innovations and platforms to solve those problems. Morrison Living’s team is critical right now. People have to make major decisions in a very short window of time.

You think about the pressure that communities are under right now—what they’ve gone through is unprecedented, unbelievable. We want to give them tools and resources so that they don’t have to feel that they are alone, and that they are getting the help they need.

During our latest COVID-19 roundtable, communities talked about the changing moods in their respective states and exchanged advice for successful virtual events.

Dig into the summary below. Please also join us for our next roundtable, coming this week!

Please join us for our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, September 10, at noon ET.

Aging-services expert Scott Townsley from Trilogy Consulting will join us to discuss consumer research and other insights related to the pandemic.

For log-in information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

Last week, at our sales and marketing roundtable, communities shared creative ways to drive move-ins and brainstormed solutions to their biggest reopening challenges.

Dig into the recap below. Please also join us for our next virtual roundtable, coming this week!

Please join our next roundtable discussions on Thursday, September 3, and Thursday, September 10, at noon ET.

On September 10, aging services expert Scott Townsley from Trilogy Consulting will be joining us to discuss consumer research and other insights related to the pandemic.

For log-in information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

At our weekly sales and marketing roundtable, Varsity team members Cory Lorenz, Media Director, and Cara Stefchak, Senior Social Media Strategist, joined us to share their thoughts on social media and digital media use during the pandemic.

Check out the highlights below. Please also join us for our next sales and marketing roundtable next week!

Thoughts on social media from Cara Stefchak: 

Hello, everyone! Last time I joined you, I talked about content creation and brainstorming around what makes good content and best practices. I wanted to keep it more informal this time. I wanted to address some things I saw in last week’s roundtable—activities that I thought would make great social content.

• Think about how a video tour or other event can be leveraged on social
  • I encourage you to work with whomever is filming and editing to get multiple deliverables out of a project. Engagement falls off at the two-minute mark for Facebook content, and one minute for an Instagram post. Always look at what your video is—how you can slice and dice it in different ways to provide you with legs on social media.
  • Design for sound off. We always encourage people to keep in mind that viewers may have their sound off. If someone is narrating the tour, include captions and include your logo early in the video to help communicate your message.
  • Two minutes is the longer end of things. Really, you have probably just a few seconds to get your audience’s attention. With a community tour, you probably have more leeway, but it’s still a good idea to catch their attention in the first few seconds to get them to hang on a little longer.
  • Question: How do you upload a longer video?
    • Answer: If you upload a video that is longer than one minute to Instagram, it will prompt you to go directly to Instagram TV. It will sense that it is too long for the feed, and that it should go to Instagram TV.
  • Question: Can you add captions to an iPhone video? 
    • Answer: You can’t do Instagram Live or Facebook Live with captions—you have to add them post-filming. Facebook has smart captioning, and it might be able to detect your voice, but I would still go back through and make sure everything is correct.

• Virtual events make great social content—whether it’s bingo, or happy hour, or having folks share a meal in their room.
  • Always try to remove as many barriers as possible for participation.
    • Prepare for the event in advance (provide the cards, markers, and step-by-step directions for logging on) to make it as user-friendly as possible.
    • Snap a photo of care packages/prizes outside doors, and share on social media channels. Doing so shows that, even though there’s social distancing, your teams are doing their best to keep residents engaged.

• • Question: Do you keep the activity in small groups of 5 or 6 or a bigger group of 30?  
    • Answer: Smaller might be helpful depending on how much participation you anticipate. You can communicate more easily that way and have more back and forth. When you get in those larger Zoom meetings, it’s hard to jump in and speak up. Smaller breakout groups are definitely a nice idea.
  • Tip: It doesn’t have to be: “We need to do something for social content.”

A lot of things you’re already doing. Ask yourself: What activities do we have that could be nice to capture and share out on social? It’s a smart way to show people that life is going on, and life is still great in the community. It’s always nice when you can share a virtual event. It gives an impression of vitality and vibrancy.

• What virtual events are you doing right now? 
  • We’ve posted some of our activities on Facebook—short programs with people exercising in the courtyard.
  • One community wanted to have a celebrity chef do a cooking demonstration, so they sent ingredients to those who RSVPed. We’re still working on setting it up

• What moments are coming up that you could build an event around?

September 16 is National Play-Doh Day. Maybe artists can create with Play-Doh. It’s an excuse for something fun. There’s never a shortage of those interesting holidays that you’ve never heard of.

Grandparents Day: What a time to highlight intergenerational connections.

Instead of having grandchildren visit, grandparents can make gifts for grandchildren, and they could be delivered.Grandparents can share advice for grandchildren, and it can be shared on social.

• Is anyone addressing COVID concerns directly in social content? If so, what response have you gotten?
  • I follow a lot of clients and I haven’t seen much lately.
  • We’ve been sharing our COVID status and policies via Constant Contact. People are sharing how grateful they are that we are taking care of the community. We’ve been COVID-free since June 1.
  • Have you purposely not put that content on social? No, we just haven’t thought about it, but I guess we also haven’t wanted to brag about being COVID-free because that could change tomorrow.
• Question: A lot of people I know had their Instagram accounts hacked. How can we stop that?
  • Answer: Update your passwords. (Since our personal Instagram is our gateway to community sites, it’s even more important to make that more secure.) Another person said, “I recently had my accounts hacked. There’s a link you can use to report to Facebook that this isn’t you.”

Cory Lorenz presented an Enquire data slide showing recent media trends:

Cory: Social media inquiries are up year to year, and email is up huge. Conversely, direct mail is taking a hit, and out-of-home and paid referrals are way down. We’re curious whether this looks accurate to you for your specific communities. Are you seeing the same trends?

• Internal referrals are down a little, but we’re working on a new testimonial campaign
• We’re getting more leads from the internet and email; direct mail has flattened out.
• We’ve cut way back on direct mail and advertising—it’s expensive in big-city markets. Most of my referrals are coming fromfriends, family and other people who are aware of the community.
• We are getting more internet advertising referrals, and paid professional referrals are down. Since you can’t have events anymore, that’s one reason direct mail is taking such a hit.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, August 27, at noon ET.

For log-in information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

In our most recent sales and marketing roundtable, community marketers shared their recent sales ups and downs as well as some valuable tips for virtual events.

Check out the recap of our discussion below. Please also join us for our next sales and marketing roundtable next week. Details are at the end of the post.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, August 20, at noon ET.

Cara Stefchak and Cory Lorenz will join us to discuss social media and digital media usage during the pandemic.

For log-in information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

In this guest post, Jill Janes, vice president of sales and marketing at Methodist Retirement Communities (MRC), shares her thoughts on how to market and sell communities during COVID-19.

The current environment is a challenge for salespeople and marketers, but at no point has giving up been an option. It’s the same as facing any other obstacle in the sales process. It’s our job to get around it. That’s what we do. Here are some tips and techniques my sales team is using to overcome the challenges of COVID-19.

1. Stress the Positives of Senior Living

Residents who move to senior living regain ground. They slow down the aging process; they became more social, active and intellectually stimulated. We’ve lost ground during these past four or five months, but I believe 100 percent that our residents are still aging in a superior fashion to those living in their homes right now.

Our residents are enjoying three delicious, nutritious meals, delivered to their doors every day. There are virtual exercise and wellness programs, socially distanced opportunities to engage with others, consistent education about illness prevention, and resources for grocery delivery so that they don’t have to leave their communities. Someone aging in their home doesn’t have any of that. It’s important to stress these benefits during your conversations with prospects.

2. Understand the Shifting Customer Profile

Our customer profile is changing, specifically for independent living sales. Customers were always intrigued by a maintenance-free, worry-free, lock-it-to-leave-on-vacation lifestyle. They found it appealing to get rid of a big, cumbersome house and find a new world of friends and neighbors. That’s no longer our message.

For the youthful senior who would’ve normally been attracted to this lifestyle, they’re pulling back. The ones who are leaning forward are older, more frail; they’re saying, “Oh, you’ve got three meals delivered to the door? You coordinate grocery delivery?” The people who are active and well don’t feel the pressures of the pandemic as much as those who are frail or less mobile, or who have transportation issues.

We’re finding that the people we’re bringing in the front door are coming to us with a genuine need more than ever before. We’ve had lots of sales despite the pandemic, but they’ve shifted; they’re from a need-based group of folks.

As an industry, we must shift our expectations for continued attrition—add shorter lengths of stay at all levels. Residents are aging, and people are coming in frailer than ever.

3. Use Creative Tactics for Keeping Depositors Engaged

To keep depositors interested, we have to change tactics. Normally, the way we sell our community is through experiences—come have lunch with us, meet our residents. The question now is, how do we create ways to bring the experience to depositors when we can’t have them on campus?

What we’re doing is taking the experience to them. We’re giving people opportunities to taste our food by having our chefs make mini-casseroles—or lunches that we’ve boxed up, with yummy desserts—which we take to their homes. Depositors are receiving one meal a week, and getting activity packs with games and puzzles.

At these visits, we’re getting our sales staff in front of depositors to nurture the sale. One sales counselor went to a home and saw that the person needed their lawn mowed. He had it mowed and dropped off a pie with a note; it said, “We wanted you to have a taste of a worry-free lifestyle.”

4. Provide Peace of Mind During Troubling Times

There hasn’t been a single thing since mid-March that has lined up with expectations—everything has been unpredictable and up in the air. The most valuable things we can give back to seniors are a sense of control, security and peace of mind. Potential language to use: “When everything is crazy and unpredictable, it’s nice to have something that you’re in control of.” “It has always been important to plan ahead, but it has never been more critical that you secure a plan for your future—in a community with excellent infection control and quality measures.”

5. Accept Deposits Without a Move-in Date

We’re now accepting risk-free deposits without a move-in date, but we’re telling people that, by the end of the year, we’re going to reassess.

6. Offer Preapproval for Life Care

We’re offering to preapprove candidates for our Life Care Communities right now. If they pass a medical exam and have a health crisis in six months, they’re already approved for Life Care. We may reassess this policy at the end of the year, so this is not forever. People need to take advantage of it while we’re in this unusual situation.

7. Increase Bonuses for Resident Referrals

Most of our traffic and successes are coming from people we have relationships with, through resident referrals and friends of the community. Our residents are saying, “This is wonderful; they’re taking care of us so well.” To thank them for their participation, we’ve dialed up our residential referral bonus an extra $500.

8. Offer Incentives to Sales Staff

We’re adding commissions now too. After their first move-in for the month, for every additional move-in, salespeople will receive $500. This discourages them from letting the deposit linger, and encourages them to cross the finish line.

We hope you found these tips helpful! Read more sales and marketing advice in another guest post by Jill: Using a Blue-Sky Approach to Sell Current Inventory. 

As communities gathered virtually last week, most people seemed to be feeling frustrated, finding that prospects of late are need-driven. On a positive note, salespeople realized they aren’t alone, and it was comforting to know that others are in the same boat.

Check out the highlights of our discussion below. Please also join us for our next sales and marketing roundtable, coming up next week.

J

Join the next sales and marketing roundtable on August 13!

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, August 13, at noon ET.

For log-in information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

At Thursday’s sales and marketing roundtable, communities met virtually to discuss their reopening challenges. Mark Ingram, CEO of SenioROI, joined us to share his thoughts on direct marketing and list procurement in the time of COVID-19.

Check out the recap of our discussion below. Please also join us for our next sales and marketing roundtable, coming up next week.

Today’s guest: Mark Ingram, CEO, SenioROI

SeniorROI has worked in the retirement industry for 20 years and offers a variety of services related to data on senior living. We lived through the 2008 financial crisis, but this is different. This situation will last longer, and it’s already having a different effect on the industry. Some of the creative methods we’re using may stay around after the crisis, but we have to get through this. Here are some tips to connect with prospects:

• Stay productive now, and prepare for what’s next
  • Lessons learned from 2008
    • Stay in front of waiting lists
    • Follow up on leads
    • Mail (mass and personal)
    • Phone calls
    • Curated gift boxes targeted to your prospects (senior-related, COVID-19-related, people whose adult children live far away)—the gifts let people know you’re thinking about them and brighten their day
    • Send a meal from the community to the top 5% of the database
    • Use time wisely to capture the leads that are ready!

• What can you do right now?
  • Harness the power of your CRM. Clean up your internal database. Determine how many of your leads have moved to a competitor, how many are deceased and how many have moved out of the target market. (In case of a death, append the spouse’s name—it could trigger a buying behavior.)
  • Append demographics. You can do a reverse-append from email, and/or mobile, to get the postal data 50 or 60% of the time. If you have the postal data, you can append home equity, age, financial information, spouse’s name and age, or third person in home. Put the info in your CRM using custom fields—and make sure the sales team knows how to use it. Example: “We’ve got a one-bedroom unit; let’s find all the single females who can afford it.” Think about different scenarios, and get the sales team comfortable with appended data. Once you understand the prospect, it changes the conversation and helps the sales team dramatically.
  • Create a profile of your best prospects. Look at age, financial and geographic information that will help you buy the right list. Once you have the list, you can do direct mail, but it’s not the only thing you can do with a database. When you have the postal addresses, you can match individuals on Facebook. Some of the highest match rates will be through mobile devices and email, but you need a postal address to do that. Once you can match people on Facebook, you can serve them digital ads, through addressable geo-fencing, that go to their phone, laptop and desktop. Note: Addressable geofencing is essentially putting a digital fence around their address and serving ads to devices that are active in that zone. Looking at the database a little differently is extremely important to maximizing its value, or what you get out of it.
  • How many records do you need to create a profile? You need about 300 to 500 records. There are different segments in the profile. One is existing residents, which can go back 2 to 3 years, but the most relevant data is within the last year. Every status code should create a profile—a move-in, a tour, a lost lead.
  • Tips on purchasing a list: When you’re buying data, ask specific questions. Three to 10 percent of the data is outdated the day that you get it—that’s the acceptable percentage in the industry. People have moved out of the market, are deceased, etc. Ask your list provider: How often is the data updated? What compiler is it coming from? There are a ton of sources, some better than others; all have strengths and weaknesses. Some of the best data comes from using a multi-source compiler—that’s what we do. Ask specific questions.

• Direct mail during COVID-19—does it work?
  • It can definitely work and be part of your overall marketing plan:
    • Success story: After a $21,000 spend, a client got the following results: “After cleaning up our database, and appending key demographic and financial data, including email addresses, we identified metrics for a new purchased list for lead generation. This led to a successful webinar series, generating 164 new leads, 5 new sales and 5+ wait-list sales in just two weeks.” – Jeanne La Roe, Marketing Director, Givens Estates 

• Is there a concern with touching mail that comes to the house?
  • We’ve got some research from the Postal Service, and one of the direct marketing associations, that shows there is no evidence of COVID-19 being spread through the mail. Prospects look forward to going to the mailbox—it may be the only thing they’re doing to get out of the house every day
  • Here’s some information on this question:
    • From CBS News
    • From the USPS
    • From the CDC: “There is still a lot that is unknown about COVID-19 and how it spreads. Coronaviruses are thought to be spread most often by respiratory droplets. Although the virus can survive for a short period on some surfaces, it’s unlikely to be spread from domestic or international mail, products or packaging. However, it may be possible that people can get COVID-19 by touching a surface, or object that has the virus on it, and then touching their own mouth, nose, or possibly their eyes, but this is not thought to be the main way the virus spreads.” Learn more about safe handling of deliveries and mail.

• What can you do if people get mail for a deceased loved one and threaten to sue? Each community should keep its own “do not mail” list on file. As these calls come in, address the issues, and provide callers with a link to be removed from lists. Make sure you have that “do not mail/call” list, and make sure your provider is taking people off the list. Deceased suppression should be run every time you send a direct mail. Doing that decreases the chance that you will get a call like that. Most people who aren’t in the retirement industry don’t understand why this is so important.

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, August 6, at noon ET.

For log-in information, contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

At our 18th sales and marketing roundtable, communities contributed ideas and talked about changes on their campuses. This week, Adam Grafton, vice president of culinary for Morrison Living, shared his tips for elevating environments while keeping communities safe.

Here are some tips from Adam’s discussion:

He and other Morrison Living employees live by this motto: “Through compassion and dedication, creating an equitable approach to memorable experiences.”

Elevating Experiences in the Next Normal

• Assure Safety
  • It’s obviously more important than ever
  • How are we communicating this to current and future residents?
• Deliver Care
  • Care of associates and residents
  • Focus on wellness
• Take Action
  • Look at opportunities to create innovation now and for the future

Culinary

Take Action:

• Wellness
  • Set snack time with fun vibes (music and dancing)—all while social distancing
• Flexibility
  • Residents have been introduced to different styles of service and food

and will want flexibility moving forward

Consider creating a marketplace for groceries for purchase or delivery

• Cognitive health
  • Superfoods—virtual demonstrations through community channel (e.g., health benefits of citrus)

Technology

Take Action:

• Wellness
• Equitable food solutions
  • iPads with menus
  • Self-order kiosks
  • Residents able to view nutritionals
  • Technology connects directly with POS at community
• Flexibility
• Cognitive health

Innovation

Take Action:

• Independence
• Variety and flexibility
  • Takeout becomes more important, as well as other styles of service
  • Heavy on tech side with automated machines
    • Takeout lockers
    • Automated salad makers
    • Automated barista coffee machine
    • Virtual teaching kitchens
    • Robots to help assist with service
  • Experience
  • Socialization

Training + Engagement:

Take Action:

• Retention
  • Let residents know that you’re thinking about them during this time with a takeout/delivery menu
  • Alcoholic/nonalcoholic drink kits to coincide with current events (e.g.,mint juleps for Kentucky Derby—which will be held on Saturday, September 5, this year)
  • Note that takeout items must be carefully selected as not everything will travel well
• Safety
• Pride of ownership

 Additional discussion:

• Social distancing
  • Distancing of tables
  • Encourage reservations and staggered seating times vs. everyone attending at 4:30 p.m.
  • Dining rooms won’t be filled since there will be so many different types of services (market cafe, takeout, sit-down dining, etc.)
  • Staying 6 feet apart will be the new norm
• Signage
  • Essential signs (floor/reminder to stay 6 feet apart)
  • General signage that assures residents, staff and visitors of the extra precautions your community is taking to keep them safe (washing hands/hand sinks)
• Dining updates
  • We’ve reopened our dining rooms, but only at 25% capacity. They are being used at all hours (7 a.m.–7 p.m. for bistro and 5–8 p.m. for fine dining)
  • Our bistro is open with limited service times

Join the next sales & marketing roundtable on July 30!

• Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, July 30, at noon ET.

Mark Ingram from SenioROI will join us to share his thoughts on direct marketing and list procurement in the time of COVID-19.

For log-in information, contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com

In this post, I’d like to bring awareness to some of the safety issues facing senior living communities. Specifically, I’d like to focus in on the number one cause of accidental death in seniors: falls.

The statistics about falls in aging services are shocking. The costs of falls in senior care are expected to reach $65 billion annually. And falls aren’t only costly, but extremely impactful on the overall health of the aging population. Retirement communities and home care providers are constantly looking for ways to evaluate mitigation strategies and drive better outcomes by reducing falls and proactively preventing them all together. The power to solve this problem lies in the data.

One of the most proactive measures you can take against falls is gathering your first-party data and analyzing it. First-party data, or data that the community or organization owns, is often overlooked, but it’s an incredibly valuable tool. In many instances, it’s mandated by the government or other organizations, so why not use it and put it to work? The way the organization has behaved regarding falls or other issues provides valuable information for future behavior and insights.

WildFig, Varsity’s data analytics partner, has worked with communities to understand their first party fall data and take action using that information. The WildFig team has tackled problems such as falls across the entire analytics continuum through a custom lens. Most notably, the team has developed:

• Custom dashboards to visualize data around falls
• Intervention reporting and tracking
• Root cause analysis around previous fall behaviors and outcomes
• Predictive models around falls to support population health management
• A consulting and data-driven framework for healthcare providers to apply to their ongoing workflows around causal impact, benchmarking and intervention strategies

Data is so important to fall prevention because it provides valuable insights into former behavior which can be utilized to inform future outcomes, potential mitigations and strategies focused on proactivity versus being reactive. Oftentimes fall prevention strategies are looking backward versus forward. Our work is aimed at giving communities tools to be ahead of the event versus behind it, whenever possible.

One senior living provider that has been in the early stages of using data for fall analysis and prevention is Meth-Wick Community in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Meth-Wick CEO Robin Mixdorf is a trailblazer, thought leader and big thinker who realized that Meth-Wick had been collecting valuable falls data for several years, but needed it organized into an easy-to-use, simple-to-visualize system. She wanted to find a way to use that data to its best advantage so that the community could plan interventions to help reduce the impact of falls. That’s when she turned to WildFig. The collaboration between the two organizations has achieved exciting outcomes and helped Meth-Wick Community utilize data to impact areas in which changes needed to be made, such as making sure there was the right level of staffing at certain times and places, ensuring that the right floor coverings were in place, and offering balance classes to residents who were at risk for falls.

But what if your organization hasn’t been using your data, or using it to its best ability? First, know that you’re not alone. A recent survey from Black Book Market Research shows that only 3 percent of long-term care communities have the ability for data assessment.

Lack of data-specific staff, lack of in-house resources, other priorities and a variety of other factors impact the use and implementation of data in all organizations, not just communities.  But getting started with using data is well worth the effort. At WildFig, we see data as having many benefits:

• Makes the experience in a community more personalized
• Reduces friction
• Enhances the overall health and wellness of resident
• Provides opportunities for workforce development as employees gain new skills and expertise
• Improves communication with family members

If you haven’t been analyzing data up to this point, how should you get started? The best way to begin is with a question. Oftentimes, because of the broader meme of big data, decision makers think through a more complicated lens when it comes to analytics. In its purest form, analytics is about answering questions and providing insights. The questions themselves can range from simple to complex. Falls is only one example: any question a community has can be informed by data.

About WildFig

WildFig was founded to help organizations in senior living and other sectors meet increasing demands for efficiency in a complicated marketplace. Our team saw an unmet need for analytics across all industries and we love the challenge and value we can provide. We help our clients navigate the data-driven landscape through mathematical, statistical and computational tools ranging from data mining to forecast modeling.

To learn more about the work WildFig is doing to solve problems for our clients, visit us at wildfigdata.com. If you’d like to discuss how you can harness your data to overcome your organization’s biggest challenges, email us to arrange a consultation.

During Thursday’s roundtable, retirement communities around the country shared sales and marketing strategies that are working during COVID-19. From virtual events to smart home communications, tech is being tapped frequently to reach and attract residents.

Join the next sales and marketing roundtable on July 23!

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, July 23, at noon ET. We will have a speaker from Morrison Living sharing tips to create safer environments.

For log-in information, please contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

This week, we’re pleased to present a guest post by Lynn Perugini, director of sales and marketing at Meadowood At Home, a Continuing Care at Home (CCaH) program that is affiliated with the Meadowood Life Plan Community in Worcester, Pennsylvania.

For over 20 years, Lynn has provided exceptional service to senior communities and their residents. She’s an expert at giving sales and marketing presentations, and when COVID-19 closed the country down, she embraced virtual seminars immediately.

Today, I’d like to share some practical, common-sense tips for giving virtual presentations. These tips engage viewers and lead them to the next step in the sales cycle.

1. Prepare, Prepare, Prepare. My biggest tip would be to prepare. The presentation part of it is all of it. Practice your presentation several times before you actually give it. (My family sat through at least four trial runs before I actually gave my first virtual presentation.)
2. Set the stage. Consider the background you’re sitting in front of, the level of your camera, what’s around your computer. It’s like a stage show, and all the elements are part of a set. The details need to be right.
3. Remember Camera Etiquette 101. My coworkers laugh, but I even do my makeup differently when I’m going to be on camera. Here are some other tips to help you make that on-camera connection with the audience:
   • Remember to smile—the audience can see you!
   • Use your hands as if you were talking to a friend
   • Wear a bright color (and especially, don’t wear black if you have a black chair, or you’ll appear as a disembodied head)
   • Wear a headset to signal that you’re connected to the video
   • Make sure that your head and shoulders fill the screen
   • Introduce yourself on camera at the beginning, then turn the camera off, so the audience can focus on the presentation
   • Engage the right monitor (if you have more than one monitor, make sure that the right one is engaged; if you don’t, you’ll be showing people your desktop instead of your presentation)
4. Experiment with platforms. My favorite platform is GoToWebinar. I’ve tried Teams and Zoom, but I like GoToWebinar, because it’s easy for my audience of seniors to use. It’s as easy as one click; they don’t have to set up an account, and they don’t have people calling or emailing them. (Many of them are concerned about security.)
5. Connect the phone audio. In the demographic I work with, many people have older computers that don’t work well. Now my invitation says, “Click here to see the presentation. Call this number if you don’t have a speaker on your computer.” Give your audience more than one way to experience your presentation.
6. Help your audience through the process. Younger seniors are computer-savvy, but the folks over 80 may struggle. If they need help, I walk them through the process, and show them how they can easily get online. That drives registration. I’ve even had people call me for help five or ten minutes before the presentation.
7. Make the presentation visually interesting. Avoid using a logo that sits on the screen. Add motion and life, like animating bullet points. That keeps the audience’s attention and acts as a prompt, so you can speak to each item as it flies onto the screen. You can also invite a guest speaker to add interest.
8. Mix up the topics. Switch out your presentations and target them to difference audiences. (I change my presentations to target residents who live in 55-and-older communities, people who are interested in long-term care insurance and others.) The world at large has been doing these virtual presentations for four months, and audiences are getting burnt out. We’re all inundated with requests for webinars. And now that the weather is nice, it’s going to be even harder to get people’s attention, so variety is important
9. Know that live and virtual are totally different. My online presentation is 100 percent different than my live presentation. In the live presentation, the PowerPoint is just a backdrop. In the virtual presentation, the focus is on the slides—the information has to be clear, easy to understand and attention-grabbing.
10. Avoid too much touchy-feely. During COVID-19, people tend to make virtual presentations too emotional. Don’t show 50 slides of people wearing masks. Too much loses people, unless it’s as a background or a quick mention. I try to focus on relevant data—pricing, statistics and how people are using my program.
11. Watch other virtual presentations for ideas. I made sure I sat in on at least four or five other, similar presentations; I picked out things that did and didn’t work. For example, one presenter overdid the polling feature—it was a good idea, it just took an agonizingly long time. That experience taught me that it’s best to do a quick poll at the beginning or end. 
12. Follow up afterward. I send a separate email thanking the audience members for joining the webinar. I also provide them with the financial slides I presented. And I send a link to a New York Times article about Continuing Care at Home programs. When I send that, I tend to get a lot of reply emails.
13. Make a virtual event a segue to a live event. At a live event, I can read the audience much better, and they can get to know me as well. At the end of my webinar, I encourage the audience to attend an upcoming live seminar (when it’s up and running). It’s a different level of commitment when people come to an in-person event. It’s easier to build personal relationships there.

I hope you’ve found these tips helpful. I think it’s a great idea to continue to do virtual presentations, even after COVID-19. People are comfortable with them now. They see them as less of a commitment than a live event. I think I’m always going to do them. They’re a new and useful tool for sales and marketing.

During Roundtable #16, community marketers shared the latest news from their campuses as they worked on new sales tactics.

Check out the highlights of our discussion below. Please join us for our next roundtable, coming up this week.

Join the next sales and marketing roundtable on July 16!

Please join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, July 16, at noon ET.

For log-in information, contact DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

As more areas open up, communities met virtually for roundtable #14 to discuss this week’s reopenings and answer one another’s questions.

Check out the recap of our discussion below. Please also join us for our next sales and marketing roundtable, coming up this week.

Questions from attendees:

What can our resident panel talk about in an upcoming Zoom call?

Ideas discussed:

• Ask residents to share what they’ve been up to on campus (and the fun they’re having)
• Talk about dining and activities
• Discuss safety protocols in place
• Talk about how the administration communicates with residents and keeps them engaged
  • Were you respected as a resident and individual?
  • How did the community try to keep life as normal as possible?
  • Do you have any regrets or wish you were still at home? (Use caution on this one; make sure you know what the resident will say)
• Contrast social engagement vs. social isolation

One participant asked about struggling with visually interacting with prospects since they can’t meet in person. How do residents interact with people? Is a Zoom meeting better than a Zoom webinar platform?

Ideas discussed:

• Webinars are good for larger conferences, and meetings seem to be better for more personal interactions with fewer than 10 to 15 people
• Zoom meetings allow for breakout rooms and more personal conversations
• Strive to book a private Zoom meeting in the days following a presentation to have a more personal conversation

We will explore this topic more in next week’s roundtable.

Join the next roundtable on July 2!

Come kick off the holiday weekend at our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, July 2, at noon ET.

You don’t have to be a client to join — all are welcome. For call-in information, email DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

As more cities opened up, communities met virtually for roundtable #13 to discuss this week’s triumphs and tribulations.

Check out the recap of our discussion below. Please also join us for our next sales & marketing roundtable, coming up this week.

Join the next roundtable on June 25!

You are welcome to join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, June 25, at 12 p.m. ET.

You don’t have to be a client to join — all are welcome. For call-in information, email DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

June is Alzheimer’s & Brain Awareness Month. To draw attention to memory issues, Jennifer Honeyford, senior director of resident life and performance improvement at The Philadelphia Protestant Home (PPH), is sharing the community’s innovative programs and her personal experience with caring for people with dementia.

Walking in Their Shoes

It’s so important to really understand what life is like for people with dementia. One of the projects we started at the end of 2018 was to increase our staff knowledge of this condition. We surveyed everyone and asked them what they wanted to know, and then, we looked for educational programs that would teach those topics. We found that almost everyone has a personal connection with the disease, as well as a professional one. The staff were really open to the education.

One of the initiatives that came out of the survey was a virtual dementia tour, which we are now licensed through Second Wind Dreams to operate on campus. We are able to offer this sensitivity training program through a grant that was funded through the Ron S! Charitable Fund and the Anna T. Jeanes Foundation.

The tour is basically eight minutes in the world of someone living with moderate-stage dementia. Our staff are assigned a time to come into a room we have set up. They are outfitted with glasses that distort vision. They wear a headset with sound running through it that gives them auditory hallucinations. They wear thick, heavy gloves, which limit their ability to grasp and touch. Finally, they have eight minutes in the room to complete five tasks — which are virtually impossible to complete in that time.

Feedback Has Been Phenomenal

We’ve had about 65 staff members including upper management go through the training, as well as some family members. They describe it as “powerful” and “humbling.” After going through the experience, staff members have said they will never be impatient again. They say things like, “I felt so isolated, so alone. I had no idea how hard it is to have dementia. I will be patient, I will be kind.”

What’s beautiful is that they are experiencing the disease firsthand. The learning is theirs — they are interpreting it for themselves.

If we who have healthy brains can act as if we have dementia, then why can’t someone who has dementia better navigate this condition if we alter their environment? By understanding how confusing and overwhelming life with dementia is, we can look for those things that might be triggering and upsetting and help them to better navigate their daily landscape.

Why I Entered the Memory Care Field

My whole life, I’ve had an overactive imagination. Health care was just a good fit for me — especially dementia care, because you have to be able to enter people’s worlds and see things from their perspective. I started in health care, directing recreation therapy, then I moved into a senior director role. I provide administrative oversight to our recreation therapy and life enrichment departments, including Chapters, the memory care program at PPH. I’ve been here for 22 years, and I feel like I’ve grown up here.

What Residents with Dementia Have Taught Me

I think that what residents with dementia have taught me is to enjoy the simple things in life — to be kind,  genuine and patient.

You have to be able to imagine where they are because you want to be able to understand them and be empathetic to their needs. That’s what excites me most — being able to come up with a solution to a problem. We look at the person’s leisure interests and former occupation to give us cues so we can offer them purpose and enable them to do things for themselves.

One way we help employees from all areas of PPH gain understanding of residents with memory issues is through a certified dementia practitioner (CDP) program, led by four certified on-site trainers, including myself. Fifty staff members from all disciplines have taken the training, which has proven invaluable to them. Read more about the PPH dementia training program here. To learn more about  CDP credentials, please visit nccdp.org.

No matter what we remember or what we forget, we still have that human need for purpose — we need to be seen, valued and heard. I want to treat people with dementia with the dignity and respect that they have earned. They deserve that.

Today, Stacy Hollinger Main, a partner and interior designer at RLPS Architects, is sharing her philosophy and advice on senior living design. RLPS is an award-winning firm located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, that specializes in architecture and interior design for a variety of industries, including senior living, assisted living and dementia/memory care. Stacy has 28 years of design experience and has spent 21 of those years designing senior living communities at RLPS.

What is your philosophy on senior living design?

First of all, it’s important to understand that it’s not “senior living” design — it’s about good design, period. We take the approach of looking at design from a holistic point of view with a nod to hospitality design, but scaled appropriately for people who are living there.

To appeal to Baby Boomers, designs must be contemporary and reflect the distinctive experiences and lifestyle offered to those moving into a particular community. It’s tailored to people who have the desire to live in housing that’s beautiful and well maintained with a lot of amenities — but designed appropriately for the people who are using it.

Take carpet, for instance. It may look rich, but there are a lot of factors that we take into consideration behind the scenes. The carpet has to be able to handle rolling traffic, such as wheelchairs, scooters and walkers. And it’s not just about the items that assist the residents to keep them ambulatory; it’s also about the staff — whatever they’re pushing and navigating, such as med carts. It’s often a matter of weighing the options with our clients for each particular application. Carpet is typically more homelike and helps with acoustics, but it’s easier to propel rolling traffic over hard surfaces.

What advice would you give senior living communities?

Communities need to stay current and fresh because the competition is high, and trends change constantly. Just as you want to update your own wardrobe, you want to make sure that your floors and walls are all up-to-date.

Our goal is to create timeless communities that speak to the brand and reinforce it across all levels of care. However, it’s easy for communities to get out of date. You don’t want people to be fearful to go to a higher level of care, such as assisted living or memory care, because the spaces look outdated and not as nice as independent living.

That’s why it’s important to include interior design in your master planning. Your community needs to put a refresh of its design into the capital budget. You need to evaluate every aspect of your decor at least every 8–10 years, although you can change things like paint and accessories more often for a refreshed look.

 What are your favorite projects?

In the end, once we’ve had that ribbon-cutting ceremony, and we hear people walking through the rooms, experiencing the design for the first time and talking about it, feeling happy — those are our favorite projects. It’s really about the way the design has improved their lives. And it’s not just about the people who are living there; it’s about staff, too. If we’ve been able to help a staff member do his or her job better and promote health or wellness because of the materials we’ve used, it’s impacting people’s lives for the better.

We do projects across the U.S. They’re all challenging and all unique. We don’t do cookie-cutter projects. We are creating a unique atmosphere for the community while striving to create trust, open communication and a positive end result for our client. Those are the best projects — when a client is asking us to come back to do the next one.

What do you like most about your job?

When you look at a room, when you look at space, it’s more than six sides of a box; it’s the potential for creativity. When we start to fill the box with the interior elements, we look at the floor, walls and ceiling. We think about acoustics and window treatments and lighting and accessories. In the end, it’s all about the people who are using the space. What I like most about my job is seeing people who are enjoying the space as they work and live here.

The goal for design is all about creating an environment to inspire people and transform lives. Our goal at RLPS is to do that in all aspects of our design, not just in senior living.

Last Thursday, communities came together to talk about the need to market their communities differently in the current environment.

You’ll find a recap of the discussion below. Please also feel free to join our next sales & marketing roundtable, coming up this week.

Join the next sales & marketing roundtable on June 11!

You are welcome to join our next roundtable discussion on Thursday, June 11, at 12 p.m. ET. Our Senior Social Media Strategist, Cara Stefchak, will share social media trends and best practices against the backdrop of Covid-19.

You don’t have to be a client to join — all are welcome. For call-in information, email DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

Communities in different parts of the country came together last Thursday to share their thoughts and challenges as shutdowns continue. Jackie Stone, VP of sales at Varsity, joined our general discussion to share insights on virtual event topics and processes during social distancing.

Check out the takeaways below. You are also welcome to join our next sales & marketing roundtable, coming up this week.

Jackie leads a discussion on virtual presentations:

• Presentation objectives
  • New lead generation
    • Use the purchased email list and lead base
    • Select universal topics of interest to anyone
    • Ensure that the presentation represents the lifestyle at the community and reinforces the established brand
  • Sales presentation
    • Target the lead base
    • Address common objections
      • “I’m not ready yet.”
      • “I want to stay independent.”
      • “I’ve lived here for 50 years; I don’t know where to start.”
      • “This apartment is so small.”
      • “I don’t want to live with all old people.”
      • “How would I even go about selling my home?”
      • “The economy/stock market is unstable.”
    • Personalize to the prospect
      • Customized to each individual prospect — what he or she values in life and in a community

• Potential presentation topics
  • New lead generation
    • Mindfulness — Putting Your Practice Into Place
    • Healthy Aging: Achieving Wellness in All Dimensions
    • Living a Big Life
    • Dispelling the Myths of Retirement Living
  • Sales presentations
    • Decluttering Your Life to Make Room for Experiences
    • Living a Big Life
    • Bridging the Gap Between “I’m Not Ready Yet” and “I Wish I Had Done This Sooner”
    • Protecting Your Nest Egg
    • Does a Life Plan Community Make Sense for Me?
    • Selling Your Home in a Virtual World
  • Personalizing to the prospect
    • Presentation of the community’s services, amenities, residences and benefits
    • Video walking tour of the community
    • Happy hour Zoom call

• Marketing automation
  • Targeting prospects
    • Email seminar invitation
    • Confirmation and login instructions
    • Resending of seminar invitation to those that did not open the original email
    • Reminder email two days prior to the event
  • Communicating with those who did attend
    • Post-webinar “Thank you for joining us”
    • Survey
    • What other topics might interest you?
    • Schedule a private appointment?
    • Next seminar invitation
  • Communicating with those who did not attend
    • “We missed you” email
  • Schedule a private appointment?
  • Next seminar invitation
• Typical attendance expectations
  • We’ve seen anywhere from 7–10, 25–30 and close to 50, so it can really vary.

Where are you doing to go from here with marketing?

• It depends on your community.
  • Examples:
    • One community is stretched for dollars because of the current bond market.
    • Other communities may have more money to spend, with cancelling in-person marketing events.
  • You may need to move dollars around in your budget. The focus will need to be on engaging prospects in blue sky projects. If you don’t use the money this year, you won’t have it next year! Spend it wisely, and don’t let it go.
  • An AL community in New York has online events/speakers every week. It’s very buttoned up and structured — link to check out: https://inspireseniorliving.com/events.
  • I think we’ll be Zooming for a long time.
  • Follow these virtual call tips.
    • Do a roll call.
    • Ask what participants miss during this time of quarantine. If they say Starbucks, deliver a coffee to their doorstep.

Join the next sales & marketing roundtable on June 4!

We thank everyone for participating, and we invite you to join the next session on Thursday, June 4, at 12 p.m. ET.

You don’t have to be a client to join — all are welcome. For call-in information, email DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

As social distancing continues, communities came together for roundtable #9 to share their ideas and challenges. Robinson Smith, creative director at Varsity, joined our discussion to share insights on brand-centric messaging during quarantine.

Check out the takeaways below. You are also welcome to join our next sales & marketing roundtable, coming up this week.

Insights from Rob’s discussion on creative messaging:

Rob shared this video, which essentially highlights how painfully similar much of the COVID-19 advertising is.

• Every commercial is exactly the same, with catchphrases like: “uncertain times,” “home” and “together.”
• Brands want to let you know they were there for you in the past, are with you now and will be with you moving forward. While these messages of hope and empathy are important as we move forward, it’s critical not to lose sight of the brands we’ve worked so hard to establish. We need to make sure we’re not abandoning them, especially as normal community marketing will not return for quite some time.
• While all communities want to communicate that they care about the safety of their team members and residents, they also should make sure that they are talking about their BRANDS and are leveraging the messages that they have put out into the marketplace and established over time.
• At Varsity, we talk about branding and brand personalities in terms of archetypes. The caregiver archetype is typically the archetype of industry, so it’s not a long-term solution for individual community branding as we go forward. Communities need to be intentional about expressing their own voices — explorers, magicians, lovers — and make sure that the things that set them apart from competitors are being stated in true, unique and compelling ways.

Join the next sales & marketing roundtable on May 28!

We thank everyone for participating, and we invite you to join the next session on Thursday, May 28, at 12 p.m. ET.

Jackie Stone, Varsity VP of sales, will be joining us for part of the session to share her insights on virtual event topics and processes.

You don’t have to be a client to join — all are welcome. For call-in information, email DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

In roundtable #8, communities brainstormed and asked for suggestions about marketing during COVID-19. Cory Lorenz, Varsity media director, joined our discussion to share insights on media consumption during this period of social distancing.

Check out the takeaways below. You are also welcome to attend our next sales & marketing roundtable, coming up this week.

Cory Lorenz shares insights on media consumption:

 Overall points:

• Everyone is isolated — not just seniors.
• Media consumption is up 60 percent since the quarantine.
• Netflix has over 2MM new members.
• Google keywords around senior living are up to record levels.
  • Advertisers like AARP are spending more than ever before on digital ($17.6MM since 3/13/20).
• Coming out of COVID-19, consumers are increasingly adopting free, ad-supported streaming services compared to paid streaming services.

Differentiating services:

• MVPD (multi-channel video programming distributor)
  • Video content delivered to consumers from a cable provider through a set-top box
  • Major players: Comcast, DISH, Time Warner Cable, Fios

• OTT (over the top):
  • Content provided via a high-speed internet connection rather than a cable or satellite provider
  • Major players: Netflix, Hulu, Sling, Prime Video, Apple TV

• CTV (connected TV):
  • Any TV that can be connected to the internet and can stream OTT content through its apps
  • Major players: Apple TV, Fire TV, Roku, Chromecast

• VOD (video on demand)
  • Stream of an already-aired show that viewers can watch on their own schedule, with commercial breaks
  • Major players: ABC On Demand, Bravo Now, Food Network On Demand, CBS On Demand

Discussion:

How communities are putting broadcast to work:

“We bought cable through Comcast, and we targeted typical stations for seniors (news, weather, HGTV, etc.). We’ve seen some good interest, and it supports the lift we’ve seen in online metrics (along with mailers and other online media). The spot was previously produced, and we thought it would be nice to show lifestyle and happiness vs. the COVID message.”

Join the next sales & marketing roundtable on May 21!

We thank everyone for participating, and we invite you to join the next session on Thursday, May 21, at noon ET.

This week, Robinson Smith, creative director at Varsity, will join our general discussion for part of the session to share his perspective on branding in a time of changing messaging.

You don’t have to be a client to join — all are welcome. For call-in information, email DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

Today’s blog is a guest post by Michael Whitlow, MBA, senior regional manager, sales & marketing services division at Greystone Communities, on giving virtual tours. Previous to his time at Greystone, Michael worked in a broad range of related industries, including pharmaceutical, senior living and home health.

I’d like to share some tips on giving virtual tours that started with a webinar I gave.

A little background: When the situation with COVID-19 started, our company very quickly began to do Zoom calls, and everyone said, “We need to ask your sales teams to do virtual tours because of the restrictions at communities.” But what’s worse than doing a virtual tour? Doing a bad one. That’s where the idea for the webinar began.

The reason it’s critical to pay attention to the virtual medium is that, based on statistics I’ve heard, about half of senior living communities are not doing any virtual events or touring. This opens this area up for those who are doing them to get ahead of the game.

Statistics also show that 80% of communities that are doing virtual events are not doing them well. There’s a big opportunity to stand out from the competition by doing excellent virtual tours.

These tips and talking points might seem silly, but following them really makes for a better experience. You have to pay attention to the small things. Here are some tips for a successful virtual tour:

• Get buy-in to the tour beforehand
  • Be a resource: If the person expresses nervousness about using technology, it gives you the opportunity to say, “Let me teach you how to do this. I’ll be glad to walk you through it so you can use it with your family and friends.” That way, you’re being of value and are a trusted resource.
  • Show empathy: You can say, “Hey, I’d love for you to see me and me to see you and show you our community.” Be friendly and empathetic.

• Use FaceTime for ease of use and connection with your prospect (assuming both have Apple devices) If not, click here for a list of suggestions:

• Invest in a stand and Steadicam attachment
  • Test out the best ways to use the camera.
  • Film from above.
  • Don’t stand in front of a light source.
  • Don’t put the camera too close to your face.
  • Look at the camera, not your picture.

• Have a plan
  • Create an outline — it’s easy to get lost when standing in front of the lights.
  • Plan and trial run the tour route.
  • Keep handy a FAQ sheet and information on features and benefits.
  • You never want to walk away from the camera to get your notes; have them close by.
  • Role-play a live tour first

• It’s time to shine!
  • “Sit, tour, sit” still applies, but location may vary.
  • When not touring, secure your camera. (Use a tri-pod, prop it up with books, etc. You don’t want a lot of movement so the person watching loses focus.)
  • While touring, stick with one view.
  • Keep the camera facing away from you.
  • Slow down: Pause for 3–5 seconds before moving to a new view.
  • Be smooth.

• Postproduction
  • Blend “new school” with “old school.”
    • Handwritten letters as a follow-up are really welcomed right now.
  • Don’t forget the process: “sales cycle.”
    • You aren’t just doing a fun little tour; you are moving people through the same sales process you normally would. This is a selling tool, not “I’m going to show you something fun and then let you go.”
  • If it’s not in the CRM, it didn’t happen!
    • Virtual tours need to be part of our new normal. Like any part of the sales cycle, the tour should go right into the CRM, with a full write-up.

• Tips during the discussion
  • Avoid showing residents. Prospects want to see public spaces and apartments.
  • How long? Ask the people up front if they have 15–20 minutes for the tour.
  • Prepare a video you can share separately.
  • If you’re working from home, it’s still good to have a video discussion. You could have somebody in the community take footage and share it with you.

• Results
  • In a short period of time, people are getting strong results. Two of the communities I work with took a deposit after a virtual tour last week.

• What’s next?
  • Whoever starts to deal with the current environment really well right now is going to have an advantage. Virtual tours are a great selling tool that you can continue to use even after coronavirus. Here are some things your community can do to stay ahead:
    • Make sure you have a Steadicam ready to go.
    • Train all employees to do virtual tours.
    • Bring a family member who lives far away into the decision process by including them in a virtual tour with the prospect.
    • Find new applications for virtual technology:
      • Use it to communicate with your vendors.
      • Give virtual tours of your community over lunch hours to busy social workers, nurses and physicians.

Remember: The more tools you have for selling, the better. Again, since only half of communities are using virtual events, and only 20% of those are doing them well, this is your opportunity to get out in front of your competition. Take advantage of it.

About Greystone

Greystone has been a recognized leader in senior living consulting for over 35 years. The organization works with more than 500 owners and sponsors in more than 46 states and manages 50+ communities. Learn more about Greystone.

Today, Stacy Hollinger Main, a partner and interior designer at RLPS Architects, is sharing a guest post on the latest trends in senior living design. RLPS is an award-winning firm located in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, that specializes in architecture and interior design for a variety of industries, including senior living, assisted living and dementia/memory care. Stacy has 28 years of design experience and has spent 21 of those years designing senior living communities at RLPS.

Here are some of the design trends I’m seeing in the senior living space right now:

Healthy design materials

During this time of the coronavirus crisis, it’s more important than ever to use products that safely combat the spread of bacteria in materials for flooring, door hardware, seating, etc. When we select products for our clients’ communities, we not only make sure that they can be easily maintained and cleaned, but that they include materials that aren’t harmful to people or the environment. One example is copper, a naturally self-sanitizing material that can be used in bed rails, door and cabinet hardware and other high-touch surfaces as a healthy alternative to harmful chemicals.

Flexible dining spaces

When we do renovations, we’re focused on flexibility. One trend is creating a bar that can be used as a breakfast spot in the morning, a smoothie bar midday (where residents can come after exercising) and a bar that can be used for happy hour or pre-dining gatherings in the evening.

In terms of seating, booths or banquettes are appealing because people feel they have their own zone. We can create intimate spaces with the appeal of a restaurant for a variety of seating and tables, rather than a sea of furniture that is all the same.

Region-specific design

Communities don’t want to look or feel like Anywhere, USA. They want to reinforce their brand and create spaces that feel relevant and resonate with seniors in their market area. We look at every aspect of our work to make sure that it reflects the vernacular design of the area. For instance, the artwork has to be authentic to the region. For a community we are working with in Florida, that means if we specify artwork featuring birds, they are indigenous to the west coast of Florida — not birds you might find in North Carolina. The designs we do for communities in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, aren’t going to look like the ones we’re doing in New Hampshire or Florida.

Holistic amenities

Another huge trend is pushing the limits on amenities. Instead of just a salon where you can get your hair done, clients want to see spaces that convey a multidimensional, holistic approach to wellness in every aspect of the environment.

Multiuse spaces

Spaces need to be very flexible — it’s important to get three or four uses out of them. For example, we created a theater room for a local community. The community doesn’t just use it for movie night; it uses it as a space to interact with other communities (playing competitive Wii bowling against each other), and it sets up equally well as a space for lectures and presentations.

Technology

With the rise of smart homes and intelligent design, the use of technology in senior living is already a major trend. I see technology being incorporated more and more into all levels of care. From an interior design perspective, that means making sure we’ve addressed how people can easily and comfortably connect to technology within their living spaces. Technology also provides opportunities for interactive artwork or screen savers for aesthetic appeal when a screen is not in use.

Look for another blog about Stacy Hollinger Main’s design work coming soon.

To learn more about the way RLPS interior designers work with you to create appealing spaces with lasting value, visit their website.

As COVID-19 continues to impact senior living, we held another virtual roundtable to see what sales & marketing tactics are working now — and what will change at communities after restrictions are lifted. Check out the highlights below.

All are welcome to attend our sales & marketing roundtable next week. Details below.

Join the next sales & marketing roundtable on April 30!

We thank everyone for participating, and we invite you to join the next session, Thursday, April 30, at noon ET.

Kim Lehman, Varsity’s PR director, will join us for part of the session to share tips and trends on PR/crisis communications.

You don’t have to be a client to join the session — all are welcome. For call-in information, email DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

Response to our COVID-19 conversations continues to be enthusiastic, so we held Sales & Marketing Roundtable #3 last week. For those who weren’t able to make it,  the high points are below.

We’re gathering for our next virtual discussion this week, and all are invited to attend.

Join the next roundtable on April 16!

We thank everyone for participating, and we invite you to join the next session on Thursday, April 16, at noon ET, for a sales & marketing discussion.

You don’t have to be a client to join the conversation — all are welcome. For call-in information, email DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

Last Monday, we organized a virtual forum where communities exchanged ideas about engaging residents during the coronavirus shutdown. Check out their creative solutions below.

We’re holding another Resident Life roundtable soon, and all are welcome to attend.

Join the next Resident Life roundtable on April 20!

We thank everyone for participating, and we invite you to join the next session, Monday, April 20, at noon ET: Resident Life discussion

You don’t have to be a client to join the session — all are welcome. For call-in information, email DDunham@VarsityBranding.com.

We’d like to take a moment to acknowledge the many thousands of team members who are working tirelessly at senior living communities during the COVID-19 crisis.

Thank you to the CNAs, who keep residents content and healthy.

Thank you to the culinary team members, who ensure that nutritional needs are met.

Thank you to the housekeeping team, which keeps the environment clean and tidy.

Thank you to the laundry team, which makes sure that everyone has clean clothes and bed linens.

Thank you to the groundskeeping staff, which see to it that the grounds outside each resident’s window are beautiful and provide comfort.

Thank you to the nursing staff, which care for residents’ individual health needs.

Thank you to the maintenance team, which keeps everything running smoothly.

Thank you to the drivers, who keep things moving.

Thank you to the receptionists, who are on the front lines as people enter or call the community.

Thank you to the security team, which make sure that everyone in the community is safe.

Thank you to the IT team, which keeps all the tech running in this increasingly digital world.

Thank you to the wellness staff, which focus on caring for residents’ minds, bodies and spirits.

Thank you to the activities team, which keeps residents engaged, day in and day out.

Thank you to all the other team members, who are working so hard to keep people safe at communities across the country.

You are greatly appreciated for all that you are doing to fight the coronavirus during this time.

We know that every community and business in the aging services space is trying to stay ahead of safety and communications for the COVID-19 virus while juggling the needs of residents and staying connected with prospects. This led us to think about some free and easy tips that can keep current and future residents engaged and upbeat as much as possible while their movement is restricted.

Here are some ideas we’ve collected that we wanted to share with you. We realize that there are many more out there, but we thought this would be a good place to start.

Keeping Residents Engaged

Educational opportunities/lifelong learning/cultural stimulation

• Online museum tours
• Free live opera audio streams
• Resources for online courses, books, etc.
• Giant panda cam (National Zoo)
• San Diego Zoo live cams
• Virtual field trips (designed for kids but can be enjoyed by all)
• Fast Company article featuring different options
• 450 Ivy League courses you can take online right now for free 
• Wildlife cams
• The 50 best museum tours around the world

Spiritual grounding

• Free mediation
• Church services (many options online)
• Shabbat services (many options online)

Exercise

• Planet Fitness Free home “work-ins” every day
• Silver Sneakers  Free access to exclusive classes for yoga, cardio, balance and more

Connections

• Use in-house channels to share “coffee chats” with residents.
• Ask residents to send pics of what they enjoy doing in their homes to share with others in the community.
• Encourage residents to FaceTime with each other and with their families. (Send an email to all family members encouraging them to FaceTime with their loved ones regularly.)
• Caution against reading social media or listening to “hype” on TV or the radio, and encourage residents to reach out to the appropriate person if they’re at a low point.

Maintaining relationships with prospects

It’s important to always look for opportunities to follow up with prospects in meaningful ways, and the coronavirus pandemic is one of those (unfortunate) opportunities. Call your prospects to check on them during this health crisis, and ask if they are doing okay. Do they have food in the house? Is there anything they need? If they are local, drop off soup, muffins, toilet paper or other necessities on their doorstep. Recommend Netflix movies, documentaries, comedy shows or online live theater performances that might appeal to them. Give them ideas on how to stay safe, entertained, occupied and healthy. They will be grateful that you thought of them during this extremely stressful time.

In addition, we recommend virtual marketing events, where you can share details, floor plan walk-throughs, advice and just somebody new to talk with.

Social distancing doesn’t have to mean social detachment. During these troubling times, we all have to find new ways to stay connected.

Today’s blog post is from Kim Lehman, Varsity’s PR strategist. Kim has 25+ years of experience working collaboratively with businesses to build crisis communications plans and activate them.

You never know when your community will undergo a crisis that will create news coverage and public scrutiny. To deal with a man-made or natural disaster without damaging your community’s reputation, it’s imperative to have a well-thought-out crisis communications plan in place. The last thing you want to do in an emergency is to be scrambling to react. By having a crisis communications plan, you minimize chaos and create better communications with your external and internal audiences.

What is a crisis communications plan?

A crisis communications plan is simply the physical, concrete plan that outlines the responsibilities, protocols and key message points of an organization when reacting to a crisis situation. The plan will guide your community in sharing information with your key constituents during an emergency situation in a timely matter. Key constituents should include employees, residents, residents’ loved ones, traditional and social media, the community at large and other business partners. One common myth is that, if a community has an emergency preparedness plan, then the community is covered. On the contrary, a crisis communications plan goes far beyond an evacuation strategy.

Steps to creating an effective crisis plan

1. Form a team

First, identify the key people that should be part of the crisis communications team, to include a core team and subgroups. For example, your core team would include the CEO, the executive director and the communications director. Then, create subgroups for each particular type of incident. For instance, if you had a hacking incident, the IT director would be part of your subgroup. For an employee crisis, the HR manager would be involved. By putting the right people in place, your organization can be prepared to deal with a crisis more effectively.

2. Make an organizational chart

Create a chart, listing the core team and the subgroup team members. Then, compile the contact information for all team members. Identify a meeting place — whether that’s a physical conference room and/or a designated 1-800 conference call if all members of the team are not in one physical location.

3. Create scenarios

Get in a room with the core team and talk about every scenario that could possibly happen at your community, from a flu outbreak to an active shooter or a power outage. Create an exhaustive list of these potential situations.

4. Designate your spokespeople

For each scenario, choose a spokesperson and make sure that he or she is familiar with the talking points. The people you designate will depend on the scenario and also on their level of ability to communicate with the media. (Remember to always media-train your spokespeople!) Always choose someone who can articulate the message efficiently and help put the community in a positive light.   

5. Identify communications channels

Outline all of the current ways you deliver your information to external and internal audiences. You will want to use different channels for different scenarios. For example, internal statements may be delivered via an intranet; press releases may be sent via email to journalists; and social media posts may be placed on social media channels.

6. Create written statements

For each scenario, you should create an external statement to send to the media, an internal statement that you will send to employees and a potential Q&A. While you won’t have all of the details of a particular scenario, it’s nice to have the foundation of a statement so you aren’t rushing to write something during a crisis situation when stress levels are high. Be sure to keep the finished materials organized together — whether in a physical binder or in an electronic file.

7. Update your plan regularly

Once you’ve got your plan in place, I recommend updating the plan every six months. Spokespeople, phone numbers and other details change frequently. Update your communications plan when you change the batteries in the smoke detectors and during daylight savings time.

Did this process sound time-consuming? It can be. Crisis communications planning takes a lot of effort, and many organizations don’t want to spend the time and resources to do it; however, the consequences of not having a plan in place far outweigh the time you spend on it. And there’s nothing like the feeling of knowing that, should a crisis occur, your community will be well prepared to deal with whatever comes your way.

If you’d like to talk more about crisis communications planning, please contact us!

Today’s blog post is from Kim Lehman, Varsity’s PR strategist. Kim has 25+ years of experience working collaboratively with businesses to build crisis communications plans and activate them.

Every senior living community should have a complete, updated plan in place to deal with a potential man-made or natural crisis that could attract public scrutiny. But many do not. Here are some of the myths and misconceptions that could be holding your community back from developing an effective crisis plan.

1. Nothing’s ever going to happen at our community.

You may think, “In 50 years, we’ve never had a serious crisis at our community, so we never will.” The fact is that you never know when an emergency is going to strike, so being prepared is crucial!

2. An emergency preparedness plan is enough.

In my experience, communities often have an emergency preparedness plan in place, and they believe that is enough. I agree that knowing how to evacuate all of your residents in a crisis situation is very important, but that is just one part of the crisis communications plan. You will want to be ready to respond to every possible scenario that could happen at your community and prepare statements for not only your internal audiences, but for when the media potentially shows up at your front door.

A crisis plan will help you determine in advance how to speak to your employees, your residents and the media. It’s important that everyone who interacts with your community receives communication from you during a crisis communication.

3. The CEO or executive director is always the right person to communicate with the media.

People default to the CEO or executive director during a crisis, but this might not always be the most appropriate individual for every situation. If it’s a financial situation, the best spokesperson could be the CFO. If it’s a hacking incident, it could be the IT director. If it’s an employee issue, it could be the human resources director. For many situations, it could be the communications director. My recommendation is to always put the best spokesperson out in front for each specific situation — someone who can articulate the message efficiently and correctly.

4. Creating a crisis communications plan is too time-consuming.

Yes, it takes time and effort to create a crisis plan, but the alternative is that, if a crisis happens in your community, you’re caught unprepared. That kind of unpreparedness for a significant event has the potential to damage your company’s reputation and financial stability. It is better to invest time and resources up front than to suffer the damage of an unforeseen crisis.

Want some great tips for creating an effective crisis plan? Read my  blog post: “How to Create a Chaos-proof Crisis Plan.”

When was the last time you experienced truly exceptional customer service? I pondered this question when I recently pursued the somewhat aggravating task of purchasing a new car. As much as I anxiously anticipated the thrill of “new car smell,” I recognized that the sales process might be far from enjoyable. Based on past experience, it was evident that choosing the right dealership(s) was key to elevating my overall customer satisfaction.

As I found myself returning to the group of car dealerships that had exceeded my expectations for the past 15 years, I reflected on what this organization does that exhibits the optimum service model. I came back to five points:

1. Consistent processes, values and branding: The dealerships under the same umbrella, regardless of the actual “brand” of car I’m considering purchasing, maintain an ongoing relationship with me. They have established records of my buying history.
2. Anticipation of the customer’s needs: The dealers keep me informed of promotions and cars I might want to purchase and/or lease even before I’m actually ready AND are prepared with background of my likes and dislikes when I actually arrive at the lot.
3. White glove service: The dealers show care and attention to every detail of my needs, from purchase through all stages of the relationship. This includes: follow-up calls to see if everything is going well; calls from various team members to help me, even when they’re on vacation; referrals to the right people to help me with specific questions, such as a technology walk-through (not just being told to read the manual); the ability to come into any of the dealerships at any time with any concerns about the car after purchase (regardless of whether there is a service appointment); immediate service as soon as I walk in the door with no lag time; bumping up the time when my car is ready even though I didn’t ask.
4. “Servanthood” in action: A true atmosphere of service is shown at every level, regardless of role, and there is accountability. Team members, through their words and actions, set aside self-serving behaviors in favor of serving others — they serve both their colleagues and peers, as well as the customer.
5. Honest communication: The team members are transparent in their communications. Nothing is hidden, and it isn’t just for their own benefit, but for mine as well. When I recently bought my new car, I wasn’t “surprised” by anything before, during or after the deal, even when I turned in my previous car.

It occurred to me that these practices are not only lived by Varsity but are integral to the strategies we develop and employ for our clients as well. When consistently implemented, customers are pleased, the team feels good about its accomplishments, and the workplace thrives with a culture of helpfulness. The ultimate reward is that both the people and the organization are better for it in morale, revenue, image, brand and more…and don’t we all need a little dose of BETTER these days? I’m happy I was a recent recipient, with the added bonus of a shiny new car! 😊

Recently, a colleague forwarded an email to me that arrived in his inbox from the Harvard Business Review. The headline read, “Today’s Tip: Pressuring Your Sales Team Can Be Counterproductive.”

Wow, did that statement ever resonate with me. My colleague’s accompanying note said, “Doesn’t that suit your sales philosophy to a T, Jackie?” And he was 100 percent right.

In my long-standing work training and coaching sales staff at senior living communities, I have absolutely found that turning up the pressure to get team members to “make the numbers” doesn’t help, and in fact, is often seriously detrimental. As the Harvard Business Review article went on to explain, it’s not about closing sales at any cost; it’s about training and coaching salespeople to sell more effectively, not harder. Get the process right, and the sales flow from there.

Selling Isn’t Like the Movies

Perhaps it’s movies about high-pressure sales environments — “Jerry Maguire,” “Glengarry Glen Ross,” “Boiler Room” and the list goes on — that add to the impression that the most effective way to make salespeople reach sales goals is to crank up the heat and dangle money in front of them. But I’ve found that pressuring people and setting impossible goals for them doesn’t work well. In fact, pressure adds stress and anxiety, which hinders productivity, and setting unrealistic goals, no matter what the reward, demotivates people because they feel that success is unattainable.

Another unfortunate side effect of pressuring your salespeople is that they tend to turn around and pressure prospects, and when you become aggressive and push prospects to make a decision, they push back. In a category where the sales funnel to a decision can require an average of 24 touches and potentially two years to reach that decision, it’s much more important to build a relationship of trust with your prospects and lead them through the sales journey than to strong-arm them.

Same Team

When I train and coach sales staff, I put myself on their team. I work alongside them, get to know their selling style and where they might need additional training and support. Do they need help in selling the appointment over the phone? Or are their conversion rates of getting the appointments good, but their closing rate on getting deposits needs to improve?

I find out what I need to do to support salespeople in reaching their goals and being successful. I also help them understand that selling, especially in high-dollar and highly emotional sales, is about communicating and connecting with that unique individual sitting across from you. How I do that, and how I train others to do that, is by asking the right questions and really listening to learn what the person values; what his or her fears, hopes and dreams are; and how he or she makes decisions. When people feel understood, acknowledged and accepted, rapport is built, and they will follow you. This goes for salespeople as well as prospects.

A guest blog post by Brian Mailliard, CFO of St. Paul’s Senior Living Community

What does a community do with a prospective resident that is nursing home-eligible, does not need 24-hour care and yet can’t live independently? Up until now, the answer in western Pennsylvania has primarily been “personal care.” Unfortunately, Pennsylvania has many older adults who primarily live off of social security. These seniors do not have the assets to pay for personal care.

The problem is especially severe in rural western Pennsylvania. Here, the main industries of farming and manufacturing have taken a hard hit over the last 20 years. To make matters worse, affordable housing options for older adults are few and far between.

The good news is that, in the last five years, an alternative housing model has appeared. Share Care houses have been opening up in western Pennsylvania. This new housing bridges the gap for those with a low asset base who need assistance with activities of daily living.

A Neighborhood Solution

For-profit and nonprofit companies have been purchasing three-bedroom ranch homes in the community outside of their traditional campuses. The companies make small renovations, such as wheelchair ramps, wider doors and accessible bathrooms, to accommodate three residents. The residents utilize the Medicaid Home and Community-based Services waiver program,  plus their social security, to cover the cost of care. Once the home has three residents, the community can typically recoup the cost of the real estate purchase, plus renovations, in a 4–5-year time frame. At this point, the model becomes profitable. Since there are not more than three residents receiving services under the same roof, this model does not fall under personal care regulations.

The waiver will pay for an individual to get up to eight hours of assistance per day in a home in the community. Housing three residents, each optioned for eight hours of care per day, under one roof allows a company to have a care partner in the home 24 hours per day, seven days per week. Staffing is provided though a company’s home and community-based service providers, which now have the ability to offer staff the set schedules that are typically offered in home care. What I have found is that, in these small homes in the community, the staff and residents become their own little family. They grow close by doing activities together, such as shopping and cooking.

New Share Care Homes Opening

St. Paul’s Senior Living Community has opened two of these Share Care houses in the last six months. Wesbury United Methodist Community in Meadville, Pennsylvania, is also involved in Share Care. In addition to providing care at its campus, Wesbury owns and operates eight Share Care homes in the Meadville area. I have toured two of these homes. I’ve also met with Wesbury’s chief financial officer to discuss the community’s successes and struggles with Share Care.

Wesbury identified the need for a level of care for lower-income individuals that are not nursing home-appropriate. It first heard about the Share Care model from a local home care agency that operated a home. The Share Care homes are contributing to the entity’s bottom line and are operating at a profit. The impact on the outside community has also been very positive for Wesbury, with residents and staff getting involved in the greater communities in which the houses are located. That community involvement is something I plan to take back to promote at the Share Care homes within my organization.

Lessons Learned About Share Care 

Wesbury learned early on that, when making renovations, it is best to keep the house looking just like any other in the neighborhood. This way, neighbors do not get a sense that an outside organization is coming in and changing their neighborhood. One of the ways in which Wesbury combats this stigma is by putting the wheelchair access ramp inside the garage. That means the ramp is out of sight when people are driving through the neighborhood.

We have opened two of these homes in the last six months, and we are filling our second one with residents now. During this process, it has become obvious that, with any fewer than three residents, the costs outweigh the revenue. Because of this, filling the home has become a priority. When I asked Wesbury how it combats the cost of census turnover in its homes, I received a simple answer. Currently, they said, the only way to absorb the cost is by scale. The more houses you have to spread the costs of census turnover across, the better the model performs financially.

The Top Challenge Communities Face

What’s the number one struggle that Wesbury — and now St. Paul’s — has with this care model? It’s getting people approved for the waiver. Individuals who apply for the waiver wait, on average, six months for approval to be finalized. And, unlike the Medicaid benefit for the nursing home, there is no presumption of eligibility with the Home and Community-based Services Waiver. This means that someone in need of services cannot start receiving them until final approval is given.

As leaders in our communities, we have the ability to effect change. Organizations like ours and LeadingAge PA can advocate for change to the approval process for the waiver. Additionally, organizations such as mine that are just starting to offer Share Care can work with experienced organizations, like Wesbury, to learn how to navigate the current approval process. Share Care has proven that it can be an effective care model for low-income individuals who need help to live on their own. We just need to work together to make it easier to implement.

Around this time of year, people are racking their brains to find just the right gift for friends and family. And people who live in retirement communities can be especially challenging to buy for, due to space restraints. So, what do you say when family members track you down, begging for gift ideas for their loved one?

We polled a few of our friends and relatives who live in communities and got their thoughts on what they would appreciate receiving this holiday. Virtually all these gifts can either be used up, or used frequently and easily absorbed into a compact household.

1. A nice piece of clothing. Wardrobes tend to get forgettable or old, so “a really nice shirt would be great,” one male resident said.
2. A really good photograph. A special photo of a friend or relative – not necessarily posed – with a loving message, would be very welcome.
3. Gifts that connect with a passion. For example, if the resident is a wood carver, give them a beautiful piece of wood. For writers, some kind of off-the-beaten-track word book. For quilters, a gift certificate to JoAnn’s Fabric.
4. Special foods. People are frequently in need of delicious tidbits that can be used to host intimate get-togethers: nuts, cheeses, crackers, etc.
5. Grab bag. A few additional ideas: An emergency kit for the car, a special kitchen towel, a nice lap blanket, a magazine subscription, a laptop DVD player or streaming service, jigsaw puzzles, sudoku or crossword puzzles, a book in a favorite genre, a festive holiday decoration to dress up the apartment.

Of course, if you have the opportunity to call or visit a relative you don’t see often, just connecting can be the best gift of all. Wishing you and yours a very happy holiday!

I was fortunate to attend the LeadingAge PA Fellows in Leadership graduation ceremony in Allentown, PA. I came away with some serious leadership envy. It was obvious that during this year-long program, the group had become extremely tight knit and the Fellows had grown very comfortable around one another. You could tell they really appreciated being able to bounce ideas off their new network of peers and having very supportive and approachable leaders within each group.

At one point, there was an exercise where people went around the room and commented on each other’s strengths. They gave thoughtful and sincere answers and you could tell that their words were from the heart.

The sentiments shared at the larger meeting were echoed by two people I spoke with in more depth: Diane Burfeindt, Vice President of Population Health at Presbyterian Senior Living, a coach, and Brian Mailliard, CFO at St. Paul’s Senior Living Community, a Fellow. Both were part of the same small group.

As we discussed the year-long journey, the two remembered back to the first day. At first, Brian was hesitant to try the program. He didn’t know what to expect. “My hesitation went away – day one – minutes into the first session,” he said. “The program changed my whole approach to leadership.”

During the year the group was together, Diane found it interesting that many participants underwent changes and growth in their responsibilities and titles. “Change can be scary, even if it’s a positive thing,” she said.  “Luckily, they had the group to fall back on. Typically, you don’t have people to talk to about work. This was a safe place where people could talk about their challenges.”

Brian seconded that thought. “Before when I would have a difficult situation or tough conversation at work, I felt like I was out on an island — who could I ever talk to that had that experience? Now that we’ve gone through this program, we can pick up the phone and call someone.”

The group plans to keep on being that support system for one another through phone calls and meetings. “One of the most important parts of the leadership academy is what happens after it’s over,” Diane said.

Both Diane and Brian agreed that leadership isn’t a destination, it’s a lifelong journey.

“It continues to remind me every year – leadership is a process and you’re never done,” Diane said. “It’s growth and a part of life – it’s not separate from your personal life. If you think you know it all as a person, then you sort of stagnate. It’s nice to be with the Fellows and the class and get out of your daily routine and remind yourself of that.”

“This program is only one tool,” Brian added. “The biggest realization is that you’ve got to always be working at leadership. Whether it’s reading or conferences or signing up for specific programs — if you don’t make it an intentional part of your career then you’re going to get caught up in the day to day and put it off.”

One of the most fascinating components of the program was the final project each Fellow had to present. Brian completed his on a program called Share Care, an innovative housing solution for low-income seniors. Stay tuned for more details in a guest post from Brian.