Up-close research on retirement living.

At Varsity, we have completed various types of research over a span of 20 years, including our Sales & Marketing Roundtables, one-on-one interviews, surveys, focus groups, shop-alongs and even moving into a community for 30 days and 30 nights to get to know residents up close. We share the insights we’ve gleaned through white papers, articles and presentations, and state and national conferences, and we’re always looking for the next industry-changing trend. Here are a few that have been on our radar recently:

  • The labor shortage epidemic at communities
  • New dining trends that have arisen from COVID-19 restrictions
  • The rise of technology, from virtual presentations to smart residences
  • Residential living giving way to more in-home services

“Research has been a huge factor in understanding our audience and constantly evolving our view of their wants and needs.”– Jackie Stone, VP Sales Consulting

Our nationally recognized senior research studies and partnerships include:

  • The Varsity Roundtable Project (2020-2022) — We started the Varsity Roundtable Project soon after the pandemic began shutting community visitation down. Now, we’ve held almost two years of a weekly virtual conversation bringing together participants from all corners of the country. We’ve hosted guest speakers across a wide variety of disciplines, from research and sales to digital and social. It’s our goal to encourage a national conversation while sharing experiences, ideas and support on a very individual level.
  • The NameStorm Project (2015) — We partnered in a LeadingAge/Mather LifeWays initiative to replace the 25-year-old term “CCRC” with a fresh moniker. After two years of listening to thousands of consumers and professionals, our task force selected “Life Plan Community” as the new category name. We were instrumental, not only in developing the name, but in leading the look and feel for the communication of this news to the industry.
  • Project Looking Glass (2007-2015)
    • Project Looking Glass I (2007) — Researchers moved into Garden Spot Village, a retirement community in New Holland, Pennsylvania, for 30 days and 30 nights, living, eating, socializing and shopping alongside residents to receive insights into life there.
    • Project Looking Glass II (2012) — We repeated the experiment five years later at Frasier, a Boulder, Colorado, retirement community, to compare experiences in a different region and to track changes over time.
    • Project Looking Glass III (2015) — Turning the looking glass around, we examined the decision-making process that prospective residents go through when considering a move to a senior living community.

To learn more about any of our research projects, or schedule a presentation of the results, please contact us.