Tag: Senior Living

Joy Loverde is a path carver, a keynote speaker and a best-selling author. Her book, “The Complete Eldercare Planner” helps senior living shoppers figure out “where to start, which questions to ask and how to find help.” 

She also knows what it takes to plan effective sales events for senior living communities. For more than 35 years Joy has participated in hundreds of senior living marketing events as a keynote speaker and a mature marketing consultant. She joined our weekly Roundtable recently to share some of the things she’s learned about sales events. The following are some highlights from that conversation. 

WHAT CHANGES HAVE YOU SEEN IN TERMS OF WHO ATTENDS SENIOR LIVING MARKETING EVENTS? 

There have been significant shifts, particularly in the demographics of attendees at independent living prospect events.The audience has become much younger and healthier over the past decade, with participants as young as 45 and many in their 60s and 70s who are active and healthy. Joy highlighted the presence of young widows in their 50s and 60s who feel invisible, as well as the LGBTQ+ population, who are concerned about finding inclusive living environments. 

ARE YOU FINDING THAT THE PEOPLE ATTENDING EVENTS ARE MUCH MORE EDUCATED ON THE SENIOR LIVING MARKETPLACE THAN BEFORE?

Prospects today are much more informed. Attendees, especially boomers, enter the events with extensive knowledge of the products, whether it’s assisted living or independent living. They have thoroughly researched online and are aware of various lifestyle housing alternatives. 

Many attendees have experienced caregiving for their parents or grandparents, which has made them aware of the difficulties and financial nightmares associated with end-of-life care. This personal experience has informed their decisions about what they do not want as they journey toward old age.

WHAT KINDS OF QUESTIONS ARE PEOPLE IN YOUR SENIOR LIVING AUDIENCES (PROSPECTS) ASKING NOW? 

In the past, discussions focused on the benefits of communal living and dining preferences. Today, boomer prospects express more of a desire for control and individuality. For example, customizing their personal living spaces is important to them.  

Another significant shift in questions revolves around emotional wellness. In addition to boomers, many younger widows attend Joy’s events. They ask about individual support in the areas of grief, yoga, meditation, and spirituality. Joy further explained that in general many boomers are frequently experiencing grief due to the loss of loved ones, and they express the need for ongoing emotional support.

DOES THE LOCATION OF WHERE YOU HOLD MARKETING EVENTS MATTER IN TERMS OF ATTRACTING PROSPECTS? 

Joy noted a significant shift in event location strategies. Previously, there was a focus on holding independent living events at luxurious off-campus venues like country clubs to showcase community life. Now, the trend is toward smaller, on-campus events for Life Plan Communities, accommodating up to 60 people. Smaller audiences allow for more personalized interactions and attention to individual prospects.

Conversely, events for assisted living are now often held in vibrant settings like country clubs. These venues offer a feel-good environment with healthy food and social opportunities, which can be particularly appealing to prospects and adult children facing crises. 

Varsity’s Roundtable is a weekly virtual gathering of senior living marketers and leaders from across the nation. For updates about future weekly Roundtable gatherings, submit your name and email address here.

Total solar eclipses are rare events. The last one we saw in the U.S. was in 2017. This year’s total solar eclipse on April 8 will last longer and will be visible in more states than the last event.

If you’re looking for the best views, you’ll have to watch from Texas, Arkansas, Missouri, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire or Maine. In Arkansas, that means over a million people will be visiting from across the country for the state’s largest tourism event ever. The entire state is gearing up, including state troopers, hotel clerks and restaurant owners.

Parkway Village, a senior living community in Little Rock, Arkansas, is getting ready, too. “There is definitely an air of anticipation as April 8 gets closer!” said Alyssa Majeske, the community’s wellness and activities coordinator.

With its home state a prime viewing position for this rare event, Parkway Village is going all out in throwing a solar eclipse viewing party. “We have quite the event planned — it will be such a fun time for our residents,” said Alyssa. “We are planning to have yard games to play, music, ‘safe sparklers,’ and, of course, we are providing solar eclipse glasses.”

Best of all will be the food. “We are planning a fun menu of snacks and desserts that are in line with the theme of the event — foods like Milky Ways, moon pies and specially shaped cheese and crackers,” Alyssa said.

“We are starting the viewing party right before the partial eclipse begins (projected to be 12:33 p.m.), so our folks can have the full experience of the eclipse,” she continued. “We will have LED Tiki torches to light the path, as well. There will be music with a mic system, so we can make announcements — for example, to let our residents know that they need to wear the eclipse glasses whenever any part of the sun’s disk is visible. We want this to be a fun, memorable experience for our residents here at Parkway Village.”

Parkway Village is anticipating attendance of 100 to 200 residents, or more. “Our residents are very excited,” said Alyssa. “Just this week, I’ve received multiple phone calls making sure we are still hosting a viewing party.”

The eclipse has also attracted prospects to Parkway Village. There are several tours booked for the week of the solar eclipse, and they are all people from out of town who are here to view the celestial phenomenon. Most of the community’s guest rooms are booked, too.

An opportunity like this only comes around once in a great while, but the total solar eclipse does provide inspiration for planning other events. From Super Bowl parties in February to tax prep workshops in April, tying your community’s event to something that’s happening in the greater community can create excitement and draw in potential residents.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yesterday, we celebrated our 200th Varsity Sales & Marketing Roundtable. Over 50 attendees tuned in to hear special guest John Spooner, co-chief executive officer of Greystone Communities, share his presentation, “Understanding the New Consumer Mindset.” Here are some highlights of John’s fascinating discussion.

More Than a Retirement Counselor

You may be called a retirement counselor or marketing assistant, but you have to think of yourself as the chief revenue officer. The organization won’t thrive unless you have success bringing new residents into the community.

The Three Buckets of Prospects

How many clients do you have that are sold on your community, but still won’t move forward? We put prospects into three buckets:

• Planners: They know what they want and they move through the process relatively fast.
• Procrastinators: A giant bloat in your database: They’re sold but they’re just not moving forward.
• Crashers: They wait too late, and come in after they’ve had a health scare. Now they need AL, but they really want IL.

‘I Understand and Want the Benefits of Your Community, BUT …’

The procrastinators say things like, “I couldn’t leave my home.” “Let’s talk next year.” “I’m not ready.” “I need to think about this.”

We call those F.U.D. (fear, uncertainty and doubt). Those are people that we have trouble moving through the process. Their objections are not unique. Sometimes it’s an emotional objection, sometimes it’s a financial objection. They toggle back and forth and switch to another one after you’ve got them covered. So the question is, at what point do we lose them? When the reality sets in that they have to make a decision.

Selling Senior Living Is Hard, Buying Is Harder

Selling is a difficult job. But buying is harder because prospects are coming into it without a lot of knowledge, trying to make a decision that most of them don’t want to make. That’s why you have so many people in your bloated database.

Prospects Have Created a Living Terrarium — and They Want to Stay There

We’re genetically engineered to conserve energy by minimizing energy expenditure. It’s easy to say, “I can’t move because I can’t change my doctor, my plumber, my friends.” Prospects have created this living terrarium that they are living in — they are not going to expose themselves to self-imposed chaos. They say, “I’m going to hit the easy button and live in my ecosystem.” Ecosystem equals status quo.

Battling ‘Status Quo’ Bias

Everything that prospects think or say is about seeking information that confirms their decision to do nothing and maintain the status quo. They are so fearful of making a mistake for an uncertain outcome that they can’t move forward. Simply put, their fear of messing up is more than their fear of missing out. Our job is to break the gravitational pull of that senior status quo. When you can move their status quo so that it becomes less than the community, everyone wins.

Your competition isn’t another community across town. Your competition isn’t “staying in their own home.” The REAL competition is NO DECISION. Some seniors are playing the same “no-decision” game with every community in town. They live in a constant state of indecision. You need to know how to recognize it and overcome it. They are thinking, “What if your community isn’t what I want?” Your job is to give them confidence that they’re going to go in there and be OK.

Prospects do not want to talk about you or your community. They want to talk to you about them. When you go to the doctor, you don’t want to watch a video of their latest operation, you want them to talk to you about your problem. The same goes for senior living. Don’t give a long description of the community … the choice of three entrees … the meal points program … the beautiful apartments — prospects want to talk to you about them.

Going Beyond Discovery 101 to ‘Radical Candor’

There are standard discovery questions that we all use. But it really needs to be about breaking the status quo. It’s about the art of personal engagement and addressing uncomfortable topics to give prospects personal insight. You have to learn to attack their outcome uncertainty and reframe questions to get them to understand why they have to break the status quo.

That requires radical candor. You have to challenge them by asking uncomfortable questions, like:

• Does the next five years of your life look like the last five years?
• That house isn’t working for you anymore, is it?

It might be unpleasant and it might be scary for you to be this forward, but it’s OK. The first two to three questions are difficult, but you will be surprised at the great outcomes. Don’t talk to prospects about all the contract options — talk to them about how they can break out of their little terrarium. Radical candor is about caring personally and challenging directly.

Your job is to ask and then to reframe the probing question into a statement that assures them they have the confidence to make this decision. Challenge their positions and biases, and then stand up and make a recommendation to them. You are the subject matter expert. You are the one they have turned to to help them spend the last years of their life. From your discovery, you know what is important to prospects. You can start with “This plan is a popular option” or “I personally prefer this option.” It shows that you have diagnosed their needs and have a personal recommendation. 

Indecision Junkie Recovery Program

To sum up, here are six steps to indecision junkie recovery.  

1. Own the flow of information.
2.   Employ “radical candor.”
3.   Anticipate objections and indecision.
4.   Use your discovery knowledge.
5.   Community  > Risk > Status Quo
6.   Make a personal recommendation.

What Your Community Can Offer Prospects

Security. Predictability. Safety. Dependability. Reliability. Permanence. These qualities represent what your community can offer prospects — the stuff deep down in their emotions that they’re looking for. You just need to wash away the fear by leading them through the mire and muck of “status quo bias” — giving them confidence to make a decision.

 

 

 

With “Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones” coming out recently on Netflix, there is a renewed interest in the research and concept of Blue Zones^®, areas around the world where people live much longer than average, with the highest rates of living centenarians.

In 2004, author Dan Buettner teamed up with National Geographic and the world’s best longevity researchers to identify pockets around the world where people live measurably longer and better lives, and to see what commonalities there might be in their behaviors, practices and lifestyles that might result in this longer lifespan. They discovered five locations where people reach age 100 at a rate 10 times greater than the average in the United States: Okinawa, Japan; Sardinia, Italy; Ikaria, Greece; Nicoya, Costa Rica; and Loma Linda, California. When pinpointing these locations on a world map, Dan circled them in blue, and therefore called them Blue Zones^®.

Researchers found that the lifestyles of all Blue Zones’ residents shared nine commonalities, which they called the Blue Zones Power 9^®: Lifestyle Habits of the World’s Healthiest, Longest-Lived People. These behaviors are grouped into categories: Move Naturally, Right Outlook, Eat Wisely and Connect.

Those of us in the senior living space would love for our residents to live longer, healthier, happier lives, so the question is, “Can we replicate this philosophy and these practices in our communities?” We already offer healthy meal options, fitness and exercise opportunities, and a sense of belonging, but how do we get residents to buy into it?

Some Varsity clients have modeled their wellness programs after the Blue Zones practices. We’ve hosted marketing events to educate people on the Blue Zones philosophy and its importance related to longevity, and then four smaller events dedicated to Moving Naturally (yoga, stretching), Right Outlook (meditation, mindfulness), Eating Wisely (Chef cooking demonstration with Mediterranean diet with wine pairing) and Connection (practicing good communication skills and technology). Some communities even code the events on their activities calendars with icons representing the Blue Zones practices.

While both residents and prospects enjoy the events and agree with the concepts in theory, it’s a pretty heavy lift to get people to adhere to a lifestyle that may be foreign to them. It’s a huge culture shift that may be difficult for some to achieve. Case in point, I recall one resident that I joined for breakfast who told me that her doctor recommended she eat more fruits and vegetables, so she ordered a cherry Danish instead of her usual cheese Danish. True story.

While we would like our residents to “live better, longer,” all we can do is offer the options to do so. The choice is obviously theirs to make, and perhaps having that autonomy is more important.

 

 

We hear over and over again about the extreme staffing shortages in senior living, and particularly about the lack of interest that younger people have in working in this industry.

But one twenty-something is bucking the trend. Alex Pavone, who graduated from Penn State University with a degree in health policy administration, said, “For many people, especially younger adults, senior living isn’t an appealing field. But for me, the industry is really intriguing. With the older population expanding, it poses a lot of opportunities for a long-term career.”

Alex’s interest in senior living started at a young age. “Volunteering at a community in high school, a college course in long-term care management, shadowing opportunities, as well as close relationships with my grandmothers,” she said. “These are a few of the things that sparked my interest in the industry.”

Alex’s recent visit to the 2023 LeadingAge Annual Meeting in Chicago made her interest even stronger. “I thought it would be a great opportunity to see what kind of resources are available to the industry,” she said. “The most fascinating thing was seeing the innovative products vendors have brought forward to serve these communities.”

Alex particularly loved the technology offerings. “I was especially interested by technology-based viewing of communities that allows you to ‘walk’ through the community without having to be there in person. This is a great resource for adult children as well as potential residents. Another technology I was excited about was robot restaurant servers.”

Currently working as an account manager and analyst, Alex has a strong work ethic, which runs in the family. Alex has seen her father, Michael Pavone, work to expand his business into many areas, including starting Varsity in 1992 to address the needs of the aging Baby Boomer population.

When asked what she has learned from her father over the years, Alex did not hesitate to share these three pieces of advice:

1. Never give up.
2. Hard work pays off.
3. When you love what you do, you never work a day in your life.

It’s not hard to see that wherever her career takes her (hopefully to senior living), Alex is sure not to work a day in her life.

 

Over 350 sales and marketing professionals from senior living organizations of all sizes across the U.S. participated in the 2023 Senior Care Marketing & Sales Summit (SMASH) in Henderson, Nevada. Two of Varsity’s roundtable participants attended the sold-out conference. In this post, Mark Hamby, Director of Resident and Family Services at Parkway Village, and Christine Hall, Senior Director of Marketing and Public Relations at Franke Tobey Jones, share with us 11 of the hottest trends that they heard about at SMASH. As you’ll see below, there have been a lot of new changes in the space since we posted about the top 10 senior living market trends during the pandemic.

1. Occupancy has flattened out. The average occupancy across senior living in 2023 was 80%. 20% of communities are under 60% occupied, so more communities are discounting this year.
2. AI is transforming the customer journey. Within five years, every webpage and follow-up email will be completely different for each prospect, with copy completely tailored to their interests.
3. Prospects are aging. 20% of prospects and 25% of new residents are 90+ years old.
4. Digital marketing is more important than ever. For all communities, 40% to 60% of leads are coming in digitally. One important feature that prospects want to see on websites is accurate, transparent pricing. Also, communities need to protect themselves from lawsuits by including HIPAA-compliant copy that assures prospects their information will not be sold.
5. The senior living industry is underperforming. According to Forbes, senior living is the third largest industry, but is also the most underperforming. Our space is doing 9% of total business, but we should be doing closer to 19%.
6. Adult children are shopping online at night. A huge number of adult family members are researching communities between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m. Communities should consider hiring a call center or using a chatbot to ensure customers can get initial information after hours.
7. Speed to lead is critical. 70% of prospects will tour a community within seven days of initial contact, and during that time, sales teams complete about 10 touches. The first community to reach a lead is most likely to get the tour. Sales teams must reach out within 20 minutes to an hour, or the lead will go on to another community.
8. Online reviews are crucial. 91% of people looking for senior living communities are using Google reviews —  the highest percentage of any industry (80% said if the community doesn’t have four stars or more, they won’t consider it).
9. Value-select premium pricing is on the rise. Pricing of same-sized units is no longer identical. Consumers don’t want to pay as much for an apartment that looks out on a parking lot as one with a lake view.
10. Fear of COVID-19 is still the biggest obstacle to move-ins. It’s important to educate prospects, letting them know that fewer than 1% of 800,000 residents have contracted COVID and that communities continue to strengthen their safety policies.
11. Biggest selling tool: a welcoming atmosphere. Prospects put a huge emphasis on how they feel when they walk in to a community. A friendly, engaged atmosphere with smiling staff and residents is the best tool for closing sales.

In the agency world, “creative” is a department, a role, a title. It’s the job I signed up for a long time ago, for all the reasons you might expect — the daily opportunity to do something different, solve new problems, tell new stories. To be overtly “creative.” But after 25+ years in the agency world, one thing I know for sure is that creativity isn’t only found with our creatives. Every member of our team exercises creativity in their role every day in one form or another.

Because each of us here at Varsity has a unique perspective on the work that we do to support our clients, and the work our clients do to support their residents, I’ve asked the team to celebrate National Creativity Day by sharing their thoughts, insights or favorite quotes on “creativity” and what it means to them. From our team to yours, Happy National Creativity Day!

“Creativity means looking at the world through your own lens. Being willing to look beyond the obvious and consider the ‘what ifs?’ ” —Derek Dunham, Vice President Client Services	“Creativity is a way for me to express myself … and then to reflect.” —Jodi Christman, Digital Production Director
“For me, creativity is about trying new things and thinking outside the box.” —Jackie Stone, Sales & Marketing Consultant	“For me, creativity is about freedom.” —Joe Barry, Senior Art Director
“Creativity is about letting your mind run free and exploring without boundaries. It’s when you look at everyday things in completely new ways. That’s when you come up with the fun stuff, the weird stuff, the really good stuff. Albert Einstein said it best: ‘Creativity is seeing what others see and thinking what no one else ever thought.’ ” —Erica Reed, Senior Copywriter	“Scott Adams said, ‘Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.’ So much of being creative is not being afraid to make mistakes, to put any and every idea out there. Collaboration gives us the opportunity to sift through those ideas to see what inspires others and truly rises to the top.” —Reneé Kelly, Art Director
“Creativity is thinking, being or doing in an original way.” —Natalie Groeger, Senior Account Strategist	“Creativity is seeing the world from a perspective different from your own.” —Jace Dawson, Project Manager
“Creativity means looking at a problem differently and coming up with a unique, out-of-the-box solution. And making things prettier. :)” —Emily Runyon, Account Strategist	“I’ve always liked the Pablo Picasso quote, ‘Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.’” —Ellie Weaver, Account Strategist
“While most people think of creativity as artistic expression or the creation of something, in my world, creativity is being able to look at a situation, question whether it can be better, and come up with solutions to simplify or clarify a process. In many cases, it’s not invention, but rather re-invention.” —Amy Beamer Murray, COO & Partner	“Creativity reflects the moment when we discover something new — sometimes through novel experiences, sometimes through the filter of prior knowledge — but always the unfolding of a greater understanding that connects each of us to unexpected possibilities.” —Bill Mulligan, Account Director
“Creativity means being able to tell an authentic story in words or imagery.” —Jodi Gibble, Sales & Marketing Consultant

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 .

*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 .

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