Happy Monday. There is a lot of ground to cover, so let’s jump right into the mature marketing stories of the past week that had people talking. Have something to share? We’d love to hear from you.
MOST SHARED: We had a tie this past week of the most popular and most shared stories:
#1: You plan ahead — thinking you’ll be prepared if/when the day comes that you or a loved one needs support or care to live well. But what happens when all the preparedness doesn’t pay off? A recent article within The Washington Post chronicled the story of families facing hurdles as they dealt with the rising cost of elder care. In the article, the author followed the stories of two families dealing with a reality that many families face, as they work to ensure their loved ones can afford the care they need when a medical crisis strikes.
For the two-thirds of Americans over 65 who are expected to need some long-term care, the costs are increasingly beyond reach. The cost of staying in a nursing home has climbed at twice the rate of overall inflation over the last five years, according to the insurer Genworth Financial. One year in a private room now runs a median $91,000 a year, while one year of visits from home-health aides runs $45,760.
For senior living providers, your goal should be to highlight how your community/organization can effectively address the fears that go hand in hand with “is my money sufficient” fears that your prospective residents may have as they move through the purchase funnel.
#2: Social Media Examiner recently released their annual report outlining 12 Social Media Trends. Survey participants were asked a range of questions, including how they used social media and the most valuable types of content. The report can be downloaded when you visit their website, but here are a few highlights:
* 96% of marketers use social media as a part of their marketing mix
* Facebook is king when it comes to most popular platforms among marketers, followed by Twitter and LinkedIn
* Website traffic was the second most popular benefit of leveraging social media platforms
MOST CLICKED: Change is hard (at least it is for me). And baby boomers go through more changes than almost any other cohort. A recent blog from Innovation Excellence shared insights and tips for how to effectively address (and leverage) the life changes that people face. For those marketing to mature consumers, we see this as a HUGE opportunity to identify how your product, community or brand can help your boomer and senior target market address and embrace these life changes (and showcase how you can help them manage it best).
Here are a few thoughts the blog shared for using this opportunity in marketing:
“Fill the Void First”: The best way to reach your target is to make sure you are top of mind before they even realize they need you before a life change.
“Create habits, not Loyalty”: According to the author,” Familiarity is built from a mixture of physical and mental availability, which is in turn driven by prior product use, marketing, and enhances by perceived popularity, presence and availability in retail environments.” Leverage an integrated marketing approach to ensure your messaging is not only seen but received by prospects early on to create awareness and encourage engagement when the time comes.
Click here to discover other opportunities.
WORTH MENTIONING: Be sure to join us this Thursday, July 30th for even more insights into mature marketing during our webinar “Beyond the Blast: The Nuts and Bolts of Email Marketing to Boomers and Seniors.” We’ll share a number of tips and insights to help you learn how you can effectively leverage email to generate and nurture leads and influence purchases. Click here to register.