Every Monday on this blog we recap the most engaging content from the previous week.
This week, our top article was actually a consumer-focused guide to having those tough conversations with aging loved ones about their housing situation. As experts in marketing senior housing, Creating Results suggests three ways you can build brand awareness around holidays and “The Talk.”
We also wanted to give a shout out to our President, Todd Harff. His post on 2017 Marketing Plans was one of the most shared items!
Most Clicked and Most Shared: How to prepare for “The Talk”
HealthCentral.com published a how to guide to help start the dreaded “next steps talk” with the senior in your life.
The article gives five insights on when it is appropriate for adult children and visiting family to discuss this topic (Hint: Christmas and Hanukkah are coming!), how to keep the conversation relevant, and how to discover what your parents value.
So what are the tips HealthCentral recommends?
- Ongoing conversations keep it natural
- Independence vs. safety
- Provide choices whenever possible
- Don’t let age rule
- Look to outside help
BONUS: 6. Be realistic about the situation
Three Ideas for Creating Brand Awareness Around the Holidays
You might be thinking, “So what does this mean for me as a provider?”
It is simple: educate your prospects and adult children on how your senior community provides housing and healthcare, and promotes active lifestyles. This will build trust and extend your brand in a non-salesy way.
At Creating Results, we have done this a number of ways.
1. Direct Messaging to seniors in your database
Send holiday-themed postcards with tips, information sessions, or an informative guide about your community. This helps the senior navigate the conversation to discuss their wants and need with their adult children.
Westminster at Lake Ridge, a continuing care retirement community (CCRC) outside of Washington, DC, sent this mailer to showcase their location and upcoming events, playing off the holiday theme of “over the river and through the woods.”
2. Direct Messaging to adult children
Send Happy Holiday postcards to adult children in your database or a purchased list. Offer tips on how to have “The Talk” with their aging parents.
Leading with education will earn trust with your prospect’s family and build brand awareness.
3. Article or advertorial in the local paper
Staying with the theme of education, write an article for the local newspapers about transitioning to senior housing or even using resident transition stories. This too will earn trust and build brand awareness, and may reach a broader audience as family members come home for the holidays.
An example of a successful public relations effort was one for Westminster at Lake Ridge. A Creating Results team member wrote an article titled “Holidays May Bring Surprises for Adult Children with Aging Parents.” The piece included five tips from Westminster at Lake Ridge’s Marketing Director “to help adult children start a conversation with their aging parents about their needs, life stage and plans for the future.”
In other words,what to do and not to do about “The Talk.”
The call-to-action on the article included links to various online resources, including, of course, the Westminster website. It was successfully placed in local print newspapers and in several blogs.
Create trust with your prospects by making “The Talk” easier this holiday by following these housing marketing tips.
Click here to read all the discussion tips on HealthCentral.
Also of Note:
If you missed Todd’s post on “R-E-S-P-E-C-T and your 2017 Marketing Plan,” you can find that by clicking here.