NOVEMBER 2019 //
Inspiring Senior Lifestyle Marketing & Sales Teams to New Heights
TO FLY HIGHER, RAISE THE BAR. 1
2020 Event Guidelines e
nt Guid
g Eve Marketin
2020
2020
S LC E VENT Each qu
arter, pla
n one of
GUIDE
each ev ent type .
LINES
TYPE TARGET
Lead Ge
AUDIEN
CE
neration
Databa se
Re-Eng
Closing
New pr ospe adult ch cts and ildren
agemen
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Current Leads LEAP/C RM
Event
DELIVE
RABLES
PAID ME DIA: • Direc t mail • Insert • Email • News paper Ad • Facebook s
Current Leads LEAP/C RM
Referra
l
Professio nal Re
ferrals
• Print invite • Email • Facebo ok • Print invite • Email • Incen tives Event inv
ite
RY T H E M E S BY C AT E G O EFFECTIVE EVENT
EFFE What to Look For in a Senior Community Talking to Aging Parents
Living
In?
in a CCRC: Financing Senior Living ent All about Asset Assessm
Members
Having a Today’s Retirement Means Plan for Tomorrow. Veteran Benefits ion Stations
a Senior Considering Moving to Living Community? quickly. Learn how to sell your home (Downsizing) on
Resident Panel Discussi
nt Options
Exploring Your Retireme
Living? How Do I Afford Senior
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Signature (yearly) Event
Enjoy Delicious Fare - Destinat
Health & Wellness Fair
Rightsizing Your Lifestyle
E
Tour of Homes Open House Highlight Expertise of Staff
The Benefits of a CCRC The Benefits of a Rental
CTIVE
Parent’s Home
How to begin planning
About Options
Can I Afford to Move Mom
LEAD GENERATION
How to Safeguard Your
THEM VENT
Estate Planning & Elderly
Law Attorney nt Options?
Thinking About Your Retireme
ities Are Alike Not All Senior Commun vs. CCRC) (comparison guide Rental
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nt Enjoy a Secure Retireme physical security) (financial, healthcare &
ASE DATAB ENT GAGEM RE-EN
C AT E E S BY
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OUR FIND OUT ABOUT
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Now available, your roadmap to event planning. The newly published Marketing Event Guide organizes events into four categories – lead generation, database re-engagement, closings, and referral – and provides robust sets of themes for each. For best results, plan out your year and mix in the different types of events that capture prospects at different points of the sales funnel. As you know, not every event suits every prospect so be mindful of your audience when planning your events. The Guide includes success suggestions – from planning to promotion to parking. And it provides a smattering of samples – postcards, inserts, flyers and ads – with brand and messaging standards included.
New: A revamped look for double-sided inserts We’re maximizing the potential, and what you’ll soon see are double-sided inserts that offer general branding (more of that benefit-rich truth) on one side, with information about a lead-generating event or soft incentive on the other. A strong CTA should make the phone ring.
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THE PARAMOUNT RESPONSIBILITY:
Managing Expectations Janine Witte
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One of our biggest sales role responsibilities is setting proper customer expectations. We have to keep in mind that for many families this is the first time they’re going down this path of exploring senior housing. Despite the research they do online or the questions they ask friends and family members, we can never assume they understand what to expect when they come and visit with us. That’s why we spend a lot of time talking about setting the tone during Senior Lifestyle sales and marketing training.
FIRST EXPECTATION What will their experience will be like when they visit us at the community? Take charge and always greet them in the lobby. It’s hard to walk into a senior community for the first time, so help them feel welcome! When you sit down, and prior to discovery, share with them what they can expect. Set an agenda so they can relax knowing their questions will be answered and they will see the community. Start by explaining we want to make the best use of their time, and ensure we cover what’s most important to them. With that information, we’ll take a walk through the community to meet staff and see spaces that seem the most relevant based on what they’ve shared. After that, we can come back to the discovery room, review what we saw and who we met and then go over the financial piece. Gain confirmation that this sounds good to them and ask permission to start discovery.
SECOND EXPECTATION Secure the next steps. People want to know, “Can you take my dad, and how much will it cost?” Being able to address this properly can make or break your occupancy and also your partnerships with your Health and Wellness Director and Executive Director. My favorite way to address this goes something like this: “Based on what you shared, it sounds like we may be able to help, and your dad could be around a care level one or two. We would need the assessment
to know for sure if we can help and what the exact care would be. It sounds like we should make that our next step. Let’s take a look at some dates.”
THIRD EXPECTATION How do we plan to help them complete their decision? My favorite way to do this actually starts back at the first round of discovery. I like to set a potential timeline and then see how many next steps I can secure at once. For example, I help the customer verbalize when they would like to have all this solidified. I walk them through the steps: Safety first! Secure the deposit on that apartment while we do other things! Then assessment, review the care plan and finalize the finances, understand the lease. Tie it all together, and we’re done 30 days ahead of schedule!
BE BEST Show off the staff, show off the lifestyle, show off your ability to help, and show off how you’re the best in the market. Don’t back away from taking a family by the proverbial hand and telling them what the best next steps are for them. That’s quite literally why they’re in your community at that exact moment.
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Giving Thanks Cindy Ames
As the end of the year approaches, I want to give my thanks for all you do for our customers. Every time you choose to use a sales tool, do great discovery and provide solutions, you implement your sales training and create the best customer service experience for those who reach out for your help. As I’ve shared with many of you, my job is to help you succeed in your job. With that in mind, I look at ways to provide additional training and coaching for your professional development.
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2020 opportunities for development We’re going beyond Sales and Marketing Academy with professional development. For DSMs who’ve been in their role between 8 to 14 months, we’ll offer repetitionbased coaching that will raise your skill level in conveying your better story to the customer. For DSMs who’ve been in their role for 18 months or longer, we’ll provide a comprehensive, deep-dive training called All About Them that focuses on the customer and their needs. These trainings will certainly take you to the next level, and you’ll be able to share your learning with your Sales Counselor and help develop their skill set. We’ll also develop training for your ED/RDO/DDSM on how to provide you with additional coaching. For all sales roles, we’ll continue with monthly sales training webinars that will educate you on topics pertinent to your role.
Contact me and I’ll send you the criteria for the position. If you’re still interested after reading it, talk to your ED, RDO and DDSM to let them know you want to work toward that goal. End this year gratefully and start 2020 strategically Finally, I suggest you set aside time for self-reflection. Ask yourself what went well this year, what you need to stop doing, and what you need to start doing. Your observations will enable you to plan strategically for developing your professional skills and your business. And this means you’ll help more seniors call your community their home in 2020.
Want to grow in your role as a DSM? Make 2020 the year where you advance toward joining our training team as a Learning Partner. In this role, you can host calls with new sales hires, train them to effectively use our sales tools, and conduct site visits to provide oneon-one coaching. Does this sound like something you’re interested in?
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Better than DIY When you’re in a rush, check with your account manager at Grapevine Designs, The Agency. Even around holidays and during peak-production seasons, Grapevine burns the midnight oil to accommodate special needs for flyers, ads, direct mail and inserts. But if you need it now, you just might need a backup plan. And that’s when you can turn to Brand Works. Offering a variety of design templates, this ready-made resource gets you
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the marketing materials you need quickly and on brand. You can get your just-right flyer fast – plus, you’ll know all your mandatory elements and fine print are correct, which makes it better than DIY. You’ll find Brand Works at SeniorLifestyleStore.com, but you’ll need an account to access the services. So email seniorlifestyle@grapevinedesigns.com and get set up for success.
Social Media News. Connectivity rose in October. Overall, “likes” across all Senior Lifestyle communities pages ticked up 3.5%, and 34 pages increased by that much or more. The big achiever was THE SHERIDAN AT HOBE SOUND, where a post about hurricane Dorian response blew up response by 140%. The Facebook post-engagement rate was 18.9%, and 46 pages saw rates of 18.9% or higher. Madison House posted 32 times during the month – at the preferred pace of one post per day – and the result was an engagement rate of 35%.
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303 East Wacker Drive, Suite 2400 Chicago, IL 60601 www.SeniorLifestyle.com 10