Senior Living Sales Archives - Moore Diversified Services, Inc.

Qualified Leads and More Move-Ins for 2017

Posted on June 20, 2017 by MDS

“You’ve Got Questions . . . We’ve Got Answers”

What’s one creative way to increase qualified leads and hopefully more move-ins in 2017?

Referrals from existing residents is one of the leading sources of leads and move-ins. That’s because Seniors trust and listen to their peers. A carefully planned and executed resident panel discussion is an excellent way to get these messages to prospects. A broad spectrum of moderated discussion issues can be especially effective in overcoming specific concerns, misconceptions and important financial concerns that can deal with price, value, affordability and prudent financial planning.

Invite about 12 articulate residents and several immediate family members for a discussion session. Tell them the meeting will last about 90 minutes and they will be discussing how they went through the decision process to move to your community. A carefully planned moderator discussion guide could contain a broad spectrum of up to 25 important issues. A typical example of group discussion of financial issues includes; 1) First reaction when you discussed pricing, 2) How did it initially compare with your current cost of living, 3) Your initial reaction regarding pricing versus affordability versus value, 4) Did it change during your decision process, 5) How do you now define the “value” of your community, 6) Were you concerned about future monthly fee increases (then and now), 7) Did you have to reduce your current savings portfolio or did you use some of your newly acquired home sale proceeds, 8) Do you now consider living here a sound financial planning decision and Why, 9) What advice would you give other Seniors like yourselves as they go through the financial decision process.

This is just a sample of issues to discuss. Consider recording the session and create a 12 to 15 minute DVD as an innovative sales and marketing asset. You will likely be pleasantly surprised with the results.

MDS will assist you in the outline and development of such a panel discussion for your prospective residents. We can make this a part of a comprehensive marketing program. Contact us today for an appointment to see how we can help you implement this valuable marketing tool.

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BE PREPARED FOR STRATEGIC CHANGE

Posted on April 25, 2016July 6, 2018 by MDSadmin

Our Industry Is Entering Into The “Second Generation”

When we think of “generations” we typically consider population in general and our peers, children and grandchildren. We know unique generations commonly think differently in terms of lifestyle, finances, how they spend their money and their perception of value . . . in other words their “psychographics” are different. The term psychographics is broadly defined as the use of demographics to determine the attitudes, perceptions and behavior of a particular segment of our population.

Let’s sharpen the definition of population psychographics and apply it specifically to our senior living industry in terms of two important consumer generations; 1) The Silent Generation, ages 70 to 90 – age, income and asset qualified seniors as potential residents for our communities and 2) The Baby Boom and Baby Busters ages 55 to 64 – the decision influencers for senior living. Let’s also consider the professionals that design and operate our communities. These designs and operating strategies are changing.

There are dramatic differences we need to address as we make the critical transition into the second generation of our industry. They involve two primary consumer generations:

1. The Silent Generation – 1925 to 1945. This generation has two major components:

The Depression Era (1929 to 1939). When I talk to seniors and conduct senior focus groups, I always ask, “Does having lived through the Depression in any way affect your financial decision-making today?” The answer is always a resounding “”
World War II (1940-1945). GIs came home from the war, married, bought homes and had children in record numbers (the Boomers). These veterans were motivated to make up for lost time. After getting educated under the GI Bill, they built businesses, careers and built personal savings. They are generally fiscally conservative.

2. The Baby Boomers – 1946 to 1964. The Boomers and the Baby Busters (1965 to 1980) have a current age spectrum of 35 to 69. Their psychographics are:

The “Gray Flannel Suit” Era (1946 – 1980). During this period, many men and women entered the corporate world prepared to spend their careers with one employer. They were generally “team players” – conforming, spending their time responding to the requirements of their employers as they worked through their careers.
Vietnam Era & the Rebellions of 1960s & 1970s. This troublesome period (1960 – 1974) created large groups of disillusioned veterans and many “maverick consumers”. A large portion of the population did not accept these nonconformists, which only triggered further rebellion against “the establishment”.

The younger element of the Silent Generation and the Boomers are the foundation of the emerging second generation of our industry. Their attitudes and opinions have also been shaped by the boom/bust cycles of the past 20 years and the very low savings rates experienced by fixed income seniors.

The typical life cycle of the Silent and the Boomer generations has been defined as approximately 18 to 20 years old respectively. The modern day senior living industry “first generation” life cycle is defined as approximately 30 years (1985 to 2015). Just like consumer psychographics and trends, some dramatic strategic changes are taking place in our industry

Tomorrow’s senior living marketing prospects are no longer “the usual prospects.” They are raising the bar of expectations and will be much more articulate in expressing their wants, needs and perceptions of value. It’s time to redouble your efforts at understanding today’s age 75-plus consumers while becoming more savvy about how you market to them. Actually, quite a lot is known about the current mindset of the senior consumer; the challenge is translating this knowledge into practical communication and marketing strategies. Take, for example, pricing. Most of us know we should sell tangible value before price. But, in our zeal to tell our story, we forget that the process involves three very important steps:

1) Truly understand the senior consumer mindset

2) Identify and correct common senior misconceptions

3) Deploy consumer-focused, market-driven positioning

Finally, realize that we are evolving to another generation of prospects and we are dealing with senior consumers who have experienced a number of life-changing events. The financial implications are enormous.

A word of caution: Don’t get misled by the opinions expressed by your existing residents. These opinions may no longer necessarily reflect the changing mindset of your future residents.

Jim Moore is president of Moore Diversified Services, Inc., a national Senior housing and health care consulting firm based in Fort Worth, Texas. He has written several books about assisted living and Senior housing, including Independent Living and CCRCs. Jim is also a regular contributor to industry publications such as McKnights Long Term Care News and various industry association publications. Contact MDS at 817-731-4266 to discuss your consulting needs.

Has Your Senior Living Community Adapted to the New Information Paradigm?

Posted on July 15, 2015July 16, 2018 by MDSadmin

Welcome To The New Information Paradigm!

There has been a new day dawning concerning the flow of information in the Senior Living industry the last few years. Some in marketing/sales have gotten this and some haven’t quite embraced the movement yet. The larger movement has been from transaction-based selling to relationship building. Transaction-based selling is where the sales person shows the prospect the living unit and dining area and then does a 30-minute information dump about their community.

Relationship building involves a lot more listening than talking, asking the right questions, really being interested in the prospect’s current situation, their history, wants and needs, and opinions, and really CARING about them, not just lip service. In this piece I’m not going into the entire relationship building concept, but more how the information is exchanged today. The New Information Paradigm!

How Things Have Changed

Back in the day, and even up to a few short years ago, the sales/marketing person at a community controlled all the information. The Senior Living Industry was a newer concept and not that many people outside the industry really understood the concept. This is still true today to some extent, but getting better. Prospects and their families usually related all Senior Living options to the Nursing Home days of the 1960s, which today couldn’t be farther from reality for 95% of the Senior Living spectrum from Independent Living to Skilled Nursing.

So when a prospect walked in, their mind was a blank canvas that the sales person could color in this new concept of Senior Living. Or worse, the prospect and family had a very negative image based on memories from their childhood. However, our industry has grown and matured. With the proliferation of professional marketing and the adoption of the internet, we now have smarter, demanding, more resourceful consumers than ever before. This puts the real power in the hands of the consumer.

A typical sales person at the community level doesn’t get involved until much later in the process, or their families’ information gathering process, now. The days of touring and just providing an information dump are no longer effective. Approximately 80% of the prospects that call or walk through your door in 2015 have already thoroughly researched you and your community. This is also the first generation of prospects that likely had a family member in some form of senior living beyond the outdated nursing home concept of the 1960s. This is really great for the prospect/consumer, but now they know a lot more about Senior Living in general and probably know more about your competition than you know. Now the sales professional has to find out where the prospect is in this process and meet them there, not starting at the beginning. This will generally belittle a prospect and turn them off immediately.

Now more than ever it’s important for the sales person to take a deep breath and learn how to ask those probing questions. The open-ended ones! Opened-ended questions are designed to get the prospect talking, not as in closed-ended questions that require a Yes or No answer. A great example is to ask, “What brought you in today?” versus “Are you looking for a place to live?” Sales people should take the time to get to know the prospect and not be afraid to say, “We might not be a good fit for you”, instead of trying to shoehorn every prospect into their community.

Relationship Building

I increasingly dislike the term “Sales”. I understand it’s the discipline of closing, but over time it has received a very negative connotation. It conjures up the image of talking someone into something that they don’t want, need, or worse yet, can’t afford. While I won’t get on my soapbox here, it would be better to refer to them as Relationship Counselors or something similar, because that’s exactly what needs to happen—build a strong relationship with the prospect and/or their family.

Designing the correct approach to relationship building leaves no need for selling. If the right questions are asked, the need is found and then you have to decide if your community is a good fit or maybe not? If you don’t believe it is a good fit, you can offer to help point them in the right direction and/or make a few phone calls to communities that might be a good fit. The goodwill you build will be unimaginable.

When relationships are built, the Sales or Relationship Counselor is working to collaborate with the prospect. This doesn’t mean that objections cannot be overcome, like, “I can’t afford this” or, “I don’t want to just sit in my room all day”. Building a relationship and collaborating involves providing new perspectives and pointing out misconceptions, i.e. overcome objections, but just not trying to have a one size fits all model. You will just be recruiting unhappy residents at that point.

Get Away from Sales Myopia

I saw the use of a great term not long ago, “Sales Myopia”, focusing on our product and not the consumer needs. Unfortunately this is how a lot of Sales People still operate in the Senior Living Space. I was auditing a sales call the other day and the community’s sales person missed 5 opportunities to schedule a tour with the person on the phone because she was determine to give her rehearsed “information dump.” I know executives say this couldn’t be happening today, in 2015, and it sure couldn’t be happening in my community, but it is!

A few takeaways from this would be that the consumer is a much more educated and determined bunch than years ago. Throw away your information script because 95% of prospects will know you provide room, meals, and activities already. Individualize by asking questions and get to know the prospect. We tend to buy from those we like or relate to. Be consciously aware that most prospects have already researched your community and your competition. Take the sales hat off and get to building relationships. Ask those probing, open-ended questions. Find where the prospects are in the process and meet them there. Ask, “What brought you in today?” And most of all listen, really listen and care. Don’t be scared you might have to say, “Sorry, our community is not a good fit.” As a collaborator, our job is to find the best fit for the prospect and their family.

Register for Our Next Webinar on July 21st: 10 Must-Do’s for Community Call Takers

As part of MDS’ latest “Plug-In and Prosper” Webinar Series, Roy Barker, Director – Special Projects here at Moore Diversified Services, will use his years of experience in the Senior Living industry to share his wisdom of “10 Must-Do’s For Community Call Takers.”

Many times Community Call Takers make the first impression of your Senior Living community. How can they make the best first impression? How can Community Call Takers move the sales process forward and help create relationships? Community Call Takers are critical to your Senior Living community’s success. They can be the difference in a potential resident further exploring your community, or moving forward with your competitors. Join Roy on Tuesday, July 21st at 1:00 pm (CST) for this important webinar.

We look forward to having you join us!

Roy Barker is Director of Special Projects at Moore Diversified Services, a Fort-Worth, Texas-based organization specializing in Senior Living operations analysis, marketing development, and investment advisory services. Roy is an authority in the field of employee turnover analysis and retention strategies.

Webinar Recap: Back To Basics in Professional Selling

Posted on July 1, 2015March 24, 2017 by MDSadmin

Senior Living expert Roy Barker, Director of Special Projects at Moore Diversified Services, recently shared in a webinar what he has learned in his years of experience in the Senior Living industry about Professional Selling and how important it is to go “Back to the Basics.” Barker specifically used his mystery shopping experiences to highlight some of the main mistakes Senior Living sales staffs are still making, mostly without even realizing it. If Senior Living sales staffs take Roy’s advice and implement his suggestions, it could have a big impact on the bottom line.

If you missed the webinar, you can view it in its entirety by clicking on the video below at the end of this article. You can also view past webinars on the Moore Diversified Services Senior Living YouTube channel. This article gives a brief recap of some of the main points of the most recent webinar. Roy broke up the Sales Process into three stages: the Beginning, the Middle, and the End. But first, Roy talks about a Shift in Focus needed in Senior Living sales.

Continue reading “Webinar Recap: Back To Basics in Professional Selling” →