If you own or run an assisted living facility, you use a multitude of marketing methods to reach out to potential clients. However, most of those methods are very likely forms of outbound marketing. Cold calling, sending information to hospitals, sending out postcards, and traditional advertising are all forms of outbound marketing, as are television and radio commercials. If you’re using these methods and not seeing the results you expected, it’s likely because marketing has changed in the recent past, and outbound marketing is losing its effect.
Inbound marketing, such as content marketing, has put more control in the hands of customers as they discover and research companies online. Statistics show that assisted living facilities receive over a third of their web traffic from mobile devices, and over 90 percent of seniors who make $75,000 a year or more go online. Your clientele and their loved ones who are sharing in this decision process with them, are researching and selecting their facilities online.
Inbound marketing consists of putting valuable, informative content about your business on your website without directly selling. The goal of this kind of marketing is to attract visitors to your site who already want to consume the kind of information you are offering. When your prospective clients arrive at your site they are already on the buyer’s journey for just your kind of service! For the assisted living industry, this method of marketing has great potential.
Assisted Living is an Information-Based Industry
Content marketing can be tricky in certain industries. But content marketing for assisted living is one of the simplest and most efficient ways of marketing because customers are looking for information. Your clients and their families have a lot of questions. What can they expect from an assisted living facility? What should they look for in order to find a safe place? Answer these questions in the form of on-site articles and blog posts with keywords your clients are looking for, and you’ll start seeing many new customers and clients. Additionally, don’t forget the power of social media, as recent reports have shown sites like Facebook and Pinterest have helped assisted living facilities market successfully.
It Helps You Become a Consultant
Outbound marketing is very direct, very “loud”, and overt. Many people are hesitant to contact assisted living facilities who aggressively market their business in an outbound fashion. But with content marketing for assisted living you can present information about your property and lifestyle in a way that helps your clientele see you as a trusted consultant.
It Positions You as an Expert
Using content marketing for assisted living is a great strategy because you’re positioning yourself and your company as an expert in the field. Anyone can buy a television ad or make up some postcards, but if you have a site that offers helpful, professional, knowledgeable advice that answers the questions on the minds of your future clients you’ll stand out in the minds of your prospective clients. Doing this also helps you position yourself as a thought leader in the elder-care industry, meaning you’ll be seen as a go-to company when it comes to information, ideas, and methodologies regarding elder-care.
Your Clientele is Online
Content marketing for assisted living is important, also, because your clientele is not scanning the television, radio waves, or direct mail postcards to decide which assisted living facility is best for their loved ones. Deciding to put a loved one into an assisted living facility — or deciding to go yourself — is a very difficult decision, and clients want to weigh the options. The large majority of these information seekers are turning to the internet for the research and inspiration. You want your facility to be there in the search listings, already positioned as an expert in the field.
Traditional Marketing is Not Dead
An emphasis on inbound marketing does not mean you need to give up your successful direct mail or television campaigns. Rather, inbound marketing provides the depth and substance your traditional campaigns need to really drive traffic and leads to your website and ultimately through your front door. Think about the last time you were intrigued with a product or service you saw advertised on TV. What is the first thing you did? You grabbed your phone, iPad or computer and looked up the product. You watched a demo or read reviews. You took a virtual tour and perhaps read a blog article or two about the company. After doing all that online research, you were an educated consumer who was ready to purchase. That’s the buyer’s journey you want for your clientele, too. You want them to sit down in your office already knowing they are going to love your facility. You want them to be looking forward to seeing if that dining hall really looks as elegant as the pictures on your website. You are hoping they have read a few of your client stories on the blog, and are perhaps wanting to meet those very people.
As a marketer in the assisted living industry, you want to find the method of marketing that will cast a vision for the lifestyle your clientele will experience. At the same time, you also want to provide knowledgeable, detailed information that will help caretaking families feel at ease and comfortable and will allow them to rest in the knowledge that their loved ones are being cared for by compassionate, respectful people who are experts in the field of elder-care. By using visually appealing, entertaining content to your prospective clients that is also useful and knowledgeable you can accomplish both goals while reaching a broader range of clients.
Would you like to know how your facility appears online? Let us do a free Market Grade Analysis for you. We will provide you with a complementary report that gives you concrete information you can use to find more prospects today. Download it now!
