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Typically in a news release or other marketing pieces, CCRCs are very quick to list all their types of residences together to demonstrate that the community has something to offer every senior.  In describing what a CCRC is, there is generally some version of language that says, “At Community X, we have 100 residential apartments, with access to a full continuum of care that includes 30 assisted living apartments and 25 skilled nursing suites.”

While I understand the value of this language in some situations, I favor an approach that describes independent living, for a lack of a better term, independently from other levels of care available in the community. In this approach, a news release or marketing piece discusses independent living apartment homes, then immediately launches into details of the lifestyle and amenities that surround those residences. In an entirely different section of the copy, generally much further down the page, the available continuum of care is described almost as if it’s an entirely separate entity on the same campus.

I’ll give you a couple of reasons why I take this “compartmental approach” in my writing. First, the vast majority of our audience thinks this way. It’s a major obstacle to get many seniors to ask for any type of assistance, because they see that as a slippery slope toward losing independence. So once you’ve grouped your independent living with your health care suites, it plays right into many people’s misconceptions that moving to a senior living community will slowly strip away that cherished independence.

The second reason for the “compartmental approach” is something we’ve all heard many times — “I don’t want to live with all those old people.” By describing independent living in the same sentence or paragraph as skilled nursing care, we unconsciously reinforce one of the reader’s biggest objections, instead of dispelling it.

The “compartmental approach” is designed to allow the reader to fully envision themselves in an independent living residence that offers the lifestyle they seek. We can describe maintenance-free living in a private two-bedroom retreat, complemented by a selection of great food, engaging friends, wellness-focused classes, and entertaining and informative social events.

Once someone can picture themselves living the independent CCRC lifestyle today, they are then more receptive to hearing about the security of a continuum care to meet future needs. However, we do a disservice to our community when we blur together what most seniors see as two very distinct lines – independent living and needing some level of assistance or care.

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Few things are more frustrating than finally getting your local media outlet to do a positive story on your senior living community, sitting down with them for a long interview, then having a story come out calling your CCRC a “facility” or a “retirement home.”

As a former newspaper reporter, I’m sure I wrote stories with similar transgressions. Why? I was writing a dozen stories per week on completely different topics; I was rapidly scribbling notes as people gave me long, detailed explanations; I didn’t have time to read 10 pages of marketing materials I was handed; I wrote stories on deadline at 10 p.m., so I couldn’t call to verify confusing concepts; and my only experience in senior living was visiting a great-grandmother when I was five in a scary 1970s nursing home.

What I needed from the people I interviewed was patience and a willingness to educate me. If I asked someone how many “beds” were in their “facility,” those words would be in my story unless they politely explained that they had “private residences” in their “senior living community.” When I asked them for a third time how much people “paid” for their apartment, I needed them to start from the very beginning in explaining their “entrance fee model.” No other entity I had ever covered had “entrance fees.”

In senior living, we tend to be very patient and very specific in how we convey things to sales leads, because we want them to fully comprehend the benefits of our community. We correct their wrong assumptions, watch and listen for signs that they are confused, and we certainly don’t let them walk away thinking we are a “facility.” But somehow, we expect reporters, who face none of the concerns and worries a senior does, to fully comprehend our product and its benefits.

In an interview, you must be vigilant for signs of misunderstanding and for terms that don’t fit your community. It’s not enough that you don’t use the word “facility” yourself.  You have to be proactive in explaining to the reporter why he or she shouldn’t – or you’ll likely see it, and a number of other aggravating statements, in print the next day.

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One of the big buzzes on the trade show floor at AAHSA was the Chewbacca and C-3P0 Star Wars character look-a-likes at one booth. There is something about a hulking, 7-foot-plus, furry Wookiee that makes you do a double-take or becomes the “you got to see this” topic.

As I was taking the obligatory cell phone cam picture to show my kids and co-workers, I had a nagging question in my mind. Would I want to be the 7-foot Wookiee of AAHSA?

The entire purpose of having a trade show booth is to get people both talking ABOUT YOU and TO YOU. You need to stand out and be memorable in the face of all that competition to attract new customers.  Trust me, there was plenty of attention around Chewbacca, including me as one of the gawkers.

But here’s the catch. I remember the 7-foot Wookiee and I have his photo on my cell phone. What I don’t recall is the name of the company that had Chewie at their booth. Don’t even have a clue as to what the company does or sells.  I can’t make out the little logos behind the Wookiee in my photo.

Why don’t I know who brought Star Wars to life at AAHSA? Because I was busy looking at the 7-foot Wookiee in the room. Their over-the-top display was really a big distraction to me. By focusing my attention on their gimmick, they put a barrier in place that actually kept me from noticing them as a business. The attraction didn’t tie into what they do or offer, unless they sell light sabers or teach “The Force” as a sales tactic.

Yes, standing out is great. But better is standing out in a way that gets potential customers engaged in your business and products.

I loved the Chewbacca at AAHSA. My son and I both want to watch Star Wars movies together this weekend. So, thank you for that, whoever you were behind the 7-foot Wookiee.

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I take great interest when I see other businesses using marketing tactics that are common among senior living communities. So when my wife got a direct mail piece promoting a special “girls’ night out” event at a local salon/spa/retail shop near our house, I encouraged her to go, then grilled her about the experience.

The invitation promised refreshments, special “mini-spa” treatments and giveaway items. We arranged our schedules specifically so she could make it, even though she was convinced that they were just going to “harass me into buying something.”

After attending the event, she reported to me that the “refreshments” were three varieties of store-bought cookies set out on plates. The “mini-spa” services were standard skin, makeup and hair “consultations” that were of no value unless you bought the recommended products. And her “giveaway” bag was filled with the little samples they always have scattered around the store. 

“They didn’t offer me anything I couldn’t have gotten walking in off the street at anytime, except without the long waits,” she said in summation. In her eyes, the store certainly did nothing that merited her going back again.

I thought about this in terms of senior living. We create and send direct mail invitations to thousands of people in our prime demographic target. We convince a number of those people to take their time to walk in the door. Then we either live down to the “all they want to do is sell me something” expectation or we raise the person’s connection to our organization.

My wife should have walked away from her event feeling rewarded for her time, having her questions answered and with a first-name connection to a staff member dedicated to meeting her future needs. 

I’m sure the store saw the event as a blockbuster because of the crowd. But perhaps the measure of success for our marketing events should be the way each person feels when they walk out the door, not how many walked through it in the first place.

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