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Think the 65+ crowd is still dragging their heels when it comes to adopting the Internet? Think again. At GlynnDevins, our clients are generating approximately 20% of initial inquiries via the Web, and the latest Nielsen research report emphasizes the tremendous growth in the 65+ segment.

In case you missed the report, here are the highlights from Nielsen:

• Internet usage among 65+ users is up from 11.3 million in Nov. 2004 to 17.5 million users in November 2009. That’s a 55% increase in just half a decade.
• Time spent online by seniors is also growing, with the monthly average increasing from 52 hours to 58 hours.
• What are the 65+ using the Web for? (There is a top 10 list in the article.) Here are the top rankings: 88.6 percent use it for email, 68.6 percent for maps, 60.1 percent for checking the weather and around half use the Web for paying bills and/or posting photos.
• What sites are they visiting? Google Search is unsurprisingly the site most often visited by seniors, with Windows Media Player close behind, thanks to the number of sites that require it. Facebook comes in third and YouTube is fourth on the list.

For more on this research report and a link to the entire study, check out this link:
http://tech.blorge.com/Structure:%20/2009/12/11/senior-web-users-on-rise-and-theyre-using-google-facebook-and-youtube/

And, if you would like to read more about senior Internet growth in general, the link below takes you to the Jan. 2009 report from Pew, which breaks out the 70-75 category at 45%:

http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2009/Generations-Online-in-2009/Generational-Differences-in-Online-Activities/2-Internet-use-and-email.aspx?r=1

It’s Wednesday, which means more answers to the great questions we received following our Building Relationships in a Digital World presentation at AAHSA earlier this month. This is the second blog in the 5-week series. Read the original post with all 10 questions.

Q3: How can I drive more people to my web site?
(Answered by Blake Hodges, Digital Media Strategist)

Paid search advertising is a great place to start. It’s the quickest, easiest way to ensure that a link to your web site displays when someone searches for senior living options in your area. Since Google has a 70+ percent market share for online searches, go with Google AdWords first. Expand your campaign to Yahoo! and Bing once you’ve established a comfort level. (While we’re talking about search, it’s important that your web site be properly optimized for search engines to include it in their natural search results and business listings.)

If you want to cast a wider net, technology allows you to run display ads on web sites only for people who fit certain geographic, demographic or behavioral parameters. Online display campaigns need to run 3-6 months to develop traction, and you need to buy enough impressions to make a splash. The creative execution is important, too, and make sure you know the cost per thousand impressions (CPM). If it’s above $10-$12, visits to your site will likely wind up being expensive.

Don’t forget about social media! Getting involved in select online communities, actively managing a Facebook or Twitter profile, or publishing a blog can also bring web site visitors. If you contribute to an online community, remember that you need to add value to discussions, not plaster links to your web site. If you Tweet or blog, share interesting vignettes about people at your community or the families that you help.

Finally – email. It is possible to buy an email list to solicit interest in your community. However, we generally recommend that communities use email marketing to communicate only with established leads. Email is a great way to bring people familiar with your community back to your web site to see your new blog post, event photos or web site video.

Are there other successful techniques you’ve used to drive people to your web site? Share them here!

Q4: What kind of video do you think works best on the web and how much do I have to spend to create a video?
(Answered by Janel Wait, Director, Digital Services)

I love video on senior living web sites! The evolution of video consumption via the web over the past few years is astounding, and senior living communities can really make videos work hard for them on their sites. Here are just a few reasons why video makes sense for senior living communities:

• Residents can tell you why they love where they live. Testimonials are much more compelling when you can see and hear the current residents talking about their experiences.
• Videos with doctors or caregivers who work in your community offer credibility.
• Prospects can get a better feel for the physical aspects of your community.
• Events and activities can be showcased so prospects can better understand what it is like to live at your community.
• Special programs and your unique approaches can be brought to life and emphasized via video.
• Videos shared on social networking sites can increase reach and inbound links to your web site.

Many different types of videos work well for senior housing on the web. Here are a few links to communities that are using video to set their communities apart:

-Brookdale has a comprehensive video gallery with doctor testimonials, program overviews, residents talking about how they’ve been able to do things they never would have without Brookdale — check out Jean Pettit’s skydiving video — pretty impressive! http://www.brookdaleliving.com/video-library.aspx

-Peachtree Hills Place also has a comprehensive video gallery on their web site, but what I especially like is that they’ve interspersed the video links throughout their site so they bring certain sections to life with more than just static content on a web page.  http://www.peachtreehillsplace.com/our_members/video_information_center.php

-Redstone utilizes a video on their home page to help prospects envision what it will be like when the community is operational. http://www.redstoneliving.com

-And don’t forget YouTube…check out what Immanuel Senior Living is doing with their branded video channel.  http://www.youtube.com/user/immanuelseniorliving

How much do I have to spend to create a video?

No longer do you have to spend a ton of money to produce videos that users will accept and embrace. The proliferation of user-generated content on the web with YouTube, etc., has created a lower threshold of acceptance for videos that demonstrate experiences.  

That doesn’t mean you can’t spend more money on a video you will use on your web site or in your sales office if you want a high-quality marketing video, but the lack of a large video budget shouldn’t keep you from considering video for your site.

More reading about using video on the Internet:

• Using Online Video Can Help Explain Complex Terms and Situations
• 5 Reasons Senior Living Communities Should Add Video to Their Web Sites

This is the first blog in the 5-week series focusing on the digital questions we received at AAHSA. We will have two answers each Wednesday, so check back or sign up for our blog emails so you don’t miss all the great content on the GD blog. Read the original post with all 10 questions.

Q1:  Are communities sharing more via their web sites? If so, how much is too much? 
(Answered by Janel Wait, Director, Digital Services)

There is no doubt that selling a senior living community is a personal sell, and the opportunity for a prospect to see firsthand what it’s like to really live at your community is priceless. However, the world is changing, and both adult children and prospects are going to continue to demand more web content. In the world of senior living, and I might be going out on a limb to say this, it’s time for communities to embrace the opportunity web sites provide to share more. It’s time to engage users and create compelling stories that inspire web site visitors to put you at the top of their list of communities they will visit, based solely on what they can learn online. In fact, I would tell you to put more on your web site rather than less. Especially if you’re targeting adult children who are looking for assisted, skilled or memory support for parents or loved ones. Senior living communities that don’t create a solid first impression or put enough on their sites will miss the opportunity to make the short list with this time-crunched audience.

Okay, so back to the question: Are communities sharing more via their web sites? Yes, I’m starting to see a shift here. Some communities are really sharing it all, basically opening up an online community for prospects and ACIs to see everything that is happening at their communities. But some are still hesitant to “share too much.” Don’t be. We recommend adding more testimonials, more video to build credibility, pictures from activities, sample floor plans and fresh content on a continuous basis.

And how much is too much? I think financial information is probably still a bit much for the Internet, because of the many different options our communities can provide residents based on living arrangements and services needed. Also, any confidential resident information should not be open for public consumption via the web.

I would love comments on what you think about this, as I know there are definite opinions on how to strike the right balance.

Q2:  What do I need to do to add Google Analytics to my web site? 
(Answered by Emanuel Walker, Senior Digital Producer)

No matter how large your web site, it’s very useful to be able know how many visitors are coming to your site, how they find you, what they do when they get there, and whether or not they fill out an information request form.

GlynnDevins utilizes Google Analytics for our client sites. If you don’t already have another form of web measurement (Web Trends, etc.) on your site, we recommend you add the Google Analytics code to your site, so you can start gaining insight into how your site is performing.

And did I mention that Google Analytics is free?

Google has put together a simple, step-by-step guide to add Google Analytics if you have a webmaster on staff to manage your web site. If you outsource your web site, contact your web provider and ask them to set this up for you. Or you can always contact us here at GlynnDevins, and we’ll be happy to answer any questions you may have.

Click here for the step-by-step guide and look forward to all the great research you’ll have at your fingertips in the very near future! By the way, if you ever have questions on what to measure, let us know — we’re happy to help.

After attending and presenting at the 2009 AAHSA convention, it’s obvious that senior living communities are serious about figuring out what to do to promote their communities via the Internet.

Mary Beth Fritz from Greystone Communities, and Randy Eilts and I from GlynnDevins all presented on Monday morning to a group of 100-125 people who came out bright and early to learn more about digital strategies.

One statistic that particularly hit home with participants at the session was that in 2005, our communities were receiving approximately 10% of their initial inquiries via the Internet, and in 2009 that number jumped to 23%. That is a significant increase and emphasizes why communities want to be sure they are doing everything they can to make the most of their digital initiatives.

Here are some of the great questions we received after our session and on the tradeshow floor:
 
1.      Are communities sharing more via their web sites? If so, how much is too much?

2.      Which social media tactic should I use first? 

3.      If I start using Facebook, LinkedIn, You Tube, etc., who should manage this and how long will it take?

4.      How can I be sure that my web site is optimized for search engines?

5.      We have 4 to 5 community web sites and a corporate web site as well. They all need updates and I want them to have some consistencies. How would you recommend we create a strategy for this?

6.      What kind of video do you think works best on the web, and how much do I have to spend to create a video?

7.      How can I drive more people to my web site?

8.      What do I need to do to add Google Analytics to my web site? 

9.      I saw your example of an interactive site plan. Why do you recommend we invest in something like this?

10.   I want to create an online community/social networking site for my community. How can I go about doing this, and should it be something I let anyone view, or keep it protected for resident use only?

Over the next five weeks, we will take two of these questions each Wednesday and provide you with our thoughts on them, so stayed tuned and let me know if you have more questions by leaving a comment below or emailing me at jwait@glynndevins.com.

If you missed “Building Relationships in a Digital World” this year, we posted the presentation on the blog for you to review. It is in the left-hand column, under Presentations. Or you can follow this link:
Building Relationships in a Digital World. 

And for those of you who wanted a link to the social media video Randy showed in our presentation, here it is:  http://www.youtube.com/user/Socialnomics09#p/a/u/2/sIFYPQjYhv8

Two interesting articles caught my eye over the last week, as they were directly related to how the Internet can positively impact a senior’s life. One article talked about embracing new “techie trends” to keep the brain stimulated, and the other article focused on how seniors can maintain relationships via digital mechanisms to reduce depression and health care costs.

Here are highlights from the articles:

Embrace techie trends to live longer and younger…

• Learn to Twitter or Skype to help keep brain cells young and healthy.
• Many of the oldest Americans send emails, Google lost friends and even date online.  Researchers say using the latest technology helps keep us not only mentally spry, but socially engaged: “Stay connected to friends, family and current events, and you feel vital and relevant.” (Sherri Snelling, Senior Director for Evercare-United Healthcare)

http://health.msn.com/health-topics/slideshow.aspx?cp-documentid=100247017&imageindex=3

Staying connected keeps seniors healthier…

• Getting seniors to use the Internet could reduce rates of depression among the elderly and cut health care costs.
• It seems that the Internet helps those with mobility difficulties keep in touch with friends and family and engage with the outside world, which keeps them from depression.
• The Phoenix study said that spending time online lowered depression rates by 20% among the 7,000 older adult subjects they studied in the University of Michigan’s Health and Retirement Study.

http://www.mcknights.com/Online-social-supports-could-reduce-seniors-depression-save-healthcare-spending/article/155482/ or find the full report at  www.phoenix-center.org

We’re encouraged to see research undertaken to quantify the benefits we’ve already seen emerging as we track Internet and social media trends within senior living. But as we have referenced in past posts, an important question for communities is how and when to start focusing on this area. We’ll be discussing that and other topics in an education session at the AAHSA Conference on Monday, November 9. If you’re attending, join us, or look for the presentation to be posted here later next month.