A tough economic climate has forced retirement communities to retool how they generate leads and inquiries and of course, find the necessary sales to fill vacancies throughout their community. The focus should certainly be on furthering the relationship between the sales staff and the consumer, and advertising can help with that.

Using an ad agency in partnership with your sales staff creates a synergetic team that can generate the necessary sales to keep a community moving in tough times. To generate sales, you must first and foremost strive to develop personal relationships with the consumer; and for that, greater interaction is needed. You must give the consumer a compelling reason to join your “club”, per say. By relying on your ad agency to provide information and support for your brand and position, you can build a sense of community and trust. And once you’ve gotten the buy-off from leads to join your group, it’s easier to talk them through any tough decisions they might make, including excuses for not wanting to move to a retirement community right now.

Another way to develop stronger relationships is through great customer service — and that doesn’t cost an extra dime to provide. Examples include Nordstrom or the Four Seasons Hotels – just doing simple, little things goes a long way to create a unique experience.

While times are tough, you can still create distinctive consumer experiences that help generate sales — but you don’t have to do it alone. Rely on your ad agency and the sound principles of customer service to guide you through.