Content makes the senior living marketing world go round, but not justanycontent. You must havestrategiccontent that reaches the right prospect at the right time. Otherwise, what’s the point?
For example, you could have the mostfantasticcontent to go with your sales pitch, but if someone is only in the early stages of learning about senior living, you’ll be wasting your time.
This is why we recommendfocusing on the various stages of the sales funnel and matching the best content for each stage.
What’s the sales funnel?
The sales funnel indicates where your prospects are at any point during their buying journey.Itis typically segmented into three sections:Awareness, Consideration,andDecision.
- The Awareness stage happens at the top of the funnel. In this stage, peoplerealizethat they or a loved one needs senior living. This stage is education focused. Prospectslearn about senior living, how much it costs, how to finance it, and different care levels.
- The Consideration stage happens in the middle of the funnel. As the name suggests, people in this stage are considering their options. Note: Not everyone in this stage will necessarily “buy” senior living. Some might decide to stay in their home or move in with family members, for example. They’re considering all their options.
- The Decision stage happensatthebottom of the funnel. Folks in this stage arepoisedto buy. But again, not everyone will buy. And even if theybuy, it might not be for months or years. (Thesales cycle in senior livingisnotoriously long for certain lifestyle options, like independent living.) And, of course, they might not choose your community.
In senior living marketing, we alsodiscussthree other stages—Whether, Where, andWhen—that coincide with the Awareness, Consideration, and Decision stages.
For example, during the Whether stage, peopleoften wonder“whether” they should move into senior living, whether they can afford it, and whether theymust sell their homebefore moving. They’ll turn to the Internet for answers to these questions and to educate themselves (which is why this stage coincides nicely with the Awareness stage).Read more abouttheWhether, Where, and When stages.
Why is it critical to match the right content to the right stage?
As we mentioned, if you give someone good content at the wrong time, you’re essentially wasting good content. You’re also missing an opportunity to deliver content that will resonate better with the prospect.
For example, the divorced woman in her early sixtieswho isthinking about retirement isn’t interested in reading customer stories about your community or coming in for a tour yet. She’s still in the early Awareness stage,where she’s educating herself about senior living, costs, and so forth.
On the other hand, someone who has already toured your community doesn’t need a guide explaining what senior living is. They are way past that point. And if you send it to them as follow-up content after they tour your community, you’ll not only look silly, but you’ll also waste an opportunity to give them content that couldactually behelpful in their decision-making process.
What type of content formats work best for each stage?
What follows isn’t an exhaustive list, but it’s a good overview ofthe types of content that senior living marketers and writers should be planning.
Good senior living marketing content for the Awareness stage
- Blog posts optimized for search
- Infographics
- Videos
- Listicles
- Educational guides (e.g., Senior Living 101, How to Fund Senior Living)
- Educational webinars
- General FAQs (about senior livingin general)
- Self-directed surveys (e.g., What senior living lifestyle is best for you?)
Good senior living marketing content for the Consideration stage
- Case studies/customer stories
- Comparison charts (your community compared to others in the area)
- Day-in-the-life videos
- Day-in-the-life blog posts
- Meet the staff videos/blog posts
- Webinars
- SpecificFAQs (about your community specifically)
- Decision toolkit
- Interactive elements (like interactive floor plans)
- Lead nurturing emails
Good senior living marketing content for the Decision stage
- Invites to on-site events (book clubs, musical events, lunch & learn series)
- Testimonial videos
- Case studies/customer stories
- Schedule a tour (make sure people can schedule their own)
- Post-tour nurturing emails
Notice that some content will overlap between stages. For example, case studies and customer storiescan be usedin both the Consideration stage,when people are thinking through their options,andthe Decision stagewhen theyhave whittled their choices down to your community (hopefully) and one or two others.
When creating the content,make sureyourbuyer personasare current. Not every community’s ideal resident is the same. For example, a luxury community that caters tohigh-net-worthpeople won’t spend money developing content abouthow to affordsenior living.
Content marketing is an investment, but when done right, you’ll enjoy an excellent ROI.
The key is doing it right. Here are more articles to help you write compelling content that converts people in varioussales funnel stages.
✔How to Create Engaging Content for Your Website
✔Content Offer Ideas for Senior Living Marketing
✔Content Marketing for Local SEO: What to Write
✔Best Content for Email Marketing to Baby Boomers
✔More Bottom-of-the-Funnel Content Ideas for Senior Living
✔What to Look for in a Content Marketing Agency for Senior Living
Or you can reach out to us and haveour team of fabulous writers do the heavy lifting for you.
