Archive for the ‘Home Care Marketing’ Category
Monday, January 30th, 2012 by mackenzie
SeniorHomes.com is launching the 2012 Best of The Web Awards today! The Best of the Web contest highlights the best senior living and caregiving websites, blogs, and resources for consumers and senior living professionals. Often, the amount of senior living and caregiving websites can be overwhelming and stressful. SeniorHomes.com wants to help take the stress out of the equation by compiling the best resources across the web. This easy to use guide not only helps caregivers and people in the industry, but recognizes websites that consistently provide great resources and information.
Last years, Best of the Web contest was a huge success with hundreds of nominees and voters. We hope to see even more websites nominated this year and everyone voting for their personal favorites!
Nominate Someone Today!
We want to hear about your favorite websites, blogs, or newsletters. Nominate via facebook or twitter by using the #SeniorhomesBOW and mention the websites name and link.
Or you can shoot us an email at bestoftheweb@seniorhomes.com with the websites name, link, and why you love it!
Award nominations are available in the following categories:
Consumer Resources
Industry Resources
Vote for your Favorites!
Has your favorite website already been nominated? Go to it’s page and vote for it by liking or +1 the page! We choose the finalists based on the who has the top votes.
Tags: caregiver research, caregiver resources, senior living industry, Senior Living News, Senior Living Resource Guide
Posted in Assisted Living Marketing, Caregiver Tips, Home Care Marketing, News, Online Media, Senior Housing Marketing, Senior Living News, SeniorHomes Newsletter | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, February 16th, 2011 by Angela Stringfellow
Mature Market Sales Source is offering an “Open Discussion of Benchmarks & Best Practices for Senior Living Sales & Marketing” this Thursday, February 17th from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. PST. The live chat format of this session allows participants to connect and interact with other top performing senior living leaders and sales executives. 
The chat will take place monthly, and participants can attend via phone or internet conference. This is an opportunity for industry leaders to share their knowledge and best practices as well as learn from other senior living professionals. Through the open chat, participants can get their questions answered and seek advice on the biggest challenges they face as a senior living sales or management professional. Whether your question relates to sales and marketing or business practices in general, other attendees are likely to be experiencing the same struggles–or, they may have found an innovative way to overcome a common obstacle that you can learn from.
Don’t have a specific question in mind? You’ll still benefit from the sharing of ideas and resources. Typically, The Open Source monthly chats are limited to members only, but this month Mature Market Sales Source has opened up the lines to all industry leaders with an interest. Space is extremely limited; only 20 open lines are available on each call, but an additional 100 “listen-only” spots are available. Listen-only participants still have the opportunity to ask and answer questions via text chat.
Don’t miss this rare opportunity to connect with like-minded senior living sales and marketing leaders! Reserve your seat here.
Tags: Assisted Living Marketing, Mature Market Sales Source, Nursing Home Marketing
Posted in Assisted Living Marketing, Home Care Marketing, Nursing Home Marketing, Senior Housing Marketing, Senior Living News | 1 Comment »
Monday, January 3rd, 2011 by Angela Stringfellow
It’s back to the daily routine for most of the world today, after the busy holiday season has come to an end. But many adults have a new item on their list this week: Searching for care for an aging parent. 
The post-holiday season is a great time for assisted living marketers to improve occupancy rates. Many families who live across the miles will gather together during the holidays, giving adult children and other loved ones a perfect opportunity to monitor the status of a loved one’s independence. Many issues that may go unnoticed by children who live out of town become obvious when several days are spent together under one roof, such as medication compliance, mobility concerns, and memory loss.
Assisted living marketers can begin making a push by publishing a useful checklist for loved ones to utilize to gauge an aging relative’s safety and independence at home on the company’s website. Post it on your company Facebook page and Twitter feed. Often, the need for assisted living or other long-term care doesn’t cross a family’s mind until it becomes blatantly obvious that a loved one is no longer safe to remain in his or her home alone, and some of the more subtle signs of a loss of independence don’t come to mind until they’re pointed out. Think medication non-compliance, expired foods in the refrigerator, and clutter in the home.
So what do adult children do when they come home from a holiday visit with suspicions that an aging parent isn’t safe to live alone any longer? Most of the time, they turn to the internet to search for information to confirm their suspicions. Make sure your checklist and accompanying advice are visible in the search engines by using keyword optimization, social media, a blog post, and even a press release to get the word out.
The next step most consumers take is to search for potential facilities — near where they live or near their family member’s current home. If there are many miles between those locations, the search can be more difficult but is simplified by online directories like SeniorHomes.com, which list senior housing communities in cities across the country. A simple search by city and state brings up dozens of listings, whether you’re searching for assisted living, independent living, or nursing homes.
If you’ve followed the first few steps by offering relevant and timely information and making it visible through online media, but your facility lacks a presence on senior housing directories where many families begin their in-depth search for assisted living, many of those post-holiday leads might land with your competitors.
Image Copyright ba1969 on Stock.xchng
Tags: aging parents, lead generation, senior housing
Posted in Assisted Living Marketing, Home Care Marketing, Nursing Home Marketing, Senior Housing Marketing | No Comments »
Sunday, January 2nd, 2011 by Angela Stringfellow
The New York Times reported on December 26, 2010 that while the 18 to 33 age demographic is still predominant among internet usage, older age demographics are rapidly catching up. Adults 45 and over more than doubled their social networking use in the period between December 2008 and May 2010, but the most surprising gain came from adults 74 years and older — this group quadrupled its social networking participation, with 16 percent of adults in this group now actively using social networking. 
A similar report issued in November by AdvertisingAge points out another interesting piece of data: Baby Boomers who are caring for their aging parents are heavier internet users (among social networking sites like Facebook) than their non-caregiving counterparts. Laurel Kennedy, author of “The Daughter Trap” and president of Chicago-based consulting firm Age Lessons, estimates that approximately 15.5 million baby boomers are serving as caregivers out of the 78 million-strong boomer population.
The gender gap is nearly evenly split, with a slight edge towards women (60%, versus 40% men). This group spends an average of 150 minutes each month on social media and visits 70% more pages than the typical internet user. ComScore, which conducted research on behalf of Age Lessons, breaks down the top ten sites among Boomer Caregivers. It’s not surprising that Facebook leads the pack, with a 91 percent reach. Among some online retailer sites (Amazon.com, Target, WalMart), LinkedIn has a 37% reach and Twitter a 21% reach.
One interesting discovery from comScore’s research is that the online review site Yelp has a 30% reach among Boomer Caregivers, beating out Twitter. In our previous posts reporting on assisted living marketing and social networking use, Yelp never entered the conversation as a most-used site for either internet users or marketers. Could this be an untapped resource for senior housing marketers? Possibly, if boomers are using Yelp to read reviews of health and medical providers and not merely to decide what restaurant to visit that evening. Only more in-depth research could tell for sure, but it’s probably worth your time to monitor your presence on Yelp.
Image Copyright ilco on Stock.xchng
Tags: baby boomers, social media, Yelp
Posted in Assisted Living Marketing, Home Care Marketing, Nursing Home Marketing, Senior Housing Marketing, baby boomers | No Comments »
Monday, November 29th, 2010 by Angela Stringfellow
Walker Marketing recently released the results of a study investigating how online and social media trends influence decision-making among unpaid caregivers. The survey population consists of 210 completed surveys by unpaid caregivers who cared for an ailing family member or friend within the past 12 months. Most participants have incomes between $30,000 and $50,000 per year. Specifically, researchers were interested in learning how social media impacts home care decisions. 
Walker Marketing’s findings are consistent with that of Pew Research, which found that social networking use among the 50+ population is rapidly expanding — increasing from 22 percent in April 2009 to 42 percent in May 2010. Walker Marketing found that 92 percent of respondents indicated that they consider the internet to be either “very valuable” or “somewhat valuable” as a source of healthcare information. Sixty-five percent indicate that they regularly read internet news sites or blogs.
More than half (61 percent) of respondents indicated that they were either “very likely” or “somewhat likely” to communicate with other caregivers utilizing home health services in a social networking medium, such as a forum or social media site. Slightly less (53 percent) of respondents who have used home care in the past say they use the web regularly to search for caregiving-related information.
It’s true that physicians largely drive healthcare referrals. However, 91 percent of respondents indicated that they were “somewhat likely” or “very likely” to conduct their own research of a company after receiving a referral from a professional. Further, 78 percent said that while they do rely on professional recommendations, they would ultimately make their own decisions based on research.
There are two clear takeaways from this research. First, it’s clear that social media is now a core component of word-of-mouth marketing. Home care providers should closely monitor their online reputations and target attempts to send a consistent marketing message. Second, it’s imperative to offer a comprehensive resource for website visitors above and beyond standard company information. With more than half of caregivers seeking caregiving-related information online, providers who offer robust resources will be best positioned for converting visitors into solid leads.
Image Copyright artM on Stock.xchng
Tags: home health care, social media research
Posted in Home Care Marketing, Online Media, Senior Housing Marketing, Senior Living News | 1 Comment »
Friday, October 29th, 2010 by Angela Stringfellow
CareNetworks is conducting a Social Media Success Series, a collection of interviews from senior care providers who have achieved positive results from using social media. The first in the series is an interview with Emeritus Senior Living, one of the largest senior living providers in the country with more than 460 assisted living communities serving 43 states. 
As all demographics, even baby boomers and seniors, are embracing social media, it makes sense for senior living providers to research ways for incorporating social media into their overall marketing mix. CareNetwork’s interview with Emeritus’ eMarketing Specialist, Chris Kim, is evidence that social media marketing is effort well spent.
According to Kim, Emeritus first began using social media in June 2009. In the grand scheme of things, they’re still new to the scene, yet they’ve still achieved some impressive results. Rather than use social media to generate leads, they use it to engage their customers. They started by thinking about what information their typical customer is searching for, and leveraged social media as a tool for brand reputation management, an online presence, and to establish the company as an industry authority. As a plus, Kim reports that social media enabled Emeritus to connect with field employees and third-party service providers.
Currently, Emeritus utilizes the following social media initiatives:
- Facebook
- Twitter
- A corporate blog
- LinkedIn
- YouTube
Note in our previous post, Benefits of Social Media Marketing (which reported on findings from the 2010 Social Media Marketing Industry Report), that Emeritus has focused the majority of their social media efforts on the top five venues indicated by this study. The company continues to build out a robust resource of health and caregiving glossaries, guides, and tutorials (even video tutorials are in the works) on its corporate website for residents, potential customers, their families, and providers. The company’s resources also provided useful content that was used to engage customers on social media profiles.
Here are a few tips Kim offers senior living executives for ramping up social media efforts:
- Keep your content current and updates timely — keep your customers abreast of what’s happening in your facility
- Don’t just post content; instead, ask for feedback and opinions
- Add some flavor. Run a contest, link to other relevant — and fun — resources, like quizzes, and ask fans to post their scores
Read the full interview on the CareNetworks blog
Image Copyright jaylopez on Stock.xchng
Tags: Emeritus Senior Living, social media marketing
Posted in Assisted Living Marketing, Home Care Marketing, Nursing Home Marketing, Senior Housing Marketing | No Comments »
Friday, October 29th, 2010 by Stuart Grinnell
In 1994, family caregivers were first recognized during National Family Caregivers Week. President Clinton was the first to honor caregivers as a month-long celebration, signing the first proclamation declaring November National Family Caregivers Month. Every year since, the American President in office has declared November a month to recognize the challenges, struggles, and tremendous sacrifice millions of family caregivers provide every day. 
The National Family Caregivers Association (NFCA) coordinates National Family Caregivers month each year. More than 65 million Americans serve as family caregivers, making them part of a large group of caring and compassionate individuals who strive to meet the needs of aging parents or disabled loved ones every day, yet many members of this population continue to feel isolated and alone.
To help caregivers cope with the daily challenges and emotional toll that caregiving can take, NFCA has created a community comprised of caregivers and volunteers to offer education and support as well as a sense of community among this remarkable group. National Family Caregivers Month serves to both recognize caregivers and to promote education and support resources available to caregivers. Membership in NFCA is free to all family caregivers and provides access to the association’s resource library, which includes helpful information including:
- A home healthcare primer
- Care management tips and techniques
- Advice on improving doctor/caregiver communications
- Medication management
- Tips on choosing assisted living facilities or nursing homes, or other senior housing
- Stress reduction
- Action checklists
- And much more
National Family Caregivers Month is celebrated community-wide, with healthcare providers and community organizations taking an active role in the promotion of the event and recognizing caregivers. Those wanting to get involved can participate in a number of ways, including displaying National Family Caregivers Month posters in their places of business, offering support groups for family caregivers in the community, hosting a caregivers workshop with resources and information, or simply by telling caregivers they know about the benefits of joining NFCA.
Visit the NFCA website to learn more about National Family Caregivers Month and ways you can get involved.
Image Copyright ba1969 on Stock.xchng
Tags: National Family Caregivers Association, National Family Caregivers Month
Posted in Aging, Assisted Living Marketing, Home Care Marketing, Nursing Home Marketing, Senior Housing Marketing, Senior Living News | No Comments »
Wednesday, October 27th, 2010 by Jacqui Tom
On October 26, 2010, 125 executives from senior living companies and related organizations convened in Alexandria, Virginia, to discuss the future of senior living in America. Rick Grimes, President and CEO of ALFA, says of the event, “There is a lot of interest by senior living executives to find ways to better serve seniors and their families and collaborate with their staff to promote excellence at their companies.” 
Participants were given the opportunity to share knowledge with fellow leaders, participate in discussions and roundtables, and attend presentations. Discussions and roundtables focused on solutions to the following challenges:
- Staff recruitment and retention
- Economic impacts and how government involvement will affect the industry
- Challenges of longer lifespans and needs for diverse types of assistance
- Forming collaborative relationships with adjuct industries, such as hospice providers, pharmacies, and rehab centers
- Changes to employee benefits as a result of health care reform
Tom Donohue, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, spoke to participants at a luncheon on how a changed political landscape would have eventual impacts on the senior living industry. In addition, the President’s Council, comprised of a representatives from companies serving the senior living industry, gathered for an industry update and discussed possibilities for aiding ALFA in its mission to advance the future of senior living.
Read the ALFA press release.
Image Copyright Kurhan on Stock.xchng
Tags: ALFA, senior living
Posted in Assisted Living Marketing, Home Care Marketing, Nursing Home Marketing, Senior Housing Marketing, Senior Living News | 2 Comments »
Monday, October 11th, 2010 by Angela Stringfellow
MetLife’s “The MetLife Report on Early Boomers: How America’s Leading Edge Baby Boomers Will Transform Aging, Work & Retirement” suggests that the oldest Boomers will forego the traditional leisure-filled retirement in order to continue working — possibly indefinitely. Many Boomers are struggling under debt from putting children through college, others have suffered financial setbacks through the economic crisis, some have purchased second homes, and due to a longer life expectancy, many fear they’ll outlive their nest eggs. 
Many older Boomers face a favorable employment outlook because they have many years of experience, and they’re attractive to employers who realize that they won’t have to provide health insurance coverage to Medicare-eligible workers, according to Sandra Timmerman, Ed.D., director of the MetLife Mature Market Institute.
This transition to a new model of retirement will mean significant changes in the long-term care industry. Unless they become sick enough to require round-the-clock care, many boomers will opt for long-term living options that allow them to remain independent and continue working. Aging in place may become more popular as seniors opt for services that can provide care in the home.
Nursing homes are already becoming a place for the seriously ill and disabled, because assisted living communities tend to offer more flexibility to residents. Even assisted living facilities may need to change their marketing objectives to more broadly appeal to independent seniors. A focus on the ability for residents to set their own schedule, leave as they please, and participate in a variety of activities both inside and outside of the facility will be key to any long-term care facility’s success.
The up-and-coming senior population commands choices, and a life of continued work will ensure that seniors remain active, which will improve long-term health. Facilities that can accomodate the varied and changing needs of seniors will remain the most successful as we experience a long-term living revolution.
Read the Business Wire press release.
Image Copyright MaxMilliOn on Stock.xchng
Tags: baby boomers, long-term living, retirement
Posted in Aging, Assisted Living Marketing, Home Care Marketing, Nursing Home Marketing, Senior Housing Marketing | No Comments »
Friday, October 1st, 2010 by Angela Stringfellow
According to a recent report by the National Investment Centers for the Seniors Housing & Care Industry, assisted living occupancy rates rose slightly in the second quarter of 2010. While it’s only a modest increase, occupany reached 87.7% overall, and according to Michael Hargrave, vice president of the NIC Market Area Profiles (MAP) service, demand is growing at a rate of approximately 7,000 units annually. 
McKnight’s Long-Term Care News published an informative post on how providers can achieve greater success by matching demand to needs. To do this, healthcare providers should conduct an in-depth market analysis that includes a competitive analysis, overall industry trends and local market trends.
If you’re looking to expand your existing services or open a new facility, you should first consider the percentage of the local population comprised of seniors 65 and older. Beyond this, income levels of the senior population, payor sources, and general ability to pay are important considerations.
Demand is just one piece of the puzzle. Market supply also has a big impact on the success of healthcare providers. A saturated market, even if demand is high, means more competition, and this can drive both prices and occupancy rates down. Overall industry trends, such as the trend towards more flexible service offerings and a broader continuum of care (from independent living to skilled nursing and memory care, all from the same provider, for example), are important to consider when evaluating the competitive landscape.
Read the article from McKnight’s Long-Term Care News
Image Copyright svilen001 on Stock.xchng
Tags: assisted living, McKnight's Long-Term Care News, supply and demand
Posted in Assisted Living Marketing, Home Care Marketing, Nursing Home Marketing, Senior Housing Marketing | No Comments »
