Then add another 17 Continuing Care Retirement Community move-ins scheduled for these two California CCRC’s in the next 3 months…This has been the result of a good work ethic for the previous 3 months.
- 300 calls per month per sales person
- 20 tours per month per sales person
The sales will come when the work ethic is in place – trust me – it works.
Break the monthly goal down to a daily goal of 15 calls and one tour per day. A new senior living sales person can easily do it. A director of marketing with sales responsibilities can do it too.
In order for the two senior living sales teams to have this much success – they need to be backed by amazing operational teams that support marketing 100%:
- First, you need to have enough leads walking in the door and coming to events. Hopefully your corporation supports marketing with an adequate advertising budget.
- Do you enjoy a great reputation of serving excellent food? Our chef is a tremendous support to my teams and makes events and tours memorable.
- How is your health care reputation? Do the local hospitals and doctors recommend your assisted living, skilled nursing or memory care? If they don’t – fix it now!
- Guests need to drive up and see beautiful landscaping, a well cared for building and an ultra clean retirement community. It may be time to remodel if it’s been 10 years or looks tired.
- Friendly residents and smiling staff – these two can make or break sales and my communities have both!
- Can prospective senior residents SEE your residents having fun with an amazing calendar of events including regular live entertainment, exciting outings and themed meals? Seniors won’t move to a boring retirement community.
- Transportation can even increase sales by their willingness to pick up prospective residents and bring them in for a tour or an event.
So set a monthly sales goal for your retirement community and have everyone participate in achieving it. When the sales come, it is not for the glory of marketing, it’s an entire retirement community’s achievement. Everyone wins and the residents love having new vibrant seniors to connect with at dinner and activities.
Please share your success, failures or comment to join the conversation and interact with other senior living professionals on what is currently being effective to increase occupancy on a nationwide basis.
Diane Twohy Masson is the author of “Senior Housing Marketing – How to Increase Your Occupancy and Stay Full,” available for sale at Amazon.com. Masson’s book will be required reading at George Mason University in the Fall as part of the marketing curriculum. She is currently consulting with Seniors For Living and two debt-free Continuing Care Retirement Communities in Southern California – Freedom Village in Lake Forest and The Village in Hemet, California. Connection and partnership opportunities: Email: diane@marketing2seniors.net
Great discovery, great follow-up, always advancing the process a step ahead. Those daily numbers will achieve results! Transportation for prospects and exciting events plus pairing prospects with current residents help you get there.
Diane,
Those are all great points and it seems reasonable for every community to experience the same results but here’s my question: why aren’t they achieving the same results?
Blair
Ahh, excellent question Blair! There can be many reasons…one sales reason is that many sales people only listen for the easy sales – people ready now. They are not willing to invest in a relationship with future move ins who may take longer than 30 days to move in. The retirement community could have a bad reputation for food, care or just what it looks like. I could keep going…
Linked In SENIOR LIVING CONNECTION
I agree that it takes hard work and dedication and a property that you are proud to represent. I am trying to build our census at a 52 bed ALF and am starting to see more referral activity in the past 2 weeks.
By Patricia Colin
Linked In SENIOR LIVING CONNECTION
I agree as well, I have found in my marketing experience that a good philosophy when working with others as well as a great work ethic definately builds a network that one can be proud of. If you are real and true and empathetic, people will trust you and that is so important!
By Tracy Billingsley
Linked In Senior Housing Forum
That’s awesome!
By Amy Hoster
Linked In Senior Housing Forum (www.seniorhousingforum.net)
“Guests need to drive up and see beautiful landscaping, a well cared for building and an ultra clean retirement community. It may be time to remodel if it’s been 10 years or looks tired.” It may also be time to remodel the interior but what really needs to happen is to change the way service to the resident is delivered. We need to be moving to Person Center Care in order to provide the best establishments for older citizens. Not just a fresh coat of paint, new flowers, and a pretty front room. Let’s look beyond the “selling job” to the retaining of clients and referrals through excellent customer service.
By Karla Gustafson
Karla,
I agree, let’s add customer service!
Linked In SENIOR LIVING CONNECTION
I agree that it takes hard work and dedication and a property that you are proud to represent. I am trying to build our census at a 52 bed ALF and am starting to see more referral activity in the past 2 weeks.
By Patricia Colin
Linked In Senior Assisted Living Sales, Marketing & Operations
Hi Diane,
I think that this is a good article to read for the simple fact that every rep needs to know that the simple effort of making (x) amount of calls will provide (x) amount of tours which will lead to (x) amount of move ins. It is nothing but a numbers game. Now, I will say that those numbers all increase as you become more effective in how you help the prospect but at the end of the day it all comes down to picking up the phone and putting in the work. It would be great to provide an article on effective outreach which is another effort that can be put forth for one that might have little to no traffic.
By Brett Nowell
Linked In Senior Assisted Living Sales, Marketing & Operations
Hi Diane,
I have been sharing these numbers with sales professionals for years. The true sales super stars “get it.” The phone should be like oxygen to a sales team member. There are hundreds of reasons I have heard for sales professionals not making their numbers and most of them are obstacles that can be overcome in communities with a strong Management Staff that has a passion for excellence. Sometimes the numbers can be achieved in spite of not having a strong management team. It’s about passion, commitment, dedication and professionalism. I live to hear the reasons people share for how they made or exeeded their goals…”because that’s what I need to do to be successful!” is my favorite.
By Donna Scott
Linked In Senior Assisted Living Sales, Marketing & Operations
Wonderful article!
By Cynthia Frances
Linked In Senior Assisted Living Sales, Marketing & Operations
Great article Diane. Love your third point re: What is your health care reputation? Great relationships with your doctors and hospitals are optimal when it comes to receiving and asking for move in referrals. I’d love to hear about your salespeoples’ successes and challenges with their sales calls while calling on physicians.
By Carolyn Coradeschi
I half been involved in 3 start up communities and getting ready to start my 4th. In 2012 my team and I opened a 100 bed assisted living and memory care. Within the first 60 days of opening we had 58 move ins. Talk about a lot of work for the operational departments as well as nursing and sales.
I firmly believe that customer service is key. Making sure you’re doing your discovery to figure out the need and how well your community will best suit the prospect vs. the competition. It is my role to make the tour specific to the person in front of me. Rolling that red carpet out to make the prospect understand that we can offer the quality of life for their loved one.
Lastly, response time is extremely important. My phone is always in my pocket. If an internet inquire come through; it’s so important to follow up within 5-10 minutes if possible. Answer the questions they have immediately and then follow up with another question. It’s amazing how quickly you can get a conversation rolling through e-mail when you keep the response short and sweet, answer the questions, and follow up with another. Remember an internet inquire has already seen your website and read the information. So you responding with an “auto response” will be perceived as redundant information.
I had about 6 months to accumulate 60 deposits of pre opening sales. The hardest part is keeping those deposit and ensuring a move in once the building is open. it’s easy to keep the deposit, but is a different story to ensure the move in.
Bottom line: customer services, response times, creative follow up with other department heads, and believing in what you sell. This will ensure a great month of move ins, referrals, and money in your pocket.
Thanks for sharing your success Dan! I love your bottom line!
Have** not half!!