By Steve Moran

In case you don’t know, the Savannah Bananas are an exhibition entertainment baseball team that sells out every single event they appear at. You can check them out on YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram.

After reading the book Find Your Yellow Tux, I got to thinking about all the things senior living could do to create fun, crazy amazing experiences for residents, families, team members, and prospects.

The Experience

The only reason senior living communities are not bursting at the seams with people wanting to move in is they are not purposeful enough about creating great experiences for residents, families, team members, and the marketplace community.

And then telling the world about those experiences.

  1. Use crazy fun uniforms — for the front desk, food servers.
  2. Feature performing servers. Hire a high school choir to come in serve and sing. Or hire first for singing ability.
  3. Have crazy robots. Rather than thinking about robots as a way to be more efficient, could you take your existing robots and dress them up or have them do little shows?
  4. Offer crazy dining experiences. Sit with your team, watch some Savannah Bananas videos, then dream together about all the crazy dining experiences you could create.
  5. Host a carnival for kids. We are all senior focused all the time, but what if you held a carnival for kids? Bounce houses, face painting, snow cones, games.
  6. Paint your community using a crazy color and paint scheme. People would notice you.
  7. Set off fireworks. On July 4, New Year’s, or even at a different time just to be different, hold a fireworks extravaganza for the public.
  8. Purchase an old firetruck. Decorate it in crazy ways. Keep it parked out in front of your community, and from time to time drive it around.
  9. Do the same thing as #8, only with a hearse.
  10. Figure out a mascot for your community. Have someone dress as the mascot for every event in and out of the community.
  11. Hold a poker tournament in your community.
  12. Offer a workshop titled 101 Reasons Not to Move Into Senior Living.
  13. Partner with local schools to create TikToks.
  14. Make wine with residents and the public. Give it away to prospects and everyone.
  15. Make beer with residents and the public. Drink it, give it away.
  16. Run a dating service or have dating events for older people.
  17. Have an art auction that is open to the public.
  18. Run a juggling, magic, or improv class. Invite the community; film it all.
  19. Host/sponsor scouting troops.
  20. Hold a farmers market in your parking lot.
  21. Sponsor a lantern festival — look it up.
  22. Create a fake unit in a tent for a ridiculously low price — for fun, something for people to talk about.

The goal in all of this is to be the senior living community that everyone is talking about. It works for the Savannah Bananas, who have to use a ticket lottery system because so many people want to attend their game. … I have a dream that your community will have so many people wanting to move in that you too will have to use a lottery system.