By Joanne Kaldy

Tours drive move-ins. When they rock, they bring in new residents, often quickly. 

When they don’t, you’ve spent time and energy on leads that are now lost . . . FOREVER . . . and that’s a high price to pay.

There’s no single golden ticket, but a webinar on Thursday, May 28, will offer proven best practices that turn more of your tours into move-ins. Presenter Steve Moran, Senior Living Foresight founder, will share insights from the dozens of tours he’s taken. what he know s to be true from his extensive experience in senior living, and from talking to many community sales and marketing executives over the years.

The webinar host, Caring.com (a Senior Living Foresight partner) will also share new data on the bottom-line impact of their tour-setting feature for communities in their referral network – an update to prior tour-taker findings they shared with the industry.

Just how important are tours? In 2015, Caring.com surveyed 1,181 family caregivers and older adults about their tour experiences. Among those findings:

  • Despite seeing flattering pictures and descriptions posted online, 68% of people who toured a senior community reported being “surprised at how nice it was.”
  • 20% said their tour was too much of a sales pitch.
  • Almost all tour takers (91%) commented on their favorable impression of the staff, and 10% specifically mentioned observing staff interaction as an important reason to visit in person.
  • While most had a good tour experience, 12% said they had not been contacted prior to a scheduled tour to confirm it; and 18% reported no contact at all from the community after the tour. Just over a quarter (26%) said they had only been contacted once post-tour.

Caring.com also found that families who scheduled a tour through its senior housing helpline moved in at 3.5 times the rate of others and 25% faster than those who declined to tour right away. With its Family Advisors and their initial discovery to qualify prospects, plus an effective cadence for tour setting and confirmation follow up, Caring.com can help get more people to your door who are better matched to your offering and ready to be wowed by your tour.

The webinar will address the keys to tours that result in move-ins, including:

  • How to think about the tour
  • How to ensure that people keep their tour appointments
  • Tips for providing an excellent tour experience
  • How to follow up and gain valuable feedback after the tour
  • How to use follow up to help ensure that prospects want to move in and not move on

Planning perfect, productive tours means being detail-oriented, as one miss can mean a loss. For instance, Moran notes, “When I was a real consumer looking for assisted living for my mom, we went to one community, could not find parking, moved on to the next one on the list and never came back . . . all because of a lack of parking.” The webinar will not only provide insights into the big picture of tours but also the little things that can mean the difference between a new resident and a lost prospect.

Even when you think your community has conducted the perfect tour, some uncertainty can still remain after the prospects leave. This webinar will include some ways to handle the post-tour follow-up to maximize positive feedback/reviews and move-ins, such as how to distinguish yourself and communicate in personalized ways that resonate with each prospect.

SAVE THE DATE

Senior Living—Best Practices for Tours to Move-Ins

Thursday, May 28 | 11am Pacific / 2pm Eastern – Click HERE to register!