How one community in 1 year saved thousands and became a competitor!
By Susan Saldibar
After a year using a new digital admissions solution, SAL Management Group regained $3,000 in lost revenue. But, wait, that’s only half the story.
I interviewed Nate Boswell, Co-Founder of SAL Management Group, recently about the money he was able to recoup every month after putting LincWare’s Admit+ admissions platform to work in their 23 locations. (Admit+ is a Senior Housing Forum partner.) As amazing as this is, there are other savings as well that, one could argue, are even more compelling.
So, as soon as Nate mentioned there was “much more”, I decided to do a Part II to the Q&A. Here is the result of that interview.
Q: When we last spoke, you mentioned that there were other significant improvements and savings you were able to garner after using the Admit+ software. Can you share a few of them?
A: As you know, there are a lot of admissions documents to be signed and, more often than not, the resident’s family needs to be involved. So, we’d have some documents in-house and others out with residents or family members. Our talented sales team was spending a lot of time: a) trying to figure out where the documents were and b) pushing family members to sign. This is not what we hired them to do. We wanted them to be developing new leads and conducting tours.
Q: How did automation help?
A: In a word, “visibility”. Since all documents are now online and centralized, we can see who has logged in to review a form. This is helpful when family members log on remotely. So, if we see a lag time, we can reach out and say, “We noticed you were reviewing this form. Do you have any questions?” This visibility helps us keep track of what steps still need to be done and who needs to be pushed. Seeing all this at a glance saves an incredible amount of time and frustration. We’ve experienced a big bump in productivity as well as higher morale, all because admissions are no longer the ordeal they once were.
And the resident experience is now something we are really proud of. Following up and checking in proactively when the resident isn’t expecting it is a huge win for sales. Anticipating questions before they are asked positions SAL as a leader in the industry.
Q: I would think missing signatures would also be an issue without that visibility.
A: Absolutely. What would sometimes happen is that, given all the various tasks to be undertaken, an ED would inadvertently forget to countersign a document and it would get filed, incomplete. Too many times these kinds of errors went unnoticed until we’d have a state inspection. Needless to say, that’s not a good time to find them!
There were issues with missing resident signatures as well. As an example, if there was no signature on a document outlining ancillary services costs, we’d sometimes end up in a “he said/she said” situation between the resident and the sales reps. No one wins when that happens.
One of the great things the Admit+ system does is that a sales rep cannot move to the next step until he or she has completed the previous one. Yes, it can be overridden, but the point is that everyone is aware who did or didn’t sign and what the next step is. That’s total accountability. It has not only saved a lot of time, it’s reduced our risk.
Q: Any other things you’d like to share about your experience before and after Admit+?
A: Lots of things, but I think overall the increased visibility over the entire process has had a profound impact on the way we move through the admissions process. By centralizing all documents, assigning accountability, automating the signature process and tracking progress, the admissions process that used to take weeks, now takes less than a half hour. We have a talented team. Now our people are able to use their time doing things that contribute value and revenue, not low-value tasks that create frustration and open us up for risk.
One last point I’d like to make. For a smaller community in a competitive environment like senior housing, this has really boosted our brand and our credibility. When a new resident can sit with us and use an iPad to complete and sign forms, it says a lot about who we are and where we’re going as an organization.
With 23 communities throughout Utah and Arizona and more set to open in 2019, SAL Management Group seems quite well positioned for future success.
You can read the full SAL Management Group case study here. Click here to schedule a demo. For more information about Admit+.
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