To help prospective residents and their families understand what your community can offer, invite them into the community in an organic and engaging way. When people visit your location and interact with staff and current residents face to face, they’ll get an idea of the kind of services you provide and the culture of your community. On-site events will also help them see past the myths and misconceptions about senior living and into what your community is truly like.

But it’s important to spend your time and marketing budget on effective endeavors. Any exciting event that brings people into your community may seem like a great idea, but if you’re not connecting well with your target audience, your events won’t deliver a strong return on investment. That’s why this blog post isn’t about how to plan events — it’s about how to choose the types of events that will bring in ample ROI.

3 Types of Community Events to Encourage New Residents

Community outreach and overall brand goodwill are valuable no matter what. However, when it comes to community events that encourage prospective residents to choose your location, some events are better than others. Recreational, educational, and real estate-related events tend to work best.

1. Recreational Events

Recreational events let you walk the line between marketing and community outreach. They’re fun, interactive, and can be appropriate for entire families. Examples of these types of events include open houses, cooking demonstrations, and holiday parties or activities — think Easter egg hunts, making Christmas ornaments or enjoying a Fourth of July cookout. 

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Pros

• Free recreational events tend to have a large local draw, letting you connect with more families.
• You can showcase your lively, vibrant, and active community.
• You can demonstrate specific activities prospective residents can expect to enjoy in the future. 
• The interactive nature of these events leads to more engagement and more opportunities to speak to families about your services. 

‍Cons

• You will likely get attendees who are simply there for the free food, drinks, or activities.
• Depending on the type of event you host, it can be expensive.
• Some of these events can put a burden on your staff if you need them to help run the event.

For best results, tailor recreational events to your community by showcasing your strengths. If you have a large community kitchen, show it off with cooking demonstrations or classes. If your grounds include lovely gardens, plan outdoor events in the springtime when the garden’s colors are most impressively displayed.

Consider working with a marketing agency for help promoting your event to get better turnout. A marketing agency can take on work related to writing content about the event, creating web RSVP forms and direct mail pieces aligned to your brand, and leveraging your newsletter subscriber list or CRM system to send email blasts about the event.

2. Educational Events

Educational events allow you to demonstrate the knowledge and expertise of your staff and help prospective residents understand the comprehensive nature and high quality of your services. Some topics you might consider covering with educational luncheons or webinars include estate planning, identity theft and fraud protection, brain health for seniors, or information about specific conditions like Alzheimer’s or Dementia.

Pros

• These types of events tend to draw in serious prospects who are thinking about their future.
• Someone on your staff may be able to give a helpful presentation on many relevant topics.
• Local businesses may want to partner with you to provide presentations on topics such as estate planning without any cost to you because the event doubles as a marketing tool for them. 

Cons

• Typically, these events do not draw as many prospects as much as recreational events do.
• You may not get entire families at an event like this. In some cases, that means some decision-makers will not be present to engage with your community.

Customize this approach to your community by showing off your own expertise or providing solutions for challenges your target audience experiences.

You might consider running a poll on social media or your website to find out what type of information would be most valuable to your audience — and a marketing agency can help you gather that information. It can also help with marketing the educational event via social media, email, your website, and PPC ad campaigns, if desired. 

3. Real Estate-Related Events

Many prospective Assisted Living and Independent Living residents are facing challenges and questions about real estate. Should they sell their existing homes? How can they downsize to live vibrantly in a smaller space? Real estate-related events speak directly to these core needs.

Pros

• Events that offer answers and help with the core needs of your target audiences are likely to support engagement.
• Generally, these types of events will connect you with the most serious prospects — the ones who are ready or close to ready to make a move.

‍Cons

• You may need to hire an expert speaker to provide valuable information on these types of topics, especially since they may need to speak to financial decisions involving home sales and mortgages. 

Tailor this type of event to your community by considering the type of residence you offer and ensuring the topics align with those offerings. Work with a marketing agency to get the word out about your event. An agency may also be able to take content from the event and repurpose it into video and blog content you can use for future marketing campaigns.

How Do You Know When an Event Isn’t Working?

Signs your community events aren’t working to generate ROI include:

• Low signups: If only a couple of people show up for events, you may need to offer different events or work with a marketing agency to better advertise your events.
• Lack of interest in your services: If your event is packed but no one seems interested in residing in your community or taking advantage of the services you offer, you may have connected with the wrong audience.
• Low conversion rates: If people are interested in Assisted Living or Independent Living but conversion from your events is low, you may need to consider whether you’re showing off your services and community well during events.

Look at your past events and whether they suffered from any of these challenges so you can improve the outcomes of future events.  

Host Marketing Events That Work With an Experienced Partner

Discuss your community goals and event-related challenges with an experienced marketing partner, with familiarity in the senior living industry. They can help you pivot your strategy for better ROI and enhance the success of future events.

At FIVE19, we’re experienced in supporting clients throughout the event planning and marketing process. We can provide the guidance you need to host community events that support strong conversion rates. Reach out today to learn more about our services.