While I was watching the Final Four the other week, it got me thinking about the high-stakes game that senior living marketers like us play every day: the conversion game. Like a winning basketball team needs a solid strategy to score big, you need the right plays in your marketing playbook.

At Waypoint Converts, we’ve been deep-diving into what truly drives results. I want to share my top four conversion tactics—the MVPs of your marketing efforts. Let’s get straight to it, drawing from my experience and the data we see daily.

1. Downloaded Content: The Mutual Educational Power Play

Just like a crucial assist sets up a score in basketball, providing valuable downloadable content is a key play in your conversion strategy. Look, I see it every day. People aren’t just clicking around anymore. They’re hungry for information. They want to understand, to educate themselves before they even think about picking up the phone. Our data shows that resources and downloadable content are the things that website visitors engage with the most. It’s true! More than ever, consumers intend to educate themselves. They want to self-serve and curate their own journey. Gartner Group backs this up, too, saying 75% of people prefer a rep-free experience. We at Waypoint Converts have seen firsthand how effective this is.

Why I know it works:

• It builds trust. You’re giving them something valuable, for free.
• You’re meeting them where they are in their journey.
• You’re respecting their desire for self-service and self-direction

Senior living-specific ideas I swear by:

• Financial guides
• Service level guides
• What to expect in your senior living search and research guide

My insight: Our data consistently shows high engagement with anything related to pricing or requesting pricing. Because of this strong interest, offering a downloadable guide that clearly walks someone through the costs associated with senior living and the nuances of how someone might pay for senior living is a highly effective conversion tool, quickly turning website visitors into engaged prospects.

Considering the User Experience

From the Consumer’s Perspective

• I’m overwhelmed. I need to understand my options before talking to anyone. Downloadable guides let me learn at my own pace, without pressure. I can get answers to my questions about costs, care, and what to expect.
• I appreciate having access to easy-to-understand information. It shows that the provider cares about educating me, not just selling to me.

From the Senior Living Provider’s Perspective

• We attract qualified leads. When someone downloads a guide, we know they’re serious about learning. This helps us focus our resources on prospects who are further along in their decision-making process.
• Providing valuable resources builds trust and establishes us as experts. We’re giving them the tools they need, and that makes us their go-to resource.
• Our data shows that anything that’s pricing or request pricing… it’s really high. So if you could give somebody a downloadable guide that helps walk them through what the costs of senior living are… it’s an easy converter. It converts people into the website very, very quickly.

2. Survey Technology: The Shared Data-Driven Assist

My next key play for boosting conversions? It’s leveraging the power of survey technology. They’re not just boring questionnaires. They’re goldmines of information. I see them as a way to really connect with potential residents and their families on a deeper level.

Why I’m a huge fan:

• They engage people without being pushy, particularly mid-funnel, where someone is unsure. They give you the power to capture critical data for personalized sales.
• They let you deliver targeted content based on responses.

Key benefits I’ve observed:

• You get demographic, interest, preference and intent data.
• You have more information, so you are not going into a conversation cold. 
• You empower your sales team to have data to have stronger discovery and discovery questions to build trust faster and personalize the experience.

My insight: Surveys and assessments not only engage potential residents but also provide crucial demographic and intent data for providers. This enables a more personalized sales process, ultimately leading to improved conversions and move-ins.

Considering the User Experience

From the Consumer’s Perspective

• I’m not ready for a sales pitch, but I want to share my needs. Surveys let me do that without feeling pressured. Plus, I get personalized information based on my answers.
• It’s nice to feel like my input matters. The survey helps me feel like the provider is trying to understand my unique situation.
• Consumers expect personalization

From the Senior Living Provider’s Perspective

• We gather crucial data to personalize the sales process. We learn about their preferences, needs, and concerns, allowing us to tailor our approach.
• Surveys help us identify high-intent leads. We can prioritize those who are most likely to convert, maximizing our efficiency.
• Surveys and assessments offer consumers a non-pressured way to share their needs while enabling providers to gather critical data for a more personalized and effective sales process.

3. Website AI Assistant or Chatbot: The Instant Communication Play

Another tactic I’m a big believer in for immediate impact is AI assistants or chatbot. In today’s fast-paced digital world, people expect instant answers. That’s why I’m so passionate about these tools – they provide that crucial real-time engagement. And I am not talking about a chatbot that is a decision tree of questions driving a consumer down a path. I am talking about a fully conversational AI Assistant that can answer consumer questions about your communities and direct someone where to go.

Why I push for them:

• They answer questions fast, keeping people on your site while reducing drop-off. They support your sales team 24/7.
• Although more top of the funnel, they do guide users through the conversion process.

Key benefits I’ve seen:

• They provide an immediate response to key questions and a quick overview of key information.
• They offer guidance for those new to senior living.
• They expand your reach and capture more leads.

My insight: A well-trained conversational AI assistant or chatbot on your website is invaluable. It not only provides instant answers, preventing potential residents from leaving, but also augments your sales team by handling initial inquiries and guiding users, many of whom are new to the senior living search process. Our Waypoint Navigator offers custom branding and CTAs that differentiate your business from your competitors. Plus, our analytics and insights allow you to stay informed about what is working and what isn’t so you can pivot as needed.

Considering the User Experience

 From the Consumer’s Perspective

• I have quick questions, and I don’t want to wait for an email or phone call. Chatbots give me instant answers, 24/7. It’s so convenient.
• It helps direct me. Senior living is a new world to many, and some guidance is much appreciated.

From the Senior Living Provider’s Perspective

• We provide immediate support, preventing potential residents from leaving our website. We capture leads and answer questions before they move on to a competitor.
• AI Assistants or Chatbots augment our sales team, freeing them up to focus on high-value interactions. We provide consistent, reliable information, even outside of business hours.
• A trained AI assistant or chatbot provides immediate support, capturing leads and answering questions 24/7, ultimately preventing potential residents from seeking information elsewhere and freeing up the sales team for more complex interactions.

 4. Digital Forms: The Intent-Driven Connection

Finally, to really seal the deal and drive those crucial conversions, you absolutely need strategic digital forms. These are way more than just “Contact Us” pages. They are powerful tools for capturing high-intent leads at key decision points.

Why I advocate for them:

• They capture leads quickly and efficiently.
• They’re customizable for different conversion points.
• They offer robust tracking and CRM integration.

Key benefits I prioritize:

• Intent-driven forms capture high-quality leads.
• Customizable forms set you apart from the competition.
• Detailed tracking gives you valuable lead source insights.

My insight: There’s a segment of companies like Waypoint offering these customizable forms that are multi-use. You can embed them in a page. You can put them behind a button or text. You can build them into your AI chat bot, or your regular chat bot. They’re multi-functional, multi-use forms that you can use to capture leads very, very quickly. But not just any form will do. We’ve learned that every extra field on a form can decrease conversion rates. A HubSpot study of 40,000 contact forms shows that the conversion rate improves by 50% the number of for fields is reduced from four to three.

 Considering the User Experience

 From the Consumer’s Perspective

• I want to request specific information, like pricing or brochures. Digital forms make it easy to do that without navigating a complex website.
• I appreciate forms that are clear and concise. It shows the provider respects my time.

From the Senior Living Provider’s Perspective

• We capture high-quality, intent-driven leads. We know exactly what they’re interested in, allowing us to tailor our follow-up.
• Digital forms integrate seamlessly with our CRM and marketing automation platforms, streamlining our lead management process. We also gain valuable data about where our leads are coming from.
• There’s a segment of companies like Waypoint offering these customizable forms that are multi-use. Right. You can embed them in a page. You can put them behind a button or text. You can build them into your chatbot, your AI chatbot, or your regular chatbot, like they’re multi-functional, multi-use forms that you can use to capture leads very, very quickly.

 My Winning Game Plan for You

Just like a Final Four coach strategizes every play, I urge you to implement these top four conversion tactics on your senior living website. By providing valuable content, leveraging data-driven surveys, offering instant support through chatbots, and utilizing strategic digital forms, you’ll be well on your way to scoring big in the conversion game and filling your communities with happy residents. It’s about creating a seamless, informative, and engaging experience for your future residents and their families. Let’s get out there and make every interaction count!