Here at Roobrik, we work with the industry’s top marketing and communications agencies — each one partnering with operators to maximize marketing investments and help connect older adults and families with their best next living or care choice. We wanted to tap that brain trust to gather some important tips and share key insights. This month, we turned to Candice Yagmin, Owner and Chief Strategy Officer at Rally, and Joe van Kampen, Vice President of Business Development at CITIZEN, asking each of them the same three questions. Take a look at their answers below.
Q: What’s the one area where you think senior living operators could spend less money…or maybe cut out completely?
Candice: First, I feel compelled to state I wouldn’t reduce spending in any area that is effectively producing quality leads and sales. But if I generalize what I’ve seen and where I’d reduce or cut, I’d reduce spending on non-branded PPC, as long as I had a strong performance in organic search (which requires investment) and an optimized Google business listing.
I would not invest in chat-bots or any service that pushes for a self-serving conversion without being helpful to a consumer. I wish more people would invest in truly helpful live chat that doesn’t require a conversion.
For new developments or expansions, I’d focus on a smaller sales center with a near-complete digital experience and invest more in my sales team in all scenarios.
Joe: I believe many senior living communities spend a lot of money on third-party referral companies for leads who could potentially have already seen the organization’s marketing or even been to their website. By including marketing automation and having a CRM system, this expense could drop significantly or, in some cases, be removed completely since they can track when a user has already been to the website based on form fills that connect to the sales software. Some CRMs even reject the leads if they are already there. We can then prompt salespeople if that happens so that they can reach out to that user — someone that may have been considered a lost lead.
Q: What are your top three most strategic ways to boost quality lead flow on an operator’s website?
Candice:
1. Calculators and quizzes
2. Authentic video and photography
3. Immediate response times providing high-quality service and information not found on the website. If you have fewer leads but treat them better, you’ll need fewer leads to reach your goals!
Joe:
1. Heat-map tracking to improve user experience and promote quality conversions. This allows us to see not only what people are clicking on but also what people are reading on the website, allowing us to adjust the website based on real data.
2. Gated pricing forms will track interested users, give them the required information, and collect their data so we can begin drip-dripping them content.
3. Tracking all CTAs, including calls, form fills, downloads, and tours booked, to score leads based on their actions and ensure the salespeople have the best information for their meetings or tours.
Q: Why do you think Roobrik generates incremental leads on your clients’ sites?
Candice: Because Roobrik is truly helpful to consumers, and doesn’t ever require a conversion, which tells a consumer that you care about them. They take the assessment, they experience your empathy for their situation, and then they are more likely to convert because of it. And they are more educated and invested when they do convert from having gone through the assessment. It’s a win-win!
Joe: I know why. They include strong, pointed questions to support the community’s users in making the right decisions. They really show them the path ahead. But they also include the form below the fold to ensure the user is submitting information that the community normally wouldn’t get, making the website’s conversion rate much higher.
Do you have a question you’d like us to ask our virtual expert panel? Email us at sales@roobrik.com!