For most senior housing communities, marketing is an ongoing process, even when occupancy levels are high. Since turnover requires that there is a pipeline, so to speak, of prospects who are in the market, it’s important to know why they consider your community but don’t eventually move in. There may be many different reasons ranging from another community was more to their liking to a decision not to move at all. And what might have made another community more appealing? This can be such things as having friends who already live there, the services and amenities were more to their liking, or something as practical as affordability. A negative might be that your location was just a bit too far from friends and relatives. But the only way to know what drove their decision is to ask. We have found that prospects, meaning someone who has actually visited your community, may be reluctant to answer these questions when a person in your marketing department asks them directly. Lost Prospect surveys conducted by an independent organization are likely to result in franker answers which provide you with potential actionable items that can enhance your marketability.
