Using Facebook Ads to Promote Move-Ins to Senior Living Communities

There are 2.38 billion monthly Facebook users. Of those monthly users, 20 percent are 55 years old or older (seniors), while 26 percent are 35 to 54 years old (adult children of seniors). As a senior living marketer, you should have both age brackets on your radar because the individuals in the former group make elder care decisions for themselves, while the individuals in the latter group make elder care decisions for their parents. Both are solid prospects that make up more than 46 percent of Facebook’s monthly user base. That’s 1.3 billion people to introduce your brand to, solve problems for, and offer services to by using Facebook ads for senior living marketing. 

The first step for developing effective and meaningful Facebook ads that promote move-ins to senior living facilities is understanding and harnessing the power of the Buyer’s Journey. 

Where Is Your Customer in the Buyer’s Journey?

To make the most of Facebook’s user base and your ad spend, focus your energy on supplying content within your Facebook ads that moves your audience through the Buyer’s Journey, from awareness to consideration to decision. Knowing which stage of the Buyer’s Journey your audience falls into helps you provide information that is valuable, timely, relevant, and tailored to their needs. 

Awareness Stage

In the awareness stage of the Buyer’s Journey, a potential client realizes s/he has a problem. Both audiences (seniors and their adult children) are beginning their search for elder care services. As a senior living marketer, it’s your job to serve up Facebook ads that speak to your audience’s pain points and introduce your business as the solution to their senior living needs. 

In this stage of the Buyer’s Journey, you’re reaching out to a cold audience that doesn’t know your brand. To find this audience on Facebook, use lookalike audiences, demographics, interests, and behaviors, and then deploy Facebook ads to break down the barriers your audience encounters. 

Here are a few thoughts that might run through the minds of seniors and their adult children in this stage of the Buyer’s Journey, as well as ad copy that would encourage them to learn more about your senior living community.

Seniors

• “Maintaining my home is a challenge.” ⇨ Mowing grass. Cleaning gutters. Fixing appliances. Home upkeep wearing you down? 
• “I want to live a more active life.” ⇨ Improve Your Lifestyle: Our Residents Share Their Top 10 Community Activities

Adult Children

• “My parent would be happy in a senior living facility, but can we afford it?” ⇨ How to Affording Assisted Living [E-Book]
• “My dad needs extra help, but he wants to retain his independence.” ⇨ Upgrade to Senior Living for Independence and Professional Care Assistance

Hint: Notice the buzzwords in this ad copy—improve, how to, and upgrade—speak to what your audience is trying to achieve at this stage in the Buyer’s Journey, which pinpoints their main problem.   

Consideration Stage

In the consideration stage of the Buyer’s Journey, your potential client is researching, clearly defining his/her problem, and actively making a list of solutions for it. It’s your job to educate your audience and highlight the benefits of your service offering. Although the potential client isn’t ready to make a decision in this stage, it’s up to you to ensure that when s/he is ready to pull the trigger, your senior living community is at the top of the list. 

Facebook remarketing, which allows you to target people who have engaged with your awareness Facebook ads, is your best friend in the consideration stage of the Buyer’s Journey. Compile a list of individuals who completed a desired action and generate tailored ads based on those interactions. Cast a wider net by creating lookalike audiences based on this remarketing list. 

Pro tip: Because your audience is familiar with your service in the consideration stage of the Buyer’s Journey, they’re likely willing to provide their information—first name, last name, and email address—in return for high-level content such as white papers, case studies, and expert guides. This is the time to run lead generation ads on Facebook.

Ad copy for potential clients in the consideration stage of the Buyer’s Journey may look like this:

• [ABC Senior Living Community] is a leading provider in senior living solutions. Download our free e-book, A Step-by-Step Guide to Senior Living Living for Families, to learn more about our offerings. 
• Our residents sound off on why they chose [ABC Senior Living Community] as their senior living provider. Check out the video now.

Hint: Notice the buzzwords in this ad copy—provider, solutions, and choose—address the client’s goal of finding a solution to their defined problem in the consideration stage of the Buyer’s Journey.   

Decision Stage

In the decision stage of the Buyer’s Journey, potential clients have decided on their approach to solving a problem. For senior living marketers, conversion is now the primary focus. It’s time to close the deal. At this stage, potential clients are open to conversations with your sales team, interested in a tour of your facilities, and curious how your facility compares to other senior living options. 

Facebook ads for the decision stage of the Buyer’s Journey might look something like this:

• Schedule your [ABC Senior Living Community] tour with one of our friendly staff members today!
• Is it down to [ABC Senior Living Community] versus home care? Weigh the pros and cons with one of our senior living professionals.
• Compare senior living options in [ABC Senior Care Community] with a senior living professional today.

Hint: Potential clients in the decision stage of the Buyer’s Journey respond to verbiage—such as versus, pros and cons, and compare—that aligns with their goal to determine which solution best fits their needs.    

Attract. Engage. Delight. Repeat.

Your target audience made it to the end of the Buyer’s Journey by way of the awareness, consideration, and decision stages. Is it time to celebrate? Heck no! There’s more you can gain from your current clients. Done well, inbound marketing attracts, engages, and delights your customer in a continuous cycle. 

Once your client makes the decision to join your senior living community, focus on customer loyalty. Transform your audience into brand evangelists who advocate for your brand and recommend your services to their friends by implementing Facebook ads that:

• Showcase star caregivers in your facility
• Share resident testimonials
• Promote ancillary services
• Launch a referral program

With the right strategies in place, pinpointing and engaging new customers with Facebook ads for senior living marketing is easier than ever. 1.3 billion seniors and their adult children are a Facebook ad away from becoming your next clients. What are you waiting for?