Other Agencies Not Up to the Task of Multiple Communities
Arbor is a senior living management company, with an overarching corporate brand and mission, but it also operates many communities with their own sub-brands and websites. Chris Harper, vice president of communication at Arbor, was hired by the company in 2014, and one of the first tasks given to him was to replace the digital marketing agency the company had been working with. This first partner focused on just a few verticals—including senior living—which resulted in a myopic approach that Arbor wanted to avoid.
“We were getting the same old website everyone in the industry was getting,” Harper says. “It wasn’t well-optimized, it didn’t have good content, and it was very SEO-weak. We were like a number to that agency.”
The next agency Arbor tabbed was more proficient in website design and Google ads, but it rebuilt (on WordPress) Arbor’s web structure to basically one website and one set of URLs for all of the company’s communities. In essence, each location lost its distinct branding for the sake of simplicity. “What we were really missing was the strategy and content side of it,” Harper says.
Disenchanted with this second agency, Harper began exploring options for a marketing partner that knew the senior living space but was versatile enough to bring other tactics and innovations to the table. Moreover, he wanted to take advantage of a strategy that hadn’t yet taken hold in the senior living industry: inbound marketing. The previous two agencies Arbor worked with struggled—or just didn’t provide—copywriting, modern SEO, persona development, and a myriad of the other skills that define inbound.
Through his research, Harper found his way to SmartBug Media. SmartBug® founder and former CEO Ryan Malone had already built one of the most successful agencies in the HubSpot partner directory, and he also possessed deep knowledge of senior living, both from a marketing standpoint and his personal experience in finding care for his mother.
“I had several conversations with Ryan directly, and I got a good feeling from him through the whole process,” Harper says. “I didn’t want the same old thing—I wanted someone who could come in with fresh ideas.”