But what else are press releases good for?

1. It gives your sales team something new to talk about & a reason to reach out to long-time contacts/referral points/prospects & remind them about what you offer.
2. SEO – search engine optimization! Your press release is sure to contain the keywords and phrases people use to find a community &/or the services you offer in your area. By posting a press release on your site, you are adding more keywords and new content to your site which the search engines love! The more often you update & add new content to your site, including press releases, the better your chances of getting more & better listings in the search rankings for those keywords. Plus, if other sites pick-up your release and link to your site, you just got an added bonus of an inbound link, which the search engines also consider important!

Tips to get the most from your press releases:

1. Write them when you have something new to announce
2. Use social media as well as online distribution services to distribute.
3. Post releases on your site in a format the bots/spiders can read
4. Create links in the copy back to related areas on your site
5. Make sure site URL is listed on the release!

It recently came to our attention that an end user on our site was using our registration tool to its full potential, which we were thrilled to see!

We ask end users on our site to register to use the site’s advanced functions like saving a list of providers, emailing & recommending listings to friends/family, etc… We do not force registration, as we found that cut down on the number of people who would share their information. Instead we use a short form to get some basic information from them that then becomes leads to our online advertisers. This information includes basics like name and contact information, but also what type of senior community/care they are looking for, who they are looking for, etc… This information is then passed to our online advertisers if a registered user looks at their ad. These are usually very qualified leads and should be treated as such with a prompt response if their needs are a fit to your offerings.

Now, back to this end user. She made her list of communities to contact and visit & then made notes starting with the calls she made, when they were made & what she learned from them. Then she noted the dates of her visits and what she liked and disliked including amenities, services offered, equipment present and more. She used the tool to its full potential to help her make an informed decision on where she wanted her family member.

We tell you this in case you are asked if there is a tool like this available, or if you want to suggest potential residents to use this tool. All they have to do is register on our site & make a list of the communities they are considering. You may want to consider creating a spreadsheet that would do the same, listing your community with your amenities, services, track records, etc… compared to the locations around you, maybe even leaving some blanks for them to add other communities or service options, pricing, and other notes they consider important.

I’m not a high tech guru.  I haven’t unconditionally accepted social media as the future of marketing or selling.  I only got an I-phone because it was an extra and now I am trying to relax and not get too stressed about not using it to its fullest potential (or more then 10% of its potential).

I continue to absorb social media and watch it evolve.  There is value in social media.  The opportunity to get your message out to potential and current clients at a low cost is tremendous.  The information available to you can be overwhelming at times, but if you learn how to sift through it efficiently, you can find informative articles and key points that have benefit to your organization.

Should you fear social media?  No.  Should you be intimidated?  No.  Social media can be whatever you want it to be.  It’s different for everyone, so don’t feel like you have to spend 5 hours a day combing Twitter for valuable people to follow or blogging about every significant or insignificant happening in your community or business.

Start slowly and be patient.  Evaluate the time spent vs. the perceived benefits.  Each social media avenue is different and should be viewed as such.

Facebook – Create a page for your company or business.  Create incentives for people to follow (either by becoming a fan or “liking” your page) your postings on Facebook.  You can post events at your community, notify people of events in their area that you may be sponsoring or post promotions or specials.  Hopefully, people can help your following base grow organically.

Twitter – Have respected voices in the industry that you want to keep up with?  Know of organizations that post through twitter?  Seek them out and follow their postings.  You can also post relevant nuggets from your business or community.

LinkedIn – A great way to build a network of professionals and exchange ideas and information.   It’s pretty simple to join, then seek out groups in your industry and join.   You don’t have to contribute, you can just receive updates and articles from them.   If there is a topic you want to weigh in on, just comment.  This gives you an opportunity you relay your expertise in an area, possibly leading to referrals.  It’s also a great place to find service providers you may need or fill a position.

Blogging – Got something to say?  Want to create an information portal for your community or business, maybe a blog is the way to go.  Do you have to post every day?  No, just be consistent, so people know when to expect your posts.  Start with once a week, same day and go from there.  Give people the opportunity to comment on your posts.   Blogs also are great for search engine rankings.

Are some of these redundant?   Maybe a bit, but they also allow different avenues to disseminating information.  Oh, there are also others to look at, but you’ll run into those!  Your clients and potential clients may come from any of the four, or all of the four.  Do you need to use all four or more that we didn’t cover?  No, you should use what works for you and your community or business.  The main thing is to get out there and get your feet wet.  You won’t drown, unless you swim past the buoys or didn’t wait 30 minutes after you ate.   Cheers, df

Sometimes, when times get tough and we get really busy, we have a tendency to focus on our own little world, whether that world is a retirement or assisted living community, a company striving to make their way in a competitive industry or just you personal world.  The tendency might be to only use your time and resources to make sure that your “world” is in order.  We may only have the resources to do this, unless we expand our vision outside our boundaries.

For the active adult or assisted living community, the word community is thought to only cover the physical property on which that community stands.  But, expanding to become part of the neighborhood in which the property is based, can expand the world in which your residents can live and can bring life to your property from beyond the walls of your community.  For C.C. Young in Dallas, this meant creating a free-standing art and education program that brings together people in Dallas and residents of their sprawling campus.  This program presents opportunity for both to expand their cultural boundaries and continue the education property.  It also brings attention to the campus and recognition in the community of their excellent programs.  Many other communities host financial seminars, health fairs, art exhibits, cooking shows and other great activities that bring the surrounding neighborhood into their world and give opportunities to both to learn something or experience something of value.

If you are a business, without the opportunity to host events, find partners to host and you can act as a sponsor, helping to create a “buzz” around the event.   Or, you can create an event, do all the planning and legwork and just find a great community to host the event, inviting both residents and those in the neighborhood.  

Creating opportunities for the neighborhood around your property to get involved with your community can pay huge dividends.  Residents have more opportunities for enriching activities, your awareness in the surrounding area grows, helping with leads and residents can also have an opportunity to share their talents and knowledge with people in the community.

So, need to spark some life into your community or business?  Open those doors and invite in the world around you!

Cheers, df

Well, it’s still Mother’s Day in Mexico, so Feliz Dia de los Madres to our New LifeStyles Mothers:

Donna Miller – Mother of Christy (32) and Ben (30). Grandmother to Cannon (12), Chloe (10), and M’kiah (8). Donna is also Mom to a chocolate lab named Mocha. Besides keeping our mail room and distribution running smoothly, Donna is dedicated to prison ministry, walking (cheer for her at the 3-day, crocheting & spending time with her family.

Michele Vasquez – Sales director for Tarrant County & official invoice creator for our A/R dept. is mother to Reagan (9) who loves dancing & singing, & twins Zach (12) who enjoys football, baseball, theater, & Kyle (12) who also plays football & baseball, & is learning to play the guitar. And we can’t forget 2-year old Golden Retriever Addie who loves to drag socks all over the house.  Michele’s favorite things to do away from the office include boating, camping, reading & spending time with friends and family.

Jennifer Campbell – Online Director is mother to Connelly (5) and Licorice (2), their cat. She enjoys skiing & boarding at the lake, snow skiing, working out & running, biking and other outdoor activities with her family. We can’t forget to mention the spa!

Pat Sullivan – In her own words: “Please know that I am so very fortunate to have the family that I have. We, my husband and I, have 5 wonderful children who have married their best friends, and have had children of their own. I am the proud Grandmother of 9 Grandchildren, and 2 Great Grandchildren, which consist of 4 boys, 5 girls, and 2 boys for great grandchildren. 

I found a plate that has the following saying, and it is so very true.

THE BEST GIFT THAT I HAVE IS THE LOVE OF FAMILY

I love each and every one of them so very much.”

Kate Balderas – Sales Director is Mother to (Haven Balderas, 16 months). Haven loves any outdoor activity where she can run around. She loves reading books and loves Elmo and Yo Gabba Gabba! The family has 3 hound dogs, Coltrane, Ella & Gypsy. And her favorite thing to do away from the office is anything outdoors with her family and dogs- especially hiking, swimming and riding horses. She also volunteers in her spare time for various animal organizations.

Cara Sivert – Production Designer is mom to 3 dogs, Reyna, Rancho & LuLu who all enjoy eating! Cara loves Roller Derby and travel.

Kristina Browning – Receptionist is mother to DJ (20) who likes working on cars. He is currently in school at Texas Tech. Bianca (18) is graduating at the end of the month. She is a sports trainer & plans on going to college for sports medicine. Kristina recently moved to the country where she has 2 Dogs, 2 Cats & 1 Horse. Kristina enjoys playing with her animals, gardening, watching the cows and there babies, riding & caring for her horse, & visiting with family.

Ellen Burleigh – Sales Director is mom to Cali, a 5 year old Doberman mix who lives to chase squirrels. Ellen loves to watch movies and long walks with Cali.

Nikki Huml – A/R Collection is mom to Austin (7) who currently plays 1st base for the Rangers (although he would love to play hockey in the future) and Hayden (2 ½) who is determined to do everything that his older brother does.  He currently likes to pretend he is Spiderman or a ninja. And we can’t forget Landry, the Lab (10) & Bentley (3) the Yorkie that they rescued. Her favorite pastimes are spending time with the family, riding horses and working out.

Vicki Fields – Keeps up our clients’ web sites. She is mother to Taylor (15). They both enjoy piano, art, movies, scrabble, computer games & shopping.

Tanya Ibarra – Our database keeper is mom to Samuel (6) who likes t-ball & playing his DSI. He loves Tigers! And Mariah (2) who loves playing catch, riding her bike, & playing with mom’s Ipod, Tanya is also mom to & Smokey & Shadow, their Blue Pits. They love going to the park and playing tag with them.

Paige Calhoun – Also a database keeper plus more, is mother to Baylee Renae (11) who plays fast pitch baseball on a co-ed team & cheerleading in the Summer/Fall. Paige loves traveling, Six Flags, the batting cages & go-carts, to name a few. Paige has 3 talented cats & 5 dogs (don’t go near her house unless you are invited).

Stacee Howse – IT Director is Mom to Tanner (5) who loves soccer. Stacee enjoys running in her free time.

Cynthia Daniel – Production Designer, is mom to 2 Cats, Spike (orange tabby, short-hair persian) & Zola (tortie long-hair persian). Her favorite thing to do away from work is creating art, welding recycled metal into yard art.

Michelle Gowdy – Dallas Sales Director & Media Buyer is Mom to Nikki, a 7th grader (12) who plays Volleyball and enjoys socializing with her friends, Brent, a 5th grader (10) who plays basketball and baseball & Riley, her Chihuahua princess.  Away from the office she enjoys being outside, watching her kids’ sports, walking the dog, and hanging out with family and friends.

Allison Thomas – A/R is mom to Hudson Thomas (3) whose hobbies include whining, action figures, soccer & playgrounds. Lucy is their Black Lab Mix and their favorite thing to do away from the office is relax & be together.

Kariamu Kamau – Web Designer is mother to MansaMusa Ali (9) who participates in Track & Field, Basketball, & Baseball. Kariamu’s favorite thing to do away from the office is to hang out with her son and husband (when he is in town).

Pam Fusella – CFO is mom to Ryan (almost 20!) who is a Vanderbilt student, double majoring in neuroscience and psychology, and Sammie, a cairn terrier (almost 11!). Her favorite things to do away from the office are workout, read, watch TV, shop, & relax.

We wish the best to all of the mothers at New LifeStyles. They all lend a hand in brining you the most comprehensive guide to senior housing and care across the country.

Building Senior Care Alliances – Interactive Tool

http://content.041072.com/viewer.php?tid=180666 

10 ways seniors can use Skype

http://bit.ly/c1yJSs 

It’s convention season – Read How Social Media can enhance your exhibit or convention

http://www.gochrisonline.com/?p=134

Dreams at Any Age – Feel Good Story

http://www.retiringbydesign.com/blog/?p=34

Headlines (Thanks to Jay Leno) – Unfortunate accident : )

http://www.nbc.com/the-tonight-show/photos/gallery#item=121136

Happy Mother’s Day!

What information do you want in a lead? Is name & contact information enough to start or do you need further qualifications like financial status, medical background and more?

We are re-doing our online email forms where end users can request information from a senior housing or care provider and want to make sure we are asking the right questions for our clients.

Let us know what you would like to see from a potential client before reaching out to them.

Thanks for your input!