Does your community have a social media presence?  Are you active on Facebook or Twitter or blog regularly about happenings at your community?  If so, you are continually looking for good content to keep your posts interesting and keep the subscribers coming back.

One good source is living all around you!  Your residents have stories to tell and many are more than happy to tell them.  They may want to share tales of their lives, how they made the decision to live there or discuss great activities or outings at the community.

Getting the residents involved in a community’s social media adds the human touch to the property, tells the story of their past and promotes many of the positives at a community.  It is a great way to stimulate the creativity of residents and promote a community, all at the same time.  If you have a social media program, discuss it with your residents and see how many volunteers come forward.

If the residents at your community are involved in social media, tell us about it here.  Has it been a positive for them and the property?  Has there been any downside?  Please share your experiences!

Thanks, Doug

When you commit to do business with a company, you know what you expect in return – a high quality product or service that is equal to or hopefully greater than the investment you make for that product or service.  This sounds simple, but there are many components to what you receive in return, not just the actual product or service.  It starts from the time you make your initial contact with the vendor and doesn’t end until you have received the last benefit from your purchase.  Most of what you receive will be easy to quantify, but many things during the relationship will be based on your experience and how important each component of the experience is to you and your company in particular.  Some companies purchase a product and are only worried about the price.  Other purchases have a great value placed on timeliness, customer service, warranty of the product and many other aspects.

When you do business with New LifeStyles, what should you expect, even before you decide to make a purchase?

Responsiveness – if you don’t reach your intended party, you should hear back from them within two hours, unless they are on the road.

Clarity – you should always expect to know exactly what you are receiving, all the components included and what the price is.  Timing of all advertising should be conveyed to you, as well as payment terms and materials needed from you.

Ease of business – we should be providing everything you need,  making the process a minimal time investment on your side

Information – whether its before, during or after your relationship with New LifeStyles, we can provide a number of statistics to help you make your decision, evalulate the performance of your investment or decide on continuing with us.

Solid Return – you should know what you expect from us and we will do everything we can to meet your expectations.  We don’t promise or guarantee results, but if we are not meeting your goals, we will do everything we can to raise our level of value, based on feedback we receive from you.  Sometimes, we will not be able to meet your standards, but we will do everything in our power to keep your business.

Quality Products – Our print publications, online products and tools and website design and development will be of the highest quality, utilizing years of industry experience

Customer Service – We realize that your business determine’s our success or failure.  You will find highly professional treatment during all aspects of your relationship with New LifeStyles.  Our employees have on average over ten years with the company and in the industry, so we know how to listen and meet your needs.

There are other things that we will bring to the table and other things that you expect from us that are not named here.  If New LifeStyles doesn’t meet your expectations in any of these areas, please let us know and we will do everything possible to rectify the current situation and exceed your expectations in the future.

Thanks as always for your business and partnership over the last 25 years!  Doug

We are continually looking for great places to distribute the FREE New LifeStyles guide to senior living and care.  As always, we need your help!  If you come across a location where our guides could be picked up by those that can use them, snap a picture.  We will grade the pictures on benefit to our demographic, as well as originality, humor and artistic quality.  If you can’t snap a picture, send us your suggestion, those will be eligible, too!  We will post the best pictures on our Facebook and Twitter pages!  Top three suggestions will win $25 gift certicates to Starbucks or Target. 

E-mail the pictures, telling us the location, to newlife@newlifestyles.com

(make sure New LifeStyles is available in your area, for a complete list of our areas of coverage, log on to www.newlifestyles.com )

Contest ends February 15, 2012.  Thanks and have fun!

With capital at a premium and financial stress prevalent throughout the industry, acquisitions continue to increase in the senior living industry.  Large companies with decent balance sheets continue to look for ways to expand and spread their infrastructure across more revenue producing units.  This can have both positive and negative effects on the communities that are being acquired.

On the positive sign, communities struggling to provide quality care and services receive a boost in support, often times receiving facelifts and updates to the property.  New programs brought in by the acquiring company may add to the quality of life where the previous owner had been forced to reduce or eliminate expenditures that weren’t considered vital to the health and well-being of the residents.  This could include activities and outings that while not vital to residents’ health, are vital to quality of life.  There also may be improvements in dining options or quality.

On the other side, corporations may send down new policies and procedures to the acquired communities that may hurt the personality or culture of a property.  Staff may be reduced and corporate may look to share staff between properties in the area.  These factors can lead to a complete change in the personality of your community, as the staff and activities can shape the culture.  This type of scenario has lead to residents leaving a local property that I am familiar with and made it more difficult to sell the lifestyles to perspective residents.

If you are involved with a community that is being acquired, talk to the acquiring company as soon as possible.  Show them what makes your community unique and fight to maintain the culture that has made your community’s lifestyle so popular amongst current and perspective residents!

Welcome to 2012!  From all of us at New LifeStyles, we wish you a healthy and prosperous New Year!  Hopefully, this will be a great year for your community or business and the senior living and care industry as a whole.  There are plenty of challenges to be faced, but also plenty of great people to face them.

The New Year is a great time for companies to take inventory of their operations and see what changes need to be made in 2012.  Here are a few suggestions from a marketing perspective:

-          Are your marketing materials up to date and “fresh”?   Take a look at your brochures, ad materials, etc. and see if they represent your message.

-          Is your web site still current?  Is it inviting to visitors and showing off your assets in a clear, easy to find manner.  Are you using a company to optimize your site’s search engine results and linking with companies that can bring you better traffic.

-          Is your marketing team united in their approach?  Are they armed with the needed knowledge and materials?   Are they getting across the key selling points of your community or service in a succinct, clear manner?

-          Is the drive-up appeal of your community still appealing?  Is some fresh paint and new flowers or plants needed?

New LifeStyles can help you by redesigning materials for our publications, reviewing your web site, providing cost effective SEO services and many other ways, just give us a call!

January is the space reservation deadline for the following markets:

• Fresno/Bakersfield – one of our fastest growing guides.
• Arizona – many quality assisted living and independent living choices in both the Phoenix area and in Tucson, already a number of new advertisers for 2012!
• Denver – demand is high in Denver for all levels of care including dementia care and home care
• Maryland/DC/No. Virginia – Distribution and online traffic is extremely high in this population dense market

New copies of our guide should be arriving for the following markets:

-          Houston

-          Fort Worth/Tarrant County

-          San Diego

-          Central and Eastern Pennsylvania (Philadelphia)

For more information, contact us immediately!

To get the latest information on our web design division, friend New LifeStyles on Facebook , connect with us on LinkedIn, or follow us on Twitter.

Thanks for spending some time with our blog.  Call us!  We will be an effective part of your marketing campaign.

 Doug

In visiting various retirement and assisted living communities, as well as nursing care centers, I always notice the “feel” of whether of not there is a sense of community at the property.  This is based on a number of factors – the activities that are taking place, the number of residents in the common areas and the decor of the common areas, among others.  It’s of the utmost importance to quality of life, mental and social stimulation and vibrancy of a community to have an active group of residents that have a full slate of activities and many reasons to socialize in the common areas of a community and not just stay in their apartments/rooms, living in isolation.

Are you creating this sense of community?

Take inventory:

- Are the activities that are on your calendar, which looks nice and full to the outside eye, really happening?  If not, find out why.  If needed, solicit your residents on their ideas for new activities.  Seniors are changing, their likes and dislikes, make sure your calendar is keeping up with their needs.

- Look around your community at different times during the days.  When there aren’t meals or activities how many residents are out and about in the common areas?  Talk to those you never see and figure out ways to get them out with the group.  Creating an atmosphere where people are talking, enjoying music or conversation, creates a better environment at your community.

- Take stock of your common areas.  Are they well decorated?  Is the temperature OK?  Is there plenty of seating and room for wheelchairs and walkers?  Is their fresh coffee, snacks or other beverages?

By creating a better sense of community at your Community, you can both enhance the experience of your existing residents and make your community more attractive to prospective residents.  Why move into a community where everyone just stays in their rooms? 

What do you do to create a great sense of community?  What new activities have you incorporated?  Please share, there are many people looking for new ideas!

October brings a lot of transitions.  Summer heat gives way to cool Fall temperatures and great color.  All students are back to school and baseball season reaches its peak, while football season is hitting its stride.  At New LifeStyles, we are always looking to transition to a higher level of value for our independent living, assisted living, dementia care providers and other important advertising partners.  In September, our mobile site was introduced, bringing more leads and traffic without an additional cost.  On the distribution side, new avenues of getting our guides into the hands of those looking for your community or home health and hospice service led to thousands of guides being sent out from our headquarters to complement those already in circulation.  It’s a great time to try New LifeStyles complete media solution or if you have been gone for a year or two, come back and see what new value you can utilize at the same low rate!  What else is going on around here?

-          Our web design team has been swamped, signing an average of 15 new clients per month over the last six months.  If you have a web site that needs to be updated, or if you need a new site, call us today for no upfront cost pricing and unique designs!

-          We have been partnering with many Senior Fairs across the country to increase distribution and awareness, while also developing a direct mail campaign.  Our investments in online marketing have resulted in increased quality and quantity of traffic

-          As we increase content and visibility, our blog, forum, mobile app and mobile site are finding increased usage, bringing in more leads and traffic for our advertisers.

October is the space reservation deadline for the following markets:

• Los Angeles – the largest distribution, a great value!
• New York Metro – another large distribution, excellent set of choices
• St. Louis – the fastest growing market, this guide has tripled in size over the last three years
• Orlando – a great market for leads, the Orlando guide is ordered as much as some of our large guides, which makes the leads a major value
• Chicago – one of New LifeStyles’ most popular guides, extensive distribution and great content.

New copies of our guide should be arriving for the following markets:

-          Nevada

-          Portland

-          Seattle Area

-          Connecticut/Rhode Island

For more information, contact us immediately!

 To get the latest information on our web design division.  Friend New LifeStyles on Facebook , connect with us on LinkedIn, or follow us on Twitter.

Thanks for spending some time with our blog.  Call us!  We will be an effective part of your marketing campaign.

Purple has always been my favorite color.  Don’t know why, maybe I am a long, lost descendant of royalty (doubtful, although I am often referred to as a “royal pain in the $%#”).  As a kid I loved Grape Ape and grape Kool-aid.

Now, however, purple has a more important, sobering meaning in its representation of the fight against Alzheimer’s disease.  Today, being World Alzheimer’s Day is a great day to show your support for the families that deal with the ravages of this disease, the caregivers that give their last ounce of energy, day-in, day-out caring for the victims of the disease and the scientist racing to find a cure or at least new ways to delay the onset or cope better with the symptoms.

How can you show your support today AND going forward, as the reach of Alzheimer’s spreads, touching more people that you know and love?  Here are five easy ways:

 - Educate yourself on the disease

- Help a caregiver

- Volunteer

- Spread the word!

- Donate or raise money

(Thanks to Rita Altman, R.N., Vice President, Memory Care and Programming for Sunrise Senior Living for this list)

Unfortunately, while I was writing this, there were many new cases of Alzheimer’s diagnosed.  While very few of us can directly find a cure or method to better cope, we can support the victims, families and caregivers.  Take action today!  It can be as simple as spreading the word through social media, signing up for a fundraiser or taking dinner to a caregiver.

Thanks!  Doug

As we continue to bake to a nice golden brown here in Dallas, our friends on East Coast got a nasty visit from Irene over the weekend.  (Why Irene?  In a few years will the storms get names like Hunter, Taylor, Harper and Britney?)   It looks like advance preparation made it easier for many to get through it, but tragedy did strike, unfortunately.

I was able to read some of the news coming across on Twitter during and after the storm and it sounds like most senior communities made it through with little or no damage although many assisted living communities and nursing homes had to evacuate, which can cause extreme stress on residents and staff and logistical nightmares.  It was refreshing to see stories where almost all staff showed up for work and others covered for those who couldn’t make it in.  Even read one good story of a former ship captain, who as a resident formed a team to go around and make sure all windows were properly latched, as during the last storm leaks had occurred through the windows.

Were there any heroes at your community or in the surrounding community that went above and beyond during Irene?  Any good stories from your community?  We would love to have you share them with the visitors to this blog and recognize their efforts.  Once again, we at New LifeStyles hope that everything went as smooth as possible and things are back to normal quickly!

August is usually one of the slower months of the year in the U.S..  It’s a big vacation month, everyone catching their breath before the fall ramp-up.  That doesn’t seem to be the case this year. There are many issues with HUGE financial implications to all business and some large battles for nursing care providers and others in the health care industry.  All of this makes it very hard to keep the focus on the day-to-day, but it is crucial to keep advancing your service level, marketing your business and upgrading for your residents and customers.  We at New LifeStyles are doing everything we can to help:

• Next month, we will unveil a new mobile platform, giving potential residents, their families and caregivers more access to your community or business!
• We are launching new distribution initiatives, including direct mail in many of our coverage areas.
• Our digital guides have increased versatility, allowing the user to view them across many platforms.
• Our web saw gains in both quantity of visits and quality of those visits in the 2^nd quarter.
• If you are interested in knowing more about both the print and online advertising options at New LifeStyles, our interactive media kit  is on the web site.  After reviewing everything available, you can contact us for closing deadlines, rates, statistics and more. 
• Our web team has signed an average of 15 new sites in the last three months, unveiling some great new looks.  Our group can design a new site, perform full search engine optimization services and now they can set up your SOCIAL MEDIA presence.  Contact Luke Jansen for details.

August is the space reservation deadline for the following markets:

• Nevada – distribution expanding due to our local connections.
• Portland – many options in this beautiful area of the country.
• Seattle – demand is high in Washington for senior living and care
• Northern New England – be part of one of our fastest growing areas
• Connecticut/Rhode Island – Distribution and online traffic is extremely high in this population dense market
• Atlanta – one of New LifeStyles’ most popular guides, extensive distribution and great content.

New copies of our guide should be arriving for the following markets:

-          Dallas

-          Michigan

-          Alabama

-          Philadephia/ Eastern PA

-          Boston/E.Massachusetts

-          Austin/San Antonio

-          Louisville/Lexington

For more information, contact us immediately!

To get the lastest information, friend New LifeStyles on Facebook , connect with us on LinkedIn, or follow us on Twitter.

Doug