Among Americans 65 and older, 46% use Facebook, the highest number of any social media channels. If you plan on reaching your target audience as a Senior Living Marketer, Facebook has some obvious advantages as an advertising platform. This blog post covers 3 specific social media strategies that a Senior Living Community can use to create successful Facebook Ads.
1. Target for Specific "Personas"
An incredibly important fundamental of running Facebook ads is making sure you're very specific about whom you're targeting them to. The first thing you'll need to do, as with any senior living marketing plan, is to create target "personas."
Target personas are the different demographic segments you want visiting your site. Examples are the 50-year-old adult child of a senior who's not willing to go to assisted living but really needs to. Or, an 85-year-old tech-savvy widow who knows she needs assisted living but is early in her decision process.
By creating target personas you can craft the ad copy and messaging to speak directly to their needs. In the demographics section of Facebook's ads manager, you'll be able to drill down into numerous ways to target these exact personas in your geographic area. Pro tip: Look around your community and use current clients as models as your personas instead of just imagining fake ones.
"A marketing persona is a composite sketch of a key segment of your audience. For content marketing purposes, you need personas to help you deliver content that will be most relevant and useful to your audience."
2. Highlight What Makes Your Community Unique
Today's seniors are looking for retirement communities that offer more than just living space. They want to be engaged, social, take up new hobbies and stay fit. Not only that, but many don't really consider themselves "old."
Instead, they're embarking on a new and exciting journey that allows them to seize more from their current life plans. By targeting your Facebook marketing copy to those specific needs and messaging, you're more likely to catch the eye of seniors in your area and their families. Consider how your community specifically provides unique opportunities for seniors to have a better quality of life. Do research with current residents, and take down their exact quotes about what they like about your community.
Through pictures, videos, and direct quotes from happy residents, you can be sure you're speaking directly with your target audience regarding what they care about. It doesn't hurt to have a virtual tour of your facility easily accessible too!
3. Run Ads Using a Facebook Re-Targeting Pixel.
Many seniors will start interacting with your page and website long before they're ready to move into a senior living community. If you're going to run paid ads on Facebook, you need to be able to re-target those visitors who come to your site but don't schedule a tour.
If you've ever been re-targeted, you might've felt like the ad was reading your mind. There is a reason these are one of the most effective forms of digital advertising because they convert much higher on average. Let's give an example.
If someone has already been to your site, maybe they are in the consideration phase of the buying process. They've done research on your community as well as others in the area and are in the prime target window to be swayed in a certain direction. If you can use a well-timed ad, whether an invitation to an upcoming event, special promotion, or anything that would be a good reminder -- you'll have a higher chance of converting their "click" than someone who has never seen your site before.
"Web site visitors who are retargeted with display ads are 70 percent more likely to convert on your Web site."
- B2B Marketing Mentor
A solid Facebook strategy is one of the best ways to connect with potential new members of your senior living community and allow them to learn more about everything your community has to offer. From developing a habit of posting on a regular basis to posting engaging content that encourages seniors to interact more effectively with your page, you'll find that your Facebook marketing strategy can play a significant role in helping people discover your community and drive your senior living lead generation efforts.