Senior Living Brand Reaches 90% Occupancy Goal Through Data-driven PPC Strategy
Digital Acquisition Strategy Maximizes Occupancy Rates
With 60+ locations, a leading senior care brand struggled to meet occupancy rate goals and had also become over-reliant on third-party referral sites such as A Place for Mom, revealing a need to improve its digital lead acquisition strategy. Recognizing that their memory care services are more profitable, they also sought to attract more residents to this specific community service line.
We took charge by implementing a custom paid media strategy that consistently funneled new residents to all communities, including this critical service line. The growing brand not only achieved but maintained an impressive 90% occupancy rate month after month, showcasing the undeniable impact of our collaboration.
Challenges:
- Meeting high occupancy goals for all 60+ locations
- Operating in a competitive New England market
- Lacking distinction between service lines
Goals:
- Achieve 90% occupancy across all communities
- Reduce reliance on third-party referral sites
- Attract more memory care service clients
Optimizing Media Strategy to Meet Occupancy Goals
To help achieve maximum occupancy, we developed a data-driven media strategy aligned with each community’s current occupancy. Maximizing leads for memory care was a core goal and determined how we structured our strategy.
After working closely with their operations team to understand each community’s needs, we designed campaigns to highlight the unique value proposition and care options of each community. To meet capacity goals, we also constantly adjusted budgets to meet specific location needs accordingly.
Our approach, aligned with each community’s strengths, led to an impressive 90% occupancy rate across their communities.
Tailoring PPC Ads for Targeted Reach
Account Structure
Campaigns were structured by community, with each consisting of three ad groups: Assisted Living, Senior Living, and Memory Care.
We maintained this structure of campaigns by community so we could adjust & allocate budget dollars as needed when a community required support.
Keyword Strategy
To improve lead quality and reach the most qualified prospects, our team conducted a full keyword refresh for all ad groups.
We also used broad-match keywords in all 3 ad groups, with a special focus on ones related to memory care so that we could increase traffic for this important service line.
Ad Copy
Before partnering with Cardinal, the brand’s ad copy lacked specificity regarding each community’s services, offerings, and location.
We did a full ad copy refresh, aligning the messaging with search intent and information needs while also highlighting each community’s unique value.
Enhancing Performance with Custom Analytics
To determine marketing attribution and digital impact, we set up custom-built dashboards for the senior living brand that detail important KPIs, including:
- Leads by care type
- Leads, move-ins, & occupancy
- Funnel performance
Robust data tracking has allowed us to identify optimization opportunities that, in turn, have increased lead volume and lead quality for all of their communities.
With detailed Move-in and Occupancy data now available to us, our team can fine-tune our strategy and adjust spending on an ongoing basis, depending on which locations need more residents at any given time.
Occupancy Goals Met & New Goals Set for the Future
Cardinal’s paid media strategy led to immediate lead volume improvements for the senior living giant from the early stages of our partnership in June 2023. By early Q4, the company achieved its bold 90% occupancy goal for all communities.
As a result of Cardinal’s initiatives in that first year, the brand achieved the following:
- 30% decrease in CPL
- 100% increase in CVR
- 47% increase in the total number of leads
Throughout our partnership, Memory Care leads have continued to grow rapidly and now make up a larger percentage of overall leads. As they head into 2025, they’ll be better able to reach caregivers and new residents at every stage in their digital journey.
