How to reach senior living sales professionals:

If you don’t know any assisted living/senior living sales professionals in your community, don’t worry! There are a few ways you can reach them without spending a dime on paid ads.

Some ways real estate agents and investors can initiate relationships with assisted living professionals include:

• emailing them
• mailing handwritten notes
• social media outreach (i.e., LinkedIn)
• “cold calling” them over the phone
• inbound marketing (YouTube, blogging, social posting)

– etc. Don’t be afraid to use more than one method.

Check out our quick-start guide to digital doorknocking

Who are ideal prospects for senior living and assisted living referral partners?

This article was sparked by a question in the Estate Professionals Mastermind group from Kevin, who was looking for clarity on the relevant job titles to use to prospect assisted living referrals.  Kevin wrote:

I went down a research rabbit hole, and the phrase strings “assisted living sales” and “senior living sales” are clear winners.  Both phrases are top suggestions from search engines and extremely common titles in Indeed job listings, LinkedIn (self-titled), and on the company about pages. While variations like “Assisted living sales consultant” or “assisted living sales and leasing” were common, using the concise search phrase will encompass rather than exclude the people you’re trying to find.

As far as types of property and levels of care covered, assisted living and senior living sales professionals act as catch-all titles. During their consultations with prospective clients, they’ll explore options for the appropriate type of housing and level of care for a client’s specific needs.

I would caution against using the term “long-term care (LTC).” Although the term appropriately describes senior and assisted living sales professionals, the term is widely used as a professional title by nurses and other health care workers. This key phrase would likely have you reaching out to the wrong audience.

You could also target Assisted Living Administrators (ALA) – it’s a licensable title and likely what someone with the license would have on their business cards and professional profiles.

At a small facility, an ALA likely plays a major role in marketing and sales – which means they are meeting face to face with the people who might need your help selling a home to transition into senior living. 

At a larger facility, an ALA is less likely to meet with prospective residents directly, and individual sales might not have a direct impact on their paycheck.  But they probably still play a key role in overseeing marketing and sales operations.  A one-off referral might not sound as enticing to an admin at a large facility: Instead, build your offer around collaborative marketing and an ongoing, scalable business relationship. 

The best way to prospect assisted living sales workers is by targeting “assisted living sales,” “senior living sales,” and “Assisted Living Administrators.” While you might choose preferred partners down the road for specific long-term care needs (e.g., skilled nursing facilities, residential care, nursing home care), your goal right now is to meet people and create opportunities, not box yourself out from them.

What to say when you prospect assisted living professionals for real estate referrals:

Who is your message for?

You won’t reach everyone if you fixate on a single title. And, truth be told, not everyone who claims the title of senior living or assisted living sales consultant is going to be the right referral partner for you.

You’re trying to reach people who are much like you – sales consultants that work with clients in specific and often sensitive needs and situations. The difference is that instead of traditional real estate listings and acquisitions, their service focuses on senior living sales and leases. 

Sample marketing template #1: Prospected Assisted Living Workers – Introducing yourself to prospective senior living referral partners:

Keep it short and sweet when reaching out to make introductions.  The following sample is great for a quick email, direct message, or hand-written note.

Some additional tips:

• If you’re using a medium that has a subject line or header, try grabbing attention with something like: “Are you a senior care professional looking for more referrals?”
• Your call to action can be anything you want it to be: Jump on my calendar, shoot me a reply, book a coffee date, etc…
• This messaging could also work as a voicemail drop for phone prospecting.

Sample marketing template #2: Building desire to work with you.

Sample #1 was introductory.  Sample #2 paints a picture of a problem your ideal prospect has, and the solution – working with you.

Tips:

• Whether you post this on social or sending print or digital messages with your contact information displayed, the reader will inevitably realize you work in real estate. This messaging lays the foundation for them to perceive you positively: Not only can you help them identify people in need of long-term care solutions when they are looking for it, but you can also help facilitate the sale of their current property when funding for long-term care is needed or desirable.
• As always, be sure to add your call to action (reply, call, message, schedule, join our Facebook group, etc…)! 

Get the samples in editable text format:

Start prospecting long-term care professionals in three easy steps:

1. Search for senior living and assisted living sales professionals near you. LinkedIn or online searches are your two best tools for this.
2. Reach out and introduce yourself to at least 3 prospects. (Grab the sample marketing copy from the form above)
3. Set a reminder in your phone or preferred productivity tool to rinse and repeat next week.

These real estate referral sources will send real estate clients to realtors who they know and trust, and the families you help will appreciate you having a valued resource for senior living needs. Get out there and start making your introductions today!