15-Plus Senior Living Marketing Strategy Ideas [2025]

As more families look for homes for their older loved ones, it’s crucial to have a senior living marketing strategy that reaches the right audience. Your strategy should entice them to visit the community and build confidence in your community’s ability to care for their loved ones.

Learning various strategies for senior living marketing can help you reach your primary demographic and generate qualified leads. We put together 15-plus senior living marketing ideas that include both online and offline methods to maintain a high occupancy rate in your senior living community. 

1. Build an Ideal Customer Profile

An ideal customer profile is the foundation of a successful senior living marketing strategy — it helps you determine who to target and informs the rest of your marketing efforts moving forward. Review it each year and adjust your profile as needed. If you don’t have an ideal customer profile in place, prioritize creating one now.

Each senior living home may have its own “ideal customer.” Here are some questions to ask to get you started:

• Are we marketing toward seniors or their children?
• What is the age of our ideal customer?
• What’s their annual income?
• Where are they from?
• What’s important to them in a senior living home? (price, location, activities, etc.)
• Where are they most likely to see our marketing materials? (Google, social media, newspaper ads, etc.)

Consider building several customer profiles to allow you to tailor your marketing efforts to each demographic interested in your community. For example, you may want to create marketing materials for seniors and some for their children. Knowing who you’re targeting with which materials can help you speak to their specific wants and needs.

2. Use a Senior Living CRM

Customer relationship management (CRM) solutions are essential for high-performing sales teams. The most advanced platforms go beyond basic tracking, offering one-click text messaging, emails, and calls to enhance efficiency. With the right senior living CRM, these streamlined workflows improve communication with potential residents and their families — ultimately driving higher occupancy.

Your senior living marketing software also delivers valuable insights, offering configurable reports that highlight the most critical data for your marketing efforts. With access to the right metrics, you can refine strategies, optimize outreach, and make more informed decisions.

3. Market Your Community’s Lifestyle

The traditional senior living community — with limited activities and minimal engagement — is of the past. Today’s seniors expect vibrant communities that prioritize happiness, meaningful connections, and a comfortable and fulfilling lifestyle.

When you market your community, you’ll want to focus on highlighting features that set your community apart, like:

• Health and wellness initiatives
• Community pets
• Spas and beauty facilities
• Community events and gatherings
• Transportation
• Guest accommodations

Mention those features in your promotional materials, highlight them on your website, and point them out during every in-person tour.

4. Host a High-Quality Website

You want your community to look enticing when people visit for a tour, and you should feel the same about your website. Think of it as your first opportunity to make a great impression — keep your site updated, feature high-quality images, and ensure navigation is effortless. 

If you don’t have an in-house website resource, consider outsourcing to an experienced freelancer or website design agency to bring your vision to life. Analyze competitor websites to identify what’s effective and what falls short. Use these insights to refine your own site, ensuring it stands out and delivers a better user experience.

5. Implement Content Marketing

Nearly 6 million Google searches happen every minute. Google is one of the best places to reach your target audience, and you can do this through content marketing. 

Create educational content on your website, targeting popular keywords your ideal consumers seek. For example, if you’re located in Arizona, you may want to target the keyword “senior living in Arizona.” 

Ideally, you will show up at the top of the Google search page for your target keywords. This can take time and work, but it’s worth the effort. Readers will find valuable content and come to your site as a trusted source, which can boost brand awareness and lead to conversions.

Content marketing requires a knowledge of search engine optimization (SEO). Some senior living communities may have a content team as part of their marketing department — otherwise, you can outsource it to an SEO company.

6. Use Social Media

Similar to Google, millions of Americans of all ages use social media, but different demographics use different platforms. Data from Statista shows which age groups are using which platforms the most:

• Ages 18 to 29: Snapchat, TikTok, and Instagram
• Ages 30 to 39: X (formerly Twitter), Snapchat, Instagram, and LinkedIn
• Ages 40 to 49: LinkedIn, Facebook, and X
• Ages 50 to 59: Facebook, LinkedIn, and Pinterest

You can build a social media presence on various platforms for free by understanding what type of content works best on each one. This can take some experimentation and research. Once you determine which platform your target audience uses, you can use hashtags, keywords, and other social media strategies to reach them.

7. Add Live Chat

For some seniors and their families, picking up the phone to request information or ask basic questions can feel like a hurdle. Adding live chat to your website makes it easier for them to get answers quickly and conveniently.

With live chat, your team can respond to inquiries in minutes rather than hours or days — far faster than email. This immediate engagement reassures potential residents and their families that they matter, reinforcing your community’s commitment to attentive care from the very first interaction.

Depending on your needs, you can assign a staff member to manage live chat during business hours or partner with a service that provides 24/7 support.

8. Start a PPC Campaign

Organic traffic from your website’s blog is a great way to bring more people to your website, but you can also pay for your spot at the top of Google searches. When you search Google, you may notice that the first few results designate “Sponsored” above them. This is from companies using Google’s pay-per-click advertising (PPC).

PPC allows you to find specific keywords, and you pay each time a person clicks on your link from the sponsored section. The price can vary from keyword to keyword, depending on its value. If you have a budget for senior living ads, this is an impactful way to get in front of your audience.

9. Try Paid Social Media Advertising

Social media platforms also offer paid advertising with specific targeting options, such as age groups, locations, interests, and much more. These networks can also put your advertising in front of people who regularly look at related content. 

For example, someone may look for a senior living home for their parents on Facebook or Instagram. Since Meta owns both Instagram and Facebook, it can use that search data to learn about the types of people looking for this topic. They can then place your ads in front of those viewers if they’re within a certain distance of your community.

This is when knowing the audience on the specific platform is helpful. You can use specifics like age, location, income level, and more to target the right audience with your ads.

10. Sell With Empthay

Moving into a senior living community is often a stressful and emotional transition for seniors and their families. Many see it as a shift in a loved one’s independence, making the experience even more sensitive. The last thing families and potential residents want is to feel pressured into making a decision.

Incorporate prospect-centered selling to make your marketing and sales approach more empathetic and personalized. This method encourages your sales team to focus on understanding each potential resident and their family — listening to their needs, concerns, and priorities. By tailoring responses to their unique situation, your team fosters trust and guides them toward the right decision at their own pace.

Ultimately, this approach reassures seniors and their families that they’re valued as individuals and that your community is committed to meeting and even exceeding their expectations.

11. Earn Positive Reviews

Entering a senior living home is a big commitment that involves significant trust. Some people may feel skeptical when talking to staff members who work for the community, so they turn to online reviews.

Your marketing strategy should include collecting those online reviews. The first step is to provide an excellent experience and resolve issues as they arise.

Be proactive when collecting feedback. Ask families and residents to leave online reviews if they’re happy with the community. If you see reviews mentioning concerns or problems, reply to those reviews and try to resolve those problems quickly. This may encourage those who had less-than-great experiences to turn around and give you a positive review.

12. Increase Community Tours 

It’s difficult to show prospective residents and their families everything your community offers if they don’t visit. Work with your sales team on ways to increase the number of in-person tours.

When people tour your community, they get a feel for the rooms’ sizes and layouts. They can talk with current residents who may share their experience at your senior living home. Staff is available to discuss a prospect’s unique needs, especially those with higher acuity levels.

13. Add Automated Support

Exceptional support for current and prospective residents and their families can set your community apart. A strong customer support team is essential during business hours, but questions don’t follow a 9-to-5 schedule. Families and seniors often need answers at any time of day.

Providing easy access to information not only enhances the experience for potential residents but also strengthens your assisted living marketing efforts over time. With automated support systems, you can provide a seamless solution for communities of all sizes, helping to bridge the gap when staff aren’t available.

Incorporating automated support, such as chatbots and email marketing automation, ensures seamless communication with prospects and families around the clock. As marketing technology evolves, AI-powered tools become more intuitive, helping answer common questions, guiding visitors through your website, and even assisting your staff by streamlining follow-ups. Leveraging these innovations keeps your community responsive and engaged, no matter the time of day.

14. Use Additional Lead Generation Strategies  

There are many different ways to increase lead generation, so it’s helpful to use a variety of them to test and try different methods. Here are some other strategies to try:

• Landing pages
• Lead capture forms
• Automated marketing software
• Webinars and events
• Email marketing
• Special discounts
• Social media influencer marketing
• Email marketing campaigns and newsletters

Related: For a more detailed look at how to leverage lead generation, download our free guide, Improve Sales Performance With Better Lead Generation.

15. Partner With Local Organizations

Building a strong local presence is essential in senior living marketing, and partnering with nearby organizations is one of the most effective ways to do it. Look for groups in related fields, like health care providers, community centers, or senior-focused nonprofits, that can help you connect with the right audience. When you share referrals with these partners, they’ll often return the favor, making reciprocity a powerful tool for both marketing and sales.

There are many different types of organizations to partner with, like: 

• Health care providers
• Social service agencies
• Schools and universities with volunteers
• Pharmacies and medication management services
• Transportation providers
• Financial planning and estate services
• Religious organizations

Bonus tip: Although it might not feel intuitive, consider partnering with other local senior living communities. If your community is at capacity or doesn’t offer a specific service a senior needs, referring them to another local community can get you referrals in return.

16. Leverage AI

Marketing tools have come a long way. With the rise of AI, more senior living communities can automate and improve their marketing efforts without dramatically increasing the time spent on them. 

Using AI in senior living marketing strategies lets you:

• Automate reporting
• Interpret data quickly
• Eliminate time-consuming data-entry tasks
• Identify challenges in the sales process
• Assign lead scores to prospective tenants

By incorporating AI tools when marketing to seniors, you’ll gain a better understanding of what’s working, what’s not, and what you can do to improve your conversion rate.

Senior Living Marketing Strategy FAQ

Now that you have an idea of some of the best ways to attract new residents, here are some of the most common questions people ask.

What Audience Should You Target for Senior Living Marketing?

The two primary audiences to target are seniors and their family members. Creating content that caters to both audiences is helpful because everyone’s situation is different.

What Type of Content Is the Most Effective for Senior Living Marketing?

When creating content for your blog or social media accounts, remember to provide value. People often don’t want to be sold to when engaging with content. They want useful information to answer common questions about senior living and caring for seniors.

Is Print Advertising Still Helpful in 2025 When Marketing a Senior Living Community?

Yes, print advertising is still a viable marketing strategy, but digital marketing provides much more data. With digital marketing, you can see how many people click on ads, where leads are coming from, and more.

Partner With Aline to Improve Your Senior Living Marketing Strategy in 2025

Ensuring you have the right tools for the job is one of the best ways to improve your senior living marketing strategy. Aline offers a wide range of solutions built specifically for senior living communities that can help you increase your leads and occupancy in 2025. 

If you’re unsure where to start or want extra help launching your strategy, request a copy of our senior living marketing plan template. You’ll find helpful tips, tricks, and methods that you can use to increase awareness of your community and improve your outreach to prospective residents. 

Want to take your senior living marketing strategy to the next level? In addition to our best-in-class senior living sales CRM, we have solutions for automating your marketing, improving your care and engagement, and managing accounting and billing. We also have a free senior living marketing plan you can download.

To learn more about our senior living tools and solutions, book your demo today.