The Power of Shared Experience: Using Community Demographics to Inform Sales & Marketing

This blog post is part of a weekly newsletter written by Elizabeth, founder and CEO of Welbi. Subscribe to get this newsletter every week.

The Data Opportunity

Last week I shared about the impact of AI on the senior living buying process. Something that’s fully in the hands of the buyer and their influencers. This week, I want to share how you can use your existing data to find the right buyers.

A few months ago, I heard a story that’s stuck with me. One of our customer communities was struggling to differentiate themselves in a highly competitive market. Occupancy was flat, prospects weren’t converting, and the leadership team couldn’t figure out why their events weren’t converting leads into residents.

Then they did something simple, but transformative: they looked at their own data.

Their recreation director did a demographic review of both their existing residents, looking at details like:

• Occupation
• Interests
• Background
• Language
• Hometown
• … and more

She used this data to understand who was moving into their communities and thriving. Then she compared this to the demographics of recent events they had been running for the public. What she found was something no CRM alone could have revealed: the overwhelming majority of residents in their community had deep agricultural roots. Farmers. People who had lived on and worked the land for generations.

A New Annual Event

The team leaned into it. They hosted a “Farmers Market” in the parking lot – complete with local farmers and vendors, bringing together residents, families, prospects, and the outside community. They used simple marketing materials to promote this in the neighbourhood. The result? Attendance surged, waitlists started building, and resident engagement improved long after the event ended.

Prospective residents experienced something personal and meaningful, and they saw how active and happy the current residents were. It helped them picture what life could be like there. The community stood out from the rest.

From that one event, the team generated 8 qualified leads and 4 of those moved in. Now, the farmers market is an annual event every summer that is loved by both residents and the sales team.

Why did it work? Because they understood something we often forget in our industry: Belonging to a community doesn’t start on move-in day. Community is the fabric of our lives.

Recreation data is about more than activities

In the early days of Welbi, one of our core beliefs was that every resident should be known not just by their care level, but by their story. Who they are. What they love. What they've been through.

This helps deliver resident engagement that is personalized and meaningful to residents.

The same principle applies long before someone becomes a resident. When people leave behind their homes, their neighborhoods, their routines, and their communities, they're looking to hold onto their sense of identity. If you can show them that your community is already their community, you create a path to belonging that no competitor’s sales pitch can match.

That’s where data comes in:

• What are the shared communities among your residents? Whether they are hobbies, interests, religion, careers, language, or other forms of community.
• Who is attending your prospect events? Do they align with the type of communities you have in your capital-C Community?
• Where are your referrals coming from geographically and culturally?

Communities that can answer these questions are the ones that connect with their prospective residents faster, convert better, and retain residents with longer, healthier lives.

A Framework for Action

If you're not already using demographic insights to guide your outreach and programming, here’s a quick framework:

1. Audit Your Resident Base

Look at interests, past professions, faith backgrounds, languages spoken, education levels. Anything that gives shape to who they are. Welbi customers have access to this data already through our insights tool.

2. Overlay Your CRM Inquiry Data

Compare that resident data to what you’re seeing from prospects. Where are the overlaps? What’s missing? Who’s converting and who is not?

3. Build Events That Reflect Them

Create themed programming or open houses around those shared identities. One community we work with saw great success with a “Veterans Day Family BBQ”, driven by the number of veterans and military families in their resident mix. The events that make sense for your communities will depend on your data.

4. Tell the Story Online and In Person

Use those themes to guide your marketing. A landing page, a calendar event, a quote from a resident who shares that background. Think about who you can partner with in your community based on your demographic trends. These are the signals that tell families, “You belong with this community.”

When I started Welbi, my goal wasn’t just to digitize calendars or make reporting easier, though we do that. My goal was to help communities deliver a better quality of life for older adults. By understanding who you are bringing into your communities, you can help residents feel at home – even before they move in.

Thanks for reading,
Elizabeth Audette-Bourdeau
CEO, Welbi