SSDM

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the VP of marketing for a senior living community, with two separate brands. We own and operate 15 senior living communities across the Midwest.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with SS Digital Media?

Our primary market consists of more active adults compared to other senior living communities. Breaking through that stereotype and reaching people before their health declines is a key focus of our marketing strategy. We engaged SS Digital to help us with SEO and other online marketing services. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

SS Digital helps with a variety of tasks. For one, they help differentiate our company from nursing homes by focusing on how people find out about us. Many prospects come from concerned families once the health of their loved ones starts to decline, but SS Digital helps us target people before they enter that stage by studying online behavior to find potential residents. They also employ SEO, content development, and paid marketing campaigns.

Their team manages our landing pages and websites, developing content that adds value and is optimized. They act as our marketing automation administrators, overseeing drip campaigns and different touch points for our customers and design digital ads as needed. More recently, they also started supporting our social media accounts, including Facebook and Instagram.

What is the team composition?

We work with Nick (Founder & Managing Partner, SS Digital Media), Amanda (Accounts Director & Partner, SS Digital Media), and Michael (Creative Director & Partner, SS Digital Media).

How did you come to work with SS Digital Media?

I found them through another marketing agency we had worked with previously. I looked at about seven other firms and interviewed a few. SS Digital stood out by the way they spoke to us despite our lack of digital marketing experience. They were also the only vendor that took the time to understand our business whereas other vendors came off as tone deaf to our model and what we do.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in January 2015 and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

They've taken a unique approach by researching and discovering new ways to reach our target audience. It's been a brilliant strategy that no one in our space is doing.

We were able to decrease our paid spend by 26% this year based on the optimization work they've done. Our lead volume is up 6% and our qualified leads have gone from a staggering 26% to 42%. Their unique approach to marketing has changed our business, allowing us to invest those funds into other initiatives to better serve our customers.

How did SS Digital Media perform from a project management standpoint?

Their approach is bulletproof and we haven't had any issues with communication. They manage projects through Jenkins, but we also check in with them by phone once a week and in-person on a bi-weekly basis.

What did you find most impressive about them?

There's a difference between a vendor and a partner, and SS Digital is definitely the latter. They invest the time to understand our industry and have been able to completely integrate themselves into our company. Many of the other firms we looked at had a one-size-fits-all approach, which doesn't work for a growing company like ours. SS Digital can appreciate the dysfunction of our business and be accommodating to our needs since we're not always the easiest client.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be honest when they ask you questions about your business and challenges, rather than feeding them information that you think they want to hear. We weren't as forthcoming as we could've been in the beginning, but it's important to let them know as much as you can—it's remarkable what they'll be able to do with it.