Consumer Insights And Data From Millions Of Internet Visits Prompts New Brookdale Website

September 22, 2016

After analyzing millions of Internet visits and interviewing scores of consumers, Brookdale Senior Living has built a new website based on fresh insights into what’s most important to families searching for senior care. The first phase, which is a $4 million investment, went live on brookdale.com mid-August.

“With Brookdale’s website attracting more than 500,000 visits every month, it’s imperative to make it as useful to consumers as possible,” said David Cygan, Brookdale’s senior vice president of marketing. “As the nation’s largest senior living provider, we know our website is a primary source of information, with many people coming to us first as they embark on this journey,” Cygan said. “It’s important that we offer substantive resources that make it easier to find help in evaluating senior care options.” More than 80 percent of adult children turn to the Internet when they look for care for an aging parent, according to the company’s research.

In addition to the website visitation analysis, the company conducted extensive, customer research to understand a family’s senior living decision making process and designed the new Brookdale website based on what is most valuable to them during their journey. The result is a new site that:

A vital resource for planning as you or your parents’ age. Visit the new www.brookdale.com! @BrookdaleLiving
•Addresses the confusion and anxiety that can accompany the search for senior care. “Our research showed that providing too much community information up front can overwhelm people,” said Michael McCamish, Brookdale’s director of web development. “We’ve streamlined the design to showcase the three features families care about most, which are safety, location and what makes the community unique.” Consumers also want to know how it is situated in the city or town surrounding it, so the redesigned site shows area grocery stores, churches, public transportation and other components of daily life.

•Offers familiar navigation features. “We are taking cues from other sites, such as real estate, travel and hotel, that brookdale.com visitors are accustomed to using,” McCamish said. “This means people won’t have to spend time figuring out how to use our site; it will be smooth and intuitive.” McCamish noted that brookdale.com will enable visitors to select top amenities when searching for a community.

•Provides more accessible information and content for consumers from Brookdale subject matter experts. Topics include senior health and wellness, brain fitness, Alzheimer’s, care partner techniques, tips for choosing a senior living community and more. The second phase of the new site launch, scheduled for later this fall, will incorporate reviews and ratings, live chat and more accessibility for mobile devices. Additional features will be added in 2017, including a feature that will enable family members involved in the decision process to share information with each other via the site.

“Ultimately, Brookdale’s website will be a comprehensive and personalized experience for seniors and family members to make the best decision possible, anywhere they are on their journey,” said McCamish.