Sticker Shock And Decision Paralysis: How Provision Living, Asbury Address Prospects’ Affordability Concerns

To overcome prospective residents’ fears and misconceptions related to senior living affordability, teams must pursue a personalized approach to selling value – and also be aware that sometimes people cite affordability as an obstacle because they are hesitant to make a hard decision.

That’s according to sales leaders from Asbury Communities and Provision Living, who spoke last week at the Senior Housing News Sales & Marketing Conference in Orlando.

Among the biggest affordability concerns at Asbury, according to Senior Vice President of Sales and Brand Michelle Curnow, are the prospect’s fear of selling their house and how they’ll afford services as the level of care changes.

Asbury sits in the highest tier of pricing in its respective markets for its six continuing care retirement communities, Curnow said. As a result, the sales and marketing team has to be trained specifically how to communicate the pricing model.

“When you’re asking for the close and a $1.5 million entrance fee, that feels very scary sometimes for a sales team,” Curnow said. “We talk a lot about the value proposition as well, and we also feel really strongly that if you’re providing operational excellence, then your value proposition is easy to come by.”

St. Louis, Missouri-based Provision Living, meanwhile, has a variety of offerings in its respective markets, ranging from among the most expensive to the lowest cost, according to Michelle Anderson, vice president of sales and marketing. The common factor across the 50-community portfolio is that prospects worry about being able to afford senior living and remain there for the long term.

But she agreed with Curnow on the importance of focusing on the value proposition, particularly in markets where Provision is on the high end of the price spectrum.

“It all comes back to what your value proposition is and really understanding and making sure that the teams understand what it is that you’re actually selling and how you justify being the higher priced in the market,” Anderson said.

Changing the perception of affordability

According to a Whittington Consulting survey, 59% of respondents indicated they believe senior living is not affordable to them, and just under half noted living in senior living would cost them “much more” than aging in their homes. Beginning to change that perception takes place during the discovery phase, according to Anderson, which takes “digging in and building a trusting relationship.”

Doing so often requires spending time with prospects and showing them the math breaking down costs and their finances to show how they truly can afford senior living compared to their daily life expenses. Doing so offers an opportunity to showcase the value that senior living offers, although Anderson advised that it’s best to have affordability and financial discussions and then pivot to highlighting how older adults can’t afford to not be in senior living, given its value.

“We are asking them to trust us, not just with this big decision, but with really private and personal information,” she said.

Indeed, the decision is not only big but can be difficult. And that means that people are sometimes reluctant to make that decision and look for reasons – including concerns about affordability – to put it off.

From her time in the industry, Anderson noted cost is often not a barrier but a stall tactic to avoid making a “hard decision.”

The discussion about value has to change for each resident, Curnow said. If a community has pickleball courts that are highlighted during a tour but the prospect doesn’t play, this amenity won’t do anything for them, she said.

“It really is defining what the value is to them, and making sure that we are a great fit for that,” Curnow said. “And it really just comes down to those conversations, and then making sure that we’re delivering on what we said we would do.”

While the industry has made efforts to be more transparent about pricing, Curnow said there is more to be done, particularly when it comes to operators’ websites. Asbury Communities conducts extensive market analysis and research to keep website information updated, along with offering self-reporting tools for prospects to determine their affordability before even talking with a sales professional.

Avoiding sticker shock

The key tactic to helping prospects avoid sticker shock is a focus on communication, Curnow said. These discussions continue throughout the discovery process, and revolve around how residing in a senior living community can be seen as a long term financial commitment. 

Common questions focus on pricing and the expectation of annual rate increases, which are addressed through a “human perspective.”

“We talk about supporting our associates … and what increases in the investment in the capital of the community looks like [from Asbury],” Curnow said. “When we can talk about where their dollars are going, we generally don’t get much pushback on it.”

A strategy Provision Living uses is starting the conversation with a prospect about what they already think or know about senior living to get a starting point. The pricing piece, Anderson said, has to come up early in the discovery process so it doesn’t arise later, when a prospect may be shocked out of committing.

In the places where Provision Living is among the highest priced communities, Anderson said she discusses the community’s position in the market with its leadership to build their confidence to sell.

“When you earn their trust and you can sit down and do the math with them, it makes all the difference,” Anderson said.

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