There’s a reason operations around the country request our senior living mystery shopping services.
They reveal hidden data.
They offer quick insights.
They act as a type of quality control.
While our clients are the ultimate cause behind our decision to offer mystery shops, at Bild & Co, we’re also passionate about mystery shops for another reason.
More than any other tool, senior living mystery shopping underscores the need for sales training.
While this may seem like a bold claim, it’s one we can back with solid data.
Over the years, we’ve conducted hundreds of mystery shops for our clients. And—each time we complete a mystery shop—we’re gathering information that paints a bigger picture of the senior housing industry as a whole.
In this article, we’re sharing some senior living mystery shopping stats—as well as how to interpret your results if you’ve had your communities shopped.
Without further ado, let’s dive in…
The Results Are In for Senior Living Mystery Shopping
When you look at our senior living mystery shopping data—you’ll find that communities routinely struggle to build value for leads.
To see why we say this, check out these 5 stats our data reveals:
- If the shopper wasn’t able to reach someone who could help on the first call, 52% of the callers had to call back 3 times or more.
- For shoppers who left a voicemail for a return call, 30% of them had to wait 2 days or more for a callback.
- When talking with buyers, 70% of the time, sales counselors didn’t establish caller interests before giving community information.
- Over 90% of all mystery shoppers reported that their name and their loved one’s name was either never used—or used infrequently.
- When it came time to offer a tour or visit, 56% of the senior living representatives gave a vague invitation to visit “any time” or “sometime.” And 9.3% didn’t offer a tour at all.
Bear in mind, these stats aren’t limited to a single operation.
These results come from a sample of numerous communities that span operations. The problem is, many organizations have a difficult time interpreting their results.
Interpreting Your Senior Living Mystery Shopping Results
When our clients receive their senior living mystery shopping reports, sometimes the results aren’t exactly pleasant. Maybe you’ve received one of our reports and can relate.
It’s understandable if you struggle to interpret what you’re seeing.
After all, you understand the unique story and deep history of your operation. You’re passionate about your mission.
And you know, firsthand, the impact your operation has on seniors’ lives…every day.
When you juxtapose these facts against your mystery shopping report, it can be hard to reconcile the two. Thoughts may begin to race through your mind…
This is atypical for our organization.
We’ve had a difficult month. It’s just a one-off occurrence.
Oh, that’s because So-And-So answered the phone. Our other team members aren’t like this.
Here’s our advice.
Realize that your mind will probably want to go back and find a reason for why your sales counselor didn’t ask any questions…or your community failed to greet that new walk-in.
Understand that you’ll probably find a coherent explanation. And—at the same time—recognize that it’s never a perfect world.
You operate in a highly unique industry.
Every day, your organization provides everything from healthcare support to social engagement. You’re serving a client base that faces a number of challenges, and you’re meeting their needs with fewer resources than many organizations.
In other words, there will always be a reason for the poor customer experience.
That’s why you must take your senior living mystery shopping results at face value.
The key to drastically improving how your organization drives revenue is to realize that an unusual mystery shop report reflects the everyday reality of life within that community.
Increasing your occupancy and transforming your customer experience start with ditching any standard that…
- Makes exceptions for unusual situations.
- Treats leads based on the sales counselor’s circumstances.
\Looks for external causes in the face of poor results.
Taking Incremental Steps toward Growth
When it comes to improving your customer experience and increasing occupancy, it’s critical to set high expectations.
But disappointing senior living mystery shopping results don’t call for despair.
Increasing your occupancy and implementing transformative processes often begin with small baby steps in the right direction.
Here are our three tips for taking these incremental steps toward growth…
Take 100% Ownership
When your mind wants to explain away your senior living mystery shopping results, commit to taking ownership.
Say to yourself…
It doesn’t matter how these results happened—they happened, and I will take steps to address the root cause.
Increasing your revenue starts with taking responsibility for any data and future outcomes.
Define Your Actionable Goals
Use your results to create actionable items for your organization.
Realize that your mystery shopping report reveals more than weaknesses…it actually gives insight into how to improve.
Take a hard look at your report, and collect further data if needed.
Then, pinpoint a few major objectives you want to address—whether that’s increasing the number of questions asked during inquiries or improving how your team closes leads.
Take a Small Step in the Right Direction
Lofty goals are good.
But, if you’re feeling discouraged, start small.
Turning around your customer experience doesn’t have to start with a radical solution. Sometimes organizational change begins with the little things.
Instead of trying to accomplish all your goals at once, address each problem—one step at a time.
When it comes to improving your mystery shopping results, at Bild & Co, we specialize in training that’s laser-focused on transforming your customer experience. Contact us today and transform your operations.
