With a rich history in the industry, Deana Wilson, Director of Marketing and Sales at Westminster Village Terra Haute, shares insights on sales for lifeplan communities, successes of a resident fund, and new approaches to marketing efforts with CCRCs. 

As the Executive Chair of the Indiana Alzheimer’s Association Walk, Deana also discusses her passion for raising funds in the fight against Alzheimer’s. 

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Produced by Solinity Marketing.

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Intro

Welcome to season eight of Bridge the Gap, a podcast dedicated to informing, educating, and influencing the future of housing and services for seniors. The BTG network is powered by sponsors, Aline, NIC MAP, Procare HR, Sage, Hamilton CapTel, ServiceMaster, The Bridge Group Construction, and Solinty and produced by Solinity Marketing. We’ve got Bridge the Gap podcast in three, two,

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00:36 - 00:56

Josh Crisp

Welcome to Bridge the Gap podcast. The senior living podcast. I'm your host Josh, and I am so excited. We have an awesome guest today. So excited for our listeners to meet Deana Wilson, Director of Marketing and Sales at Westminster Village. Can't wait for our audience to hear more from you. Welcome to the show, Deana.

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00:56 - 01:13

Deana Wilson

Thank you so much, Josh. I have been a long-time listener. I said before we started recording that for nearly ten your whole ten years, I've been a fan and listened, every week. So I appreciate the opportunity. Thank you.

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01:13 - 02:03

Josh Crisp

Wow. Well, that is awesome to hear. It's so good to not only connect with you, but to hear that story. Sometimes, you know, when we're just talking to our guests, we don't really. We know a lot of people, listen and watch the show, but connecting and especially to an OG, an original listener who has been with us.

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So, thank you for listening and thanks for being a part. So, coming away from just listening to being an active part, you have been a professional in this space for so long. And so, I want to spend a little bit of time just allowing our audience to understand more of who you are, your background, and then we'll talk a little bit about what's special about Westminster Village and all that you've got going on there. So dive in. Where's your history been in this space in this industry?

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02:03 - 03:34

Deana Wilson

Speaking of being an OG, I feel like I've I've grown up and spent my life in this business, and I started in 1999, at Sunrise Senior Living, as a director of community relations, and learned a lot there. I moved to Illinois. Most of my career has been in Illinois.

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I moved to the affordable assisted living space. The support of living program in the state of Illinois that's unique to Illinois. And opened some of the first communities that were part of that program and spent about seven years doing that, and then moved into the nonprofit world, assisted living and independent living, memory care, and operations. I moved from sales into operations for about 18 uo here. And then, about three years ago now, I moved to Terre Haute to be closer to my family. I grew up not far from here in Illinois, and one of my children married and settled here in Terre Haute. And that's what brought me to Terre Haute. And now, coming to Terre Haute is my first experience in a life planned community or, continuing care retirement community. So I feel like I've touched on every area: for-profit, nonprofit, affordable, all areas of the senior living world.

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03:34 - 04:29

Josh Crisp

Well, that's an exciting history. And congratulations on all your success. And, so that's what makes these podcasts so valuable to our listeners. We have such a broad audience, and sometimes I forget how many different listeners we have with their different perspectives. So from the consumer's perspective, that is just hearing what you're saying, even terms like life plan and CCRC, and the for-profit and non-profit, and what does that mean?

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And so I'd like for you to unpack just a little bit when we talk about Westminster Village and you said a life planned community and CCRC are one in the same. Are those different things? Is that a new term for an old model or what? What is that, and what do you guys do there at Westminster Village?

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04:29 - 05:48

Deana Wilson

One in the same, I would say. So continuing CCRC or continuing care retirement community has been the language around what we do for many, many years, and I think maybe 4 or 5 years ago is when the term life plan came about. And that really describes what it is that Westminster Village and other communities like us do. It's a different concept. It's where there is an entrance fee to the community that guarantees care for life. So if somebody is coming into the independent living level, whether it's our apartments or our village homes. 

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It is our hope by them learning about our community, it is their desire to be a part of one place as they move through their journey, their life journey, and their needs change. They don't have to go back to search again for the next step. They know they have a place in our community which offers the our again. Our village homes are independent living apartment and assisted living and 24 hour skilled nursing care and our health center. So, it's peace of mind, really. It's you're buying into a promise of care for the rest of your life.

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05:48 - 06:43

Josh Crisp

Well, that's a great explanation. And so a few words that you mentioned and phrases I want to, I want to pick out because you said peace of mind. So having that continuum, for a prospective family or resident to understand that no matter what level they're coming in at, they should be able to be a level of services and support, and housing for them for the duration of their life.

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And so you also said where they can invest, right? And so that's maybe something that we don't often, and senior living associate with that term is like, wow, I'm really investing in something here. So take us down that pathway of thinking and how that fleshes itself out into reality when a prospective family or resident approaches you and you're sort of educating them on what that means to invest in their community.

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06:43 - 08:35

Deana Wilson

I always start with, what makes us different, what's our niche? And then the Terre Haute market, we are the only continuing care retirement community within, really from us to Indianapolis and over there, some in Urbana, Illinois. There are very few in our area. We're the only ones and our county or the surrounding counties. So I start by explaining that, with our entrance fee, if they financially qualify and they deposit into our community, they have access, priority access to all levels of care as their needs change, versus in other lovely communities in our city.

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 But if their needs changed, they have to go back to the search, go back to find out. Well, you know, start researching, assisted living communities, just to see where they're going to move to next. But in our community, they're investing in that promise of care, and that we're one staff, one community, and we're they don't have to move again. They don't have to get used to a new staff. They just stay within their home that they've chosen, and we meet their needs as they change. So that I start by educating that because it is confusing to the. There are so many different options. For senior living and they all work a little bit differently. But, in a life plan community, it is it's just so nice just because you know where you're going to spend the rest of your life. And that is the same team, same community. And, just gives people a lot of comfort to know they don't have to change again in the future. So.

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08:35 - 09:21

Josh Crisp

Yeah. And, you know, one of the things that I've always loved, when I've gotten the opportunity to be, to tour, life playing communities or CCRC, campuses is the level, oftentimes of engagement, and sort of this personal investment that the residents make in helping make their campus, their community, really how they want their community to be.

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And I heard a little bit about this, this program that you guys, for lack of a better term, have called the Resident Trust Fund. Is that correct? Can you explain a little bit more about that? Because I thought that was really an interesting way that you guys do things.

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09:21 - 12:54

Deana Wilson

Yes, it is unique, and it is resident-driven. They, the residents, created a board and their own 501 C3 nonprofit for other residents or family members to make contributions to that fund. And those funds go to support community initiatives. Maybe there's, you know, a service or amenity that isn't necessarily part of our operational plan, but it would be the nice-to-haves, I guess.

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And so, this year alone, our residents have been so very generous to us. And, a couple of highlights of a few things that they've provided. Believe it or not, they started by contributing new culinary equipment, kitchen equipment. We have a new executive chef who is amazing. He came on and there's just a different level of cooking and dining services that we wanted to move to, and we needed the equipment to be able to do that.

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And, they provided that several thousand dollars cost for that new equipment, a new bus for our community. We've always had two buses to provide transportation to our residents. One of them needed to retire many, many years ago. And so, we were able to do that because our residents worked with our director of plant operations to do research on a new bus.

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And, they provided that. Our piano. We have a very active community. And that we have the symphony in our building once a month. We have live entertainment, concerts, and performances through the universities that are in our city. We're very integrated and very connected. And many of our residents are retired professors. And specifically, this gentleman is a retired music director at Indiana State University.

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And, our piano was the original piano when we opened in 1981. And I think it came in 1984, and it also needed to be retired. And so, our resident trust funded a brand new grand piano for our community. So, everyone can enjoy it. And, so that's just some of the things they've done recently, which are incredible, absolutely incredible. And it's unique to any place I've ever been that the residents just promote that fund. They do all the work to raise the funds.

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Other residents or team members can, submit proposals for something that the community might need, or enjoy and, you know, bring joy and improve the quality of life. And, they review the proposals and decide what they're going to fund. And so it's they're really incredible. Our residents act like owners of our community. I mean, they really do care and bring they're so supportive of our team and our whole community. They're my number one referral source, honestly, is, truly, I mean, digital is great, and it's working as well. But side by side, we have a number of resident referrals, and residents come to us that way. They're very active and supportive.

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12:54 - 13:45

Josh Crisp

Well, that's a great segue. But gosh, what a really creative opportunity. I would, I would say that you all have created there to allow, someone that's moving, to a community to not lose their sense of involvement, purpose, and the ability that we, I think, all have within us to want to be generous and be part of improving the things around us and especially our home. And so why, when we reach a certain age and needs basis, should all of that go away? And so congratulations. And thank you for the work, because I know that that is probably not easy to set up. And I think you said that's even its own 501 C3.

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13:45 - 13:47

Deana Wilson

It is. The residents created that in themselves.

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13:48 - 14:57

Josh Crisp

So what kind of what an awesome story. And thank you for sharing that. I know ears are perking up, to our listeners, and everybody's intrigued by that and will want to know more and connect with you. So you touched on that. That has become a great part of the Westminster Village story that ends up being a part of the referral process for you to where your greatest ambassadors for the Village are probably the residents that are loving life, Westminster.

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So with that, in a life plan community in this sort of modern digital age, and you're the director of all that marketing and sales, what does marketing and sales look like for you on a sort of daily basis, and sort of a strategic basis of who you're targeting? How are you getting the message to them? And is that, in a very small kind of primary defined market, or do you find that it's become more of a destination?

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14:57 - 18:11

Deana Wilson

appreciate the question. It has changed. When I started in this industry, like I said, in 1999, sales and marketing looked very different. Coming back to it in 2022, when I came back to Westminster Village and I had supervised my sales and marketing directors over all the years, but it has definitely changed. And it takes a lot of creativity and just a whole different approach. 

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And so, we do not use paid aggregators. For two years now. So which has feel has felt really good. And so and we're, we're producing about 30 organic leads a month, consistently. And so that is great. Our residents, as I said, are one of our top referral sources. And so we continue to foster that relationship constantly. I have a committee of residents called marketing ambassadors. And, they are I meet with them every month and sometimes some of them daily, to talk about ideas and ways to bring their friends into the community.

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Different education seminars, things like that, that they can understand the life plan, they can prepare for their future, and know how Westminster's village is different, and prepare for that when they're ready. In addition, one of the new things that we are working, with our management company is that we're so close to Indianapolis and there are multiple continuing care retirement communities in Indianapolis, and we're over in Terre Haute all by ourselves.

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And, a lot of people, a few people, have been coming back to Terre Haute who have ties and roots in Terre Haute. And so our approach is going to be to connect with those life plan classes in Indianapolis who may be at capacity, 100% capacity, who may be at a much different price point than we are in Terre Haute.

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And really, partner with them to, get those referrals from them. If there's somebody that has ties to Terre Haute, just to partner with them to say to present our community as an option to them. And then we would give back to that organization and by way of maybe they have a resident trust or a fund that, on or cause that means a lot to them that we can make a contribution to just and as a partnership to thank them for, telling their prospects about us who may not, for one reason or another, be a fit for their community.

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So, so that's very creative in and of itself. And, but and we're, we're just kicking that off. So, we're excited about that. But it is a different way of marketing these days. And so, coming back to it, I've, you know, learned quick and, with the support of our, marketing agency, we've we, you know, we've we're doing really well. So, without a paid referral.

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18:11 - 19:18

Josh Crisp

Well, that is amazing. And congratulations. I think that is probably what most communities that are listening leaders are aspiring to do. So you're probably going to have people in your inbox wanting to pick your brain. And thank you for being so just transparent. You know, one of the main reasons that me and Lucas started this podcast, was to bridge that gap because there's so many awesome providers out there that want to not only be a part of making their community better, but making this, this process, and this experience better for those residents and families that, that need the home.

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And so congratulations on that success. And it's very evident in the purposeful, intentional programming that you guys put in place to make that all happen. I would not want to miss out on, you know, in all of your spare time that you have, you're also quite the philanthropist and very involved with helping raise money for Alzheimer's. Tell me a little bit about your involvement in that.

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19:18 - 20:51

Deana Wilson

Two years ago, when I came to Terre Haute, I, of course, through Westminster and a sponsorship of the Alzheimer's walk that year, the next year I joined the committee. And then this year, I was asked to serve as the executive chair of the 2025 Walk to End Alzheimer's in Terre Haute.

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00:19:39:09 - 00:20:00:22

Deana Wilson

And so we are busy as a chair of the walk and the committee, but also at Westminster Village. We are one of the lead sponsors of the walk. And, we had a huge growth in our team last year. We're looking forward to having 40-plus people on our team again this year.

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And, we were the lead fundraiser for the walk last year, and we do that through resident donations. Of course, team members, fundraising for their own people to support them through the walk, but also through events where, like, for example, a pancake breakfast we had last year, just all the money from that goes to donate to our team fundraising this year.

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We're planning a car show, and so just a lot of small activities that add up to a good amount of funds for the association. So, we're excited about that. The walk is September 27th, and so we've got a jumpstart on it this year. And so we hope to be our targets from last year. So we're excited about that.

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20:51 - 21:17

Josh Crisp

Well, that is awesome. Well, Deana, thank you for taking time out of your crazy busy schedule to share some of your life experience, share about Westminster Village, and all the work that you do there with the Alzheimer's Association. It's such a great opportunity. And thank you for listening for all these years and being a fan of Bridge the Gap, it's folks like you that make it possible. So thanks for joining us today.

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21:17 - 21:39

Deana Wilson

I am honored. I it's I'm a little starstruck, if you will, again after listening for so long, I never anticipated being a guest on the show. I always enjoy the guests and learn so much. So, to be asked to be on the show is a huge honor, so I appreciate that very thing.

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21:39 - 22:16

Josh Crisp

Thank you for those kind words. And, Deana, our audience is is getting information education from you. Today, we're going to connect our audience directly to you and at Westminster Village in our show notes for all of you listeners or those of you that may be viewing, you'll be able to connect with Deana and her community and all that she's doing. And if you're lucky, she might even let you pick her brain some more in the future. But we want to thank everyone for listening to another great episode of Bridge the Gap. We'll see you soon.

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Outro

Thanks for listening to Bridge the Gap podcast with Josh and Lucas. Connect with the BTG network team and use your voice to influence the industry by connecting with us at BTG voice.com.

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