Cut the Cliché: Marketing That Moves People, Not Just Brochures

Are we stuck saying the same things in Retirement Living marketing? "Redefining Retirement." "The lifestyle you deserve." Sound familiar?

In this  episode, Ali  unpacks why these overused phrases are falling flat, and what to do instead. Drawing on 15+ years in Retirement Living project sales, Ali shares the marketing approaches that she has seen from the sales front that actually connect, convert, and compel action.

Expect real-life examples, the thinking behind emotional marketing, and a call to break free from playing it safe. If you're in sales, marketing, or development in the sector, this is the shake-up you didn’t know you needed.

Why “white noise” messaging is costing you leads

The one story that outperformed the lifestyle pages
How to lead with empathy, not ego

This episode isn’t about fluff. It’s about resonance.

#Anglicare #BronwynWhite #Villages.com.au 

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:00

Hi all, it's Ali Abel here and I'm so excited to share Retire Talk, it's a podcast discussing all things RV. Each week I will deliver enlightening and uplifting conversations with industry colleagues and experts in the area of market research, marketing, project sales and marketing, village management and much, much more. I hope you'll join me Hello and welcome back to Retire Talk. Well, it's been a while between episodes. I know, I know, life has been pretty full, but I'm very glad to be back with you today. I've got something that I would absolutely love to talk about, something that's been bubbling under the surface for a while. This episode is going to be a little bit different because today I'm going solo, just me sharing a few thoughts on a topic that I absolutely love. Marketing in the Retirement Living Space. Over the coming weeks, I'll be speaking with some brilliant marketers across the sector to continue this conversation, get their thoughts and explore new ideas together. But today, here's mine. Specifically, how we market retirement villages here in Australia. Now, before you panic and switch off thinking that this is just for marketing teams, stick with me. This episode is for everyone in the sector, CEOs, development managers, sales teams, marketing coordinators, even that poor person who has to write the brochure copy even though they've never set foot in a retirement village. Let me start with a little observation. If I had a veggie patch for every time I saw the phrase luxury retirement living, redefining retirement, the retirement living you deserve. I think I could feed the entire village and still have leftovers for happy hour. We have all seen it, the glossy brochures, the perfectly styled interiors, the smiling couple on the beach holding hands, always in white linen, because apparently when you turn 70, you join a cult where denim and dark colours are banned. Now, I say it with a lot of respect. And I get it. It's easy to fall back on those safe, familiar phrases that we just spoke about. But here's the thing. If everyone is redefining retirement living, are you really redefining retirement? When your message sounds like everyone else's, it becomes white noise. It doesn't land. It doesn't connect. It doesn't move anyone to pick up the phone. And isn't that the whole point, right? We want connection. We want someone on the other end of the marketing to go, hey, Ali, that's me. That's exactly how I feel. And this is what I need. People don't buy features. They buy connection. And one of the best bits of advice that I was given early on from a Ali, never try to market to everyone over 55s because you'll end up connecting with no one on a real deep and meaningful level. And that will give them permission to go down the road to your competitor to purchase from them. And she was right. Retirement living is not one big demographic. It's thousands of little micro moments. It's losing a partner. It's feeling a bit lonely. It's downsizing, but not wanting to compromise. It's wanting a place to feel safe, social, supported. When we segment our messaging, when we really understand the different motivations that drive people, we stop shouting into the void and we start having actual, authentic conversations. We all know these, the push and pull factors, the real reasons that people move. But let's break them down a little bit. Push factors. These are the things that make people want to leave their current home. Maybe it's the stairs in that two-story house. Maybe it's leaky gutters. Maybe it's that pool pump that keeps blowing up. Or maybe it's just too quiet and the kettle is the only thing talking back these days. Pull factors are what draw people in. It's the warm fuzzies. It's community, connection, when it's needed. It's feeling like their future is secure. But here's the thing. We can't just say community and hope that it means something. We have to show it. We have to tell real stories with real people about why it matters. The Helen Effect. Let me give you an example. A while ago, we ran a campaign featuring Helen. a real woman in her late 60s. She'd lost a husband and was living alone in a four-bedroom house in Kellyville. She wasn't ill. She wasn't immobile. But there she was walking around that big quiet house thinking, why am I here rattling around by myself? She looked into a couple of retirement villages and eventually visited Baptist Cares, the Gracewood. And you know what stuck with her straight away? It was the warmth. the neighborhood feeling, the fact that it wasn't clinical, not transactional. It was just people being kind, loving, real community. And we led with a quote simply, after losing my husband, we printed it big, bold, and did a full wrap. That wasn't a polished headline cooked up by an ad agency. That was Helen in her own words. And the response? The phones rang off the hook. People couldn't get enough of her. They felt seen, understood, like someone was finally talking to them and not at them. And then came the line that really sealed the deal. Helen said, I don't want to have to worry any more about fixing a broken door handle or what to do about the leak in the roof. The time's arrived where I just want to have fun. And as soon as we heard that, we knew. That was it. We used that tagline immediately. It was perfect. It was relatable. It was the truth. No buzzwords, no fluff, just a woman calling time on loneliness, responsibility and house maintenance and saying, I want to have fun. And if we're honest, who doesn't? That one sentence said more than a dozen lifestyle pages ever could. It cut through. Later after she moved in, I asked Helen what her advice would be to someone considering the move who hadn't yet made it. And without hesitating, missing a beat, she said, well, what are you waiting for? There it was, our next campaign. That's the beauty of really listening. We have to be agile. We have to be quick. And most importantly, we need to be listening to our sales teams on the front line because the gold is in the conversations that they're having with themselves. every single day. So if you're listening and you're working on your next brochure or ad campaign, ask yourself, are you writing it for the boardroom or are you writing it for Helen? Because Helen is who matters. The ad that stopped me in my tracks. I'm not easily moved by retirement living marketing anymore. We've all seen it. But there's been one ad recently that genuinely stopped me in my tracks. It was Anglicare's piano ad. And I have to say, congratulations, Anglicare. That one really hit me in the chest. It tells the story of a mother transitioning into care with her adult children helping her along the way. And as I watched it, I couldn't help but picture me and my brother Andrew going through that situation with my own mum in the years to come. It was so tender, so human, so real. Yes, it was more aged care focused, but the emotional journey, the guilt, the love, the fear of doing the wrong thing but wanting to do the right thing, that is just as relevant in retirement living. It's the storytelling that makes it so powerful. not the product shots, not the features list, the story. And that's the secret sauce we need more of in this industry. Less redefining retirement, more this is Helen and this is her story. A few interesting stats to take with you. Before I wrap up, let me leave you with some facts that you can take straight back to your next team meeting. Only about 5.3 of Australians aged 65 plus live in retirement villages. That's it. We have got a long way to go in capturing the market. The good news, despite that, residence satisfaction is very high, which means they're happy once they move into a village, but it's getting them there that's the challenge. Over 80% of villagers in recent audits were found to use the same set of taglines, luxury, luxury. deserve, redefine, which tells me and you how much space there is to stand out. And one of Australia's largest directories of retirement communities, villagers.com.au, continues to be a top online destination for prospective residents actively searching for the next move. So let's be the ones who give them something worth connecting with. If you haven't yet listened to my earlier conversation with Bronwyn White, please go back and give it a listen. She shared some incredible insights on baby boomers that are still so relevant. One that really stuck with me was how boomers don't want to be sold to. They want to be informed and empowered. They want value, freedom and a strong sense of control in their decisions. She also highlighted that it's things like open days, events with real conversations and interactive tools, walkthroughs, storytelling that is far more powerful than static brochures or bullet points. Boomers respond to purpose and authenticity. And when we miss it, we miss them. I hope this has sparked some new thinking, maybe even made you want to revisit your latest ad or headline and ask, does this really connect? If you found today's episode helpful, feel free to share it with someone in the sector who'd get value from it. And if you've got a Helen on your own or a marketing message that's really worked, I'd love to hear it. Drop me a note. And keep an ear out because over the coming weeks, I'll be chatting with some really clever marketers from across the industry to hear what's working for them. Until then, thanks again for tuning in and we'll look forward to speaking to you again soon.

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