Just over 20 years ago, a quiet inner voice nudged me to make a bold career shift—from emerging tech sales to retirement living marketing. As part of that transition, I interviewed with half a dozen retirement community CEOs in Lancaster County. One of them asked a question so compelling that it continues to shape Garden Spot’s marketing and sales innovation to this day.
It’s worth noting that this conversation happened in the early 2000s. Facebook was still confined to college campuses. Websites were just beginning to gain traction in the business world. Retirement communities were slow to adopt new technologies. Google had only just launched its advertising platform. I had spent 23 years in the tech world leading up to the social media explosion—but it was only just beginning.
The Compelling Question
The question was this: “How do I reach the person living in a small town in California who is ready to move to a retirement community?”
There are two powerful elements embedded in that question. First, it’s about reaching people who are truly ready to buy. The decision to move to a retirement community isn’t made overnight. It typically takes 3 to 5 years—sometimes longer—for people to wrap their heads around it. That timeline is the nemesis of every retirement living salesperson: “I’m not ready.”
Second, it’s about finding that person—no matter how tucked away their corner of the country may be.
In 2003, that was a massive challenge. Honestly, I didn’t have a great answer. But the question stuck with me—because it’s the golden egg of high occupancy.
Technology Backbone
From the moment I joined Garden Spot, technology became the backbone of our marketing and sales systems. While other communities were still debating whether to build a website, we believed it would soon be table stakes. We’ve continued to innovate ever since—through plenty of trial and error. For example, we’ve developed our website with the mindset that it’s our first-contact salesperson.
About 18 months ago, we launched an online 9-module, 27-topic learning series called The Road to Garden Spot Village. It’s been gaining traction steadily. People across the U.S. are subscribing. Originally, it was a timed email series. But based on viewer feedback, we pivoted to an on-demand format. Today, people are binging it. I did a happy dance when our team told me that folks are watching more than three hours of our content—and making decisions because of it!
Making it Happen
My role? A continued emphasis on innovation and technology, giving our team permission to fail forward—to explore, tinker, innovate, and push the envelope.
The inspiration for this blog? A note I received yesterday:
A woman in a small town in California binged The Road to Garden Spot Village and called our sales team.
She’s ready to move.
We reached her.
She’s ready.
And that question from 2003?
We’re answering it—one story at a time.