Top 5 Ways to Overcome Family Objections
Every three weeks a new group of Senior Living Advisors enter our training program at A Place for Mom, preparing to offer the best service to our families and our partners. Working closely with our trainers, who bring years of senior living and sales experience to their roles, every new advisor studies a wide range of topics, from determining the appropriate level of care to overcoming objections. Each piece of the training program has been carefully designed to educate, motivate and engage each new Senior Living Advisor.
Learning how to overcome family objections is a large part of the new advisor training. Objections can pop up at any point in the sales process and we treat every objection as an invitation to dig a little deeper and help the family see the value of the solution we are offering; the senior living communities. APFM’s Learning & Development team determines which objections to train on based on Advisor feedback and data collected from across the sales field. Our Advisors are handling objections heard directly from our families as well as those passed along from our partners and are busy working behind the scenes overcoming these objections and helping families move forward in the sales process.
Here are the top 5 ways our APFM Advisors are turning those family objections into YES!
1. Focus on Quality of Life. Seniors want to remain active and involved in life, and finding opportunities to do so can become difficult with age and changing health care needs. We all know about the incredible health benefits of increased social interaction and our Advisors do a great job of educating our families on the many ways that your communities can lead to an enhanced quality of life.
2. Focus on their passions. Focusing on quality of life includes focusing on the interests and passions of the senior. Our Advisors do an incredible job of digging deep into the lives of the prospective resident and using that valuable information to match the family with the very best communities for them. Using the information each community has entered into their Community Profile, as well as information gleaned from the conversations and relationships with our partners, our Advisors work hard to go above finding a match for care needs by also focusing on lifestyle and passions. When a family understands the value of bringing interests and hobbies back into the lives of their loved ones they are that much closer to making that move.
3. Focus on respite. For many families, the idea of moving a loved one into a senior living community can feel overwhelming. On top of the logistics of such a move there is the emotional side as feelings of guilt and “buyer’s remorse” can set in. These feelings can weigh a family down and force them into a sense that now is not the right time. “We’re just not ready yet,” “Everything seems OK now,” and “The time isn’t right for such a big move” are phrases our Advisors hear every day. We have found that one of the best ways to help a family understand the value of a senior living community and overcome these feelings at the same time is through a respite stay.
4. Focus on crisis planning. Our Advisors are doing more than simply gathering a list of care needs from our families. They are getting to the heart of the matter. By asking questions such as “What keeps you up at night in regard to your loved one?” and “How would you feel if the crisis, (a fall, hospital stay…), happened again?” they can begin to position the move to a senior living community as something that is needed sooner rather than later. The thoughtful follow up provided to each of our families by their dedicated Advisor helps the family to understand that a crisis plan is a must and should be put into place now.
5. Focus on resources. Once a family has made the decision to move their loved one into a senior care community the attention from their Senior Living Advisor does not end. Using strong communication with both the family and the community, the Advisor is able to determine what other obstacles to the move might still be present and works towards offering local resources that can help. Whether it is helping the family find the perfect realtor, offering them information about a senior move management company, or leading them to their local Veteran Services Affairs Officer, our Advisors have a wealth of resources to keep the family focused and moving in the right direction.
What objections are you hearing from families? Leave your comments below!
This article was well written and I appreciate that examples were given of open-ended questions that are asked by the Advisors. Some objections I am hearing families say to me is that we are more than they would like to spend, or they cannot afford us. I’d like to know how the Advisors financially qualify the leads. Do you follow up with them on their veterans benefits? Who do you refer to for veterans benefits?
Hi Kelly,
Thank you for your comment. Our Senior Living Advisors discuss the senior’s current income/expenses and the cost of senior living during their initial contact with the family. Part of the qualification process is finding out how much they can spend, but also educating them on how much senior living costs (and what is typically included in that rate). We attempt to have an open discussion with the family about their finances, but ultimately we are using the number the family provides, even if that doesn’t end up being their final budget. We do see that families, on average, will spend more than that original stated budget when they find the right community for their loved one.
When it comes to funding senior living, Senior Living Advisors maintain professional contacts in their markets, and they will refer families to experts in fields of VA benefits, LTC insurance, or other financing options when the family needs additional help.
Best,
Krystal Chan, Partner Services
Great Article!
Great article with helpful thoughts! Beyond the usual emotional denial we hear from families, a big objection I hear is, “Mom and Dad refuse to move.” The children are often ready to move them, and see the need, but feel restrained not to push mom/dad too far out of respect and avoidance of major conflict. All the solutions you mentioned would certainly apply, as long as the children can successfully transfer those thoughts to the parents–an even bigger challenge when dementia is involved. Curious as to your thoughts?
Hi Cliff,
That’s an objection we hear a lot as well. I asked Beth about how they coach our SLAs to respond, and here are a couple of great ways to help the family feel more comfortable taking an active role in this decision:
1. “I know that you don’t want to go against your dad’s wishes, but you have to consider all that can go wrong here. We have talked in the past about your concern over your dad staying at home alone, and how isolated he is. Has this gotten any better? (no). You know what you need to do. It is time to have a difficult conversation with Dad- it is time to take the responsibility he taught you and power through this.”
2. ‚ÄúI know this is difficult, there is no way around that. You are not in an easy situation. However, I think you agree that this decision is in your mother‚Äôs best interest. You have told me that you are very concerned about your mother not taking her medications appropriately and using the stove. Your mother raised you by making difficult decisions that were in your best interest, and now it is time for you to do the same.”
It’s very important to validate their concern, redirect them to see the situation clearly, and provide a way forward by giving the family some low-stress options to bring their loved one into your community. Open house, a lunch, or an activity are great examples of ways to get seniors in the door and interacting with current residents to give them an idea of what it’s like to call your community “home.”
I’m sure you have stories from the families of current residents and how they were able to have this tough conversation with families, so make sure to share those with your prospect as well!
Best,
Krystal Chan, Partner Services