As a senior living community you may be asking yourself if utilizing social media tools is really necessary to communicate with your target audience. Nielsen recently came out with a survey on how seniors (65+) are using the Web.

In the last 5 years the number of seniors online has grown by 6 million users. In November 2004, there were 11.3 million active seniors online. In November 2009, that number jumped by 55% to 17.5 million. In addition, they are spending on average 58 hours a month using the Internet.

But what exactly are they doing? The number one activity performed by seniors today is checking their personal email. Email plays a dominant role in all online users’ lives and seniors are no exception. The use of Facebook is also quickly rising on the usage chart, moving up in one year from #45 in ranking usage to #3 in 2000 as one of the most used websites by seniors.

So whether you are an active adult retirement community, an assisted living residence, a CCRC, or a skilled nursing facility, you need to consider using social media in this new environment of messaging to our audience.

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• Using Web 2.0 Tools in Senior Living Marketing
• Senior Living Advertising: Rocky Balboa, The New Millennium’s “Senior” Spokesman

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