The short answer
Many senior living communities respond slowly to new inquiries, and many never respond at all. A 2025 Bild & Co. analysis reported by McKnight’s Senior Living found 92% of web inquiries weren’t answered within 24 hours and 80% went unanswered entirely. Families often contact several communities at once, so the community that answers quickly and warmly is the one most likely to get the tour.
What the research shows
In 2025, McKnight’s Senior Living reported on an analysis of senior living communities by sales consultancy Bild & Co.
of web inquiries went unanswered entirely.
weren’t answered within 24 hours.
on average, before a prospect reached a sales associate.
A separate secret shop of 150+ communities by senior living marketing firm NextWave found an average of 46 hours before a community’s first contact attempt, and 30% never responded at all. NextWave also reports that prospects need about nine touchpoints before they’re ready to tour, while most communities make fewer than two follow-up attempts. These figures come from firms that sell sales and marketing services, but they point the same way.
Why inquiries go unanswered
- Families research after hours. Adult children look at options in the evening and on weekends, when sales offices are closed.
- Sales teams are stretched. Directors juggle tours, move-ins, and family questions, so web inquiries wait.
- Referral sites send the same family to several communities. Whoever makes personal contact first has the advantage.
- Decisions take months. One or two follow-ups aren’t enough for a choice this big.
How to fix it, step by step
- Answer every call, including evenings and weekends. No family should hit voicemail when they finally make the call.
- Reply to web inquiries within minutes. Send a warm, personal response and an easy way to talk or visit.
- Offer a tour, not just a brochure. Make the next step a visit or a conversation with your team.
- Plan follow-up for a long decision. Map out a series of gentle check-ins over weeks and months, not one or two attempts.
- Reach referral-site leads first. Treat placement-site leads with the same instant follow-up as your own inquiries.
- Keep care conversations with your staff. Let automation handle scheduling and common questions, and route care and health questions to people.
What it looks like when it works
Example scenario
It’s 9pm on a Thursday. A daughter fills out a web form because her mother needs more help at home than the family can give. Within minutes she gets a warm, personal reply from the community.
Her questions about levels of care, availability, and visiting hours are answered in plain language, and she’s offered a Saturday tour. Her more detailed questions about her mother’s care needs are passed to the sales director, who follows up in the morning.
After the tour, gentle check-ins continue over the next few weeks, so the family hears from the community at each stage of a decision that takes time.
The numbers to track
- Time to first response for web and phone inquiries
- Share of inquiries that book a tour
- Tour-to-move-in rate
- Follow-up touches per family
- Time to first contact for referral-site leads
Do it responsibly
Tone matters as much as speed. Families are often under stress, so messages should be unhurried, kind, and clear about when a person will follow up. Automated conversations should avoid collecting detailed medical information, and every conversation should have a clear path to a human, with urgent situations routed immediately.
Frequently asked questions
How quickly should a senior living community respond to an inquiry?
Within minutes if possible, and always the same day. Industry analyses found most web inquiries go unanswered for more than 24 hours, so a fast reply sets a community apart.
How many times should we follow up with a family?
More than most communities do. Decisions often take months, and one marketing firm’s data suggests families need about nine touchpoints before touring.
Can AI answer senior living inquiries with the right tone?
Yes, when it’s set up for this audience: patient, warm, clear about next steps, and quick to hand families to a person for care questions.