Shows
Grow Your OccupancyWhat Can You Learn from 100,000 Senior Living Mystery Shops? A Lot! Julie Talks With Mike MillerJulie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, recently talked with Mike Miller, President and CEO of Primo Solutions, LLC, about his insights into the senior living industry.
Since founding Primo Solutions 18 years ago, Mike and his team have conducted over 100,000 mystery shops and counting, giving him a unique perspective on what the industry can do better.
2025-08-0438 minGrow Your OccupancyNever Stop Learning & Growing: Julie Talks With Jessi Barton About Her Senior Living Sales SuccessesJulie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, recently talked with Jessi Barton, Community Relations Director at The Lodge at Stephens Lake in Jasper, Georgia.
Jessi not only diligently worked her way through the Grow Your Occupancy Selling Senior Living Workbook, she also shared her progress with Julie – and the impact it made on her success.
Thank you to our sponsor Yardi for making this podcast possible.
2025-07-2927 min
The Move In Senior Living MarketingSolving the Occupancy Puzzle with Julie PodewitzIn this episode of The Move In, host Larry Williams engages with Julie Podewitz, founder of Grow Your Occupancy, to discuss the complexities of sales in the senior living industry. They explore the importance of understanding sales opportunities, bridging gaps between sales, marketing, and operations, and the evolution of sales strategies post-COVID. Julie emphasizes the need for effective communication, tracking key performance indicators, and establishing a simple sales process to enhance occupancy rates. The conversation highlights the significance of coaching and continuous improvement in achieving sales success.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/julie-podewitz-7772522b/2025-07-2357 minGrow Your Occupancy(Re)Solving the Occupancy Puzzle: Deep Dive into Chapter 6 – Not Enough Sales Activity(Re)Solving the Occupancy Puzzle - A Senior Living Regional, Sales, & Executive Director Playbook is the fully revised and updated 3rd edition of the industry favorite.
In this special edition of the Grow Your Occupancy Podcast, author Julie Podewitz takes a deep dive into chapter 6: what to do when there's not enough sales activity.
Order your copy today on Amazon!
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2025-07-2220 minGrow Your Occupancy(Re)Solving the Occupancy Puzzle: Deep Dive into Chapter 5 - Not Enough QUALITY Leads(Re)Solving the Occupancy Puzzle - A Senior Living Regional, Sales, & Executive Director Playbook is the fully revised and updated 3rd edition of the industry favorite.
In this special edition of the Grow Your Occupancy Podcast, author Julie Podewitz takes a deep dive into chapter 5: what to do when you're not getting enough QUALITY leads.
Order your copy today on Amazon!
2025-06-2429 minGrow Your Occupancy(Re)Solving the Occupancy Puzzle: Deep Dive into Chapter 4 - Not Enough Leads - Lead Quantity(Re)Solving the Occupancy Puzzle - A Senior Living Regional, Sales, & Executive Director Playbook is the fully revised and updated 3rd edition of the industry favorite.
In this special edition of the Grow Your Occupancy Podcast, author Julie Podewitz takes a deep dive into chapter 4: what to do when you're not getting enough leads.
Order your copy today on Amazon!
2025-06-1721 minGrow Your Occupancy(Re)Solving the Occupancy Puzzle: Deep Dive into Chapter 3 – 10 Solutions to Occupancy Challenges(Re)Solving the Occupancy Puzzle - A Senior Living Regional, Sales, & Executive Director Playbook is the fully revised and updated 3rd edition of the industry favorite.
In this special edition of the Grow Your Occupancy Podcast, author Julie Podewitz takes a deep dive into chapter 3: the 10 "puzzle piece" solutions to occupancy challenges.
Order your copy today on Amazon!
2025-06-1123 minGrow Your Occupancy(Re)Solving the Occupancy Puzzle: Deep Dive into Chapter 2 – The Regional Planner(Re)Solving the Occupancy Puzzle - A Senior Living Regional, Sales, & Executive Director Playbook is the fully revised and updated 3rd edition of the industry favorite.
In this special edition of the Grow Your Occupancy Podcast, author Julie Podewitz takes a deep dive into chapter 2: the regional planner.
Order your copy today on Amazon!
2025-06-0526 minGrow Your Occupancy(Re)Solving the Occupancy Puzzle: Chapter 1 Deep Dive(Re)Solving the Occupancy Puzzle - A Senior Living Regional, Sales, & Executive Director Playbook is the fully revised and updated 3rd edition of the industry favorite.
In this special edition of the Grow Your Occupancy Podcast, author Julie Podewitz takes a deep dive into chapter 1.
Order your copy today on Amazon!
2025-05-2917 minGrow Your OccupancyYou Don't Need ANOTHER Strategic Plan to Drive Sales in Senior Living! Julie Talks With Kevin ColleyDo you really need another strategic plan for driving sales in your senior living organization?
In this episode, Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Kevin Colley, Corporate Head of Sales at Bridge Senior Living, about working the plan you already have. It's important to keep things simple and focus on the fundamentals – or in Kevin's words, on the blocking and tackling.
Before you get stressed out about the move outs, work on the leading measures. The results will come but you've got to stay consistent.
2025-05-2030 minGrow Your OccupancyHow Does a New Executive Director Gain the Skills to Lead a Thriving Senior Living Community?Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Erin Thompson, Founder of Aspire for More With Erin, and Aaron Fish, Founder & CEO of Trestle Hospitality Concepts. Together, Erin and Aaron co-founded The Mentoring Company to help train the next generation of senior living leaders to succeed.
Erin and Aaron are the educators behind The New EDs Playbook: Creating an Impactful Community Culture, an online learning course available now in the Grow Your Occupancy Online Learning Library.
2025-05-1431 minGrow Your OccupancyWhere to Wisely Put Your Marketing Dollars: Julie Talks With Expert Senior Living Marketer Lola RainJulie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with longtime senior living marketing expert Lola Rain.
Lola shares her advice around budgets, knowing your cost per lead and your cost per move in to know best ways to allocate funds: where are the best places to put your marketing dollars and where maybe to pull those dollars from?
Lola is unique in that she works in a variety of different senior living spaces for different levels of care, with a focus on higher end CCRCs and rental communities. It's important to note that when...2025-05-0627 minGrow Your OccupancyThe Impact on Occupancy Outcomes of Making an Initial Human Connection with New Senior Living LeadsThe initial connection with a senior living lead can make or break the sale. That's why it's so important to make the first connection a human connection with all new leads, and to track the metrics associated with those connections.
Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Christa Daniello, Vice President of Sales at The Osborn, and Mona Hilton, CEO of Advantage Anywhere, about making a human connection with new leads, and how automation enables the sales team to focus on the human connection – i.e. picking up the phone – instead of babysitting lead nurt...2025-04-1529 minGrow Your OccupancyThe Magic That Happens When a Strong ED and Strong Sales Director Work Together in a CommunityJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Erin Hennessey, CEO of Health Dimensions Group.
Erin shares her insights on her leadership journey to CEO, leading by values, hiring the right people, and the impact a strong executive director and strong sales director working together has in the success of a senior living community.
2025-04-0933 minGrow Your OccupancySenior Living Occupancy Is the Result of an Entire Team: Julie Talks With Karen FoleyJulie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy talked with Karen Foley, Senior Vice President of Sales at LCB Senior Living, about their strategy for occupancy success.
Karen shares her philosophy that occupancy is the result of an entire team, not just the sales staff. Because a lot goes into maintaining occupancy, it's key that the sales directors are focused on what they're there to do – educating prospects to help them make a buying decision – and not distracted by other aspects of the operation.
2025-04-0224 minGrow Your OccupancyThe Tables Are Turned! Julie Podewitz Is the Guest on the Grow Your Occupancy Podcast for a Change!For the first time in the history of the Grow Your Occupancy podcast, Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder, is the guest!
Dresden Cincurak, VP of Business Development, turns the tables and takes the role of host as she interviews Julie about senior living sales and marketing and so much more!
2025-03-2530 minGrow Your OccupancyJulie and Dresden Share What's on Their Minds in Senior Living Sales & Marketing!Grow Your Occupancy's Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder, and Dresden Cincurak, VP of Business Development, are back to share what's on their minds, what they're hearing from people in the senior living industry, and the sales and marketing challenges facing senior living providers and communities.
2025-03-1730 minGrow Your OccupancyBoost Your Productivity by Shifting from a Time Management to a Time Optimization Mindset!Has the Daylight Savings Time change got you feeling out of whack in your workday?
Time management is a topic on the minds of almost everyone this time of year, when we're feeling just a little off of our entire day's schedule.
In this solo podcast, Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, shares her tips for better time optimization.
2025-03-1219 minGrow Your OccupancyWhat's the Real Impact of Sales Coaching? The Arbors and The Ivy Reflects on 3 Years With GROWJulie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with the sales leadership team at The Arbors and The Ivy Assisted Living Communities about their experience with the sales coaching they began over 3 years ago.
Emily Quinn, Co-Owner and RDSM, Sondra Jones, RDSM, and Stephanie Zelazo, Regional Sales Specialist, look back on the coaching sessions, the things that had the quickest impact and the things that had a longer lasting impact on not only their sales team but their organization as a whole.
2025-03-0530 minGrow Your OccupancyThese 3 Operational Fixes Give Senior Living Operators the Biggest Bang for Their BuckIn part 1, Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talked with Kristin Ward, President of Austera Group, about positioning senior living communities to maximize their potential.
Julie and Kristin are back for part 2 to dive deeper into the top 3 operational fixes that senior living operators can do to stay competitive and grow occupancy.
2025-02-2525 minGrow Your OccupancyThe Top 3 Operational Fixes Senior Living Operators Can Do to Stay CompetitiveIn this first of a two part conversation, Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Kristin Ward, President of Austera Group, about positioning senior living communities to maximize their potential.
Kristin, a 30 year veteran of the senior living industry, shares the top 3 operational fixes that senior living operators can do to stay competitive and grow occupancy.
2025-02-1921 minGrow Your OccupancyIs There a Universal Solution to Transform Senior Living Sales? Francine Bass Says Yes!For senior living providers with a diverse portfolio of communities in varied markets, is there really such a thing as a universal approach to sales and marketing?
Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Francine Bass, Vice President of Sales at United Group of Communities, about the secret weapon that is working to transform their occupancy outcomes.
2025-02-0637 minGrow Your OccupancyThe Sign of a Great Leader: Christy Van Der Westhuizen Shares Her Advice to Making Yourself ObsoleteJulie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, welcomes back Christy Van Der Westhuizen, Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Legend Senior Living, to the Grow Your Occupancy podcast.
Christy recently took a 3 week vacation to South Africa, and not only did her sales teams not fall apart in her absence, they actually grew occupancy! Find out her leadership skills that made it happen.
2025-02-0627 minGrow Your OccupancySenior Living Sales Specialists Speak! Part 7: Greatest Areas of Opportunity to Grow OccupancyWe're back with part 7 of our most popular topic – senior living sales specialists share what they're doing to get occupancy growth results in their senior living communities!
Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, is joined by Jessi Barton from The Lodge at Stephens Lake in Jasper, GA, and a panel of Grow Your Occupancy's Senior Sales Specialists: Susan Braley, Heidi Benard, Jennifer Ptacek, Melinda Haney, and Lori Vernier. They share the greatest areas of opportunity they found that helped them to grow senior living occupancy in 2024.
2025-01-2123 minGrow Your OccupancyHow Custom Spaces and Model Apartments Help Differentiate Your Senior Living Community and Grow SalesIs your senior living community situated in a very competitive market? What can you do to make your community stand out from the competition?
Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Sasha Davis, COO of Model55, and Allison Page, VP of Sales and Marketing at Thrive Senior Living, about making the most of your community's differentiating factors – and how custom-furnished spaces and model apartments can set your community apart from the competition.
2025-01-1427 minGrow Your OccupancySenior Living Sales Specialists Speak! Part 6: What Worked in 2024 to Grow OccupancyWe're back with part 6 of our most popular topic – senior living sales specialists share what they're doing to get occupancy growth results in their senior living communities!
Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, is joined by Jessi Barton from The Lodge at Stephens Lake in Jasper, GA, and a panel of Grow Your Occupancy's Senior Sales Specialists: Susan Braley, Heidi Benard, Jennifer Ptacek, Melinda Haney, and Lori Vernier. They share what worked to grow senior living occupancy in 2024.
2025-01-0830 minGrow Your OccupancyWhat I Learned in 2024 - and How I Grew from ItJulie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, takes a look back at 2024 – both personally and professionally – and shares her mindset to learn and grow, from not only the highlights but also the mistakes and challenges.
2024-12-2316 minGrow Your OccupancyThe End of Month Senior Living Occupancy Insanity: How to Shift from Reactive to Proactive ActivityIt's very common in senior living sales to see a push from management to increase occupancy at the end of the month. All too often, the result is a shift from sales activities that are proactive to ones that are reactive.
Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, takes a closer look at the phenomenon of the month-end sales push and offers tips that result in better overall outcomes.
2024-12-2012 minGrow Your Occupancy2024 Senior Living Sales & Marketing Insights from Grow Your OccupancyAs we close out the year, Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, shares her insights on senior living sales and marketing for 2024.
2024-12-1913 minGrow Your OccupancyThese Fundamental Sales Skills Work No Matter What You're Selling: Julie Talks With Wallie GarrettWhether you're selling senior living or just about any other service, the fundamentals of sales and great salesmanship that yield results are very similar.
Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Wallie Garrett, Sales Consultant at Two Sisters Maid to Clean, about the sales skills she uses when selling home cleaning services that result in sales success.
2024-12-1826 minGrow Your OccupancyWanna Get Rid of Lead Aggregators? Organically Rank Highest in Your Market? Jenni Bost Shares How!A lot of senior living operators have been seeking to cut out senior living lead aggregators from the occupancy equation lately. Some have been successful in doing so, and you can be too!
Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Jenni Bost, Vice President of Marketing at Radiant Senior Living, about how they not only got rid of lead aggregators but are organically ranking high in their local markets!
2024-12-1726 minGrow Your OccupancyThe Challenges of Senior Living Owner/Operator Misalignment: Julie talks with Greg AndersonJulie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Greg Anderson, Managing Director of Northbridge Advisory Services, about the highlights of 2024 and the challenges he sees with owner/operator misalignment.
2024-12-0630 minGrow Your OccupancyHow a Culture of Trust Is a Pillar of the Success and Growth of Primrose Retirement CommunitiesAt Primrose Retirement Communities, trust is a key piece of the culture that has allowed for the success and growth of the company.
Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with BJ Schaefbauer, President of Primrose Retirement Communities, about recruiting the right people who are genuine, get along, and align with the culture of trust, to join the Primrose family.2024-10-3028 minGrow Your OccupancyHow The Aspenwood Company Sustained Occupancy Growth During a Time of Explosive Portfolio ExpansionIn March of 2024, The Aspenwood Company experienced a perfect storm of portfolio growth, expanding their footprint 63% in a single month through the addition of a number of properties.
Despite the many distractions at the home office that onboarding the new communities brought, their existing portfolio grew occupancy in that same timeframe.
Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Heather Tussing, President, and Eric Varin, Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing, of The Aspenwood Company about their secrets to occupancy growth in their existing communities while the company was in a period of...2024-10-1828 minGrow Your OccupancyConsidering Quitting the Lead Aggregators? Find Out How One Senior Living Provider Did It!Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, welcomes back Brooke Saxon-Spencer, Vice President of Marketing at Claiborne Senior Living.
The last time Julie and Brooke talked, Brooke shared how Claiborne make the cutting-edge marketing move of eliminating virtually all paper from their marketing department.
In this episode, Brooke shares Claiborne's decision 2 years ago to shut off all lead aggregators, and what the company is seeing as a result.
If you're considering saying no to senior living lead aggregators, here's some advice on what to do and how to prepare for the change.2024-10-0932 minGrow Your OccupancyHow to Use Senior Living Marketing Data to Tell a Story & Influence the Sales Team's BehaviorSenior living communities generate a lot of data in the course of their marketing activities to attract leads. How that data is used – or isn't used – can make a big difference in sales and occupancy success.
At Primrose Retirement Communities, the marketing team pulls the data together to tell a story, and the sales leadership uses that story to influence the behavior of the sales teams.
Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, is back with Jessi Weldon, EVP of Sales & Marketing, and Brandon Christiansen, Director of Marketing, from Primrose Retirement Communities. They share how...2024-10-0234 minGrow Your OccupancyCan a Focus on External Business Development Impact Senior Living Occupancy Numbers? Find Out!Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Staci Lynn, Chief Operating Officer of Wickshire Senior Living, about Wickshire's focus on external business development in its sales strategy.
External business development has had a tremendously positive impact on occupancy in Wickshire's senior living communities. Watch to find out more about this winning sales strategy!
2024-09-2525 minGrow Your OccupancyHow This Startup Senior Living Provider Is Successfully Competing in the Crowded SE Florida MarketJulie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Chad Carnes, COO of YMP Senior Living and Shelli Webster, Sales Specialist at Grow Your Occupancy, about YMP's entry into the southeast Florida senior living market.
Chad shares his tips for competing against much larger and more established senior living providers including tailoring your efforts for the local area and focusing on the 3 Ps: Product, Pricing, and People.
2024-08-2630 minGrow Your OccupancyA Closer Look at the Very Successful Collaboration Between Sales and Marketing at Merrill GardensJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with senior living provider Merrill Gardens' Amanda Warren, VP of Marketing, and Corneil Vacirca, VP of Sales.
They share the advantages of the collaboration between their different sales and marketing roles, how they use data to inform their sales and marketing strategy and decisions, and when to close out a lead in the database.
2024-08-0748 minGrow Your OccupancyWhat's Stopping Senior Living Prospects from Saying "Yes"? Julie Talks With Maureen LongoriaSenior living prospects and their family members often face a variety of emotional and logistical challenges that can prevent them from moving forward with a senior living decision. Vetting movers and real estate agents, downsizing possessions and furnishings, preparing to sell their home, and actually moving are tops on the list of challenges.
In this podcast, Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Maureen Longoria, CEO and Co-founder of LivNow Relocation, about some recent AARP survey results from seniors considering senior living, the challenges they're facing, and why finding solutions can help you...2024-06-1224 min
Senior Care Academy - A Helperly PodcastStrategies for Boosting Senior Living Occupancy with Julie PodewitzSend us a textUnlock the secrets to increasing occupancy rates and driving success in the senior living industry with seasoned executive Julie Podewitz. From her Midwestern roots to becoming a luminary in senior living sales, Julie combines her background in teaching and counseling to offer a unique, empathetic approach to sales. Learn why understanding human behavior and emotions is crucial in this emotionally charged market, and discover the fine line between empathy and sympathy that helps guide families through tough decisions.Navigate the evolving landscape of senior living with insights from the early 2000s...2024-06-0437 minGrow Your OccupancyHow to Just Say NO to Lead Aggregators: Julie Talks With Cindy RobinsonIt's a hot topic in senior living sales: saying no to costly paid referral sources for leads.
But how do you do it?
In this podcast, Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Cindy Robinson, Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Capri Senior Communities, about their decision to stop using lead aggregators six years ago, how they did it, and how it's paid off for them.
2024-05-3027 minGrow Your Occupancy"We Need to Demystify the Senior Living Experience" - Julie Talks With Dan HutsonSeniors and their family members look to senior living communities for guidance and information to help them make the choice of where to live.
While most senior living community websites provide the basic details like services, amenities, floor plans, and levels of care, what the prospects really want is for every aspect of the senior living experience to be demystified. Compelling storytelling about real people's experiences in senior living is vital to meet this want.
Julie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Dan Hutson, VP of Marketing at Priya Living, a senior...2024-05-2936 minGrow Your OccupancyLeading With Both the Head and the Heart: Julie and Sara RobertsonJulie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Sara Robertson, CEO of The Arbors and Ivy Senior Living Residential Communities.
Sara tells about their transformation from not being "numbers people" to using data to make decisions, and how it has impacted revenue and sales.
Sara also shares her thoughts about women in senior leadership roles in the industry, her journey up through the ranks, and how she is leads by both her head and her heart.
2024-05-2233 minGrow Your OccupancyThe Movie Matches the Soundtrack: Julie Talks With Michael MorrisJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Michael Morris, CEO and Founder of Willow Ridge Senior Living.
At age 15, Michael first caught the senior living “bug” as a dining room server. Years later, he and his wife invested their life savings to open a senior living community. Fast forward to today when he and his wife now own and operate ten communities. Mike shares his passion for all things senior living.
2024-05-0430 minGrow Your OccupancyHow You Can Leverage Technology to Streamline Costs and increase Productivity and Outcomes in SalesJulie Podewitz, Founder & CEO of Grow Your Occupancy, recently talked with Mona Hilton, Founder of sales and marketing automation software Advantage Anywhere.
Mona shared how the right technology can increase your senior living sales teams' productivity, lower costs, and improve sales outcomes.
2024-04-2427 minGrow Your OccupancyAre Great Salespeople Born That Way or Nurtured to Excellence? Julie Talks with Dan FantasiaIt's the "nature vs. nurture" argument: are successful salespeople born with their talents as part of their nature, or do their talents require nurturing through training and coaching to bloom?
Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy talks with Dan Fantasia, President of Treeline, Inc. about this question.
Plus, Dan explains the importance of matching a top candidate with a company based on its culture, and gives his advice on improving how you can identify top talent and attract it to your organization.
2024-04-1728 minGrow Your OccupancyPivot to Profit - Strategies for Overcoming Sales Challenges, Pt 2 - Julie Talks With Sherrie BebellJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, and Sherrie Bebell, Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Columbia Pacific Advisors, LLC, are back for part 2 of their conversation about Sherrie's strategies for overcoming sales challenges in senior living communities.
2024-04-1535 minGrow Your OccupancyPivot to Profit - Strategies for Overcoming Sales Challenges, Pt 1 - Julie Talks With Sherrie BebellJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Sherrie Bebell, Senior Vice President of Sales & Marketing at Columbia Pacific Advisors, LLC.
In this first part, Sherrie shares her winning strategies for overcoming sales challenges in senior living communities.
2024-04-1023 minGrow Your OccupancyA Passion for Improving the Senior Living Industry: Julie Chats With Patrick Dooley & Natalie RossJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Patrick Dooley and Natalie Ross, the Co-Founders and Partners of One Extra Consulting.
Patrick and Natalie chat about the challenges they both experienced as senior living operators, their passion for helping the residents of senior living communities and those who serve them, and what inspired them to continue contributing to the industry by co-founding One Extra Consulting.
2024-03-2726 minGrow Your OccupancyUnpacking the WelcomeHome Software 2023 Year in Review Report, Pt 2: Julie Chats With Maggie SeyboldJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Maggie Seybold, Vice President of Customer Insights at WelcomeHome Software, about their 2023 Year in Review report.
In this second part, Julie and Maggie dig into the report to find some surprises in the data, and identify some takeaways that can be used to improve senior living sales outcomes in 2024.
2024-03-0831 minGrow Your OccupancyUnpacking the WelcomeHome Software 2023 Year in Review Report, Pt 1: Julie Chats With Maggie SeyboldJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Maggie Seybold, Vice President of Customer Insights at WelcomeHome Software, about their 2023 Year in Review report.
In this first part, Julie and Maggie talk about the key trends that shaped senior living sales in 2023 and some of the observed traits of the most successful communities.
2024-03-0620 minGrow Your OccupancyCompensation Strategies for Senior Living Sales & Marketing Pros: Julie Talks With Jill BerryJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Jill Berry, Vice President of Sales & Marketing of Country Meadows Retirement Communities, about compensating senior living sales and marketing professionals.
Jill shares her compensation strategies for increasing retention, improving sales and move-ins outcomes, and building team member loyalty.
2024-02-2121 minGrow Your OccupancyBeyond Metrics: How Putting People First Can Impact Outcomes in Senior Living SalesJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Paula Rathgaber-Gomez, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Sequoia Living, about how putting people first and leading by the heart has impacted her career and company outcomes.
2024-02-0728 minGrow Your OccupancyOutreach Isn't Dead: New Approaches to Outreach in Senior Living Sales Lead GenerationWe hear it all the time: "Outreach is dead." We also see outreach becoming a priority only when occupancy growth becomes urgent.
Julie Podewitz, Grow Your Occupancy's CEO and Founder, talks about outreach in senior living sales, the value and results it brings, and why it needs to have an ongoing place in your sales and marketing strategy. She also shares some new ways to approach it that you may not have thought of (hint: they're digital!).
2024-01-3110 minGrow Your OccupancyWhy Not Invest in Your Senior Living Revenue Generation Engine?There are many valid reasons why it's challenging to grow occupancy in senior living communities today: higher monthly rates, stronger competition, the economy, and the lingering effects of the pandemic are just a few.
Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks about why investing in the success of your highly skilled salespeople can be the key to help them make a difference in your bottom line.
2024-01-1009 minGrow Your OccupancyThe Secrets of Recruiting and Fractional HR from a Master Recruiter: Julie Talks with Lori WimmerJulie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Lori Wimmer, CEO & Founder of Simplified HR. Lori is an entrepreneur and master recruiter who helps her clients fill job openings with her signature recruiting methods. Lori talks about facing her fear of leaving corporate America to start her own company, what benefits are important to today's job candidates, and the importance of KPIs: Key Performance Indicators.
2023-12-1922 minGrow Your OccupancySenior Living Sales Specialists Speak! Part 4: Julie & Dresden’s Special Holiday EditionGrow Your Occupancy's CEO & Founder Julie Podewitz and VP of Business Development Dresden Cincurak share some special tips for senior living specialists to stay motivated and keep the leads warm during the holidays and through the winter months.
2023-12-1427 minGrow Your OccupancyWill vs. Skill: Julie Talks About These 2 Important Factors for Senior Living Sales SuccessThe will to succeed is within every one of us, but success in senior living sales also requires skill.
Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks about the will and the skill, and making the decision to use both to succeed.
2023-12-1219 minGrow Your OccupancyCulture Starts at the Top: Julie Talks With Meredith Mills about Leading by ExampleJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Meredith Mills, President & CEO of Country Meadows Retirement Communities, about how the sales skills she learned are also leadership and relationship skills that serve her in her leadership role.
PLUS: Meredith shares how Country Meadows successfully grows senior living occupancy WITHOUT using paid aggregators!
2023-12-0627 minGrow Your OccupancyTips for Coaching Others to SuccessJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, shares her takeaways from Valorie Burton's keynote address, "Coaching for Leaders: How to Bring Out the Best in Yourself and Others" at the Georgia Senior Living Association 2023 Conference & Trade Show.
2023-10-3110 minGrow Your OccupancyHow Kindness & Compassion Affects Customer Service: Julie Talks With Jessi WeldonJulie Podewitz, CEO & Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, recently talked with Jessi Weldon, Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Primrose Communities.
Jessi shared her family's recent Make-A-Wish trip to Morgan's Wonderland, an ultra-accessible theme park in San Antonio, Texas, a bit about her daughter Lauren's experience, how kindness and compassion affect customer service, and what she has learned from the entire experience.
2023-09-2017 minGrow Your OccupancyWhats on Your Mind? Episode 2: Why Do Home Visits in Senior Living Sales?Join Grow Your Occupancy's CEO and Founder Julie Podewitz and Vice President of Strategic Development Dani Merlino as they share what's on their minds! In this episode, they talk about the heat, the impact of home visits in senior living sales, and doing chores!
2023-09-1322 minGrow Your OccupancyWhats on Your Mind? Episode 1: Cool Vibes in Senior Living CommunitiesJoin Grow Your Occupancy's CEO and Founder Julie Podewitz and Vice President of Strategic Development Dani Merlino as they share what's on their minds!
In this episode, they talk about "cool vibes" in senior living communities, 90s music, and freshly cut grass!
2023-09-0616 minGrow Your OccupancySenior Living Sales Specialists Speak! Part 1: The Biggest Challenges in the Sales SeatGrow Your Occupancy's senior living sales specialists talk with CEO and Founder Julie Podewitz about some of the most common challenges they see when they're in the sales seat at senior living communities, and offer solutions that work to overcome them.
2023-08-3021 minGrow Your OccupancyThe 5 Things You Can Do to Get 10 Move-Ins in a Month at a Senior Living Community10 move ins in a month at a senior living community may seem impossible, but with a success mindset and systems and processes in place it can happen.
Grow Your Occupancy Founder and CEO Julie Podewitz and Vice President of Strategic Development Dani Merlino share 5 tips for making it happen.
2023-08-0419 minGrow Your OccupancyMeet Dani Merlino, Grow Your Occupancy’s Vice President of Strategic DevelopmentGrow Your Occupancy Founder and CEO Julie Podewitz talks with Dani Merlino, Vice President of Strategic Development, about how she started in senior living as a dietary aide and the path she's taken to lead her to her position at Grow Your Occupancy.
2023-08-0422 minGrow Your OccupancyWhat Is It Like to Visit Your Senior Living Community? Tips for a Better Tour ExperienceJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, recently conducted 4 in-person mystery shops for a client.
What's it like to be a senior living prospect visiting a community for the first time? It's exhausting, confusing, overwhelming.
Find out what really things really stand out, and what you can do to improve your prospect's touring experience and sales outcomes.
2023-07-1109 minGrow Your OccupancyThe Cutting-Edge Marketing Move at Claiborne Senior Living: Julie Chats With Brooke Saxon-SpencerWhat are they doing over at Claiborne Senior Living that is not only cutting-edge, it's also shocking to many?
Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Brooke Saxon-Spencer, Vice President of Marketing at Claiborne Senior Living, about their decision to eliminate virtually all paper from their marketing department! Find out how their strategy of driving prospects toward the valuable content on their website instead of handing them printed materials is paying off!
2023-06-2834 minGrow Your OccupancySenior Living Development With a Purpose: Julie Podewitz Talks With Laurie SchultzJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Laurie Schultz, Principal and Co-Founder of Avenue and Viva Bene.
Avenue is a full-service senior living development company with a purpose: to address the crisis of affordability in the senior living industry. The result is Viva Bene, an active adult platform focusing on affordability and incorporating primary care coordination for their residents.
2023-06-2120 minGrow Your OccupancyGrow Your Occupancy Celebrates Pride Month: Julie Talks with Sylvia KurinskyJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Sylvia Kurinsky, Sales Advocate at Charter Senior Living. Sylvia shares her PRIDE, her story and her advice for others walking through their own journeys in this special PRIDE Grow Your Love edition of the Grow Your Occupancy podcast.
Learn more about how you can support your LGBTQ loved ones and friends at https://www.thetrevorproject.org/ and https://itgetsbetter.org/ .
2023-06-1628 minGrow Your OccupancyGrow Your Occupancy Celebrates Pride Month: Julie Talks with Josh LeBlancJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Joshua LeBlanc, Director of Sales & Marketing with Paul Davis Restoration, Inc., about having accepting, supportive and proud parents from a young age, and why coming out to his peers was a challenge.
Learn more about how you can support your LGBTQ loved ones and friends at https://www.thetrevorproject.org/ and https://itgetsbetter.org/ .
2023-06-0927 minGrow Your OccupancyGrow Your Occupancy Celebrates Pride Month: Julie Talks with Melinda HaneyJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Melinda Haney, a Sales Success Specialist on the Grow Your Occupancy team, about being abundantly proud of who we are as individuals, and the rights to love who we want to love and be who we want to be.
Learn more about how you can support your LGBTQ loved ones and friends at https://www.thetrevorproject.org/ and https://itgetsbetter.org/ .
2023-06-0423 minGrow Your OccupancyEmpowering Women to Grow & Reach Their Dreams: Julie Talks with Dr. Raquel Muller, Ph.D.Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Dr. Raquel Muller, Ph.D., a financial educator and coach who helps empower women to learn about money to achieve financial wellbeing and reach their dreams. Learn more at www.howmoneyworks.com/raquelmuller
2023-05-3122 minGrow Your OccupancySuccessful Leasing and Fill-Ups in Senior Living: The Correct Mindset Is CriticalIn part 2 of 2, Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Jason Kohler, Executive Vice President of Senior Living at Beztak Companies, about aligning sales and operations mindsets, maintaining a positive outlook, and thinking in abundance.
2023-05-1125 minGrow Your OccupancySales Leadership from the Operations Perspective – Leading in a Wants-Driven MarketIn part 1 of 2, Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Jason Kohler, Executive Vice President of Senior Living at Beztak Companies, about his perspective on sales leadership from an operations perspective, and leading sales in a "wants-driven" market.
2023-05-0317 minGrow Your OccupancyWho’s Doing the ”Dirty Jobs” at Heritage Communities? Julie Podewitz Talks with Amy BirkelJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Amy Birkel, Chief Operating Officer of Heritage Communities, about the company's core values of compassion, respect, trust, and fun, and how they led to the home office team performing some "dirty jobs"!
One day each month, the home office team gives back to one of the senior living communities in Heritage Communities' portfolio by going on-site to do some of the many "dirty jobs" needed to keep a senior living community running.
Listen to find out some of the dirty jobs the home office...2023-04-2620 minGrow Your OccupancyDon’t Jump to Solve in Sales!When a prospective resident calls a senior living community, so many times the salesperson doesn't take the time to really learn about the person before listing all the details of the community. Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, shares the benefits of not jumping to solve, including better sales outcomes.
2023-04-1907 minGrow Your OccupancyDealing with ”I would never...” Objections in Senior Living SalesIn senior living sales we sometimes hear from families of loved ones, "I told mom I would never put her in a nursing home." In this podcast, Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupany, offers advice and tips for overcoming this common objection.
2023-04-0606 min
Big Meow114: Turn your J-O-B into a Coaching Business with Julie PodewitzKristen White interviews Julie Podewitz about Grow Your Occupancy
on the Big Meow podcast. Grow Your Occupancy helps with solve low occupancy problem
for senior living facilities. Driving move-ins for top-line revenue is the
answer. So many leads, so few move-ins? What’s happening with the leads you are
generating? You need a proven sales process and driven sales force to convert
leads to prospects to tours to move-ins.
Find her at www.growyouroccupancy.com and https://www.linkedin.com/in/julie-podewitz-7772522b/
#womenhelpingwomen
#Womenentrepreneurs
#WomenAuthors
#Wom...2023-04-0212 minGrow Your OccupancyWelcomeHome’s 2022 Year in Review Report: Julie Talks with John Lariccia & Maggie SeyboldJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with John Lariccia, CEO, and Maggie Seybold, VP of Customer Insights, at WelcomeHome Software.
John and Maggie share some of the findings in their 2022 Year in Review report representing the sales activity of over 1,500 senior living communities now using the WelcomeHome CRM.
2023-03-1441 minGrow Your OccupancyWhy All the Sports Analogies in Business and Sales? Julie Podewitz Talks with Paul Helgren - Part 1Why do sports analogies work so well in business and sales? In part 1 of 2, Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Paul Helgren, Associate Athletic Director for Communications at University of Toledo, about sports analogies like teamwork, coaching, recruiting the right players, and how to lose gracefully and why they relate so well to business and senior living sales.
2023-03-1217 minGrow Your OccupancyThe 4 Key Areas of Sales Talent: Julie Podewitz Talks with Amy and Andrea with Artis Senior LivingJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Amy DePreker, Vice President of Sales & Marketing and Andrea Marchesotti, National Sales Director at Artis Senior Living. Amy and Andrea share how they attract, develop, and retain senior living sales talent by focusing on 4 Key Areas of Sales Talent and how doing this supports their company mission.
2023-03-0922 minGrow Your OccupancyCombining Automation & Human Connection in Senior Living Sales: Julie Talks with SeniorLivingPROSJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Dallas Shipp, CEO, and Luke Adams, Marketing Director, with SeniorLivingPROS. Dallas and Luke share their insights from their recent case study of 2,500 web-inquiry mystery shops, and the power of combining automation and the human connection in senior living sales.
2023-02-2719 minGrow Your Occupancy”There’s no penalty for not giving up!” Julie Podewitz Talks with Paul Helgren - Part 2In part 2 of 2, Julie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, continues her talk with Paul Helgren, Associate Athletic Director for Communications at University of Toledo. Paul and Julie take a look at the similarities between sports and senior living sales: the importance of practicing, why coaching is so important, and the "not giving up" mindset that make come-from-behind victories possible.
2023-02-1426 minGrow Your OccupancyKeeping Older Adults Safe from Financial Exploitation: Julie Podewitz Talks with Elizabeth ClubbJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Elizabeth Clubb, CEO and Founder of myFloc. Elizabeth shares her expertise on fraud and financial exploitation of older adults, and offers tips for families to best educate and communicate with one another to keep their older loved ones financially safe and secure.
myFloc™ is an expense management platform purpose-built to empower older adults to choose how they live as they age, connect networks of caregivers, prevent elder financial exploitation, and take the financial friction out of caregiving.
2023-02-1318 minGrow Your Occupancy”The tour is the linchpin in the process” - Julie Podewitz Talks with Robbie VoloshinJulie Podewitz, CEO and Founder of Grow Your Occupancy, talks with Robbie Voloshin, Vice President of Marketing and Communications at United Methodist Communities. Robbie shares what her sales and marketing teams did to maintain occupancy in their senior living communities during the Great Recession and what they're doing for the year ahead.
2023-02-0815 min
Connecting the Dots: Senior Living Success with Matt ReinersListen Again - Building the Right Sales Team & What Motivates It with Julie Podewitz, CSO at Vitality LivingOriginally recorded September 2021
Julie Podewitz, CSO at Vitality Living and founder of Grow Your Occupancy, shares her expertise on how to solve the occupancy puzzle. If you're interested in her book, you can find it linked below.
https://a.co/d/bkeHuSa2022-12-2023 min
Contributor WednesdayCW 129: Executive Coaching: Solving the Occupancy Puzzle with Julie PodewitzSolving the Office Puzzle In this episode, Julie Podewitz takes us from The Office to Las Vegas! During this series, Julie takes a deep dive into how to solve the occupancy puzzle by identifying the problem, determining strategy, what actions to take, and how to get there.These episodes narrow in on a key area of the occupancy puzzle, what contributes to the outcome, what action to put in place, and how to coach others. For this episode on making calls, Julie visits her Uncle Georgie's house and travels to Las Vegas. Meet...2022-12-1414 min
Contributor WednesdayExecutive Coaching: Solving the Occupancy Puzzle with Julie PodewitzSolving the Office Puzzle: What watching The Office can teach us about senior living sales. During this series Julie Podewitz takes a deep dive into how to solve the occupancy puzzle by identifying the problem, determining strategy, what actions to take, and how to get there.These episodes narrow in on a key area of the occupancy puzzle, what contributes to the outcome, what action to put in place, and how to coach others. In today’s episode on empathy, Julie Podewitz dives into the fictitious office of Dunder Mifflin from television's, "The Offi...2022-11-0921 min
Microdosing[Event: SMASH] Julie Podewitz of Grow Your OccupancyJulie Podewitz is a senior living sales expert with many years’ of experience and a proven track record. Julie has spent time on both the provider and consultant side, all focused on sales and marketing.2022-10-2605 minConnecting the Dots: Senior Living Success with Matt ReinersEversound in Sales: Driven by Stories, Backed by Data with Julie Podewitz, CEO of Grow Your OccupancyJulie Podewitz, CEO of Grow Your Occupancy, joins Matt as they talk about a recent case study with Vitality Living and Eversound; what they learned during the process of doing this study, where they can change the process for the better in the future, and how hearing loss affects the bottom line of any community.2022-10-1827 min
The 100 ClubWhat stands you out as a sales and marketing director w/ Julie Podewitz (Grow Your Occupancy)In the booth with THE Julie Podewitz and she breaks down actionable steps for what sales and marketing directors can be doing to be increasing their conversions. It first begins with controlling the "controllables" - it's easy to get caught up in the whirlwind of senior living sales but the best sales directors know how to step back and identify trends and be disciplined in the actions that increase conversions.
DON'T FORGET! Sign up for the most important sales master class put on by Julie here: https://growyouroccupancy.com/live-training-events/
Time and date: Brentwood, TN o...2022-09-2631 min
Contributor WednesdayCW 116: Executive Coaching: Solving the Occupancy Puzzle with Julie PodewitzIn this series, host Julie Podewitz takes a deep dive into how to solve the occupancy puzzle by first identifying the problem you're trying to solve, determining strategy, what actions to take and how to get there.Today, Julie looks at solving the "hot enough sales" problem by looking at the factors that make up the Tour to Sale conversion.The six episode-series each narrow in on a key area of the occupancy puzzle, what contributes to the outcome, what action to put in place and how to coach others to achieve the goal....2022-08-1022 min
Contributor WednesdayCW 112: Executive Coaching: Solving the Occupancy Puzzle with Julie PodewitzDuring this series Julie Podewitz will take a deeper dive into how to solve the occupancy puzzle by first identifying the problem you're trying to solve, determining strategy, what actions to take and how to get there. These six podcasts each narrow in on a key area of the occupancy puzzle, what contributes to the outcome, what action to put in place and how to coach others to achieve goals. Meet the BTG Contributors.Connect with us on social media:YouTube InstagramFacebookTwitte...2022-07-1316 min
100% Occupied#20: Back to Basics — How To Get More Deposits After The Tour Is Over (with Julie Podewitz)What happens when the tour is over, and your potential resident and/or their family members walk out the door?
You know they're going to visit the other communities in town, so how can you stand out after the tour is over?
Julie Podewitz, CEO of Grow Your Occupancy, talks about the five things you can do to get more deposits after the tour is over.
This is Julie's third time on our podcast and each time we chat with Julie, she gives us so many great nuggets of senior living marketing wisdom.2022-01-2730 min
100% Occupied#19: Back to Basics — How To Give a Better Tour (with Julie Podewitz)If you help sales professionals give tours or you give them yourself, this is the podcast episode for you.
Julie Podewitz, CEO of Grow Your Occupancy, talks about the five things you can do to give better tours in your senior living community.
This is Julie's second time on our podcast and each time we chat with Julie, she gives us so many great nuggets of senior living marketing wisdom.
Buy Julie's book on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Solving-Occupancy-Puzzle-Regional-Director/dp/B0991CL55W/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF82022-01-2626 min