Results at a glance: By rebuilding paid search around real move-in data from Occulytics Market Intel, Fountain Digital helped La Vida Real, an SRG Senior Living community, grow leads 93%, prospects 88%, first tours 148%, and move-ins 375% (4 to 19) year over year. Tours and move-ins grew faster than leads, a clear sign of higher lead quality.
Most senior living paid search programs don’t have a traffic problem. They have a decision problem: who to target, where, and how to turn an inquiry into a tour and a move-in.
When Fountain Digital took over paid media for La Vida Real, an SRG Senior Living community, in August 2025, we rebuilt the program around one question: where are the families who actually move in? With competitive intelligence from our partner Occulytics, we answered it with real move-in data instead of census estimates.
The year-over-year results speak for themselves:
- Leads up 93%, from 121 to 233
- Prospects up 88%, from 107 to 201
- First tours up 148%, from 29 to 72
- Move-ins up 375%, from 4 to 19
Here’s what we changed, why it worked, and what it means for your communities.
What was holding back La Vida Real’s senior living paid search?
La Vida Real’s monthly results had plateaued. Leads, prospects, and move-ins were all running at modest levels, with no consistent growth from one month to the next.
In several months, the funnel nearly stalled. In March and July of the prior year, the community generated just three prospects each month. First tours hovered between one and five per month.
The gap wasn’t effort. It was targeting. The paid search program was reaching people, but not consistently the families most likely to tour and move in.
How did Fountain Digital and Occulytics rebuild the paid search strategy?
Fountain Digital rebuilt the program on real move-in data. Before touching a single campaign, SRG used Occulytics Market Intel to re-read the competitive landscape around La Vida Real. Instead of census-style estimates, Occulytics mapped where actual residents were moving into every community in the market. It also mapped where their adult children and close family live, because they shape so many senior living decisions.
That analysis surfaced untapped pockets of resident and adult-child geography. Fountain Digital then rebuilt the paid search program around them, starting in Q3 2025, using three key decisions.
1. Data-led targeting
We combined La Vida Real’s historical performance with Occulytics insights to restructure campaigns, keywords, bidding, and geographic targeting. Every budget dollar was pointed at areas where families were proven to come from.
2. Expanding the radius from 13 to 15 miles
The move-in data showed qualified demand just beyond the existing footprint. Widening the targeting radius by two miles brought those families into reach without diluting lead quality.
3. Launching Performance Max
Once the search foundation was solid, we launched Google Performance Max to capture incremental demand across Google’s inventory, including YouTube, Display, Discover, Gmail, and Maps.
Data doesn’t drive results. Decisions do. Occulytics showed where families were. Fountain’s strategy and day-to-day management turned that insight into tours and move-ins.
What results did La Vida Real achieve?
Since Fountain Digital took over in August 2025, La Vida Real has grown every funnel metric year over year, with the biggest gains at the bottom.
| Funnel Stage | Before | After | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leads | 121 | 233 | +93% |
| Prospects | 107 | 201 | +88% |
| First Tours | 29 | 72 | +148% |
| Move-ins | 4 | 19 | +375% |
Methodology: Year-over-year comparison of September 2025 through July 2026 against the same months a year earlier, using La Vida Real’s CRM and campaign data. Fountain Digital took over paid media management in August 2025.
The month-by-month picture shows this wasn’t a one-time spike:
- Prospects beat or matched the prior year in all 11 months from September through July. June jumped from 9 to 27, and July from 3 to 28.
- First tours beat or matched the prior year every month. March and July each reached 10 tours, up from 2 and 1.
- Momentum is building. The strongest months came late in the period, as continuous optimization compounded the early gains.
How did lead quality improve?
Tours and move-ins grew faster than lead volume. That’s the clearest sign the program isn’t just buying more inquiries; it’s attracting families who are ready to act.
| Conversion rate | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Lead to first tour | 24% | 31% |
| First tour to move-in | 14% | 26% |
| Lead to move-in | 3.3% | 8.2% |
Put simply, every lead La Vida Real receives today is about 2.5 times more likely to become a resident than a year ago. For operators, that means sales teams spend their time on families who are a real fit, and marketing spend translates directly into occupancy.
How can senior living operators apply these lessons?
- Target where move-ins come from, not where seniors live on paper. Census data shows population. Move-in data shows decisions, including the adult children who often drive the search.
- Treat your radius as a hypothesis. A two-mile expansion unlocked new demand here. The right radius depends on your market, and data should set it.
- Build the foundation before you scale. Performance Max worked because it launched on top of a rebuilt search structure, not in place of one.
- Measure to the move-in. Lead volume alone would have hidden the real story. Track every stage, from inquiry to tour to move-in, so you can see what’s actually driving occupancy.
- Insight needs ongoing management. Data shows the opportunity; day-to-day optimization is what turns it into results.
Related reading: Explore Fountain Digital’s senior living paid media services, our Executive Insights guide series for senior living leaders, and how our Fonterra Engine™ connects marketing spend to move-ins. For an easy to read breakdown of these results – download a copy of the case study here.
Frequently asked questions
How can senior living communities get more move-ins from paid search?
Target the geographies where move-ins actually come from, not just where seniors live. At La Vida Real, rebuilding campaign structure, keywords, bidding, and geographic targeting around real move-in data grew move-ins 375% year over year, from 4 to 19.
Why should senior living ads target adult children?
Adult children and close family often shape or lead the senior living search. Occulytics data mapped where they live, revealing pockets of demand outside the community’s original targeting. Reaching them helped La Vida Real grow first tours 148%.
What is Performance Max, and does it work for senior living?
Performance Max is a Google Ads campaign type that serves ads across Google’s inventory, including Search, YouTube, Display, Discover, Gmail, and Maps. It works best on top of a strong search foundation, which is how La Vida Real used it to capture incremental demand.
How do you measure lead quality in senior living marketing?
Track conversion rates at each funnel stage, not just lead volume. La Vida Real’s lead-to-move-in rate rose from 3.3% to 8.2%, and tour-to-move-in from 14% to 26%. That shows leads became more likely to become residents.
What does a senior living marketing audit include?
A Fountain Digital audit reviews paid media performance, funnel conversion from inquiry to move-in, tracking and attribution, and untapped geographic opportunity. You receive prioritized recommendations you can act on, whether or not you work with us.
Ready for results like La Vida Real?
If your leads aren’t turning into tours and move-ins at the rate they should, the answer is usually hiding in your data. A Fountain Digital marketing audit will find it.
In a complimentary audit, our team will review:
- Paid media performance: campaign structure, keywords, bidding, and geographic targeting
- Funnel conversion: how leads move from inquiry to tour to move-in, and where they drop off
- Tracking and attribution: whether you can see which channels actually drive occupancy
- Untapped opportunity: where qualified families are that your current program isn’t reaching
You’ll walk away with clear, prioritized recommendations, whether or not you work with us.
Schedule your marketing audit or reach out to our team at [email protected].
Competitive intelligence for this program was powered by Occulytics Market Intel.
