The National

Resource Center on

Nutrition & Aging

Marketing: Re-Thinking Your Understanding 

and Re-Assessing Your Strategy

Summary Brief

Written by: Laura Kisailus, madebydarwin.com. Commissioned by the NRCNA.

Introduction

The Aging Network is gaining remarkable 

attention. As the number of older adults increases, 

conversations are taking place in every corner of the 

nation. While policymakers and frontline program 

leadership are exploring ways to reach more seniors 

and adapt to a shifting demographic, the “market” is 

exploding with new competitors who offer innovative 

services tailored to the growing needs. At the same 

time, the media world has become complex, offering 

new marketing channels, creative methods, and 

a 24-7 cycle of personalized messages for every 

category of personal taste and interest. 

At the intersection of these changes is a tremendous 

opportunity to pivot our practices to harness the 

future. Never before have we seen the level of 

competition that today’s landscape presents. We 

can no longer assume that we are the only option 

available to provide meals (and other services) 

to seniors. Therefore, how do we communicate 

value, illustrate impact, and preserve relevance in a 

crowded market? Revisiting your thinking and your 

strategy surrounding “marketing” may shed light on 

the way forward.

What is marketing? 

Client-centric 

At the core, marketing is client-centric. It’s not 

safe to assume all audiences are the same, 

primarily because it simply isn’t true. 

How can this be used in the Aging Network? 

Get to truly know the seniors that you serve. 

With the changing medical needs and lifestyle 

choices in American communities, now is a great 

opportunity to re-examine who you are serving—

so you can serve them well. 

Strategic 

Marketing’s ultimate goal is to influence 

consumer decision-making which is why over 

the past two decades, “marketing” has been 

increasingly moving away from a simple “nice to 

have” business function to the responsibility of 

high-level executive teams. 

How can this be used in the Aging Network?

Think of your marketing efforts as a bucket. You 

are trying to fill the bucket with as many clients 

as possible in order to fulfill your mission of 

being the best senior nutrition services provider 

possible. Your challenges: 

1. You have to find the source for the water to fill

the bucket (this represents your clients)

2. Your bucket—like everyone else’s!—has

some holes in it (this represents client decisionmaking).

1

Consider this metaphor when managing your marketing program. 

As you fill your bucket with potential clients, there are areas of churn 

where clients are losing program awareness, the desire to act, loyalty to 

your brand, and satisfaction with your client service. So, where along the 

way can you improve? 
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RESOURCES

Seven Things You Need to Know About Marketing in the 21st Century, Bain & Co.: https://www.bain.com/insights/seven-thingsyou-need-to-know-about-marketing-in-21st-century/ 

No Market for Marketing, Stanford Social Innovation Review: https://ssir.org/articles/entry/no_market_for_marketing

The Ultimate Guide to Nonprofit Marketing in 2019, HubSpot: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/how-to-run-a-lean-meannonprofit-marketing-machine 

Holistic 

Professional roles and responsibilities are 

also shifting with the times. More and more, 

organizations need interdisciplinary staff that 

can offer additional value to power your mission. 

By leveraging these talents, the function of your 

marketing program can help influence how your 

clients make decisions.

How can this be used in the Aging Network?

Host a workshop and invite a cross-section of 

your organization. Use the bucket metaphor as 

a conversation point to engage your staff and 

colleagues in understanding where your current 

client-centered marketing efforts are focused.

So, what are you waiting for? 

Use your new tactics from this issue brief to 

redesign the complete customer journey experience 

and refresh your marketing so it’s a well-oiled 

machine—that everyone has a hand in!

Read the extended brief to learn more. 

https://nutritionandaging.org/briefs/