One of the ways you, a trusted long-term care planning advisor, can set yourself apart from the order takers is by producing content that shows how much you know.
You can tweet, post on Facebook and blog. You can appear on local talk shows, organize in-person seminars, and even try writing books.
In some cases, your source of inspiration may be obvious: You'll take what an insurer or distributor gives you, and that's that. Getting anything else through the necessary approval process might be too difficult.
But what if you do have the freedom to think, and write, for yourself, and ideas are hard to come by? Or, what if you do have good ideas, but you need respectable data to support and illustrate them?
Given that you are creating marketing materials, and you work in a highly regulated industry, you will probably want to stick as much as possible to sources of information that are in the "public domain," and free for anyone to use. That way, you know you can use the data without first getting permission.
One great source of information that's in the public domain is the federal government. Some U.S. states and non-U.S. governments copyright their statistical reports. U.S. federal agencies, on the other hand, generally do not copyright the statistics they publish.
The Federal Interagency Forum on Aging-Related Statistics, a body based at the Administration for Community Living at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, recently published a public-domain report of interest to any financial professional involved in retirement planning, including planning for post-retirement acute care and long-term care costs.
Earlier this month, the forum published "Older Americans 2016: Key Indicators of Well-Being," a 179-page collection of aging statistics from 16 federal agencies. The report includes information on the size of the older population, aging-related behavior, and aging-related health risks and health care services.
The report can be a great source of data for your marketing materials, and it may also be useful when you are thinking about the future of your own practice.
For a look at seven of the tables from the "Older Americans" report that could be of the most use to a long-term care planner, read on.
The size of the U.S. over-85 population could grow especially rapidly between 2030 and 2040. (Photo: iStock)
7. How many people will be very old, and when?
Some people need long-term care when they're in their 70s, or even, sadly, much earlier. This year, for example, a number of U.S. babies affected by the Zika virus may need long-term care for their entire lives.
But the kinds of adults who are likely to qualify to buy long-term care planning products are most likely to end up needing long-term care services when they're ages 85 or older.
Here's a handy table, based on U.S. Census Bureau data included in the new forum report, that shows how the size of the over-85 population might change between now and 2060. (Page 82)
Year | Number of people ages 85 and older |
| 1990 | 3.1 million |
| 2000 | 4.2 million |
| 2010 | 5.5 million |
| 2014 | 6.2 million |
| 2020 | 6.7 million |
| 2030 | 9.1 million |
| 2040 | 14.6 million |
| 2050 | 19 million |
| 2060 | 19.7 million |
From the government's perspective, one of the best things you can do for your long-term care planning prospects may be to persuade them to eat more whole grains. (Photo: Stephen Ausmus/USDA)
6. How likely are older people to eating properly?
Consumer groups and regulators have gotten mad at insurance agents over their use of "free dinner seminars" to whet prospects' attention.
One implication of a diet quality table in the new aging indicators report is that persuading older prospects to attend a marketing dinner might be great for the prospects' health, as long as you can persuade those same prospects to eat some whole wheat bread or pasta.
The table, drawn from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data, shows how likely Americans age 65 to 74, and 75 and older, were to be eating enough of various types of foods in 2011 and 2012.
Here's an excerpt (from Page 126) that shows how likely people age 65 through 74 were to be eating enough of various types of plant-based foods:
Dietary component | Percentage of people eating the recommended amount |
| Total fruit | 74.2 |
| Whole fruit | 99.2 |
| Total vegetables | 86.4 |
| Greens and beans | 80.5 |
| Whole grains | 38.6 |
Only about half of people ages 85 and older who live in the community can still drive. (Photo: iStock)
5. What kinds of problems do older people have with driving?
In any community in which driving is about as common and important as eating dinner, talk of older people who have lost the ability to drive may be the topic with the most power to catch the attention of your prospects.
The idea of losing the ability to eat or bathe without help may be too frightening and remote for many people to grasp.
But many of your clients have probably known people who have lost the ability to drive.
One table in the aging indicators report, drawn from Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services care access data, shows the kinds of limits on driving experienced by noninstitutionalized Medicare enrollees of various ages.
Here's an excerpt that shows how many noninstitutionalized Medicare enrollees gave up driving altogether in 2013. (Page 155)
Age group | Percentage who've given up driving |
| 65-74 | 11.3 |
| 75-84 | 21.2 |
| 85 and over | 46.5 |
