Briarfield: The Inn at Poland Way

As Briarfield planned construction of The Inn at Poland Way, PALO worked to establish the assisted living’s place in the community before shovels broke ground, and to build public awareness so residents were ready to move in when the doors opened.

Media relations played a key role in PALO’s strategy. We worked with Briarfield to arrange a groundbreaking event where Briarfield executives addressed local media, local elected officials and other public administration on their plans.

PALO leveraged the media coverage to build public awareness and keep Poland Way’s development top-of-mind with the primary audience – local residents in need of assisted living and their families. Because the target demographic responds more to traditional marketing tactics, PALO utilized:


Direct Mailers with appropriate messaging and imagery to introduce the audience to The Inn at Poland Way and its assisted living and memory care services.

Billboards with consistent messaging, strategically placed along Route 224 in Boardman and Poland, so residents were always reminded of the forthcoming assisted living.

Continued Media Relations to keep local media advised of Poland Way’s construction progress.
In In In the days leading up to the grand opening, PALO worked with Briarfield and The Vindicator to create content for a special, 20-page insert for the newspaper. The insert was published with The Vindy’s Sunday edition the week prior to the opening.

PALO coordinated with Briarfield to schedule interviews with staff and residents, and planned, wrote, and edited stories for publication. We also conducted photography sessions after construction of The Inn Poland Way was complete. We worked directly with The Vindicator to ensure all articles and photos were delivered on time to meet the newspaper’s deadline.

The insert ran in conjunction with a press release that went out to all local media.

Once doors were open and residents began moving in, PALO coordinated media events for the grand opening and a blessing of Poland Way’s entrance, great room, residents, and staff. Briarfield invited Monsignor William Connell of Holy Family Parish in Poland to conduct the blessing.Next Steps
The Inn at Poland Way is moving in residents at its expected rate, and PALO is working with Briarfield to put the final touches on the company’s new website.

The new website gives visitors a completely optimized user experience with:
• Easy navigation
• User-friendly calendars and meal menus for each Briarfield location
• Updated location-specific photos
• Detailed information on location-specific services
• Contact forms to schedule tours and meetings
Agency