Notes about the Care Homes Market

Friday, October 7, 2011

Notes About the Care Home Market

Firms going bust in social care sector up by 50% amid spending cut gives one an idea that care home companies have been able to be behind the curve when it comes to sales and marketing.

The view has been that there will be a plentiful supply of older people requiring care...more and more so as we all age more... and that local authorities will pay some if not all of care fees.

Even private pay companies have appeared to be somewhat disorganised when it comes to sales and marketing functions. Why? because care homes are a special case and you simply do not need to invest in outbound communication to any master scheme. Why invest, when the return appears to be there anyway?

The private pay sector has become more and more competitive in recent years, and the mid-market operators are just trying to enter it too. Amidst government pressure to keep people at home, too, and DCA's becoming cuter with their marketing the market has just begun to hot up.

Getting an effective internet presence is one thing. Developing a category-beating strategy is another. This is going to be a key sector that will see some real winners and losers based how effective they are at communicating best (as well as delivering the best care).
Source : Guardian Newspaper.

Agree or disagree? Contact Alchemy Communication and let's discuss it!

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Care Homes & Brand Building - Where DoThey Intersect?

Everyone bangs away at the brand drum nowadays. There are specialist companies that will reinvent your brand for you, business analysts that will convince you of the value of a brand, and marketing people telling you how to build it.
 
But the true value of a brand has to be measured by its truth. In a market where care and nursing homes are responsible for the wellbeing of other human beings 24/7, marketing hyperbole and the use of a specific typeface seem somehow peripheral and even unimportant.
 
But understanding how brand thinking applies to a particular market is the key to unlocking wisdom in behaviour and power in communication.
 
The idea of 'your brand' is powerful in this market when it pertains to a group agreement - a code of behaviour if you will - about how you go about your job of caring for others.
 
It has to be based in, yes, a vision about how things should be, but it also has to be based in truth. It is no good claiming superiority, looking superior as a brand when the visitor experience communicates something entirely different.
 
The most meaningful currency in THIS marketplace is trust. "Will you do your best to care for my mum unstintingly, no matter what? And are you resourced and organised enough to be sure that you can follow through as a group with this good intention?" This has to be at the heart of brand thinking.
 
So this is not a game of logos over the door: It means that everyone in the organisation has to understand, believe and stand for what the company states in terms of its brand. They have to believe it and believe in it. Because it should provide the symbol of their intention to serve others, directly and indirectly. And serve as a reminder of how all the company's team and staff will survive and do well at their chosen task.
 
You can see that brand thinking, if handled and understood in the right way could provide the catalyst for standing out against the competition in an authentic way. In a way that resonates and appreciated by prospective residents, residents and their family members.
 
Expressing your brand well in logoform, typefaces and style is a discipline that will support the company and its communication, but it will never replace its need for establishing the group agreement in the first place.

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Alchemy's Community-Targeted Search Marketing Ensures Lower Cost Per Enquiry & Higher ROI.

In today's fiercely competitive on-line 'senior-care' arena, obtaining relevant and responsive requests via your website may well be becoming both increasingly costly and fewer in number.

The increased number of home-care operators and care home intermediary/broking sites on the Internet, all vying for first page search ranking, is fragmenting both the care home search and referral-partner market, resulting in care home operators search messaging and share of visibility increasingly lost in a 'sea' of competing messages, driving up pay-per-click costs.

Whilst entirely measurable, the ability to attract suitable and sufficient enquirers at the appropriate stage in their buying-process is increasingly becoming less of a science…and more of an art.

…..The Art Of Creating A Strong & Unique On-line Proposition.
…..The Art Of Attracting and Converting 'Care Home Searchers'

Alchemy Communication possesses unparalleled experienced in the on-line promotion of multi-location care premises. We understand that it's not about the number of visitors that arrive on your site that is important, but their propensity to contact - The Conversion Rate. Acquiring traffic can be costly and a high Click Through Rate, in itself, does not ensure success. You need to make sure every visit to your site is prepared to engage and possesses a high propensity to 'convert'.

Our expertise in successfully promoting organisations on-line, combined with our in-depth understanding of the senior-care market, its buying-cycle and 'triggers', give us a unique perspective and insight into how to attract and convert visitors on your site.

From tight and responsive scheduling, and the serving of mobile ads to searchers passing your sites…..to placing dynamic ads on relevant, managed 3rd party sites, and tightly targeted 'drive-time' radius campaigns for specific communities with bespoke messaging, Alchemy Communication can assist you in differentiating your service proposition on-line and getting 'in-front of' those searching for care homes in your locations, cost effectively.

Allow us to show you how to both boost your on-line marketing enquiry rates and turn your site into a lead-centric generation tool, boosting your ROI and reducing your cost per enquiry dramatically.

Contact us for your free traffic source and site audit and report, and start increasing both the quantity and quality of senior-care enquiry rates today.