As most home care operators know, there are always desired improvements that can be found in your operation. Value is found not just in the what, but also the where and when to focus improvements, continually developing new efficiencies within daily operations. Whether it’s development of the workforce, conversions in sales, delivery of quality assurance, or how we are telling our brand story, are all important to growth and value of your business.
While Six Sense Solutions focuses on what the data tells us, where the best market opportunities lie, and when to implement key strategies, we also dive deep into the systems that support the home care client. Before we look at things internally, you may want to evaluate what your competition is doing.
Analyze Pricing
Recently, Sixth Sense Solutions helped a home care client survey competitive pricing in a major metropolitan area that had increased minimum wages.
While we had just completed a similar price survey for this client within the last two years, we understand that the marketplace is dynamic, and top-performing home care operations stay on top of changes, competitive behavior and market conditions. The bottom line is: your competition is adapting; you should be too.
Identify Marketing Strategies
There are a variety of marketing strategies you could employ, but you need to make sure you’re drawing in the right customer.
In order to figure out what to showcase to your audience, you need to identify the differentiators between your business/care model and the competition in your market.
For example, are you a premium service only? Are you a registry, PEO, or ESOP? Do you operate a model that’s blended?
Sixth Sense Solutions’ Findings
We spoke to companies that had a dual delivery model of a 1099 registry at $X per hour – where payroll was conducted through a 3rd party and done through direct withdrawal or credit card for the consumer. They operated a separate employee agency model under the same parent group with W2 employees with a customized care plan, 24-hour on-call, and nurse oversight.
That pricing was $5 more per hour, where any needs totaling more than five hours was a discounted price.
It isn’t always dollars and cents. We ran into endless combinations of pricing structures, and many of them were too complex or potentially confusing to the customer.
We also investigated how the competition executed their sales funnels. We analyzed the calls, the variety of service offerings, and the styles of communication that they had with prospects.
It led us to their customer service.
Customer Service
How competitors charge customers isn’t the only thing Sixth Sense Solutions assesses.
We also wanted to see how the competition’s customer service and lead-nurturing unfolded. A small sampling of companies engaged with our inquiries right away. These few competitors were on the right track. It was more common for us to experience unnecessary wait times being put on hold.
We also experienced having our call transferred, only to find little additional information with the next person to whom we were transferred. If our competitors aren’t treating people who are searching for answers with proper respect, care, and urgency, our client could capitalize on this grave mistake.
The Sixth Sense Difference
Sixth Sense Solutions identifies and works with your group to clear all unnecessary obstacles for the prospect, assisting in that “handshake” with a friendly helpful home care company.
A client is more than a figure in your bottom line. While systems are necessary to operate efficiently, success starts when you cultivate the relationship during that initial call. It’s great to process dozens of leads a day, but simply relaying information about pricing and services without connecting with the customers is a costly mistake.
These are some obstacles your business can’t afford in your demand-based service market saturated with competition. When was the last time that you looked at your internal systems and scrutinized your call-handling? Your phone screeners are the first touch points for clients. The best sales team on the planet can’t close if they aren’t receiving prospects from the people answering your phones, and the best caregivers can’t care for clients that don’t come into your fold.
We’ve seen firsthand – your competition is dropping the ball because of a lack of best practices, and we’ve also seen it happen to really great companies. We can help you capitalize. Schedule a discovery meeting with Sixth Sense Solutions today. Call us today at 949-241-6690, or you can reach our team via email at info@SixSenseSolutions.com.