First, thanks to AXXESS, a business focused on solving issues for the home health agency through consultation, training, and software to make it all easier. As a home care marketing expert, marrying my expertise with AXXESS seems logical. I look forward to sharing some marketing expertise with you.

First, when home health agencies talk “marketing”, oftentimes they are talking sales. Instead of calling sales, “sales”, we oftentimes call the sales person the community liaison, or the marketer. Not a sales person. Perhaps it is because marketing used to be forbidden. There are still many instances when the suggested tactics of a marketer need to be run by an attorney or someone who can either approve or reject the idea. Perhaps it is because “sales” has a somewhat tarnished image, evoking the used car salesman, or someone who is pushy and does not listen. Not true in home health, where sales is really solving problems. However, there really is confusion over the definition and processes of marketing and sales.

So, what exactly IS marketing?

Philip Kottler is probably the world’s best known marketing professor. He defines marketing as, “The science and art of exploring, creating and delivering value to satisfy the needs of a target market at a profit.”  He goes on to expand, “Marketing pinpoints the market segments the company serves best; then designs and promotes appropriate products and services.”

“Sales,” he says, “are accomplished after marketing strategy, targeting, lead generation, and contact.” And, you know what else? Customers are retained by good service.

So, in essence, marketing should start with exploring what value the agency brings to their target market. Then, that value should be expanded and delivered, and talked about. Understanding who the agency serves best, and who gains the most from the agency’s services, will help the agency pinpoint who should be getting the communication about the value the agency is delivering.

Let’s take a scenario of a small home health agency started by a nurse. In the course of working as a nurse, the owner made many positive contacts in the hospital, and in a SNF that the hospital used to discharge patients. However, the nurse started the home health agency because he wanted to provide better coordinated care for those patients when they left the SNF, or the hospital, if the patient was released to home.

The value that nurse’s agency brings to the marketplace is one of efficiency, coordination, and follow-through. The patients served by that nurse’s agency are happier, healthier and tend to stay out of the hospital. So, to go to market, that nurse has several things going for him. 1) He has some built in relationships. 2) He has proven statistics about avoiding readmissions and 3) He has a good reputation for providing a quality service.

So, how should that agency go to market? He should use his contacts and get testimonials from them. He should use his readmission statistics as a marketing tool. He should create a loyalty club for those friends and patients who believe his service is best, and who want to also help others who might need home care.

Then, how should he communicate it? He should have a good website to house those testimonials. He should write articles for the local newspaper on tips to make home health successful. He should use social media to post photos of a “day in the life” of a home health nurse using only the backs of patients to protect their identity. And, he should be armed with business cards for each and every possible opportunity to spread the word and grow his circle of referrers.

This nurse’s agency will only expand their reach through communication. They will reinforce their marketing message through visuals that showcase their statistics and spotlight who they are and what they do. Their list of satisfied patients and happy referral sources will grow. And, all of this because the smart nurse used his current contacts and reasons for going into business as his marketing message and differentiation.

Who is your agency targeting? How are you different from the rest? How do you communicate that and to whom?

If you are struggling with creating a strategy, or with confusing branding, or with a sales force that seems to be chasing its tail, Corecubed can help. Visit our website, call or email us. You will be glad you did.

About Merrily Orsini

Merrily Orsini’s professional background combines her skills in technology with her expertise in communicating and a fondness for interacting with people. Her business ownership began with a geriatric care managed in-home care agency, a venture that garnered her the prestigious Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 1996. She would later sell that business and found corecubed in 1998, a digital marketing company that focuses on marketing aging care services using strategy, design and integration to get results for our home care and aging care client partners. Recognized nationally for her expertise in strategic marketing for aging related services, particularly home care and home health services, Orsini is involved in numerous organizations within the home care industry. She is the past Chair of the Private Duty Homecare Association of America, and recently served on the board of the National Association for Home Care and Hospice. Learn more about Merrily at merrilyorsini.com