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By Mishelle Payne, Senior Vice President of Marketing, & Michelle Cone, Senior Vice President of Training and Brand Programs
Originally published by Activated Insights
Rather than spreading your efforts thinly across your market, concentrate on where your services are most needed to yield the best results and diversify your efforts.
As the saying goes, “Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit; wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad.” While it’s important to accumulate knowledge and employ widespread strategies, applying that knowledge wisely—in a way that benefits the communities you serve and scales your business—is what truly makes the difference. Rather than spreading your efforts thinly across your market, concentrate on where your services are most needed to yield the best results and diversify your efforts.
You’ve heard of local marketing—a focused approach that helps you target marketing efforts to a specific regional audience. Hyperlocal marketing takes that approach even further by concentrating on particular towns, neighborhoods, street addresses, and even individuals, making your outreach more targeted and personal. This approach can increase your business’s visibility, drive more traffic and conversions, and deliver a higher ROI.
Trust is the cornerstone of any successful business; home care is no exception. It often starts with developing relationships with local decision-makers and referral sources, like hospital discharge planners, doctors, and care facilities. These relationships can turn into partnerships, which can lead to more qualified referrals who are more likely to convert to paying clients. They can also generate word-of-mouth referrals, which are invaluable in the home care industry, generating more than 81% of providers’ revenue, according to the 2024 Activated Insights Benchmarking Report.
To grow word-of-mouth referrals, partner with organizations that complement your agency, like local senior centers, rehab facilities, or senior living communities. Determine how your agency can offer support alongside the services provided at these facilities. Show the families in your community that you’re worthy of their trust and can help fill certain gaps in their current care.
Along with garnering valuable word-of-mouth referrals, you can support local growth through other targeted efforts both in-person and online. Here are several universally beneficial methods to help build a local network and strengthen community bonds as a home care provider:
For John and Eli Collier, HomeWell Care Services owners in Nashville, Tennessee, referral partnerships are all about quality over quantity. One of their marketers was recently introduced to a discharge planner at a major hospital, thanks to a referral from someone who was impressed by their agency’s level of service and knowledge.
“When our marketer told the planner about GoHomeWell [one of HomeWell’s Signature Programs for transitional post-medical care], they were so excited that they invited us to speak to over 30 discharge planners in their hospital,” said Eli Collier. “The first referral they sent us was a trial client who needed care starting that very evening. We had promised to staff all cases within 24 hours, and we were able to get that client started within 4 hours of receiving the referral.”
The Colliers have seen tremendous success in the hyperlocal marketing techniques they’ve employed. Their best strategy has been presenting their professionalism, knowledge, and follow-through. In just three months, from April to July of 2024, their agency saw a 75% increase in hours worked and a 65% increase in revenue.
“The best way we’ve found to strengthen our local partnerships is to offer them true value,” Collier said. “We give free educational presentations that are not pushy or salesy. We teach them things that they can communicate to their senior clients to provide more value. We also work to ensure all our relationships are win-win.”
A big risk home care franchises and agencies face when trying to scale is overextending their resources. This can lead to diluted messaging, inconsistent service delivery, and, ultimately, a weaker brand presence. While it’s certainly possible to employ hyperlocal digital marketing tactics effectively, you must first ensure you have the basics covered and can manage a long-term digital marketing strategy. You can build a firm foundation by nurturing local roots to establish your business as a viable, trustworthy home care provider among online and in-person searchers.
Mishelle Payne, SVP of Marketing, HomeWell Care Services
Mishelle Payne is an accomplished marketing leader with extensive experience in brand development and visual storytelling. Since joining HomeWell Franchising in 2018, she has spearheaded numerous transformative projects, including the design and launch of HomeWell’s award-winning consumer website, which earned the Silver Stevie®️ Award from the American Business Awards®️ for the site’s focus on human connection and its role in the care continuum. Mishelle’s work has been instrumental in positioning HomeWell as a trusted leader in home care and positioning its agencies as thought leaders in the communities they serve.
Under her leadership, HomeWell was also honored with a 2021 Aspect Award for its comprehensive rebranding efforts. Mishelle led the initiative to redefine the company’s visual identity, and positioning, ensuring that HomeWell’s commitment to delivering compassionate care was evident in every touchpoint.
Prior to HomeWell, Mishelle served as Vice President of Creative for WoodSpring Suites at Choice Hotels International, where she co-founded the brand’s identity and established its creative direction for the franchise brand and marketing channels. Her experience also includes previous roles at Rosetta Stone and Carfax, where she built a strong foundation in brand and marketing strategy.
Michelle Cone, SVP of Training and Brand Programs, HomeWell Care Services
Michelle Cone is a dynamic leader and McKnight’s Pinnacle Award for Thought Leadership winner with over 25 years of experience in the post-acute care space, specializing in operations, strategy, compliance, and business development. Before joining HomeWell Franchising in 2016, she worked with many of the top healthcare facilities and home care agencies across the U.S.
Today, Michelle equips HomeWell’s franchise owners with purposeful brand programs and industry-leading training to help them differentiate their agencies. Challenging the traditional general home care model, Michelle leveraged her two decades of experience and data to develop HomeWell’s Signature™ Programs and specialty care offerings for homebound individuals facing distinct health and wellness challenges. These programs include the Go-HomeWell Post-Medical Care™, SureStep Fall Prevention™, Life Enrichment Activities Program™ (LEAP), and hospice, low vision, and dementia support.
Through her innovative leadership, Michelle helped steer HomeWell into a period of unprecedented success, achieving over 130% growth from 2021 to 2023 and expanding its footprint into more than 30 new states over the last five years. HomeWell Franchising has also been consistently recognized nationally as an Inc. 5000 company and has ranked among the nation’s top franchises in Entrepreneur’s Franchise 500® for multiple consecutive years.
At HomeWell Care Services, we provide you with the opportunity to give back to your community and make a positive impact on others’ lives. By owning your own home care franchise, you will help connect homebound individuals and their families with the compassionate support they need. We strive to make the entire process as simple as possible by offering additional franchise support and training. Contact us or download our franchise kit to learn more.