Does your senior care content help families find you before they find a referral agency?
Our industry is a buzz right now with the revolution that is taking place in referral service partnerships. More and more providers are opting out of all or all but a few key relationships with referral services. Referral agencies are as confused about the backlash as Taylor Swift is about all the criticism she’s received for writing a few songs. About a few boys. The sentiment we continue to hear is that while some of these companies have made good partners, many others have taken advantage of a bad economy to overcharge and misrepresent their work. Providers want to be more competitive in getting to families online before referral agencies do. They know that takes unique, fresh and relevant senior care content.
So how can you compete? What senior care content helps families find you early?
At The Senior Care Specialists, we always recommend a content plan that meets families where they are in the senior care decision journey. That means multi-layer content strategies and call to action chains for each step of the journey. Your website isn’t a place to just throw up everything you can think of about you. It needs to be about families’ needs. Your site should be a place to engage families and begin a conversation. Families are putting the pieces of a complex decision together. We all know they don’t do that overnight. It is truly a journey for them.
To help you inventory and strategize your content, we recommend you think about your content in terms of:
Awareness – What rings the earliest alarm bells for families? What are they likely to search for at that time? Remember, this incubation time happens primarily online now. And it is really owned by providers with strong, diverse content. We know from our friends at Pew Internet Research that 85% of consumers start even local searches online. One tip for this stage is to think about the answers families give when you ask them, “What prompted you to call us today?” Those answers are the key to early content success.
Consider – This content answers the “What is” set of questions families are likely to be entering in to a Google search box. They are educating themselves and trying to learn more about what they need. What questions does your site answer?
Evaluate – Once a family is starting to look for specific providers and compare one to another, do you make the cut? What do you provide families with that keeps your assisted living or home care company in the running?
Buy – We know there is a difference between getting a deposit and getting a move-in or start of care. Do you have a strategy that reinforces their decision to choose you? We help clients with review strategies, drip marketing campaigns and other email tools that keep them top of mind with families from deposit to move-in and beyond.
Advocate – Once you have a satisfied new resident and a happy family, what are you doing to turn them in to advocates for your brand? Social media marketing and reviews play a big role in a family’s decision-making. Don’t overlook strategies to capture these word of mouth referrals.
Good luck with your content inventory! Remember, if you don’t have the time or ability to do this yourself, we would love to help. We are Certified Senior Advisors (CSA) and certified SEO copywriters. We develop senior care content that meets families where they are and engages them in a conversation. Can we help you start and develop your conversations? Drop us a note so we can talk more.