Do you run a private duty home care and you want to make it a success? If YES, here are 32 practical tips on how to grow your private duty home care business. Starting a private duty home care can be demanding, but the truth remains that it is also a profitable business venture. Since the demand for private duty home services is increasing in places with aging population, more private duty home care businesses are opening up to meet this demand.
If you are a close observer of the Home Care Providers industry that private duty home care business is a part of, you will quite agree that over the last five years, the industry growth has been nurtured by an aging US population, the occurrence of chronic disease, growing physician acceptance of home care, medical advancements and a movement toward cost-efficient treatment options from public and private payers.
Nevertheless, in spite of strong past growth, the funding the industry benefits from government sources has come under intense pressure in recent years. Going forward, Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement cuts will continue to seriously threaten the industry.
Nonetheless, strong and steady revenue growth seems likely for the Home Care Providers industry in the next five years, as a result of an aging population and increasing interest in home healthcare. In essence, if you are already in this line of business, then your responsibility should be how to grow your private duty home care service business and make more profits for the business.
It is fact that you can make your first million dollars within 2 years or more of starting your own private duty home care services, especially if you are in an area where the rush for private duty home care service is high. The good thing about private duty home care service is that if it is well established, your service won’t just be restricted to old people or those who would need you to send nurses to their home, but also some hospitals that are short staffed and would need a trained nurse for a period of time on a contract basis.
If you are already running your own private duty home care and you are looking for practical tips on how to grow your business, then you should read through this article keenly, it will help you grow the capacity of your private duty home care service within the shortest time possible.
32 Practical Tips on How to Grow your Private Duty Home Care
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Partner with Senior Citizens and Retirees’ Associations
One of the major practical tips that you are expected to adopt if you truly want to grow your private duty home care business is to ensure that you partner with senior citizens and retirees’ associations. The truth is that they are your largest market and you must go all out to partner with them so that it will be easier for you to get referrals from them.
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Partner with Hospitals and Medical Clinics that Treats Senior Citizens and People with Disabilities
Another practical tip that you should work with when growing your private duty home care services is to ensure that you partner with hospitals and medical clinics especially the ones that treat senior citizens and people with one form of disability or the other. The truth is that you likely going to get referrals from hospitals and medical clinics if you position your business properly and you are willing to work with them.
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Partner with Medicare and Medicaid Companies
Similar to partnering with hospitals and medical clinics is partnering with Medicare and Medicaid companies. In the united states, these organizations work closely with the elderly and they are in the best positions to recommend good private duty home care providers to clients under their cover. So, if you are into one form of partnership with them, you will sure get referrals on a regular business and that of course will help you grow and expand your business.
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Choose the Ideal Location
The growth of your private duty home care services business is majorly anchored on the location you choose to pitch the business, hence you must be willing to rent or lease a facility in a visible location; a location where the demography consists of senior citizens, people with disabilities, people with chronic diseases and of course people with the required purchasing power, and lifestyle.
If you make the mistake of renting or leasing a facility for your private duty home care services company in a not too visible or hidden location simply because it is cheap, then you must be prepared to spend more in promoting the business.
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Introduce Your Business to Key Stakeholders
One of the practical tips that you should consider using if indeed you want to grow and expand your private duty home care business is to Introduce your business by sending introductory letters alongside your brochure to households, elderly homes, hospitals, religious organizations and organizations for the elderly amongst others with your location of operation. Of course they are your target market and you should do all you can to reach out to them and market your services.
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Launch Out with a Bang
Another surefire practical tip that you should deploy in order to grow your private duty home care business is to launch out with a bang. Launching out with a bang could be opening your private duty home care services company with a party so as to capture the attention of residence who are your first targets and who may likely patronize your business.
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Leverage on Road Show
Similar to launching with a bang when you are working towards growing your private duty home care services business is to engage in roadshows in targeted communities from time to time to market your services. All you need to do to make this approach effective is to do your road show in communities and streets where you have high concentrations of senior citizens.
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Advertise and Promote Your Business on the Media
Another surefire practical tip on how to grow your private duty home care business is to advertise and promote your business on the media. You are expected to place adverts on both print (local newspapers and health related magazines) and electronic (radio and TV) media platforms. Interestingly, even if these media platforms are considered to be traditional, they are the most preferred media platforms that the elderly are comfortable with.
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List Your Business and Products on Yellow Pages Ads (Local Directories)
Listing your private duty home care services business on yellow pages’ ads (local directories) is another sure means of growing the business. The truth is that loads of people still rely on this medium when they are looking for referrals.
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Leverage on the Internet to Promote Your Private Duty Home Care Services Company
Leveraging on the internet to promote your private duty home care services business is yet another practical tip that you must make use of when growing your business. The internet is indeed a massive market for any products or services you intend selling.
You can place adverts and do sponsored posts on high – traffic sites and it will sure attract clientele to you. Interestingly, it is far cheaper to promote your business on the internet that via the print or electronic media platform.
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Engage in Direct Marketing and Sales
Another practical tip on how to grow your private duty home care services business is to engage in direct marketing and sales. This method is ideal if you don’t have money to spend on advertising via print media or any other form of middle – men.
Direct marketing is a form of advertising where organizations communicate directly to customers through a variety of media including cell phone text messaging, email, websites, online adverts, database marketing, fliers, catalog distribution, promotional letters, targeted television, newspapers, magazine advertisements.
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Encourage the use of Word of mouth marketing (Referrals)
Encouraging the use of word of mouth marketing approach is no doubt one of the tips you can leverage on if you want to grow your private duty home care services business. Good enough, this is one cheap and highly reliable means of promoting your business and of course attracting customers.
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Join Local Chambers of Commerce and Industries
If you are interested in growing your private duty home care business, then one sure – fire tip that you can adopt is to join local chambers of commerce and industries around you with the main aim of networking and marketing your services. The truth is that; you are likely going to get referrals from such networks.
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Hire The Services of Marketing Executives
Any business that wants to grow and continue to generate income usually have marketing and sales departments and it is marketing executives that drives the department. So, a good tip on how to grow your private duty home care services business is to engage the services of marketing executives and business developers to carry out direct marketing for you.
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Form Marketing Alliance with Other Companies
Another practical tip that you can adopt if you want to grow your private duty home care services business is to form marketing alliance with other companies. Forming strategic marketing alliance with a competitor does not always come easy because everybody is in business to make money.
Making money for an ideal business person involves executing as much job as possible or selling as much products as possible or registering as much members as possible.
As it relates with private duty home care business, you can form marketing alliance with other private duty home care providers or other related services providers by becoming a sub – contractor to them especially when they have more clients that they can handle, they can easily bank on you to handle such clients for them.
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Create Brand Identity for your Private Duty Home Care Business
Creating brand identity for your private duty home care business is one of the practical tips that can help you grow the business. In recent times more than ever before, businesses/organizations spend more to create the brand identity that they want to be known for in the market place.
The truth is that any business that wants to grow beyond the corner of the street they are operating from must be ready and willing to utilize every available means (both conventional and non – conventional means) to advertise and promote the business.
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Leverage on Direct Coupon Mailing Approach
In the bid to grow your private duty home care services business, one of the practical tips you should adopt is direct coupon mailing approach to introduce your private duty home care services business to residence and organizations in and around the vicinity where your facility is located.
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Print and Distribute Your Handbills
Another interesting practical tip on how to grow your private duty home care is to print attractive handbills and then distribute the handbills in target areas in and around the location where you intend attracting clients.
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Take Advantage of CRM Software
It is one thing to welcome new clients in your business, it is yet another thing to know how to keep them because keeping them is part of what would contribute towards the expansion of your business. Part of what you need to do to achieve that is to make use of effective customer relationship management (CRM) software to effectively manage your customers.
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Sponsor Relevant Community Based Programs
Another practical tip that you should consider applying if you want to grow your private duty home care business is to sponsor relevant community based programs; programs that are targeted towards pulling out senior citizens, people with one form of disability or the other and of course people with chronic and terminal diseases. With that, it will be much easier for you to market your private duty care services and of course to win some clients. You can organize free medical checkups or games et al.
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Leverage on Blogging
Leveraging on blogging is yet another practical tip that you can use when you want to market your private duty home care services. You need to open a blog and engage in blogging on private duty home care services, and related topics that addresses the elderly, people with chronic ailments and of course people with disability.
The truth is that, when you blog regularly on key issues as it relates to your business, people who consider you an expert in the field. You must not fail to make use of the platform to promote your services.
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Give Out Incentives
Another practical and no doubt workable tips that you should employ if you want to grow your private duty home care services is to give out incentives to your customers. Any business that aims towards building a good relationship with its customers and increase repeated business must be willing to give out mouth – watering incentives from time to time not only during special occasions.
As a matter of fact, any company that gives out incentives on a regular basis will not only retain their customers, but they will also continue to attract new customers. So you should continue to reward our loyal customers with incentives on a regular basis.
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Install Your Bill Boards in Strategic Locations in and Around Your City
If you have the financial capacity, one of the practical tips that you can adopt to announce your private duty home care services is to install your bill boards in strategic locations in and around your city. If the bill boards are visible, it will sure imprint your business and brand in the hearts of people.
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Make Use of Mobile Apps
Any means of reaching out to your target market in the world of business is highly welcome and in recent time, most businesses are beginning to establish their presence on mobile apps and you would not want to be left out. So, if you are looking for a practical tip on how to grow your private duty home care services business, then you should look towards building and making use of mobile apps. With mobile apps, especially highly interactive mobile app, there is no limit to audience/clientele out you can reach out to.
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Build Your Business on the Right Foundation
Building your business on the right foundation is no doubt one of the practical tips that you would need if indeed you want to grow your private duty home care business. Just make sure that the right foundation, structures and processes are put in place to ensure that your staff welfare are well taken of. Your company’s corporate culture is designed to drive your business to greater heights and training and re – training of your workforce should be at the top burner.
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Set Up Proper Accounting Structure for Your Private Duty Home Care Business
Setting up a proper accounting structure for your private duty home care business is no doubt one tip that can help you grow the business. Come to think of it, your ability to put proper accounting process in place will go a long way to help you grow the business to profitability.
The truth is that if there are leakages in your business you can hardly make good profits and if care is not taken, the business might close shop. You don’t have to be a chartered accountant to handle your account properly.
You can choose from a host of accounting software such as FreshBooks, Xero, Zoho Books, Sage Intacct, QuickBooks Enterprise, Brightpearl, NetSuite ERP, Happay, SAP Business One and Microsoft Dynamics GP amongst others. Just get their trial version so as to study them to know if it is suitable with your business.
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Never Compromise Excellence
One major practical tip you need if indeed you want to grow your private duty home care business is, never compromise excellence at any stage of your business. Excellence in terms of services and products is what will keep your business growing. People are always willing to pay premium for excellence, so whatever services you are offering as a private duty home care provider, please just make sure the services are top notch.
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Hire Qualified Workers
Another practical tip you would need if indeed you want to grow your private duty home care business is to ensure that you hire only qualified workers. The truth is that if you have qualified employees manning various positions in your company, you will find it easier to manage them; they will know what is expected of them and how to get things done hence the growth of the business.
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Adopt International Best Practices
Businesses these days are all prone to competitions and if you want to stay competitive and grow your business, then you must adopt international best practices. So, if you want to grow your private duty home care business, then you must ensure that you adopt international best practices as it relates to your business or industry. You can always review journals or publications that will bring you up to speed.
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Operate Open Door Policy
Another practical tip that you need to adopt if indeed you want to grow your private duty home care business is to operate open door policy; you should keep your doors open for suggestions from members of your team (your employees) and your clients.
With that in place, you will be able to get suggestions that will help your organization formulate policies that will aid growth. Please note that you are not expected to use all the suggestions that you receive. What is expected from you is to screen and vet the suggestions that you get and only make use of the ones that suits your business or style of management.
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Set Annual Corporate Goals for Growth
Another management practical tip you would need to grow your private duty home care services business is to ensure that you always set annual corporate goals for the organization. Since the essence of going into business is to ensure that the business is growing, the best thing to do is to set annual corporate growth goals of the percentage increase that you expect from your business.
Setting corporate growth goals for your organization would help motivate you and your workers to put in all the effort and expertise required to make it grow. For instance; you could set a benchmark for the increase and a time frame you expect from a particular target.
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Appraise Your Management Styles Annually
Reviewing your management style annually is yet another practical tip you would need to adopt if indeed you want to grow your private duty home care services business. The truth is that no matter the management style that you adopt, it is important to at least review the method to see how effective it was, and if it indeed suits your personality et al.
Part of what you need to do is to go on a retreat with some of your key management staff and then critically examine your management methods to know how far they are faring and if indeed you need to continue with the method or opt for another management method that can guarantee growth for the organization.