In the highly competitive world of aging care, your competitors are often seen as your enemies. Competition is a double edged sword. On the one hand, your competitors open up a wider market and offer more options for your potential clients. They may even “steal” some of your current clients. On the other hand, your competitors make you work harder to create better products and services so that you can not only attract more home health care leads, but also keep the clients you have satisfied and loyal to your company.

In fact, it’s better to view your competition not as the enemy, but as a lesson in better marketing. The following are just a few things your competitors can teach you about how to market your services better.

1. What a good (and bad) website looks like. A quality website is vital; I think we’ve covered that a few times on this blog. And your competitors can give you a good idea of what a good site looks like, as well as what a bad site looks like. Take a look at some of your competitors’ sites. What is your first impression? Are they easy to navigate? Can you find the information you need? Are there calls to action on each page? Are the images high-quality? What about the content? Is it easy to read? Are there misspellings and typos everywhere? It takes a good designer’s eye to create a compelling site, but your competitors’ websites can let you know where yours stands in the grand scheme.
2. How to create better blog content. If you’re blogging, and you should be, you may notice a decline in readership and comments from time to time. This may be because you’re not updating your blog content regularly, or perhaps you’re feeling tapped out for new and original ideas. Read your competitors’ blogs. Are they better written than yours? Are their headlines catchier? Are they writing about topics that you should be writing about? What kinds of keywords do you see them using?
3. How to create captivating email campaigns that get clicked. Have you subscribed to your competitors’ newsletters? If not, do so now. Their email campaigns can teach you a great deal about how to improve your own. When you receive a newsletter from a competitor, take a moment to review the subject line and/or preview text. The subject alone should be creative, yet to the point, and it should compel the reader to want to open the email to learn more. Once you’ve opened the email, note the design of the campaign. Are the graphics exciting? Do they match the message? And is that message well written? Is there a way to click over to the company’s website to learn more or contact someone?
4. How to better use social media. Social media is still quite overwhelming to many people in the aging care industry, but a quick look at where your competitors are pushing out their content can help you better determine the type of social media presence you should have. Is your competition on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+, and Pinterest? If so, are they updating their content as regularly as they should or have their pages stalled for weeks or months on end without updates? Are they using industry keywords in their posts?

Evaluating your competitors’ marketing can help you determine where your own marketing falls short, but you may also realize just how much better you’re doing at marketing your services than those around you. Regardless of whether you’re ahead of the game or falling short, marketing today is an ongoing process, and you can’t stand still even if you’re on top of the heap. A dedicated marketing expert, like those at corecubed, can help your agency get quality home health care leads to stay ahead of the curve and your competition. Contact us to learn more.