In the recently released Home Care Pulse 2020 Benchmarking Study, caregiver shortages and turnover were identified as two of the top five threats facing home care providers. According to AARP, more than 21 percent of American adults are currently providing care for an older loved one at home – up from 18% in 2016, an increase of 9.5 million people. This dramatic increase signals the importance of marketing ideas for home care agencies to attract current caregivers and newcomers to the career. While there is no magic bullet to solve these epic industry issues, there are proven recruitment home health marketing strategies that can be implemented to turn them into opportunities.
Establish Solid Recruitment Brand Messaging
Think of a product or service you use regularly. In nearly all cases, the product or service likely has a strong brand associated with it, one that you identify with as a consumer. Maybe the brand gains loyalty by being environmentally conscious or sports-minded, gives back to a charitable cause, offers impeccable service, or is a local business. Whatever the essence of the brand, it is designed to capture attention and market share, and create and sustain a bond. In short, brand messaging is how you convey your company’s exclusive voice and defines what makes you different from the competition.
However, branding isn’t just for attracting customers anymore. It’s also crucial for attracting caregivers because it establishes the framework of psychological, economical, and practical reasons why someone with many choices would pick your company to work for over your competitors.
In the past, when home care agencies filled jobs from an abundance of candidates, the agency held the power position and branding was not essential. Today, caregivers hold the power position and agencies need to create compelling brand messages that attract candidates and robust brand cultures that retain them.
It’s more important than ever to create a strong company brand that succinctly conveys your company’s culture and mission, as well as informs savvy candidates about your company’s personality, promise, and practical perks (Think: flexible scheduling, online training, career progression, weekly payroll, better job titles, recognition and performance-based rewards, innovation, and communication via preferred technologies, just to name a few.)
Key Takeaway: A strong brand attracts strong caregiver candidates and creates loyalty.
Implement a Recruitment Marketing Plan
According to Home Care Pulse, caregivers provide an average of $13,171 in revenue for a home care agency, and for every $1.00 per hour raise in caregiver pay, caregiver turnover is reduced by an average of 10%. In addition to the incalculable value of well-trained and reliable staff, it’s no wonder that having a recruitment marketing strategy is vitally important to the success of an agency.
Additionally, the Home Care Pulse 2020 Benchmarking Study indicates an average caregiver turnover rate of 33%, and 72% of agencies reporting caregiver shortages. Caregivers are the lifeline of the home care industry. Putting them first and emphasizing their importance is critical to convey in job postings and other recruitment efforts.
When attending job fairs or recruitment events at local colleges or CNA programs, don’t rely on the same one or two staff members to represent your agency. Everyone from leadership to caregiving staff have important stories to tell and can provide unique perspectives on the culture at your agency. With strong messaging and a defined set of core values, your team will enthusiastically share what they have gained by being a member of your staff. These personal interactions will help generate interest around your agency, and place you on the top of the “most wanted” list for job seekers.
It’s important to think of recruitment as an ongoing process that should be occurring daily, not only through well-crafted job postings that communicate your brand and key messages, but also through day-to-day interactions with clients and families, and in your general marketing and advertising efforts. By taking your recruitment efforts and tying them to your sales and marketing efforts, it’s easy to see how the two can combine to create a recipe for success.
Key Takeaway: Never take a day off from recruitment, and incorporate it into everything you do. From marketing targeted specifically to potential employees to marketing targeted to clients and families, build enthusiasm around your agency by demonstrating your commitment to high quality care and consistently showcase the value you place on caregivers.
Partner with an Industry Leader
Partnering with a home care marketing leader like corecubed can help you develop creative recruiting marketing ideas and a recruitment marketing strategy to effectively tell your agency’s brand story and set you apart from the competition. Our team of experts will work with you to distill key messaging to drive the recruitment and retention of top talent, provide customized sales training to prepare staff to speak passionately about why your agency is the local leader in home care, and develop effective search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising strategies to help ensure you reach high-quality caregiving candidates. Contact corecubed to launch your winning recruitment marketing and retention strategy today!