Social workers are often the crucial link between your home care marketing business and prospective home care clients. In this week’s episode of A Drink With The Hurricane, I will help you figure out how to talk to social workers in a way that will help you get the regular referrals that your company deserves.
When you’ve got all the business that you need, you may not give your relationship with social workers a second thought. But when you’re hoping for significantly more client referrals than you’re consistently getting, it may be time to examine the way that you market to social workers.
Social workers are used to dealing with home care companies. There are things that they expect, reasons why they may or may not refer clients and pet peeves about the ways that home care companies market to them. I’ve spoken with many social workers about these very topics, and I’ve put together an informative video that gives away social workers’ secrets, which I will be showing at the upcoming Hurricane Marketing Boot Camp event.
Social workers like home care marketers who can:
Market with confidence
This doesn’t simply mean that you should talk with a confident tone of voice or give off strong body language.
Rather, it means that you should feel confident that you know the services that your company provides well enough to communicate this information to social workers. Then do it.
Many social workers are concerned that some home care companies promise more than they can deliver. They’re so eager for clients, they may cast too wide a net, and then they’re not able to provide the specialized care that an individual client needs. This can lead to a social worker feeling burned, which can quickly be the end of that social worker referring clients to your business.
Share detailed information
Make sure that social workers learn what services your company can deliver and what you can’t deliver. If you’re honest, you can find yourself a steady stream of clients who are tailor-made for your company.
If your company specializes in live-in care, make sure that social workers know this, so that they think to refer their live-in care clients to you.
If you only do companion care, let them know, so that they don’t refer their live-in care clients to you, which wouldn’t be an ideal match.
If your company has a program that caters to clients with a certain diagnosis, let social workers know, so that your company’s name comes to mind when they have a new client with that diagnosis.
Inform your marketing reps
Sometimes, social workers communicate with the marketing representative of a home care company, and the marketing rep doesn’t have a good sense of the types of clients that would be best referred to the company. This communication breakdown can lead to missed opportunities and fewer referrals.
Well-established home care companies usually know the best ways to market to social workers, whether through a marketing rep or not. If you’ve got a growing company and you’re seeking more business, the best way to get repeat clients from social workers is to be honest about the services that your business offers and specializing, rather than casting too wide a net, and be certain that your marketing rep share this information.
When you adopt this philosophy, you’ll see greater success over time. The more confident that a social worker becomes in your ability to provide the qualify care that you say that your company can deliver, the more confident she will be to refer clients to your company on a consistent basis.
For more detailed information about what social workers are looking for from home care companies and how to increase your referrals, attend our upcoming 3-day event, Hurricane Marketing Boot Camp. When we see you there, we’ll teach you how to Blow Away The Competition!
