We know how frustrating it can be to invest in setting up a business and delivering the right service but with low patronage. In today’s competitive world and talent shortage, every business’s success is tied to its marketing strategies, and home care agencies are no exception.  

Marketing your home care services can be hard. If you are a home care agency that is thinking about marketing or is just new to marketing, you might not know how to do it right. Or probably do not have the people resources to do it. Either way, it is a critical ingredient for growth and revenue. [LINK: Download Our Home Care Essentials Marketing Checklist]. 

Delivering quality service is not enough to get the right number of clients trooping in. Marketing is required to regularly put you in the face of your target clients (not in an annoying way, though!). Amongst several reasons why home care agencies need marketing, here are some of the reasons you need to include marketing quickly in your strategy and the best marketing approach to adopt: 

Brand Awareness 

Marketing help build awareness of the agency and its services. This is important because many people are not aware of the services that homecare agencies can provide.  

INSERT ANCHOR MARKETING QUOTE 

Market strategies to adopt: 

Social media marketing:

Invest in content marketing for social media. Create branded content, and client-focused content, run social media ads and use visuals to drive appeal and engagement. Ensure you are sharing valuable information about your company and its activities in the best possible format. 

You may argue your clients are seniors, therefore, they probably aren’t regular online, so why waste resources on social media? Well, the Pew Research Center estimates that 80% of Americans aged 55 overuse the internet, and since 1992, today’s 65-year-olds have spent a significant portion of their adult life directly experiencing technological advancements since the launch of the first internet browser. 86%, according to the report spend at least six hours a day online and own an average of five devices. They are online! 

Also note that these seniors have families, and these consist of Gen Z too. If you do a good job with your online marketing efforts, you will be seen by these family members who will contact you on behalf of their elderly ones. 

Set up Google My Business Profile:

You need to be visible online. This does not stop at having a website only. Google My Business is a free profile tool that helps your business get easily found by prospective clients especially those in nearby locations. Ensure to set up one if you haven’t. 

Increase client base through continuous engagement 

Effective marketing help attract new clients and grow the agency’s business. With a robust structure, and lead generation strategies, you will see a boost in your client base. And more clients mean increased revenue. 

Anchor Client Survey Services 

Market strategies to adopt: 

Social media marketing:

Be consistent and intentional about your social media presence. Put out quality and engaging posts regularly. Have effective Call-to Actions in all your posts. Try to get the posts in the palms of your clients’ hands. 

Ask for reviews and referrals from your clients and followers. It increases your visibility and boosts your chances of growing your client’s base.  

As part of your online marketing strategies, build a strong SEO strategy by having optimised landing pages that show up on search results for specific keywords. 

Word of Mouth Marketing:

This traditional way is still effective today. Ask clients, family and friends to spread the word about your services. Ask for shares of your posts. 

Run Google Ads:

Google ads are efficient at improving visibility if done right.  

Guest Post and webinar collaborations:

Volunteer to write a guest article for any of the popular healthcare blogs. You can also appear on webinars organised by home care agencies or organise one and get some of the prominent people in the industry on board. This boosts your credibility and increases your visibility. All these translate to increased followers and clients. 

[INSERT INFOGRAPHIC Of Services] 

Foster a strong relationship with referral sources 

Marketing helps you develop strong relationships with referral sources and other health care professionals. [Anchor Group Sign-up

This is essential as referral sources provide a steady stream of new clients for the agency. Establishing referral partnerships might be a challenging endeavour. It requires the right people and strategy to succeed. You will need a quality of care report to get started. You can run an internal survey to gather the data that can be presented to referral sources. Monitoring and addressing hospital readmission rates are another challenging aspect to address. Utilising this information will demonstrate to referral sources your credibility and commitment to the cause. 

PRO TIP:

Ensure that on your website, you have a page that shows client testimonials expressing their care satisfaction. 

If you need help with this entire process, reach out to us here. 

Promotes your brand reputation 

Marketing promotes agencies’ brand and reputation. This is important because the agency’s brand and reputation can help it attract and retain clients.  To promote your brand reputation, utilise digital means. Everything from your online materials to the tone of voice, to visuals, should be clearly communicated and show your core values in all your communications.  

Conclusion 

No doubt marketing is important for all businesses as it provides immense value for growth. If your marketing strategies are not working as you hope to, then something is certainly wrong with that strategy. Get data insights on why and what is not working. This will help you make better decisions. 

Now over to you. Why have you not utilised online marketing options? If you have and you’re experiencing challenges, which area are you struggling with? Tell us below in the comments. 

If you need professional support, the Anchor Group offers marketing services that deliver results. Get in touch so we can make your marketing journey a seamless one. Leave us comments below  

Importance of caregiver training

In an industry saddled with the shortage of home care workers, you want to lessen the burden by doing all you can to retain your top talent and even attract more talent. Many caregivers complain about a lack of training; this is not good for your agency, given the fact that most workers are likely to stay longer in an agency that meets their growth and development goals. Seventy-six percent1 (76%) of employees say they are likely to join an agency that provides them with opportunities for career advancements and learning. 

To give your agency the edge, it is not just enough to encourage training; you should have an embedded success track into your enhancement program to ensure full participation from your workers. If you have done that, kudos to you! However, if you are struggling to get your caregivers to initiate and complete their training, here are five easy steps you can achieve that – despite their busy schedules: 

  1. Provide a flexible learning structure 
  1. Give incentives for completion of training  
  1. Give them options for specialization 
  1. Make it fun 
  1. Make it about them not you 

Provide a flexible learning structure 

Statistics show that seventy-four percent2 (74%) of workers are willing to learn new skills or re-train in order to remain employable. However, herein lies the problem of conflicting schedules that deter several caregivers from racing to the end of their training—especially for the many caregivers who are busy working for multiple agencies.  Providing a learning model that is flexible, self-paced, and suitable for each caregiver is a benefit to your organization. Anchor LMS Benefits cross-link]. This will help caregivers finish their training on time. 

Give Incentives for completion of training 

Rewards are always a great motivator for getting anything done. You can introduce a reward system where a caregiver who completes their training gets a dollar incentive, a prize or a gift, or whatever you have in mind to reward your team with. Celebrate their little wins. Go a bit further and share a certificate of completion or recognize them on your social media. 

LINK: Download Our Anchor Employee Incentive Guide  

Give them options for specialization 

Today, in the highly competitive labour market, home care agencies are facing the same level of competition as many other companies from big-box retail options like Amazon, Target, Walmart, etc.  An interesting trend right now is companies providing attractive benefits that will keep their workers and draw in new talent. 

However, companies must know that no matter how attractive their incentive is, if it isn’t helping your caregivers improve in areas they desire to grow, they will accept the incentive and leave anyway. Seventy-six percent (76%) of employees say that a company would be more appealing if it offered additional skills training to its staff. 

Home care agencies can create genuine loyalty by making an investment in the futures of their workers by providing them with the resources and education they require to succeed on all fronts—professional development, interpersonal skills, career mobility, disease-specific training, technology skills, etc. Give them options to specialize and choose areas of interest.  If all your training is just compliance-focused, what is really in it for your caregivers? 

Make it Fun 

If it’s fun, then it will be interesting! Learning is easier when it is dynamic and interactive and speaks to the audience you are training. To motivate your caregivers to learn quickly, attach insightful games they can play and win a prize as part of the learning process. This is a method widely used by online learning organizations. It makes learning engaging and motivates completion. [IMAGE] 

Make it about them not you 

It is easy to force your interests and goals on your caregivers without remembering to stop and think about how they feel, and what they want. It’s important to communicate effectively with your caregivers and get feedback from them concerning the training and their general job execution. They have ideas to share too. 

Their growth is also for the benefit of the organization. Be genuinely interested in knowing your workers personally and individually. Involving them in the decision-making process gives them a sense of acceptance and inclusion. Workers who recognize how much the organization is investing in them and prioritizing their interests will have the incentive to stay and give the job their best shot. 

Ensure you make available learning development programs that are tailored specifically for your caregiver’s growth. A survey is a wonderful way to engage and keep a pulse. [Cross reference: Anchor Blog – “How To Maximize Employee Surveys With 3 Simple Strategies]. 

Final Thoughts 

The importance of training cannot be overemphasized. According to 2022 statistics, fifty-nine per cent (59%) of workers say that they received no workplace training and that many of their skills were self-taught while 70% of workers would be very likely to leave their current role to work for a company that places a high priority on employee growth and development. Training is a vital element in a company’s growth. If neglected, your business will suffer. 

We hope you find this information helpful. If you need professional help planning training for your healthcare workers, call here and we will be happy to help plan and facilitate your training.  

Let’s create a winning strategy together. Learn how you can take our talent optimization assessment to fortify your workforce management Anchor Talent Assessment 

For many companies, the post-COVID recovery continues to be slow progress. At the heart of companies’ struggle to revive their profitability is the high turnover of talent. The job market is highly competitive with more employees quitting their jobs and moving to organizations that provide them with the opportunities and environment they desire, and some employees are just being their own bosses. 

Without the right talent pool, your company will not be able to provide quality care and outperform the competition. A widespread truth is a fact that HR and talent functions must be constantly evolving to attract fresh talent and keep high potential and committed individuals on staff.  A committed, motivated, and fulfilled workforce helps your organization to grow, and are often your best brand ambassador.  

But how do you achieve this level of engagement? The answer is talent optimization!  

What is talent optimization? 

Talent optimization is simply a process of aligning your business strategy with people strategy for optimum results—in essence, your organization’s ability to increase the impact of your programs through enhanced employee satisfaction, without jeopardizing your organization’s goals and values.  Business leaders leverage talent optimization frameworks to create effective talent acquisition and management plans, manage talent risk and liabilities, and introduce technology to support the streamlining of their talent operations.   

The four key strategic areas of talent optimization are: 

  • Talent acquisition  
  • Talent retention  
  • Succession planning 
  • Strategic talent planning 

To maintain a competitive edge, you must implement talent optimization strategies that align with your business strategy. A happy employee results in an increase in ROI, retention rate, and productivity (we can make this a quote asking readers to click for a retweet in the article)

Top 3 retention-focused talent optimization strategies that work and how to implement them 

There are several strategies to use in optimizing your talent retention, but we will be sharing just three in this post. Let’s get into it. 

Offering the right incentives 

Incentives mean a lot to employees. From bonuses to rewards, fun gifts to profit sharing, you name them. These incentive programs are essential in boosting employee productivity, performance, and morale. Why is this strategy important? The Predictive Index 2022 report shows the No. 1 driver of retention is benefits. According to a report from Gallup, highly engaged employees are less likely to leave an organization that appreciates them and encourages their contribution.  

Companies are often challenged when it comes to developing captivating incentives and employee perks. How do you know and choose the right incentives that are aligned with your workforce growth and engagement? It is important to understand this process to avoid activations that look good but don’t work.  

PRO TIP: If it isn’t helping your workers improve in areas they desire to grow; they will accept the incentive and still leave anyway. Performance Reviews and Surveys are a great solution to pair strategy and professional development goals. 

How to implement this strategy: Collect adequate people data: 

Data is very crucial in making an informed business decision. Start by collecting data about your workers to understand their needs, strengths, skill gaps, cognitive abilities, culture fit, knowledge, personality, and personal goals. This process starts before you post that opening on job boards, right through to after you’ve acquired the talent. The employees can also help you to answer the incentive question, just ask them what they want.  

Evaluate their performance and analyze the data you’ve collected. With the information you have, you can make decisions on the best and most impactful incentives to offer—don’t be blindsided, ultimately, any incentive program should advance your business strategy. 

This talent retention strategy works and leads to low turnover. 

Blog Link: Creating Measurable KPIs that Strengthen Your Workforce  

Anchor Employee Survey Services 

Training and upskilling 

The importance of training cannot be overstated. The stats are available to confirm how vital this is for employees. One of the major reasons people quit their jobs is the lack of career advancement opportunities and training. This downloadable  Report shows that “retention rates rise 30-50% for companies with strong learning cultures”. 

Training and upskilling are optimization strategies you can use to keep your employees engaged and motivated. Set up a learning culture that fosters their growth. It can be quarterly training programs, and workshops like [Anchor LMS] that assist in improving their skills. The more they improve, the more confident they become and the more effective in their role. This translates to revenue increase and retention rate. 

READ: 5 Easy Ways to Motivate Caregivers to Refresh their training 

As stated in the first point, use data analytics to determine the appropriate training for your workforce and prepare them for the future. You are at liberty to tweak this strategy on an ongoing basis. 

If you need professional support visit our talent optimizer page for further action. 

Developing A Growth Mindset in your employees 

According to Harvard Business Review, “personnel at organizations with growth mindsets are 34% more likely to experience a strong sense of commitment to the company”. A growth mindset is essential for employees who want to be successful in their careers. This mindset involves a belief that one’s skills and abilities can be developed through effort and dedication.  

With a growth mindset, employees are more likely to be motivated to learn new skills and to persist in the face of challenges. They are also more likely to be resilient in the face of setbacks. Organizations that foster a growth mindset among their employees are more likely to be successful. Such organizations create an environment that supports learning and development. They also provide opportunities for employees to stretch themselves and take on new challenges. 

Employees with a growth mindset are better equipped to deal with change and adapt to new situations. They are also more likely to be innovative and embrace new ideas. 

Organizations that encourage a growth mindset among their employees are more likely to be successful in the long term. Such organizations create an environment that is conducive to learning and development. They also provide opportunities for employees to challenge themselves and take on new responsibilities.  

How to implement this strategy: 

Though output is important, the reality is your team will not have the capacity to achieve your desired output without the requisite guidance and skill development. Revamping those job descriptions and ensuring that each employee is clear about the goal of their function, giving them the tools to win.  Inquire today about the Anchor Competency Assessment focused on skill development that will improve output.    

Conclusion 

To thrive in today’s competitive world, you must embrace talent retention as it offers numerous benefits for your business and accomplishes strategies to get your company continually advancing. Optimizing your talents proffer numerous benefits for your business and accomplish the revenue returns you want. The truth is it requires the right talent to lead the charge. 

Front-line employees are the backbone of service delivery. We assist our clients to build the right framework to onboard, source, nurture, and reward the best caregivers. Building a motivated workforce requires that you focus on talent acquisition and talent retention. Get started by learning about our talent optimizer assessment today. 

Introduction

How do you make sure your company obtains the greatest outcomes from your recruitment strategy in this post-COVID era, considering the highly competitive job market? Business leaders know top talent is at the center of their business functioning and service delivery; they cannot afford not to have the right talents on the front line charging their cause. To be ahead of the competition, it is rewarding to be up to date with the optimized recruitment processes and best tools and technologies. 

In this article, we share three experts’ best practices for gaining top talent for your business. Let’s explore them. 

  1. Optimized recruitment process 
  1. Leveraging assessments 
  1. Data-enabled process and other HR technology 

Optimized recruitment process 

To be a step ahead of your competition, you must put in place a current and optimized recruitment process. Business can no longer be done as usual; you know this and that’s why you’re reading this article right now. Recruitment is marketing—as such is important to answer critical questions—how strong is your brand, and how well is it represented? Are you communicating the roles clearly, and is your organization reflective of one that an employee would be happy to join?  

In the same way that a company would anticipate evaluating what a prospective hire has to offer, job applicants of these times are also evaluating what the company and the position can offer them. Develop and improve your business with a talent-focused approach. Adapt your hiring process with your talent’s needs in mind.  

Every branded information should be uniform and focused on prospective candidates. Design a process that utilizes social media for engagement and marketing. Your recruitment process should not be lengthy; otherwise, applicants may lose interest. 

Adopt a modern video screening process and automated CV screening. Put in perspective key qualifying factors such as skills, personality, experience, culture fit, and others at the forefront of the hiring process.   

 See why our Talent Assessment is a game changer in the home care space! 

Leveraging Assessments 

Assessments may not directly tell you whom to hire but give you the data you need to make an informed decision on the type of candidate that suits your requirements. Assessment tests are created specifically to evaluate a candidate’s talents and acquire important data regarding their personality, competencies, and skills. Most times, these tests assist in determining a candidate’s likelihood of performing well on the job. Utilize assessment tools to gauge the success and efficiency of your hiring process. 

Assessments help you streamline your hiring process, and this saves cost. Clearly, businesses that invest in an organized hiring process are more likely to find success in getting the best talent, and thoroughly verified assessment tools serve as a huge help in expediting the process. 

[View: Anchor talent optimization assessment ] – this assessment can assist you in evaluating and streamlining your total recruitment and onboarding process. 

Data-enabled process and other HR Technology 

Finding, developing, and expanding people that demonstrate both the necessary abilities and company culture fit is the bedrock of organizational effectiveness. The success or failure of your corporate talent will eventually be determined by tracking, which is the initial component of data collection. Critical tracking data is based on the layout of each advanced talent acquisition step. To build and improve processes, it is fundamentally important to consider the interval between each step and activity executed.  

Connect your tracking system with your social media accounts. Use HR technologies such as ATS and CRM to automate repetitive tasks/processes. Analyze your most productive hiring methods and best performers and apply the information you learn to improve your hiring procedures. With the data you have, you can focus your efforts and procedures on the proven techniques and talents that have been demonstrated to be the most successful. 

Conclusion 

As a business leader or HR manager, be flexible and open to investing in your recruitment process. Stay up to date with trends and tools, invest in recruitment managers, and optimize your processes for the best results. Another bonus takeaway is that, in finding the top talents, don’t be afraid to reach out to passive candidates. 

We hope you find this valuable. Share in the comments what best practices resonates with you most and where you are in your recruitment process. 

Need professional support? Take our talent assessment here or get in touch with us here for further information. 

When the COVID outbreak was in full swing, the importance of an effective and adaptable workforce became rivetingly clear to businesses. When it comes to the successful functioning of any company, regardless of its size, effective methods of communication with employees are a crucial factor and can either contribute to its success or successful survival.  

This is especially true in today’s age where health care practitioners are particularly overworked and overwhelmed, but those working together as a team can help make even more out of their individual skillsets. Increased awareness and attention to finding ways to optimize teams are beneficial, as can be seen with many companies who have learned how to work better together through some simple steps like recognizing important life events like birthdays or making time for quick conversations that lead to valuable insights.  

As a business leader, to develop a talent strategy that is in line with your organization’s business strategy, talent optimization is what you need to achieve that as it outlines each phase in detail. Magic happens when you match your employees’ goals with those of your business, and stimulating your workforce is easier than you first thought possible. Having the right talents in the right roles and doing the right things that meet the organization’s objectives is a gamechanger for your homecare business.  

So, what do you stand to gain when you optimize your talents? 

 “Agility is a critical agent of talent optimisation. Agile thinking helps to perfect the process flows, thus making for a more streamlined engagement of all the talent involved” 

Top 7 Benefits of Talent Optimization 

Here are some of the benefits of talent optimization and why you need to act immediately. 

  1. Lowers employee turnover rate and the related costs of operating understaffed. 
  1. Boosts employee engagement resulting in increased productivity 
  1. Leads to higher revenue 
  1. Simplify the recruitment process 
  1. Helps you understand the best way to align your business goals with that of your workers 
  1. Helps you identify the most appropriate work culture, policies and processes for your team’s success 
  1. Establishing strategic goals with greater accuracy is possible with a better understanding of employee talent. 

Why do you need to optimize your talent? 

Talent optimization, when done right, will provide you with a big advantage against your competitors. It is highly profitable. A 2022 Report by the Predictive Index shows talent-optimized companies are nearly twice more likely to avoid the brunt of The Great Resignation than their counterparts. Companies that used talent optimization strategies saw more revenue increase than others outperforming their peers by 35%.  

Talent Optimization is the framework by which human resources, C-suites, and businesses can best achieve their objectives. With it, businesses can implement strategies to provide better service and ultimately increase revenues. 

Is your company talent-optimized? [ START TODAY

ANCHOR TALENT OPTIMIZER MODEL 

Things to consider when optimizing your talent 

There are a few key things to keep in mind when optimizing your talent pool for a home care agency. Here are a few useful tips.  

Consider the type of care your agency provides:

Are you focused on nursing care, personal care, or a combination of both? This will help you to identify the types of talent you need to be successful. 

Identify your organization structure:

Is your work culture appealing to the talent? Do you have the necessary structures in place? Identifying this will help you gain insight into what you can change or improve to make your agency an appealing place to work in. The ideal organizational structure is one that is in sync with your business strategy. 

Identify the strengths of workers:

Look at your current staff and see where their talents lie. Are there any areas where you could use some improvement? If so, start by recruiting individuals with the necessary skills to fill those gaps. 

Training:

Don’t forget to train and develop your existing staff. They may not be perfect, but with the right guidance and support, they can be an asset to your agency. By investing in your staff, you’ll be better positioned to provide high-quality care to your clients. 

Tips for the effective talent optimization process 

Here are a few things that homecare agencies can do to optimize their talent.  

Identify skill gaps:

You start by identifying the specific skills and experience that you need from your employees.  

Use an optimized recruitment strategy:

Home care agencies should develop a recruiting strategy that targets individuals with these qualities. Once you have a pool of qualified candidates, you should then focus on selecting the best possible employees through a rigorous interview process.  

Regular in-house training:

Provide employees with ongoing training and development opportunities to help them hone their skills and keep up with the latest industry trends. By following these steps, homecare agencies can ensure that they have the best possible employees working for them. 

Conclusion 

We believe that Talent Optimization is going to revolutionize Human Resource departments, Strategy, and Account Management in the years to come. People-focused strategy is the route to take because your people, your culture, and the relationships that you take time to cultivate are the most valuable assets you have. These ingredients are essential for success.  

Ready to future-proof your workforce but don’t know where to start? Get started by taking out talent optimizer assessments to help you understand where you are and what strategies will work for your home care business. 

We all enjoy conducting surveys, whether for personal reasons or as part of our work. Not only are they enjoyable, but they also give us important information about our emotional and physical well-being. This idea of gathering valuable data through surveys is also applicable in the workplace! Consider employee engagement surveys. These are excellent approaches to determining employee satisfaction levels inside your organization and ensuring that you’re treating your personnel (and your business) fairly.  

What is an employee survey? 

An employee survey is a tool used by organizations to collect feedback from employees about various aspects of their job and workplace. The survey can cover a wide range of topics, from job satisfaction and engagement to company culture and leadership. Employee surveys can be conducted online, via paper surveys, or even in person. The results of the survey can help organizations identify areas where they need to make improvements in order to create a more positive work environment for employees.  

Reasons you should conduct an employee survey 

Here are a few reasons why you should conduct an employee survey. 

  • Helps you discover and measure the engagement level of your workers. Measures employee satisfaction. 
  • Helps you know the key drivers of employee satisfaction 
  • It helps you uncover the skill and knowledge gaps of your employees and areas they need improvement. 
  • Gives you an insight as to what to improve 
  • Gives employees a chance to be heard and involved thereby establishing a two-way communication 
  • Boost employee engagement 
  • By performing employee engagement surveys, you can measure the data for a point-by-point comparison. To understand how your firm performs in comparison to other companies of a similar size, you can look at individual outcomes and compare them with industry-specific data. By using benchmarking, you may also determine whether a problem is unique to your business or affects the entire sector. 
  • Gives you an insight into your workers’ behaviour and helps you predict their chances of turnover in the future 

How to maximize employee surveys with three simple strategies that work 

In order to maximize employee survey participation, employers should consider using a few simple strategies. Here are 3 simple employee survey strategies we believe will give you an optimum result. 

The survey should be Easy and Clear: 

It is vital to make the survey process as easy and convenient as possible for employees by providing clear instructions and a dedicated survey platform. Questions should be comprehensible, short and give room for honest responses. 

Incentivize the process: 

Incentivize employees to participate by offering rewards for completing the survey. Little rewards like buying everyone lunch for completing the survey may encourage them to go on with the exercise. You are at liberty to try any incentive you want. 

Make it anonymous 

Encourage employees to provide honest feedback by ensuring that the survey is confidential and anonymous. Most times, employees are not comfortable sharing their honest feedback in a face-to-face scenario. That’s why an online survey is mostly encouraged. Or use a third-party company to carry out an in-person survey without their identities linked to the results. Ensure you use a method and platform that aligns with employees’ flow of work and what they are most comfortable with. 

What to do after the survey 

Act! Follow up and put your findings into actionable steps. Implementing these responses encourages your employees to share more feedback when another opportunity comes. It helps them know their opinion counts and it also shows you listen and are ready to drive change in areas needed. 

In Summary 

Clarity, anonymity, and leveraging incentives are some of the strategies you can use in deploying employee surveys. By taking these steps, employers can ensure that they get the most out of their employee surveys. Most importantly, it helps you prepare your workforce for the future. 

Let’s hear from you. What are some of the strategies you use and which of the strategies mentioned in this post resonate with you most? 

If you are planning on conducting an employee survey soon but don’t know how to go about it, get in touch with us right here and we’re happy to help! Download our Employee Survey Guide here