DavidSchild
Marketing Specialist
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Jan 31, 2006, 3:02 PM
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Cultivating Consumer Relationships, A path to census-building success
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-- David Schild, President, Marketing Dynamics --
When it comes to generating referrals for long-term care facilities, there is little debate that solid relationships with “the trade” – hospital discharge planners, referring physicians, social workers and other healthcare professionals – are a key to success. It is not surprising, therefore, that most facilities concentrate their outreach efforts on these traditional referral sources.
However, in today’s highly competitive market, both senior communities and long-term care facilities must take advantage of positive word of mouth. Cultivating direct relationships with consumers and formally maintaining relationships with satisfied residents and family members is an integral part of an organization’s “marketing mix” to increase referrals, boost tours and enhance admissions on all levels of care from independent living to specialized Medicare sub-acute programs.
Cultivating direct relationships with consumers
Most facilities/communities understand the importance of maintaining positive awareness of their services in the local community. Many have developed outreach programs whose primary goal is to generate inquiries for the facility/community. However, few take full advantage of those opportunities: turning strangers into friends and friends into referrals.
This is where relationship building comes to the fore. Successful relationship- building programs are not simply based on the distribution of promotional brochures and other self-serving materials. Rather, the facility/community should use its knowledge and expertise in senior care to meet the needs of the community by offering information about healthcare subjects and issues of importance to older adults and their families.
Today, more than ever before, people are taking an active role in their own care and the care of their loved ones. As a result, there is strong interest in senior care-related information and a high level of perceived value attached to it. Whether it is a family member concerned about long-term care options for an aging loved one, a senior interested in learning more about a particular health problem or the recently introduced Medicare Prescription Drug Plan, virtually everyone is looking for answers and information. Using your community outreach program to effectively respond to these needs – with branded materials, educational events, screenings, etc. -- is one of the surest ways to create increased awareness, positive word-of-mouth and, ultimately, the kind of relationships that result in referrals.
Taking advantage of positive word of mouth
For relationships to develop into referral sources, your facility/community must be known and trusted. What better way to shortcut this process than by way of your own “family” of discharges, residents’ families and friends? These audiences already appreciate your quality and presumably have high levels of satisfaction with your care/services as a result of their own experience or that of a friend or loved one. As such, they are all potential ambassadors for you. Yet they are often an afterthought in many outreach programs.
The key to realizing the full value of these relationships is to keep in touch. Reach out regularly, at least once every two or three months. Not with a sales call, but by maintaining your focus on providing useful and relevant information.
For example, a long-term care facility whose relationship-building program continues to embrace Medicare short-term rehab patients after they have returned home is on a clear path to greater appreciation and positive word-of-mouth, and in turn, increased referrals. A similar type of program can be successfully put in to place for a CCRC or standalone assisted living or independent living operation.
Are you using relationship building to your maximum advantage? Given the
high potential for admissions coming directly from these non-traditional referral sources, you can be assured that it will be well worth your time and effort to develop programs that incorporate all of these important building blocks for success.
David Schild is President of Marketing Dynamics, a full-service marketing firm founded in 1983 that specializes in assisting providers with building census. To learn more about Marketing Dynamics’ services, visit their web site www.webuildcensus.com - or contact David Schild at dschild@mdu-inc.com or 1-877-442-3648 extension 100.
(This post was edited by DavidSchild on Feb 1, 2006, 12:11 PM)
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