Many things have changed in 2024 regarding marketing, but the fundamentals are still the same.

Let me take a few minutes to explain the value of using video for marketing your care services and how you might make the most of that this year.

Building Trust

A fundamental principle of marketing is about building trust. Video is one of the strongest ways (before speaking directly with potential customers) to connect and build that trust. 

Our clients often mention that when prospective customers visit the services they will say ‘oh I saw you in the video, I feel like I already know you’ – that little interaction builds a huge amount of trust. Within your care setting your team is a key part of the marketing and sales process. Being able to see the people the prospective customers saw on your website and in your videos validates that all that information is real.

Weight of Evidence

When a prospective customer and or their family is looking into care, there is a lot of information for them to take in to help them with their decision. When someone identifies that they or a loved one needs care, their process begins with collecting evidence to help them make the best choice possible.

We all know ‘Word of Mouth’ is the way most care companies find new residents/clients to work with. Have you ever thought about what happens in this process?

Let me set the scene for you…

Kim is chatting with Julie. Kim is worried about Mum and is thinking about her care needs. Julie’s Dad went to this fantastic care home which she highly recommends. Later that day Kim goes online to do a bit of research before contacting the home. 

What happens next will vary from person to person, but the impression they get needs to be a fantastic one or they might never get in touch. Whether they like a deep dive or just a quick look, they have to feel that the online presence matches the recommendation they got from their friend. 

Imagine the same scene but with a physical shop. When Kim goes to the shop, if it looks really terrible, even if Julie said it was fantastic, she might not go in. Is your digital shop front up to scratch? Does your website work, look modern, and have REAL pictures, videos, reviews from your current clients, your CQC rating, and profiles of your team members? Does the experience online reflect the customer experience you provide?

Digital Shop Front

Sadly we live in a cynical world and believe it or not people do not believe everything they see online (yes, I know sometimes it seems that they do haha) which is why the majority of people visit a home or meet with you before choosing you. They want to check if what they have found out is true.

But for them to do that, you need to provide that weight of evidence to encourage them to enquire further. For example;

• Website
• Google Business
• Reviews
• Photos
• Videos
• CQC Rating & Supporting Info
• Food Hygiene Rating
• Team Profiles
• Social Media

Empathetic Sales Process

So now you’ve built trust & provided all the evidence which makes the care seeker make contact! Well done! 

Now, do you have a process which allows the time and space required to help people in their hour of need? If you cannot afford a full-time salesperson, find team members within your organisation that are empathic and can really listen to the person looking for care. It’s likely to be a pretty stressful time of their life, so having the time, space & experience to guide them through that will be really valuable.

Below is a video from Care Show London, where I spoke with Carl Roberts, Associate Sales & Marketing Director at Boutique Care Homes, about the importance of an empathetic sales process.

Boosts Across The Board

My last point is that video has a fantastic compound effect. They tend to last for ages (up to 5 years) and have impacts across your organisation, from team morale, to increasing enquiries & recruitment. Each of these areas will feel the impact of the video content you create. 

Use video to Build Trust, Provide Evidence and make your digital shop front look fantastic in 2024.

Below is a preview of a webinar explaining in full detail our thoughts on this.

Contact us today to talk about taking your care services marketing to the next level!