Market Elder Care In The Press
Louisville's First Lady of Home Care
Merrily Orsini turned social work lessons into a home-health legacy
Merrily Orsini pioneered the geriatric in-home care business in Louisville in 1981 when she founded Eldercare Solutions. With a master’s in social work from the University of Louisville, Orsini used her education in social work and expertise in geriatrics to earn the trust of hundreds of families struggling to provide services to aging relatives
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Private Duty Services: A Comprehensive Look.
Guest Editor Merrily A. Orsini
Merrily Orsini, MSSW, served as the Issue Editor for the February 2006 Home Health Care Management and Practice Journal. Included in this issue is an article on marketing private duty home care services that she also authored ...read more
Home Health Care Legal Challenges and Responsibilities"
As people seek ways to avoid institutionalized care, the increase in home health care and non-medical home services is quickly taking the place of other care options such as nursing homes ...read more
Article used with permission of the National Federation of Paralegal Associations, Inc. (C) 2005 National Federation of Paralegal Associations, Inc.
BRANDED! Use Branding to Cement Image, Gain Referrals
In today's media and information-saturated world, there's no substitute for instant name recognition. Referrals are won and lost in the few seconds it takes a potential client to determine their gut impression of your agency's services.
Which means your agency needs to push beyond traditional print, radio or television advertising into the less tangible, but far more powerful, world of branding . You need a strong, positive brand that conveys a sense of quality and standard and makes potential customers trust your services before they've even sampled them
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Brand establishment was the central theme of a seminar provided by Merrily Orsini, Private Duty manager-turned-marketing guru, at the 2005 NPDA Conference. From an article in the Private Duty Insider, "NPDA reports that 225 private duty managers attended its three-day meeting, the largest crowd drawn by the 650-member organization in the three-year history of its annual event. Nearly 100 attended the lesson delivered by Orsini, who was a private duty agency owner and manager for 17 years before changing professions."
The article went on to state, "'Branding goes beyond colors and images, she stressed. You've got to set yourself apart from the competition and become the go-to source in your market for home care', said Orsini, now the managing director of Louisville, Ky.-based corecubed. Unlike food or retail businesses, branding for private duty agencies "is not a logo or a corporate identity or a product or a strategy," she said. Instead, it's a way of combining all those factors into "a person's gut feeling about your service."
Orsini discussed other branding tips as well, including increasing awareness and excellence in your telephone staff, who are your front line of contact with your clients. She also emphasized:
- Developing a specific guarantee
- Enhancing and supporting your brand message with your letterhead
- Creating a great Web site
- Leaving a lasting impression
Excerpt from article by Karen Kaplan [kkaplan@decisionhealth.com] for the Private Duty Insider.
In another article in the Private Duty Insider, the value of a promotional offer of free home care is discussed by Merrily Orsini. While this type of campaign may work for other venues, she "doesn't believe such a campaign will ever accumulate much business for a private duty agency".
"Care decisions for your loved ones are not based on (giveaway) offers like that..."It's a long-term decision that's generally made from referral sources and trusted counselors. I would be suspect of that as a come-on from a home care business. You're not selling tires or widgets or hamburgers."
Excerpt from article by Karen Kaplan [kkaplan@decisionhealth.com] for the Private Duty Insider.
corecubed can make you an expert in your area by placing targeted by-lined articles for your business. Call us at 800-370-6580 x 2 today or email us and hire us for ongoing Public Relations work and watch your sales soar.