Staying positive and relevant to your audience during tough market conditions
The Challenge:
When a local care home got in touch with Sharp Thinking to help them review their marketing and later reprioritise due to COVID-19, it was important to focus on the things that mattered most to potential clients and reassure their audience.
The sector is, understandably, going through immense pressure to maintain supportive care in a safe environment for those in later life. The marketing challenge involved creating positive, relevant messaging to enhance their brand reputation and being seen as providers of quality residential and mobile care services in the local area as well as generating new enquiries in a very volatile market.
The Approach:
Bringing their story and the staff behind it to life
As the Tunbridge Wells based business is independently owned and prides itself as being home from home, its core family values, long-serving members of staff, and focus on the mental well being of its residents and clients provided an ideal mix to tell a positive story. This was important to highlight and present to those seeking professional care for a parent who needed reassurance it was the best place to choose.
We looked at new messaging to highlight the core reasons to choose the care provider over other competitors. This was accompanied by a thorough review of their online presence and identifying new cost effective ways to bring their offering to life through print media.
The Result:
Enriching life for those that need it most
Differentiating from the competition
New messaging and a group proposition to bring both strands of the business together were created. This was rolled out across their websites along with layout changes to help improve visitor time on site and drive an increase in enquiries.
Creating peace of mind for potential residents and clients
Articles were written and seeded online ensuring we maximised their Google presence to share details of how they were making their service safe and secure in the midst of COVID-19.
Motivating staff and reassuring potential clients
A new business promise was created as both a purpose and customer charter to motivate staff and provide clarity and reassurance for residents and potential clients.
Enhancing perception by sharing positive stories
A series of socially distanced and internal activities were planned for those staying in the residential home. This included a Harvest Hoedown and Summer BBQ, all of which were professionally photographed. Stories were written and seeded to the local press and on social media demonstrating the positive life that continues at Birchwood during lockdown.
"Sharp Thinking have helped to take the business forward bringing focus and clarity and lots of practical recommendations including internal processes for us to implement. The marketing review proved invaluable and has enabled us to streamline both businesses and join up all our marketing. And we hope cost efficiencies will be achieved in the future as a result." Niral Patel, Birchwood House & Birchwood Care Services, Tunbridge Wells.
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