With 10,000 seniors in the U.S. turning 65 years or older every day, many investors have been intrigued by the home care industry’s growth. In turn, funding for specific sectors has exploded, and tech-enabled innovations have become increasingly in demand. This has led to more home health franchise owners investing in technology. But why? Let’s discuss four specific ways incorporating technology into your in-home care franchise business can make a positive impact and help it thrive long-term.
- Technology Creates Proficiency
Health reports and other essential documentation in the home care and home health care industry are often still delivered using paper. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with relying on paper for such vital information. Similarly, many agencies use physical timecards to track caregivers’ hours. However, the share-ability of such paper documents becomes increasingly more difficult, cumbersome, and time-consuming. For continued growth, franchisees must assume a level of efficiency for both staff and seniors in their care.
Software systems can track inventory levels for franchisees via mobile devices, and automatically file reorders when stock is low. Further, technology can give franchise owners real-time information on employee efficiency and effectiveness using monitoring software.
- Software Systems Build Trustworthy Referral Partners
When it comes to franchise owners using technology within the home care industry, gaining quality-of-care insights is invaluable to their growth. These data-driven measurements are shared with referral partners who need to know which services impact their elderly clients’ results. This is important because many franchise networks maintain relationships with other health care organizations and clinics that refer clients to one another. It’s vital for referral partners to see seniors’ quality of life improve because of these additional home care services, making it easier for them to recommend franchisees based on accountability, trustworthiness, and merit.
- Tech-Driven Marketing Techniques Increase ROI
No matter what industry an entrepreneur decides to stake their business claim, marketing is essential in presenting a company’s name and services to the masses. From Facebook to SMS text messages, technology is ingrained in marketing strategy, making it more convenient and efficient for in-home care franchise owners. In fact, 62% of seniors aged 65 or older and 72% of adults aged 50-64 can be easily targeted on Facebook alone. Having a simple Facebook business page can allow franchise owners to reach several thousand more people in the local area that they wouldn’t be able to reach with more traditional marketing methods. When franchisees commit to incorporating technology-based marketing into their franchise business, they’re investing in lasting growth and sustainability.
- Home Care Technology Differentiates from Competitors
As the home care franchise space grows ever more competitive, owners must find ways to stand out from the crowd. Homewatch CareGivers, for instance, has created business intelligence tools to measure individual owners’ metrics and benchmark them compared to others in the network. These technological tools provide enhanced data analysis and combine multiple business inputs to present franchise owners with qualitative results. A process this robust helps franchisees launch, scale, and grow their businesses far beyond what they expect.
Helping Home Care Franchise Owners Adapt to Technology
Making the switch to technology isn’t always a smooth transition, especially if an individual is used to doing things a certain way. But owners can miss out on critical marketing targets, training opportunities, and growth because of a reluctance to make technological adjustments.
Follow these four tips to help everyone easily adapt to technology:
- Start coaching from the beginning and do it regularly
- Provide one-on-one coaching, if necessary
- Start with selling the value of technology adoption
- Offer incentives to staff for switching over or learning software
There’s no doubt that technology can help franchise owners manage business infrastructure, modernize critical processes, and provide measurable and actionable data. While technology has begun to take a more significant role in the home care industry, there’s still more to be done. As the in-home care sector continues to develop, we have little doubt that standard practices and tech-enabled innovations will be more widespread.
As a part of our franchise network, you get custom technology platforms that offer back-end business management for owners and convenience tools for your clients and their families. We would love to tell you more about how we support our franchisees with state-of-the-art technology and methods to help them change lives.
To get more information about our home care franchise opportunity, call us at or request information online today.
