Memorial Day is a good time to celebrate the sacrifices of our soldiers and their families.  It is a good time to stop and reflect on what freedom means to your patients and clients.

Here’s a suggestion for commemorating the contribution of all Veterans.  Make a donation to a War Memorial or to Arlington Cemetery or a Veteran’s Hospital.  Then you let your patients, clients and referral sources know that you have made a donation in the name of the patients you serve.  This notification is sent out with a letter containing a patriotic message that thanks all that served the nation.  It is effective to produce commemorative certificates that can be sent to all patients for Memorial Day or Veterans Day.

Your agency could also make a donation to the September 11th Family Fund and send this out with a message that commemorates the tragedy of this date in history.

Excerpted from 101 Home Care Promotional Strategies that Deliver Legendary Results Without Busting Your Budget! by Michael Ferris

Comment on this article >> | No Trackbacks

All sales people should have good phone sales skills. They must be able to make good calls to both existing accounts and prospective accounts. In hospice sales there is much less phone work than in other fields of sales; nonetheless, always be as effective as possible. Many of the skills that you have learned to be effective in person are also effective when used on the phone.

Some other dimensions to understand when using the phone include:

- Leaving voice messages
- Getting through the screener
- Creating a bond by phone
- Capturing attention

Use the telephone as an extension of your time and to leverage it. Most of the time you will not want to call ahead for appointments as this is not usually the best approach. That being said, there are times when this is the only way to get in front of the right people at a specific account.

The most common use of phones in the sales process is to follow-up with contacts to make sure that they received information that was dropped off, that things are going well, to deliver promised information, etc. These calls should be planned before dialing the phone and are an integral part of the process. Planning is paramount.

Finally, you will want to use the phone to thank referral sources from time to time. This enables you to leverage your time and vary the method of thanking the referral source.

Excerpted from Field Guide to Selling Hospice Services with Legendary Results by Michael Ferris

Comment on this article >> | No Trackbacks

“But they could never afford it!” How many times do we hear this when we ask if the admissions nurse discussed private pay with the family needing additional aide or caregiver services? Without ever seeing a financial statement, we assume that just because someone lives in a modest home they could never pay for extra personal care.

There are types of people: Those who can afford private duty services and those that can’t. Within the group of people who can afford the services, there are two groups—those that will pay for private pay home care services and those who won’t.

The Usual Hospice solution? We either tell them that they need to go to a nursing home (that’s usually right after they told you that dad said he never wanted to go there!) or we add excessive aide and volunteer hours, draining resources from other patients or families that really need them. It’s not a solution, it’s a cop out.

It isn’t that people don’t have the funds. It’s that we don’t have the savvy to talk about the value private care can add. Because we’ve always been able to offer no cost care, talking about money is foreign and outside our comfort zone.

Fix #1: Have your team read The Millionaire Next Door to help them understand how the guy driving the ten-year-old car in a less than stellar neighborhood is the one with all the dough.

Fix #2: Talk about the fact that people buy things that are emotionally meaningful to them, whether it’s a new Harley, a massage, or the security of someone caring for a loved one.”

Excerpted from LEGENDARY RESULTS: Managing Referrals & Increasing Admissions Vol. 2: The Admissions Process by Michael Ferris and Polly Rehnwall. 

Comment on this article >> | No Trackbacks

Cinco de Mayo has become a very popular celebration in the U.S.  One way to celebrate this holiday is to make a nice home made Mexican food luncheon for your most profitable accounts.  Take small Mexican flags and other decor with you to decorate the offices.

Tie the celebration of Mother’s Day to various Women’s Health Initiatives.  There are many issues of importance to women’s health that lend themselves to educating the community.  Since many of your referral sources and clients are women, these initiatives will generate a good response.

Graduation season is upon us.  You should know which of your referral sources have children who are graduating. Send congratulations cards and include a small gift for your better accounts.  Picture frames are always a good gift for the proud mom or dad.  Some type of gift certificate for a book store, video rental or electronics retailer for the graduate would be appropriate.  Keep in mind that the value of any gift should be within the agency’s policy regarding the value of gifts.

Memorial Day is a good time to celebrate the sacrifices of our soldiers and their families.  It is a good time to stop and reflect on what freedom means to your patients and clients.

Excerpted from 101 Home Care Promotional Strategies that Deliver Legendary Results Without Busting Your Budget! by Michael Ferris

Comment on this article >> | No Trackbacks