A Note from Live At Home Vice President, Jim Greatorex

Published in Home Modifications on July 15, 2020

Can you believe that the dog days of summer are here already? This year has brought us some serious curveballs, but it has gone by fast. Unfortunately, the pandemic is still at the forefront of how we run our businesses throughout the coming months. There has been a lot of social media posts on leadership in trying times, and now more than ever we need to have strong leadership and focus for the rest of 2020. Here are three things we can think about and act on moving forward:

Refining your safety protocols for customers and employees

You can create protocols that allows you and your customers to be safe for in-home projects. We are past the point of sitting back and waiting for the “air to clear,” so to speak. The need for our services is growing and we can learn and implement safety protocols where everyone is protected. The home medical equipment industry has done it and we need to do it also.

Marketing your company as COVID-19 ready

We are hearing that in many of the hot spots in the US, hospitals are looking to discharge rehab patients directly home, forgoing the COVID-19 risks that skilled nursing rehab centers have. In many markets, these discharge planners are unaware of your company and your abilities. The first thing you need to do, if you haven’t yet, is have a written COVID-19 protocol document that you lead all conversations with, and put it on your home page of your website. Make it clear that you know how to safely do work inside and outside of potential customers homes with little risk to them. Make sure you reach out to hospitals, especially rehab hospitals, skilled nursing homes, and other senior living centers and senior service companies. They are struggling to find our services right now, mostly because they generally work with service providers via prescription and not contractor types. To market them, I would suggest trying to call or send them a marketing piece with a handwritten note. Email is an easy option, but that’s what everyone else is doing, so think of personal ways to connect.

Focus on digital marketing

With lots of people stuck at home, now more than ever is a time to beef up your online marketing. Make sure you show up on web browser searches and be more aggressive with social media posts. Have a video that you post on social media and your home page of your website that tells people how your company can serve them safely and you are ready to help now. Most companies are doing a simple video recorded on a cell phone or tablet. It doesn’t have to be Oscar-worthy, just authentic. This is also a great time to call existing customers and ask them how they are and if there is anything they need from you right now. Others have done it and are having success keeping a strong bond with their customers, and in some cases, being asked back for another project.

I know for some LAH members that business is down and it seems like we will never really be “back in business.” We want you to know that we are seeing members who are trying to do things differently, and by reaching out to say, “We are here and ready,” they are seeing their pipeline fill back up. In some cases, they are at or very close to pre-pandemic revenue levels. They are also keeping their people employed and working.

Hang in there and let us know how we can help!

Stay tuned for more! If the home access industry is still compressed by COVID–19, we may have a third LAH virtual town hall meeting sometime in September.

Thanks for your membership, and stay safe my friends!

Jim Greatorex