The role that marketing plays in driving staff and resident recruitment; specific to the care sector.
Leveraging direct mail marketing strategies for effective staff and resident recruitment.
by Alex Coe
Care roles have always been notoriously difficult to recruit for, and the industry took a significant hit during the pandemic. The sector was poorly prepared for this, meaning workers were putting in extra hours and taking on additional responsibilities on top of their already busy jobs, resulting in low staff retention. Post pandemic, recruitment in the care sector is more challenging than ever.
In addition to hiring new staff, there's also the task of finding new residents. It's a shared concern for everyone: Where should Mum and Dad live in their old age?
Referred to as matchmaking in the industry, it's crucial for each of us to discover the ideal future residence for our loved ones. This involves guaranteeing that their needs are catered to and that available activities align with their hobbies. We all aim to ensure that Mum, who has always cherished gardening, can reflect on and pursue this passion as she ages! With over 16,700 care homes across the UK1, it can be difficult to pick the right one.
This raises the question: What role is marketing playing in driving staff and resident recruitment?
Awareness building
It’s crucial for care homes to promote themselves as not only safe for the residents but also offer a vibrant and enjoyable living environment for the elderly. This encouragement should target both the seniors themselves and influencers like their children.
It’s all about building awareness with the target audience. This is where direct mail really shines.
Direct mail leverages geo-demographically targeted data along with a printed medium, whether it's a postcard, letter, brochure, or any preferred format.
Direct mail helps us put the right message in front of the right people, building awareness within the perfect target audience.
Direct mail for customer acquisition
Direct mail should be an essential component in every marketer's toolbox, serving as a crucial instrument for acquiring new customers. Precision Connects™ provides care homes with access to over 27-million household records. The platform enables care homes to tailor their targeting based on demographic factors such as age, property value, social grade, and numerous other options. This data empowers care homes to reach individuals who may be seeking their new home in later life or the adult children of the elderly who are considering the best options for their parents' later years.
Direct mail allows care homes to strategically engage both the direct users, i.e., the prospective residents themselves, as well as the influencers, such as family members or caregivers who play a significant role in the decision-making process. This dual-targeting approach minimises wastage and ensures that all marketing budget is maximised in terms of return on investment (ROI).
QR codes
In the past, direct mail has often been dismissed as "old-fashioned” and has been somewhat sidelined in comparison to many businesses' digital strategies. However, the integration of QR codes into direct mail campaigns has opened new possibilities to bridge the gap between physical and digital.
By incorporating QR codes into direct mail pieces, printed materials serve as a catalyst to guide potential customers or even prospective employees online, initiating a digital journey. For instance, QR codes may direct recipients to a "register your interest" form or a booking form to schedule a tour of a care home.
Precision Connects™ QR codes are also completely unique to each property. This not only allows us to monitor engagement with the mailing but also enables us to identify specific households that have scanned the code.
Many care homes may be concerned about alienating the elderly with QR codes, fearing that this will be too unfamiliar and confusing for the elderly audience.
However, we underestimate how adaptable this audience truly is. During the pandemic, the elderly were forced to use technology such as modern smartphones and video calls to stay in touch with family members. Internet use in the 65-74 age group is increasing – it rose from 52% in 2011 to 83% in 20192, and we are continuing to see this increasing. If there's a positive takeaway from the pandemic, it could be the increased familiarity and comfort with modern technology within this generation.
Recruitment
In addition to welcoming new residents, care homes nationwide are facing the pressing challenge of recruiting qualified professionals to join their teams. According to a survey conducted by the Care Quality Commission, over half of respondents expressed difficulties in attracting new staff, highlighting the urgent need for innovative recruitment strategies3.
Direct mail campaigns present a compelling solution to this recruitment dilemma by offering a targeted and impactful means of reaching potential candidates. While online job advertisements remain a valuable component of any recruitment strategy, the sheer volume of care roles to be filled across the country has resulted in a saturated digital space. In this overcrowded online landscape, direct mail emerges as a refreshing alternative, enabling care homes to cut through the digital noise and effectively showcase their job vacancies and unique selling points to prospective employees.
By leveraging direct mail, care homes can craft personalised and engaging recruitment materials that capture the attention of their desired candidates. Eye-catching brochures, compelling letters, and informative postcards can effectively convey the culture, values, and benefits of working at the care home, enticing qualified professionals to consider joining the team.
Direct mail campaigns also allow care homes to target specific demographics and geographical areas, ensuring that their recruitment efforts are tailored to reach individuals who are most likely to thrive in the organisation. By delivering recruitment materials directly to the mailboxes of potential candidates, care homes can establish a direct and personalised connection, fostering genuine interest and engagement in available job opportunities.
In summary
With 91% of consumers engaging with mail, direct mail should remain a pivotal component of any top care home's strategy4. Care homes should embrace direct mail as a cornerstone of their marketing strategies. In a landscape inundated with digital noise, the tactile and personal nature of direct mail offers a refreshing opportunity for care homes to forge genuine connections with prospective residents and their families. It's a testament to the enduring effectiveness of a time-tested approach in an ever-evolving marketing landscape.
Precision Connects™ provides care homes with a simple, cost-effective method to build campaigns in just a few clicks.
1https://www.carehome.co.uk/advice/care-home-stats-number-of-settings-population-workforce
3https://www.cqc.org.uk/publications/major-report/state-care/2022-2023/workforce
4https://dma.org.uk/article/what-is-the-response-rate-from-direct-mail-campaigns