Business Development and Brand Identity for your Care Business
Business development is an area you should not neglect. This should be a priority for your leadership and management that can make or break your care business. A care business requires a hands-on approach and being on the ground to be responsive. If you cannot offer your presence, ensure that you have robust systems carrying the same function. Remember, there is a real risk of prosecution or severe harm due to inadequate services.
A quick business development lesson is watching the UK version of the Apprentice. This will give you some tips on project management, team leading, time sensitivity, communication and other essential skills. You can also apply some of the comments offered to participants on programs such as "Dragon's den" and "Take it to the market ". These programs help to transfer the text from books or courses to realistic environments.
To be successful, you need the discipline and foresight to be holistic and the ability to know your strengths and weakness. It is always a good idea to conduct a SWOT analysis on yourself. Areas where you are excellent, go for it and do your thing. You do not need to follow the status quo. Use your skills to develop your business and find a niche. For example, a social worker who knows there is a defence of mental health support services during weekends does not need to copy others and set up. You could simply provide a pop-up weekend support service to address the need and occupy an area.
We need not all be domiciliary, supported living, or care home providers. Do not get into enormous debt; work on projects for which you are highly skilled and can make a big difference. Where there are areas of development, prioritise and work towards improving to achieve better outcomes.
It would be best if you are willing to learn or seek help from others skilled and experienced in conducting these functions effectively. Be quick to conduct risk assessments and work on areas to minimise. It might even mean moving to other services you are more competent or simply unique. The idea is continuously evolving your business to reflect the market's needs. Caretips can work with you to develop your business and be a force to reckon.