CDF grant supports development of digital marketing for home care co-ops

The CDF board approved a $50,000 grant to support the development and launch of a national website and digital marketing platform for home care cooperatives. This marketing system will serve as the foundation for rapid growth in client acquisition and caregiver recruitment--the two largest business hurdles of all home care companies, cooperative or not. Through the platform, each home care cooperative will access a customizable website focused on these two core issues. Design systems, back-end analytics, responsive ongoing improvements, and other backend work will be managed centrally for optimized performance, while cooperatives will manage content locally.

Cooperatives that elect to utilize the website system will receive set-up and launch support, ongoing technical assistance, and ongoing training on effective digital marketing. The templates will be developed by the Story Collaborative, a marketing and communications firm with significant background in home care and digital marketing systems design. The ICA Group will oversee the project including education to and onboarding of home care cooperatives to the system.

Earlier in the year, the three largest home care cooperatives – Cooperative Home Care Associates, Home Care Associates of Philadelphia, and Cooperative Care-- participated in a “Buyers Journey” learning cohort that examined the quantity, quality and effectiveness of their cooperative's digital marketing to both clients and caregivers. Based on that experience, the cooperatives agreed to pilot a joint website platform. The platform will initially be managed by the ICA Group and the Story Collaborative, with the goal that when there are enough cooperatives participating, the platform will become one of the product offerings of a secondary cooperative serving home care cooperatives.