The next 2 to 3 weeks are exciting ones because the national branding committee will begin executing the creative aspects of the NBF. Today, July 19, Red212 will present to the committee multiple creative concepts for the TV advertising. The committee will comment on the concepts, make suggestions and choose two preferred concepts. Once the committee selects the preferred concepts, Red212 will revise the creative based on the committee's input, and the revisions will be presented to the committee on July 26 for final decisions. Ultimately, Red212 will transform the concepts into :30 (30 seconds) and :15 (fifteen seconds) TV spots.

Likewise, Empower will be in the market procuring TV, and digital, media with a target launch date right after Labor Day. Because we know the decision-maker in this transaction is quite reliant on the Internet for education, information, and in many cases, securing care, the overall media strategy includes a digital component. This is paid advertising such as content syndication, behavioral targeting, search retargeting, and site retargeting with in-banner lead generation.

The committee is working on a total communication strategy to share all aspects of the launch with the franchisee community. We are excited at the process we have made and look forward to ongoing updates as our national advertising becomes a reality. Keep watching the Friday Flash!

It's that time of the year again - beginning Tuesday, July 23, the Franchise Research Institute is launching their Annual Franchisee Satisfaction survey. Please take this opportunity to share your opinion, experiences and overall level of satisfaction with your franchisor. Franchisees will be contacted by email. The time to complete the survey is approximately 10 minutes, and your opinion and verbatim comments will remain completely confidential. Your participation is important us, so please make sure your input is included!

As a reminder, please send a copy of your 2012 business tax return to CKFI. Do not forget to also include a copy of your 2012 Profit & Loss and Balance Sheet Statements from QuickBooks to CKFI.  

If the tax return is still unavailable at this time, please send an email to FinaLu@ComfortKeepers.com and include the following information:

• Status of filing
• Estimated date to file
• The extension timeframe requested

All other pertinent paperwork should be sent to the attention of Fina Lu by August 9, 2013. The financials and tax return can be e-mailed, faxed or sent through regular mail. Please include your CK Office number(s) and franchisee's name with your paperwork.

David Simic, Vice President of Business Development, is pleased to announce two new relationships for Comfort Keepers franchisees:

1. AVCC - American Veteran's Care Connection - a resource for your clients who have access to Veteran's benefits. In addition, to being a resource for any of your clients with VA benefits that are struggling to complete the required paperwork, AVCC may become a referral source for you as well. Additional information may be found on Members > CK Brand > Sales > Key Accounts > Third Party Administrators.
Click here to download informational flyer.
Click here to download provider agreement

2. Medline - Medline has agreed to offer Comfort Keepers services as a voluntary employee benefit to its 6000 US employees. Any Medline employee that orders companionship and personal care services is entitled to a 5% discount off the published list price of these services. This program will increase awareness of Comfort Keepers services among Medline employees and hopefully lead to referrals for franchisees. We are in discussions with Medline in several other areas that should have a positive impact on your businesses. Stay tuned for more on this in the near future. Additional information may be found on Members > CK Brand > Sales > Key Accounts > Corporations.

The CK Operations Management Systems Committee again thanks you for your recent survey feedback regarding a Wish List for new features for the existing scheduling systems that are used within our franchise system! There were over 150 suggestions/improvements submitted. The committee will now compile, prioritize, and work with the scheduling system vendors to integrate these top suggestions into their respective new feature development plans. Stay tuned here to see progress in the weeks to come.

Now that the committee has gained a better understanding of what needs improvement, the committee would find it helpful to know what features are the MOST POPULAR of the system that you are currently using. Whether you use Appointmate, eRSP, or other 3rd party system, we would like to have your input. This feedback will be compiled and shared in a future Friday Flash.

To submit your feedback to the question "what are the top 5 features that you like the most about your existing scheduling system?" click HERE.

If you have questions or would like to make additional comments/topic for the committee to consider, email DanDobbs@ComfortKeepers.com.

Due to a recent patent dispute, the manufacturer of our Fall Sensor PERS has suspended production. We have experienced strong demand for this unit and our inventory has sold out making this product temporarily unavailable. As soon as the situation is resolved, Guardian will resume production and the product will be available again. Look in future Friday Flashes for this announcement.

There will be no interruption to the monitoring and support of the existing clients that have this device. If you have questions, please contact your Business Coach.

Did you miss a previous edition of the Friday Flash?
July 12
July 5
June 28
June 21