January 31, 2014

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TOP STORY
 2014 LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE 

Meet our Keynote Speaker, Lee Cockerell, Retired & Inspired, Executive VP, Walt Disney World Resorts®

    

Join us for this year's Leadership Conference keynote address, Lessons in Leadership, Management and Service Excellence-"YOU too can create magic," presented by Lee Cockerell, former Executive Vice President of Operations for the Walt Disney World® Resort and the current owner of a successful consulting company specializing in leadership and management training.

 

Great leadership can make or break a company, and the success of Comfort Keepers® is rooted in great leadership. Lee will share with us strategies for creating magic in our organization, allowing us to grow and thrive in the future. His professional experience makes him one of the premiere experts on leadership and customer service, and he has grown to understand that exceptional achievement in each leads to great growth for your business.

 

Lee's personal experience has given him an understanding of the need for quality in-home care. He and his family researched this alternative for his wife, and most recently his aging mother-in-law, when caregiver burnout required him to seek help. Recently, Lee spent some time with Comfort Keepers franchise owners to discuss their business growth and other concerns that keep them up at night. His personal experiences, coupled with his professional expertise, give him a unique perspective on what it means to be a great leader in the home care industry and what defines excellent customer service. As our keynote speaker, he will share with us the strategies and philosophies employed at Disney and how you can apply them to your Comfort Keepers business to offer the best service possible and become a leading in-home care provider in your community.

 

For more information on the conference, watch for updates on Members>Training>Leadership Conference.

  
SalesSALES

SALES SCRIPT FOR THE ADL/IADL WHEEL 

Put This Tool to Work in Your Daily Sales Efforts  

 

The Wheel is a tool designed to show the activities of daily living (ADLs) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs) challenges associated with illnesses or conditions facing many seniors and the support services provided by Comfort Keepers®.   

 

Early feedback from franchisees who have used the Wheel in their sales presentations has been generally very positive. Meetings to review the Wheel have led to previously closed doors opening up, good clinical discussions on Comfort Keepers' role in the healthcare continuum of care and the benefits that both clients and referral sources may receive from Comfort Keepers services. 

 

For those of you who have not yet used the Wheel in your sales efforts, David Simic, Vice President, Business Development, is providing a sales script that includes important background information and sample dialogue that you can use in your sales efforts. Please be sure to also review the document, Understanding Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) and Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs), developed by our client-care team.

 
For information on ordering the Wheel, visit Members>CK Brand>Sales>Sales Tools.
 
OPERATIONSOPERATIONS

COMFORT KEEPER® OF THE YEAR

Nominations-10 days to Go: Due February 9!  

 

The last day to nominate the caregiver you believe is superb for the Comfort Keeper® of the Year (CKOY) award is Sunday, February 9! We want to make certain that everyone has the time to get his or her nominations in. There is no better way to honor that top caregiver who is the heart of your office and goes above and beyond the call of duty to provide quality care and quality of life for his or her clients.

 

This year we have made some changes that will make the award even more special: 

  • Minimum required hours have been reduced to 1,000 from 1,080
  • Winners will be flown in on Wednesday night, April 23 to give them time to enjoy the city and its sites.
  • Winners will be treated to a meet-and-greet breakfast with the CKOY team, owners, and Kris Butler, our founder, on Thursday, April 24. This will be a great opportunity to meet the other winners and get an overview of what the conference weekend is all about!

We will recognize our six honorees for this prestigious award at the CKOY luncheon held during our annual Leadership Conference in Denver, Colorado, April 24-26, 2014. 

 

Download details of the nomination and selection process here.

 

If you have questions about the process, please direct them to Joni Magnus-Ramsey, Marketing Manager, at JoniMagnusRamsey@ComfortKeepers.com.

FranchiseDevelopmentFRANCHISE DEVELOPMENT

BUILD THE BRAND REFERRAL PROGRAM 

Build Your Brand and Potentially Earn $5,000!  

 

In 2013, Comfort Keepers® awarded three Build the Brand (BTB) referral fees of $5,000. The next award could be yours!

 

The BTB Referral Program recognizes and rewards individuals who recommend and refer new candidates who become Comfort Keepers franchisees. The program is open to franchisees, employees of franchisees, and CKFI employees. This applies to new territories only.

 

Comfort Keepers has a very impressive network of over 665 franchise territories across the U.S. In just over 13 years, our network has expanded to be truly a nationwide company. However, we still have considerable territory gaps in many geographic areas. Some of these openings include major markets such as San Francisco, California; Seattle, Washington; New York, New York; and yes, Hawaii-all wide open. There are also openings in smaller markets like Jackson, Michigan; Corvallis, Oregon; Jonesboro, Arkansas; and Davenport, Iowa.

 

Take this opportunity to refer someone today. If you successfully refer a candidate who becomes a Comfort Keeper franchisee, you will be awarded $5,000.00. Only one referral fee is paid per each new franchisee regardless of the number of franchises the new owner acquires.

 

Please contact Larry France with any questions you have about the program at (888) 329-1368 or LarryFrance@ComfortKeepers.com.

MastermindMASTERMIND
FEBRUARY MASTERMIND WEBINAR 
SafetyChoice®: Using PERS as a Client Care Tool

Next Thursday Ken McCord, Western Unit Business Coach, presents SafetyChoice® products as valuable components of home care plans during February's MasterMind webinar. SafetyChoice products provide clients with peace of mind at an affordable cost and have become important lead generators for many offices. However, the value these products add, especially the PERS unit, is often overlooked as a recommended client care tool. Offering the PERS unit to clients as part of the home care package adds value to your services as it helps prevent emergencies, which can result in more satisfied clients who are more likely to retain Comfort Keepers® services and allow you to retain hours. As part of this month's MasterMind webinar, Ken will discuss:

  • matching the client and the PERS.
  • using Guardian as your virtual caregiver.
  • training the caregiver and the client to press the button OFTEN.
  • managing event reports-re-assessments and client retention.
  • measuring performance by usage and retention.

 

Join the Webinar here Thursday, February 6, 2013 at 11 a.m. EST 

(10 a.m. CST, 9 a.m. MTN, 8 a.m. PST)

 

To access the audio portion, enter your phone number when prompted after you log into the webinar. The system will automatically call you back.

 

You can also dial direct at the phone number below and enter the participant code when prompted:

Phone: (800) 591-2259

Participant Code: 886411

 

LandDLEARNING & DEVELOPMENT
LEADERSHIP CHALLENGE AND TIME MANAGEMENT ROAD SHOW 
Register by February 12

 

Want to take your franchise to the next level? Join us for the Leadership Challenge and Time Management Road Show and learn how to master leadership and management skills. This event, being held at the Spring Hill Suites Marriott in Houston, Texas, has a cost of $100 per attendee. Each participant will be given a 360° leadership evaluation from The Leadership Challenge program, and will also receive a Learning and Development update. Over the two days we will cover the following:

  • The Leadership Challenge from Kouzes and Pozner
  • Results of the 360° Leadership Evaluations
  • The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership
  • Time Management Best Practices

Register here for the Leadership Challenge and Time Management workshop. 

Registration closes on February 12.

 

Workshop Information:

Cost:  $100 per attendee

When:  February 26-27

Where:

Spring Hill Suites by Marriott

Houston Medical Center/Reliant Park

1400 Old Spanish Trail

Houston, TX 77054

Phone: (713) 796-1000

 


NationalBrandFundUPDATES ON CAMPAIGNS, LEADS, AND POSTINGS
AGINGCARE.COM PROGRAM PROVIDES NEW LEADS 
Check Your Email For New Client Opportunities!

 

The National Branding Committee has launched a new local listings test program with Agingcare.com to generate leads. Potential clients visiting the site will have the option to provide contact information to receive a follow-up call. Agingcare.com will forward this new lead to the appropriate franchise via an email.

 

When Agingcare.com identifies a first-time lead for a franchise location, they will first send that franchisee a welcome email that will do the following:

  • Provide additional background on Agingcare.com
  • Deliver a link to the franchisee's new Agingcare.com profile

Once you receive the welcome email, which will only be sent with the first lead, please take a moment to visit your profile and ensure all your contact information is correct. If you need to make any changes to your profile, please contact the Agingcare.com Account, Manager Nicole Paolini, directly at Nicole.Paolini@Agingcare.com or call 239-594-3205.

The contact information for the lead will follow in a separate email; please follow up with any leads in a timely manner.

 

While this program is currently a three-month test, it offers a great opportunity to reach new clients and develop a client database while increasing Comfort Keepers brand awareness. At the end of the test period, the National Brand Fund Committee will review the results and determine its success and next steps.  

 

NATIONAL SEARCH ENGINE MARKETING (SEM) CAMPAIGN LAUNCHING FEBRUARY 10! 
Take Action to Ensure a Successful Campaign

 

The National Branding Committee will be testing a national search engine marketing (SEM) campaign beginning on February 10. The national SEM campaign will provide heightened visibility for Comfort Keepers® and your franchises in Google searches, increasing traffic to your sites, and it will support all markets. This will also ensure that Comfort Keepers protects its brand name. If you are currently executing your own local SEM campaign, we have outlined recommended next steps to ensure all SEM campaigns continue successfully.

 

For franchisees currently executing local SEM campaigns, we recommend you remove specific paid keywords related to Comfort Keepers, In-Home Care and Senior Care from your campaigns for Google, Yahoo, and Bing before February 10. By franchisees removing these key words from their current campaigns, we can avoid potentially paying higher costs in bidding.

 

The full list of keyword terms purchased is available here. If you work with a digital consultant, you may share this list with them.

 

Please direct any questions to Kimberly Epple, Sr. Director of Marketing and Advertising, at KimberlyEpple@ComfortKeepers.com.    

 

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