Welcome,

...to this edition of Stephen Tweed's Leading Home Care Report. This special report is for CEOs and senior executives of America's leading home care companies. This report is published every other Wednesday by Leading Home Care ... a Tweed Jeffries company for our clients, friends, and advocates who want to grow their home care businesses.

Leading Home Care Report is a permission-based newsletter. It is only sent to those individuals who have requested it, or who have given permission for their address to be added to the distribution list. If you have received this report by mistake and would like to be removed from the list, we apologize for the inconvenience. Please go to the bottom of this report for instructions on how to unsubscribe.

And I'm so very proud of Jill's journey as well. Growing up the youngest of three children in the shadow of an older sister and a disabled brother, Jill has become her own person earning a Bachelors Degree in Psychology from Slipper Rock University of PA, and a Masters in Sports Psychology from Capella University. (Yes, there really is a Slippery Rock University.) She now works for a Law Firm in Virginia.

Just for fun ... you can send her a Happy Birthday note at Jilltweed@aol.com.

Our Strategic Marketing Planning process begins with a thorough assessment of the current reality. We begin by asking some basic questions:

• Where are your current referrals coming from?
• What is your case weight index and average revenue per episode?
• What marketing methods have you used successfully?
• What are the criteria your customers use in selecting a home health agency?
• Who are your major competitors?
• Using your customers' selection criteria, how do you compare to your competitors?
• What is your current market share?

Once we have a snapshot of the current reality, then we can begin developing a strategic marketing plan. This marketing plan will include:

• Your Vision for the future of your agency
• Your growth goals for the future
• A clear definition of your Competitive Advantage
• A clear Marketing Message
• Your Marketing Strategy
• - Two primary marketing tactics
• - Two to four secondary marketing tactics
• The Critical Measures of Success of Your Marketing Plan
• A Strategic Marketing Scorecard
• A detailed Marketing Action Plan, with "who to do," target dates, and resources required

The four cornerstones of our planning process are assessment, direction, competitive advantage, and measurement. We've found that having a consistent platform on which to build your strategic marketing plan increases the probability of your success.

How do we recruit and select sales representatives?

How do we measure their performance?

Let's take the second question first.

Michael G. has developed an amazing new tool to measure the performance of home care sales representatives. It's called the Rep Ratio Form, and the outcome shows the Sales Per Hour.

What would you be able to do if you know exactly how many referrals you are receiving per hour of selling time for each sales rep you have in the field?

For example, one of the reps Michael is coaching started with a SPH ratio of .25. That means that for every hour of selling, the company was getting 1/4 of an admission from that rep's territory. Or stated another way, they are getting 1 admission for every 4 hours of sales time.

Working with that individual over an eight week period, Michael was able to take that rep from a .25 to a .33 SPH ratio. That means this person is now getting one new admission for every three hours of sales time, compared to one admission per four hours of selling time. That's a 25% increase in sales productivity.

What would it be worth to you to be able to measure the productivity of your sales team? What would it be worth to you to increase sales productivity by 10%? By 20%? By 25%? To learn more about measuring the productivity of your sales team, call our office toll free at 866-209-5101 and ask for Diane West. Diane will help you set up a telephone appointment with Michael G. to discuss your sales performance and productivity.

Or You Can Visit Michael online at www.SalesManagerInteractive.com

It takes innovation, creativity, passion, and persistence. In a brand new, down-home, practical marketing manual published by Leading Home Care, Angie Landmesser and Trisha Menoni give you the details of their innovation and creativity. They show you step by step how to apply their ideas to get more referrals that turn into admissions. They’ll stimulate your thinking to come up with your own innovative ideas that will work for you in your marketplace.

This e-Book is divided into 10 Rules. Each rule features very specific action steps and first-hand examples. You'll have all the tools, forms and ideas you'll need to launch your own expert marketing campaigns.

Last but not least, the authors have created an appendix with web links to 19 resources that will help you implement each action. They'll even tell you the best sources to buy supplies for your campaigns.

For more information, or to order your copy, click here

Thursday - March 22, 2007 - 1:00 p.m. Eastern
"The Secrets of Our Success"
Trisha and Angie will discuss with Stephen Tweed the story of how they grew their Private Duty Home Care company from a start up in a spare bedroom to $3.2 million in three years. Then they'll describe Rule Number One - "Steal from the Best."

Thursday, April 5, 2007 - 1:00 p.m. Eastern
"Rules Two though Five"

• Don't sell Ice to Eskimos
• Marketing isn't just materials
• The Reese's pieces^(R) Rule
• You are known by the Company you Keep

Thursday, April 19, 2007 - 1:00 p.m. Eastern
"Five More Rules for Growing Your Business"

• Create a customer for Life . . . and the Afterlife
• Don't Spray and Pray
• Time is Money
• The Pen is mightier than the Computer
• Just Do it!

Register Today for "Marketing to Die For!"

Stephen is a past-President of the National Speakers Association, a 3500 member international society of experts who speak professionally. He is also the father of a 37 year-old son who is physically disabled and uses the services of home care on a daily basis.

Meet the entire Leading Home Care Team