The 7 Most Common Home Care Agency Website Mistakes, and How to Fix Them
Common mistakes to avoid when polishing your agency website
Your home care agency’s website is one of the most important marketing tools you have, but you may be surprised to find out you’re missing key elements that can help you convert site visitors into clients.
Here are seven common mistakes we see on home care websites, and ways to fix them.
1. There are no humans to be found
It’s shocking, the number of home care agency sites that don’t include photographs of the people who make the agency work. Knowing that there are real, experienced humans on the other side of that website can give potential clients peace of mind.
Build a page about the care teams and leadership at your agency that includes photos, bios, and their philosophy of care. If you can, ask clients to give you a positive review and a photo to use so you can introduce prospective clients to happy clients right on your site.
2. The site isn’t mobile-friendly
Not having a mobile-friendly website will negatively affect your business. According to HubSpot, mobile devices constitute about half of all website traffic globally, and 61% of people searching on mobile are more likely to contact a local business if their site is mobile-friendly.
Without a mobile-optimized website, you could be leaving money on the table.
3. Important topics don’t get their own pages
A strong SEO strategy includes pages dedicated to the most important topics and keywords your potential clients are searching for.
For example, your home care agency website should feature a page dedicated to each home care service you provide—meal preparation, personal care, respite care, elder care, light housekeeping, etc.—filled with information about what the service includes, who needs it, and how they can find out if it’s right for them and their family.
4. Answers to basic FAQs about home care services
Don’t assume visitors to your site know what caregiving entails. Many will be completely new to the process and may still be exploring if it’s right for them and their loved ones.
A page that answers frequently asked questions about home care services will not only help guide potential clients through their search process, but it’s also great for SEO.
Your FAQs page should address questions like:
- What is in-home care?
- Who needs in-home care?
- How much does in-home care cost?
- Can I afford in-home care?
And depending on the popularity of the keyword (and your expertise on the subject), you might find that some questions deserve their own page altogether (see number 5!).
5. Site navigation that isn’t optimized
The navigation bar that appears at the top of every page on your home care website should be optimized for two things: user experience and SEO. When your site navigation isn’t optimized for these two, you lose out on valuable search traffic and risk your site visitors bouncing.
Users should be able to find the most essential pages of your site easily. For a home care agency, this should include, at a minimum: about us, services, locations (or areas served), contact, and team.
The navigation should also take into consideration the most important pages you want Google to rank. The five pages listed above should be on this list, and yours might also include home care FAQs, home care resources, and careers.
6. Weak metadata, or no metadata at all
Metadata is a behind-the-scenes hero of SEO.
Metadata is information that describes the content of a page. Users can’t see it when they’re looking at your site, but Google uses it to analyze and rank your pages. In fact, metadata is often the information search engine users see on a search engine results page (SERP).
If you built your home care agency website with an out-of-the-box tool, like Squarespace or Wix, your metadata might not be optimized. Poke around and check—you may be surprised to see you’re flying without metadata!
7. There’s no careers page
If you’re hiring home care workers, you need a careers page that includes open positions (and a way to easily apply), information about what it’s like to work at your agency, the benefits and perks they can expect, and the care teams they might work with if they join your team. This is your greeting to potential caregivers and health care professionals—make it a pleasant and helpful one.
Even if you’re not hiring at the moment, it’s worth including a page with basic information about what it’s like to work at your agency. Not only can this help potential caregivers keep you in mind for the future, but your potential clients are also looking.
The way you treat your caregivers is a reflection of how your caregivers will treat clients. Eighty-one percent of consumers say being able to trust a brand to do the right thing influences their purchase decisions, and 29% say the way a company treats its employees is the most important factor in deciding whether to become a loyal customer.
Get started with your new, optimized home care agency website!
Building and optimizing a great website for your home care agency on your own can be a tall order. Let the professionals at Home Care Marketing Pros help! Contact us today to see how we can give you a hand with taking your agency to the next level.
