in home care franchise | Senior Home Care Franchise

Senior Care Franchising: Opportunity for Husband and Wife Teams

For many couples, considering a second career is often a joint effort. Whether it’s because the kids have moved out and they’re looking for a business opportunity to pursue together, or if they simply want to find a way to spend less time apart as they work to achieve goals, a lot of couples turn to franchising to satisfy their second-career needs. Although there are seemingly countless business types to pursue in the franchise world, senior care franchising could be the best fit for husband-and-wife teams because of its family focus and the many inherent opportunities to help others in the community.

Family and Franchise Ownership

Franchise owners often describe their businesses in the same way they describe their families: it’s all about doing the best for those who depend on you and remaining accountable to those upon whom you depend. In the senior care industry, the focus on family is even more obvious. Senior care franchise owners are there for their community, making themselves available for families who require solutions when it comes to caring for an aging loved one.

Experience Plays a Part

For many husband-and-wife senior care franchise teams, the passion to provide compassionate care comes from direct experience. Couples who are searching for a second-career opportunity in senior care tend to be drawn to the industry because they’ve played a significant role in the care of a loved one. They’ve worked together to help senior loved ones in their own families, and now they’re inspired to continue helping seniors. Franchise ownership represents the ideal fit for them.

Helping Others and Helping Each Other

When couples consider a second career together, they are focused on earning a living, but providing a resource for the community is also important. Senior care franchise ownership gives husband-and-wife teams the chance to satisfy needs for excellent, compassionate care in the community while establishing a legacy that goes beyond the ability to do business well. When couples help each other as partners in senior care franchise ownership, they help so many other people, too!

A Clear, Combined Vision

Are you and your spouse searching for the perfect second-career opportunity? Do you share a passion for helping others and giving back to the community? You owe it to yourself to investigate whether your clear, combined vision is suited for senior care. Today’s seniors prefer to age in place, but families can’t always be around to ensure that their loved ones are safe and sound. As senior care franchise owners, you and your spouse can make a real difference while pursuing an amazing opportunity!

Learn More

Are you interested in learning more about what it takes to be successful as a senior care franchise owner during the aging-in-place boom? Always Best Care is here to help you navigate the industry as one of our franchise owners! Download our FREE franchising ebook today to learn more and refer to our most recent Franchise Disclosure Document for important details.

Time is Money: Finding More Time To Manage Your Home Care Business

As a home care business franchisee, it’s easy to get bogged down in day-to-day operations, leaving little time to consider larger decisions and the direction of the business. In order to function effectively, a franchise operator should have as much optional time as possible, but finding it can be a challenge. Some strategies to increase optional time include hiring new employees, delegating certain duties to others, automating certain functions, or even dropping certain responsibilities which are no longer necessary for successful operations. Ideally, delegating more responsibilities to employees is considered a positive, but in order to do so, employees must be qualified and capable of assuming added responsibility.

One mistake home care franchise operators can make is taking ownership of problems or situations which employees have brought to them for help. Rather than giving employees the opportunity to learn to perform the task or make the decision, the operator continues to do it because it seems easier and less time-consuming than training the employee to do it. Taking over the problem seems easier, but the better decision is to allow the employee to retain the responsibility for the problem and tell the franchisee how he or she plans to handle it. The process to allow this can seem time consuming, but ultimately it will result in better results. A franchisee should make sure his or her employees are fully and properly trained and when problems arise, encourage and allow them to offer solutions. The more challenging situations should be monitored more closely. With time and encouragement, most non-medical home care franchise employees can learn to stop running to the owner or manager every time there is a problem. Good employees will learn to successfully solve problems independently, in a manner that is consistent with the wishes of the owner.

To learn more about senior care franchising, download our FREE eBook now!

Please refer to our most recent Franchise Disclosure Document for important details.

The Value of Local Support for Your Senior Care Franchise

If you’ve worked in the corporate world, you understand what it’s like to have the support and structure of the company behind you. But operating within this structure leaves you with very little freedom to make decisions and take risks. That’s why franchise ownership is so attractive — owning and operating your own senior care franchise location allows you to experience the best of both worlds: You are the owner of your own business, with the freedom to make important decisions, but you also have support and structure provided by the company.

One important aspect of franchise ownership that sometimes gets ignored is the presence of support on the local level. It’s easy to view franchise ownership in terms of the relationship you have with the company at the national — or global — level, but it’s local and regional support that often means the most on an on-going, day-to-day basis.

How does local support help franchise owners succeed? Let’s take a look!

National Directors and Area Representatives Understand the Needs in Their Area

In the senior care industry, a cookie-cutter approach just doesn’t work. Every community is different, and methods that work in South Florida may not be effective in northern Minnesota. People live different lives in different parts of the world, and local National Directors and Area Representatives understand the regional nuances that give their franchise owners an edge over competitors who don’t have local support.

National Directors and Area Representatives Are There for You on a Regular Basis

Support from the corporate level is important, but it’s not usually meant to be a daily lifeline. Local support means having someone in your corner that you can call on when needed. They are also there for you to provide planning, mentoring and team building in a way that fits with the needs of your community. Regular in-person visits are part of the National Directors’ and Area Representatives’ responsibilities for our owners.

The Best Local Support When You Franchise with Always Best Care

At Always Best Care, we believe strongly in a system of support that includes the assistance of experienced National Directors and Area Representatives. National Directors and Area Representatives are there to provide support when you need it in addition to helping you hone your business plan for maximum results. Regular meetings provide structure and motivation, and our proactive approach to mentoring and coaching means that you’ll always be on top of your game.

Always Best Care is one of the leaders in the growing senior care industry because we believe in our people. Providing great local support is just one of the ways we help our franchise owners grow their businesses and serve their communities.

Are you interested in learning more about what it takes to be a senior care franchise owner during the aging-in-place boom? Always Best Care is here to help you navigate the industry as one of our amazing franchise owners! Download our FREE senior care franchising eBook today to learn more and refer to our most recent Franchise Disclosure Document for important details.

Leadership, Culture and Finding the Right Franchise

If you’re thinking about becoming a senior care franchise owner in your community, it’s important to understand that what you’re about to start is more than just a business opportunity. Senior care franchising is about providing a resource for area seniors and their families, and doing your job well requires you to be an active leader. But it’s also important to select a franchise ownership opportunity that provides strong leadership for you to follow.

Franchise Culture

When you are awarded a franchise location, you become a part of the company’s culture and value system, so it’s important that you select a business that allows you to operate in a way that’s consistent with your personal vision and values. A good fit is crucial for franchise success, so it’s important to investigate the type of leadership and support that the franchisor provides.

After spending time in the corporate world, poor leadership is one of the many reasons people turn to franchising. Which is why you should work to find a franchisor that features strong leaders and a proven system to help its individual owners succeed.

Online Research

Before you meet with representatives of a franchise, you can learn a lot by investigating the business’s online presence:

– What values and culture does the company’s website portray?
– What kinds of values are evident in the company’s blog posts?
– What kinds of things are being written about the company elsewhere online?
– What sort of reputation does the company have inside the industry?

Ask yourself these questions as you perform your research, and make note of how each company you investigate matches with your values.

Talk to Franchise Owners (Validation)

Speaking with current franchise owners is essential in your search for the ideal opportunity. These business owners understand what it’s like to work with the company on a day-to-day basis, and they possess insights that cannot be found elsewhere. Ask them questions specifically about the company’s leadership and culture, but also pay attention to their attitudes as they talk to you. If it seems like frustrations are brewing under the surface, it could be a red flag. However, if they seem genuinely enthusiastic, it could be a green light for you to proceed!

Meeting the Sales Team and Other Franchise Representatives

You can learn a lot from the sales people and franchise representatives you meet! If everyone clearly believes in the brand, you’re probably on the right track. But if you can sense that these franchise gatekeepers are holding back and not being completely authentic, you may want to keep searching.

These people are products of the company’s culture and leadership, so if you can’t connect with them, or you feel a lack of confidence from them, something less than ideal could be happening at the leadership level.

Consider Franchising with Always Best Care

Always Best Care has been providing excellent senior care services since 1996, and our position as an industry leader is a direct reflection of our amazing company culture. Contact us today to learn more!

Are you ready to build your future in the home care industry? The time to make a difference is now! Learn more about franchising with Always Best Care and get started on your journey to success by downloading our FREE E-Book today!

How You Can Help Today’s Seniors Get What They Want

One of the most important benefits associated with senior care franchise ownership is the opportunity to give back to the community and provide a resource.

But before you can provide your community with a valuable resource by offering outstanding senior care, you need to understand what seniors actually want. Seniors have many more options available to them in their post retirement years than ever before, so it’s crucial to be able to offer what they actually want.

Let’s take a look at some of the key desires that today’s seniors have — and explore how you can satisfy them as a senior care franchise owner in your community!

Respect

Seniors don’t always get the respect they deserve in our fast-paced world. Youth culture seems to dominate every facet of society, which can leave older individuals feeling like they exist on the margins.

Seniors don’t need to be treated like royalty, but they should be made to feel that they are every bit as important to society as anyone else.

As a senior care franchise owner, you can make a huge difference in your business — and the way your clients feel about you — by simply recognizing that older individuals deserve respect. As the leader of your business, everyone looks to you for guidance, so treat your clients (potential and otherwise) with the utmost respect, and your staff will follow!

Being Treated As Individuals

It’s all too easy to lump everyone over the age of 65 into a broad category known as “Seniors.” The reality is that seniors are just as diverse and varied as any other cross section of society. Certainly, seniors have a lot in common with each other generationally speaking, but that doesn’t mean that they’re all the same.

One-size-fits-all plans may work some of the time, but if you’re not treating each senior in your care as a unique individual, you risk alienating them. Every senior in your care has his or her own wants and needs; just because two people share the same birth date doesn’t mean they share the same requirements for senior care.

Communication

For most people, a social life is tied closely to professional life, so when individuals retire, they often find themselves missing out on conversations and interactions with others. Older individuals often have a lot to express, so it’s important to be able to truly listen to what they have to say, whether it’s in casual conversation or when they require something critical for their care.

Seniors also appreciate being looked in the eye and talked to directly. Too often, senior care providers speak directly to a family representative without addressing the senior loved one, which can lead to feelings of alienation and a loss of self worth. Of course, it’s important to be able to communicate effectively with family members and other loved ones, but don’t forget the person who’s at the center of it all!

Get started by downloading our FREE E-Book today!

Transitioning Into Franchise Ownership

Franchising is a great way to own and operate your own business, but the concepts inherent to franchising aren’t always easy to understand. In many cases, newcomers to this type of business model — those who have never run their own business before — adapt more quickly to franchising than those people who come from the world of independent business ownership. Adjusting to a career as a franchisee can be difficult for those who have owned and operated their own businesses in the past, even though these individuals bring tremendous assets to the table.

Are you a business owner who is considering a shift into franchising? Your skills and experience will serve you well, but there are some important things to keep in mind as you make the change and learn how to operate successfully as a franchisee.

Let’s take a look at some helpful tips!

Do Your Research

This is true for everyone entering a career in franchising, but it’s particularly true for those who come from the world of traditional business ownership: researching the ideal franchise opportunity is crucial to your eventual success. As someone with experience in business, you’ll want to enter a franchising situation that rewards your depth of knowledge, and you’ll want to find an opportunity that allows you to use your accumulated skills to earn success. A lot of franchising opportunities will be less than ideal. Use your time in research to eliminate prospects that won’t serve you well.

Talk To People

As a business person, you probably have a large network of people whose experience and knowledge you can draw from. You learn by interacting with them, and they have been essential to your success. Use your networking skills to your advantage as you investigate various franchising opportunities — talk to existing franchisees and learn about their experiences. Don’t be afraid to seek out conversations with franchisors, either! Your efforts here will help you determine which franchise suits your skills and your business style best.

Consider the Industry

If you’re thinking about shifting into franchising from a career as an independent business owner, you must be looking for change. Perhaps this means that a change of industry is appropriate, as well. However, you may be better off remaining within the industry that you know and find familiar. The choice is yours, but it’s one that requires thought and serious consideration.

One thing is for sure: the senior-care industry is growing rapidly, and franchisees from all walks of life are finding renewed passion for their careers in this amazing franchising sector!

Learn More

Please refer to our most recent Franchise Disclosure Document for important details.

Five Ways a Home Care Franchise Changes Lives

As people age, everyday tasks often become more challenging. Many senior citizens may find themselves in need of daily help with errands, chores and personal care, but their family members may not be available to the extent needed. Non-medical in-home care is an excellent solution for individuals who need help with everyday activities, but who do not require daily medical care or monitoring.

Here are five ways a home care franchise is changing the lives of seniors and their families:

Assisting seniors with everyday tasks –– In-home caregivers help seniors with meal preparation, grocery shopping, mail sorting and bookkeeping, light housekeeping, personal care and transport, among other things.
Providing affordable care –– In-home care can be an affordable alternative to assisted living facilities, which can cost anywhere from $2,800-$7,000 per month.
Giving families peace of mind –– Family members, especially those with young children at home, may find it difficult to help their loved ones to the extent they’d like. In-home care professionals can provide family members with peace of mind, knowing that their loved ones are receiving the help and attention they need.
Providing seniors with companionship –– Elderly people, especially those who are unmarried or widowed, often experience loneliness more acutely as they become more distanced from busy family members and friends, and spend more time at home alone. An in-home caregiver’s companionship can go a long way to combat loneliness and comfort seniors.
Helping seniors maintain independence –– For most of us, the thought of becoming dependent on others is uncomfortable. Seniors frequently report that maintaining as much independence as possible is extremely important to them as they age. In-home caregivers can provide assistance with certain tasks, while allowing seniors to maintain their independence.

The American population is aging—the number of people aged 65 and older is expected to increase to around 72 million, in the year 2030, in the United States. Our aging population will bring increased demand for senior care services and alternatives to assisted living, such as in-home care. Always Best Care is one of the leading providers of senior care in the nation and is ready to serve this population.

Always Best Care is one of the nation’s leading providers of non-medical in-home care, assisted living placement services, and skilled home health care. The company delivers its services through a national network of nearly 190 independently owned and operated franchise territories throughout the USA.

Learn more about the exciting senior care industry in our FREE downloadable eBook!

Please refer to our most recent Franchise Disclosure Document for important details.

Top Reasons Baby Boomers Are Retiring Later

Many Baby Boomers (those born between 1946 and 1964) are choosing to delay retirement and continue working—and not necessarily for financial reasons. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of people age 65 and older in the workforce had increased from 12.9 percent in 2000 to 17.4 percent in 2010 and is expected to increase to 22.5 percent by the year 2020. Franchise with Always Best Care explores the reasons behind this increase in older workers.

Working Provides Rewards beyond Financial Compensation

While it’s true that some Americans have not saved sufficiently and, therefore, must continue working into retirement, the reasons behind the trend of Boomers working beyond age 65 are varied. Beyond financial necessity alone, older Americans are choosing to work longer for emotional and psychological reasons.

A study from the Sloan Center on Aging and Work found that 89 percent of older workers surveyed reported enjoying their work. And in a sample of individuals ages 50 and over, the 2002 National Study of the Changing Workforce found that 91 percent of those surveyed said the work they do is meaningful to them. Older folks continue working beyond retirement to reduce social isolation and increase their connection to the community. Many people report that working helps give meaning to their lives, while others want to be able to use their knowledge and experience on the job.

Helping Baby Boomers in the Coming Years

Although many Baby Boomers are opting to delay retirement and continue working, this growing segment of the population will require assistance in the coming years and decades. More folks are choosing to age in place, opting for home care rather than assisted living. If helping seniors is your passion, contact Franchise with Always Best Care to learn more about starting a senior home care businesses with one of the top home care franchises in the nation.

Learn More

Please refer to our most recent Franchise Disclosure Document for important details.

5 Tips to Start Thinking Like an Effective Entrepreneur

Becoming an effective franchise owner requires an investment of money, time and hard work. Another key piece to the puzzle of franchise ownership is developing the proper mindset. When you own and operate a senior care franchise, you need to be able to keep your mind on your goals, even when you’re being pulled in countless different directions.

If you are interested in franchise ownership within the senior care sector, but you’re not sure if you have the right mindset to be effective, here are five terrific tips to help you get your mind on track!

#1 — Always Be Seeking Opportunities

For many franchise owners, there is a specific time and place for seeking opportunities, whether it’s during networking events or on days set aside for online research and interactions. But to make an impact with a franchise, it’s necessary to develop the ability and mindset to seek opportunity at all times.

For example, let’s say you’re getting your morning coffee and you overhear a group of people talking about senior issues in the corner of the coffee shop. Your instinct might be to get your morning Joe and head out the door, but the entrepreneurial mindset would direct you over to their table where you could introduce yourself and let the party know that you are also involved with senior issues. Chances are, you’ll make an impact and a few connections!

#2 — Become Comfortable with Risk

Your instincts might tell you that an opportunity is just too risky to pursue. While your instinct might be right, it’s good to challenge it. Ask yourself whether the opportunity truly is too risky, or whether your instincts are guiding you out of fear. You aren’t going to operate effectively without taking some risks, so getting comfortable here is key.

#3 — Become More Flexible

As a busy person with a tight schedule and a lot of hats to wear, a rigidly organized day may seem like the best way to keep everything in your life and work in balance. But you can’t always plan everything and expect the world to cooperate every step of the way. Challenges will arise, emergencies will need to be dealt with and your day can turn upside down in a second.

The more flexible you can be, the more able you will be to whether those challenges and changes. You can keep your structure, but learning to be more flexible within it will give you an edge.

#4 — Take the Initiative

Many franchise owners come from industries where they were given orders, or had to wait to be told what to do. Franchise ownership requires you to follow direction from the corporate level, but you also have to be willing and able to take action on your own, when needed. Meeting your challenges head on can be frightening, but with practice, you can develop a mindset that makes it easy!

#5 — Keep One Eye on the Future

Operating in the here and now is crucial for your franchise, but you also have to be able to see what’s just around the corner. Keep one eye on the moment in front of you, but be sure to keep the other on the future so you can plan effectively.

Are you interested in learning more about what it takes to be a senior care franchise owner during the aging-in-place boom? Always Best Care is here to help you navigate the industry as one of our franchise owners! Download our FREE franchising ebook today to learn more and refer to our most recent Franchise Disclosure Document for important details.

Senior Care Franchise Ownership — A Strong Business Model for the Future

Franchise ownership is terrific avenue for people who want to take their skills and experience into a different realm of business. Senior care franchise ownership, in particular, gets a lot of press because the industry is growing so much, but you may be wondering — is it a strong business model for the future?

Obviously, we are biased on the subject, but there are some undeniable facts that show that in-home senior care franchise ownership is a fantastic sector to enter for people like you who want to steer their ship into a solid, satisfying and potentially lucrative future.

What Do You See in Your Future?

Not every opportunity is a great fit for everyone. Senior care franchise ownership represents a fantastic business option for people from all walks of life, but it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. However, we would advise you not to be so quick to dismiss it if it doesn’t immediately stand out in your mind as a possible future.

The first step in deciding what you will do with your professional life is to envision what you want it to look like. Like most individuals who have dreamed of a better, more independent professional future, you’ve surely spent some time picturing yourself in the ideal scenario.

Do you see yourself working closely with others?
Can you picture yourself networking with key people in your community
Does your vision include work that helps people in your area?
Do you envision a professional life that includes built-in organizational support and structure?
Are you picturing a business that takes the needs of others into account?

If you answered “yes” to the questions above, senior care franchise ownership could be a great fit for your future!

Franchise Ownership and the Future

Senior care franchise ownership is getting a lot of press today, but you might be concerned about its future. Sure, today’s seniors have expressed a strong desire to live out their retirement years at home, but what about subsequent generations? Is owning a senior care franchise a solid option for a strong business future?

The fact of the matter is that there will always be seniors — and there will always be a need for senior care. And the way our society is moving, it’s easy to see that the current trend of seniors staying at home will continue. People like having options, and now that seniors know that they can stay at home where they are comfortable, it’s unlikely that future generations will revert back to the costly nursing home model that dominated in the past.

The numbers don’t lie, either:

There are currently about 46 million Americans aged 65 or older
By 2060, that number will more than double to nearly 98 million
The senior segment of the population is growing faster than any other
The demand for elder care alternatives will likely continue to rise, largely thanks to the increase in the number of cases of Alzheimer’s Disease and other forms of dementia

(Source: PRB.org Aging Fact Sheet)

What About Your Future?

If you have a vision for your future that involves a rewarding professional life in a solid, growing industry, you owe it to yourself to consider your own senior care franchise. The industry is growing rapidly with no signs of slowing down, and those who get on board today with their businesses will be well equipped to take advantage of tremendous opportunity here in the future.

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