Opening a home care franchise is a great way to tap into the growing demand for in-home care services. But before starting, you must choose the right location for your business. Here are a few things to consider when choosing the best location for your home care franchise.

Finding Local Caregivers

When considering a location for your home care franchise, it’s crucial to analyze the local talent pool. Home care businesses rely heavily on caregivers to provide quality services to clients. Therefore, you’ll need to make sure there is a good candidate pool of qualified caregivers in the area where you plan to open your franchise.

Pro Tip: It’s Important To Remember That The Hiring & Retaining The Right Caregivers Is The Secret To Owning A Successful Home Care Business

One way to assess the availability of caregivers is to look at the number of home health and personal care aides in the area. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) publishes data on the employment and wages of caregivers by industry and state. This information can give you a good idea of how many caregivers are available in any given territory, plus it gives you insight into the level of competition and how much you’ll need to budget for compensation.

In addition to looking at data, you should also talk to your franchisor. At Briggs, we help every new franchisee identify the best location as part of our initial training and support. You can also speak with other franchise owners with real-world experience selecting a location.

Consider The Needs Of The Local Population

When choosing a location for your home care franchise, it’s important to consider the needs of the local population. Home care businesses provide services to seniors, people with disabilities, and others who need assistance with activities of daily living. Therefore, you’ll need to make sure that there is a demand for home care services in the area where you plan to open your business.

A great way to assess the demand for home care services is to look at the demographics and population in the area. The U.S. Census Bureau publishes data on the population by age, race, and disability status. This information can give you a good idea of the potential market for home care services in any given territory.

Consider The Competition

Once you’ve established that there is, in fact, a need for home care services in your desired area and there is a wide enough talent pool of high-quality caregivers, it’s time to analyze your competition.

The most reliable way to research local competition isn’t a secret. Doing a local Google search for the services you will offer provides excellent insight into who the completion is. When researching competition in the area, be sure to answer the following questions.

• Who are your direct competitors providing the same or similar services?
• What is the proximity to your proposed location?
• Are they a franchise or independent provider?
• Are they currently hiring, especially in the same area?
• What do the online reviews say? Are customers happy? Are employees happy?
• Are their prices competitive?
• Do they offer all the same services, or are there apparent gaps you can fill?

Finally, it’s important to remember that home care businesses compete with other in-home care providers, such as home health agencies, nursing homes, and private duty home care companies.

Once you’ve gathered information on your competition, you should be able to get a sense of how saturated or unsaturated the local market is and if there is enough demand in the area to meet your projections.

Pro Tip: The National Home Care Association (NHCA) keeps a directory of home care businesses by state. This information can give you a good idea of how many home care providers operate in any given territory.

Research The Local Economy

While home care franchises are known for being recession-resistant, it doesn’t mean they’re entirely immune to economic downturns. Obviously, you’ll want to make sure you choose a territory with enough potential customers who can afford your services.

A great way to assess the local economy’s health is to look at the unemployment rate. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) publishes data on the unemployment rate by state and metro area. This information can give you a good idea of how stable the local economy is and whether or not people in the area have enough disposable income to pay for home care services.

Pro Tip: Online data can tell you a lot, but common sense can be extremely useful here. Taking a drive through the local area can tell you a lot. Are businesses thriving? Is the city/town well maintained? Do you see windows boarded up? Is there a for sale or lease sign on every corner? In most cases, doing a visual walkthrough of your target market will tell you a lot.

Consider the Logistics

Finally, you’ll want to consider the logistics of opening a home care franchise in a particular territory. While most home care franchises don’t require a brick-and-mortar location, you still need to manage certain logistics.

Here are a few key things to consider when it comes to the logistics of running your home care business:

1. How and where will you meet with caregivers?
2. Is your team located close enough to your customer base?
3. How will you handle mobile operations?
4. Do you have the right tools to track time and feedback?
5. How will you handle scheduling?

While this isn’t a complete list of logistical matters, it should give you an idea of the types of things to consider when choosing a location for your franchise.

Choose The Best Home Care Franchise

By taking the time to do your research, you can choose a territory that provides a solid foundation for your business and sets you up for success. Taking your success a step further means choosing the best home care franchise to start your business with. The right franchisor will help you find the best possible location and a location that fits your goals.
If you’re ready to turn your passion for caring into a business you’ll love, talk with a member of our team today and learn more about how Briggs Home Care helps franchisees find the best location to build a thriving business.