The home care industry is worth billions of dollars each year. In fact, the number of Americans that need home care services is expected to double by 2030. If you’re looking for ideas on how to enter this space and make money, you’ve come to the right place. Care.com is a leading platform for caregivers and families searching for in-home help. In this article, we’ll explore how care.com makes money and what steps you can take to launch your own business in this field.
Care.com’s business model
Before we dive into the specifics of how care.com makes money, let’s first talk about care.com’s business model. Care.com is a business-to-consumer (B2C) company that operates in the online marketplace segment. The company’s core business is connecting families to caregivers – such as those who provide nursing care, home health aides, and senior companions. Families use the platform to book and manage their caregivers, and caregivers use the platform to build their business and connect with new clients. In order to provide this service, care.com has to invest in infrastructure, technology, and marketing.
How does Care.com make money?
Now that we’ve covered care.com’s business model, let’s talk about how care.com makes money. First and foremost, the company earns revenue via its subscription plans. So, if you’re a family that uses care.com, you’ll need to subscribe to the platform in order to access its services. There are two different plans, a basic plan and an enhanced plan. There’s also a free plan called care.com on the go. However, if you want to access premium features such as background checks and 24/7 support, you’ll need to subscribe. Families can also access premium features if they subscribe to the care.com on the go plan.
Build a website and mobile app
If you want to start your own home care business, you’ll need to invest in a website and mobile app. After all, this is the backbone of your business, and everything else flows from it. In terms of building the website, you have the following options: If you’re launching a B2B business focused on partnering with caregiving agencies and recruiting caregivers, you’ll want to choose the first option. If you’re building a B2C business focused on connecting families and caregivers, you’ll want to go with the second option.
Establish partnerships with caregiving agencies
If you’re looking to grow your home care business by connecting families with caregivers, you’ll need to establish partnerships with caregiving agencies. These are trusted organizations that employ, train, and manage a large network of caregivers. By partnering with caregiving agencies, you’ll be able to tap into a large network of caregivers. Caregiving agencies are typically willing to partner with you if you’re offering a better, more streamlined solution for their clients. For example, you could offer a dedicated customer service team, online scheduling, and online payments. All of these things are standard with care.com.
Care.com for families and caregivers
As a care.com partner, you’ll have the ability to let families search for in-home care on your platform. However, if you want to make money through care.com, you’ll need to offer a paid subscription. For example, a family on care.com pays $29 a month for access to a basic plan and $49 a month for access to an enhanced plan. When a family subscribes to your platform, they book caregivers, and they pay you a portion of the money that they spend. For example, if a family spends $50 on a care plan, you’ll get $20 of that. Your business model here is simple: Families pay you, and you pay the caregivers that you employ.
Summing up
Now, let’s quickly recap on how care.com makes money and what you need to do in order to follow in its footsteps. First and foremost, care.com operates as a B2C company in the online marketplace segment. The company’s core business is connecting families to caregivers. Families use the platform to book and manage their caregivers, and these caregivers use the platform to build their business and connect with new clients. In order to provide this service, care.com has to invest in infrastructure, technology, and marketing. To follow in care.com’s footsteps, you’ll need to build a website and mobile app. Ideally, you’ll want to go with a B2B business model, in which you partner with caregiving agencies and offer the same services that care.com provides.