Support Coordinators and Plan managers play important roles in the disability services scheme and assisting participants to find new service providers like yourself who can offer services they need! They are great individuals to network with, as you can hopefully join their list of preferred disability services providers.
By using the disability services Provider Search tool, you can search all the registered providers for Support Coordination and Plan Management. Once collating all the businesses and their details, you can reach out to let them know your now a registered provider and can offer these high-quality services!
One way to do this is by sending a friendly introduction email. You can share a little bit about who you are, what you’re offering, a couple of testimonials, your availability, and your contact details. You can even prepare this information as a one-page PDF document or a printable pamphlet that’s attached to the email.
Don’t be shy. These are humans behind the screen just like everyone else, and they most likely need you as much as you need them.
Building relationships with Local Area Coordinators and the disability services Information Centres around your local area, or the area you are looking to work within, is a great way to market your business and let everyone in your community know that you’re now a registered disability services provider!
Using the Local Area Coordinators and Offices tool, you can search where these centres are located, in which you will also receive the contact details. We recommend attending to these offices and providing them with business cards or pamphlets to hand out and provide to participants. These information booths are one-way participants find new service providers who can offer them services.
Health Provider Finder (HPF) is a go-to platform for connecting NDIS participants with verified healthcare providers across Australia. Their mission is to simplify the process for participants to find reliable and trusted healthcare providers, ensuring everyone has access to quality care that aligns with their unique needs.
You can create an account and start advertising your business on the platform by going to: www.healthproviderfinder.com.au
List yourself on Australia’s largest business directory platforms including: Yellow Pages, True Local, Yelp, Localsearch and Hotfrog.
Bonus tip: set a calendar reminder every 6 to 12 months to quickly check that your profile is up to date (name, address, phone number) and that your website URL and other links are working.
Not only is it professional and makes it easy for people to find you – external websites that link to your business’ website shows to search engine bots (like Google) that you’re credible, which then improves your online search rankings. This means that your position will be higher on the search engine results page.
Make sure to keep up to date with any disability services events within your area. Attending to these events are a great way to network with other service providers, new participants, and larger organisations that can help grow
It is highly recommended for you to look into having a visually engaging, but simple website created to engage and attract new participants to your business. NDIA-managed participants generally utilise providers who are recommended by the NDIA, and compare their websites to decide which provider they will reach out to. This is the process of elimination, so it is important to leave a first impression that counts! If your website looks attractive and professional, you will stand out and they’ll more likely want to work with you.
To find out more detailed information regarding what type of information you should put on your website, feel free to contact our marketing team here.
Place the ‘I/we heart disability services’, and the ‘I/we support the disability services’ and the ‘Registered provider’ tagline on your website and other marketing materials to show credibility. These disability services provider logos make it clear that you have successfully registered with the scheme and shows integrity and professionalism. Logo kits can be download here.
A free Google My Business Account allows you to better connect with your ideal disability services clients across Google Search and Google Maps.
In your business listing, you can input nice photos, contact details, and a link to your website. This creates more efficient ways for people to call, message, and email you, as well as leave reviews. Again, try to make sure your details are always up to date.
This step also helps to improve your online search rankings!
These are also free. Once you have your website, you can link this to your Facebook Business Page and/or Instagram Business Page. Many NDIS Participants utilise these social media platforms to search for service providers local to their area.
It’s another great way to engage with your audience. You can share client success stories, snippets of your personal journey, raise interesting questions, provide insights, and so much more. Experiment with words, photos and videos.
Start slow if you need to (patience is key), show your wonderful personality, and try to be consistent with your frequency of posting. If you are needing assistance with this, our marketing team can also show you some tips and tricks.
On Facebook you can also run specific adds targeting individuals who may be living with disability and looking for services you can offer!
This is an important step to find disability services self-managed participants. Again, this can be fun.
To do this, find and connect with people and groups within your industry on Facebook and Instagram. Share your personal story and successes. You’re building your voice as a passionate, caring, and trusted expert.
Here, it’s not about quick wins. The greatest relationships take time, and it’ll be worth it. You’ll feel a sense of connection, and when people are interested in you, they’ll no doubt reach out to you or find out more about you through your business pages. Remember the old saying: the more you give, the more you get.
