Growing a home care agency sounds exciting until you realize you’re juggling intake calls, referral relationships, KPIs, and marketing… without a roadmap. If you’ve ever felt like growth just means more stress, I get it.

That’s why I sat down with Sarah Barker, founder of Senior Care Sales Solutions, on the latest episode of the Grow Senior Care Marketing Podcast. Sarah’s background as a military leader, combined with her deep experience in business development, makes her a powerhouse when it comes to helping agencies grow efficiently and without burnout.

In this blog, I’m sharing the biggest takeaways from our conversation so you can apply them to your agency right away.

🎯 How Sarah Got Into Home Care—and Why It Matters

Sarah didn’t come from the caregiving side. She came from a military background, sales in advertising and payroll, and then stumbled into home care thanks to a referral from an estate planning attorney. That experience shaped everything she teaches now.

What stood out to me is how she took military principles, clear mission objectives, disciplined time management, and servant leadership, and applied them to home care sales. That’s what led her to build Senior Care Sales Solutions and launch programs like her Sales Academy and Connect Forward coaching.

Watch how we grew an agency’s care hours by 400% (and how you can too)!

🔍 What’s Holding Agencies Back from Growth?

I asked Sarah a tough question: “Why do so many agencies want to grow, but hit a wall?” Her answer? It comes down to five core gaps:

1. Poor Time Management

Many marketers spend hours crisscrossing their service area with no structure. I’ve seen this too—just driving from one side of town to the other because a facility “asked them to drop by.”

Sarah’s advice:

• Divide your territory into five geographic sectors
• Assign one sector per weekday 
• Match each account to the appropriate day based on referral volume and relationship status 

If an unexpected consult comes up in another sector, just swap days. It’s flexible, but organized, and it prevents burnout.

2. No Communication Between Sales and the Internal Team

This one hit home. I’ve had clients tell me they’re not getting calls from Google Ads, only to find out the phone was ringing… but front desk staff were answering like this:

“Company name.”

Flat tone. No warmth. No empathy. Just… static.

Sarah explained how damaging that is, especially for referral sources and families who may already be emotionally overwhelmed.

Quick fix:
Make sure every team member answers the phone the same way:
“Thank you for calling [Agency Name], how may I help you today?” Then make sure your sales and care teams talk daily so updates don’t get lost. A 15-minute stand-up call every morning goes a long way.

3. No Clear KPIs

One of my favorite parts of the conversation was hearing how Sarah tracks success. Here’s what she looks at weekly with her clients:

• 📈 Weekly care hours added 
• 💵 Revenue added to the book of business 
• 👥 Face-to-face referral source meetings 
• 📞 Number of intake calls and consultations 
• 💬 Texts, calls, and emails with referral partners 
• 🍎 Drop-offs (with context, were they necessary?) 
• 🎓 In-services and lunch & learns 

And here’s the gold: If a new business developer isn’t bringing in at least $12,000/week in revenue by 90 days, that’s a red flag. Sarah has seen total beginners meet that benchmark, which tells me it’s about process, not personality.

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4. Surface-Level Relationship Building

We talked about the infamous cookie drop-offs and how most referral partners are over it. Sarah encourages reps to be more intentional:

Instead of, “Here’s some donuts,” say:
“Hey Jeremy, I know you’ve got a full schedule today, do you prefer hot or iced coffee? I’ll bring your favorite next week.”

That kind of personal interaction builds real relationships and keeps your agency top of mind.

Another pro move? Offer CEUs (Continuing Education Units) to nurses and social workers. Some agencies partner with third-party providers to offer CEU credits, giving referral partners a real reason to engage.

If you’re not sure how to start, Sarah can point you in the right direction.

5. Too Much Reliance on One Referral Source Type

This one really changed my perspective. Sarah breaks down referral partners into three buckets:

1. Healthcare Ecosystem (SNFs, rehabs, hospitals, senior living)

    

2. Legal & Financial (Estate attorneys, trust officers, LTC insurance brokers, CPAs)

    

3. Community-Based (Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s orgs, senior centers)

Most agencies stay stuck in bucket #1. But legal and financial referrals? They’re gold.
They might not send as many leads, but the cases:

• Tend to be financially qualified

   

• Come in earlier

   

• Are longer-lasting

And the referral partners are loyal

🎓 Inside the Senior Care Sales Solutions Academy

Sarah’s academy is the opposite of generic sales training. It’s built around what actually works in home care growth.

What it includes:

• Four virtual sessions

   

• Real-world training (not theory)

   

• Guest sessions from actual referral sources

   

• Scripts, SOPs, and outreach plans you can use immediately

I love that she focuses on building a mindset first, because if your team doesn’t believe in what they’re doing, the tactics won’t matter.

Her next virtual cohort starts November 7th and you can register at: https://seniorcaresales.com

🤝 What One-on-One Coaching Looks Like

For agencies with a sales team, Sarah’s Connect Forward program acts like having a fractional VP of Sales.

She meets weekly with the team to:

• Review KPIs

   

• Optimize referral outreach

   

• Schedule meetings

   

• Help them prep for lunch and learns

   

• Hold them accountable (with grace and honesty)

She even helps source referral partners and build out their strategy. That’s rare.

📌 My Key Takeaway

If you want to grow without stress, you need structure, systems, and support.

Sarah isn’t offering magic. She’s offering discipline. Process. And accountability. And that’s exactly what most home care agencies need.

▶️ Listen to the full podcast here: [Podcast URL]
🔗 Learn more or register for her academy: https://seniorcaresales.com
👤 Connect with me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeremy-fuller-marketing/

Let’s keep growing, Jeremy

❓FAQs From the Episode

1. What KPIs should I track if I’m just getting started?
   Start with care hours added, face-to-face visits, and consultations booked. These tell you if your outreach is actually working.
2. When should I expect a new marketer to produce results?
   By month three, Sarah expects $12,000/week in new revenue, even from someone brand new. If they’re not on track, something’s off.
3. Can a small agency offer CEUs?
   Yes. Sarah works with agencies who partner with CEU providers, even if they’re small. Ask her directly for the list of resources.

Hope you found this to be helpful, if you’re ready to take your agency to the next level schedule your free home care marketing session with us now:

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