How to Evaluate a Home Care Marketing Agency (From Someone Who Runs One)

I run a home care marketing agency. I've sat on the other side of every discovery call you're about to have. I know what agencies think when you ask about pricing. I know which questions make us sweat. I know what we don't volunteer.

This guide is the opposite of what I'm supposed to write. I'm going to tell you exactly how to evaluate people like me, including the uncomfortable parts.

Fair warning: some of this will make my industry angry. That's fine. You're about to hand someone $3,000-$10,000 a month and potentially lock yourself into a year-long contract. You deserve to know what you're walking into.

What I Wish Clients Knew Before the First Call

Most agency owners I know are decent people trying to do good work. But the business model creates problems you should understand.

Here's how marketing agencies actually make money: we sign clients, deliver work, and try to keep you long enough to be profitable. The first few months with a new client are often break-even or worse. Onboarding takes time, strategy takes time, learning your business takes time. We don't start making real money until month four or five.

That's why you see long contracts. That's why some agencies push 12-month commitments. It's not because marketing takes 12 months to work. It's because the agency needs 12 months to be profitable on your account.

I'm not saying long contracts are always bad. Sometimes they make sense. But you should understand why they exist.

Why Most Marketing Advice Doesn't Apply to Home Care

I've lost count of how many times I've heard this on discovery calls: "We tried a marketing agency before. They did great work for their restaurant clients. But they didn't get our business."

Home care is different. Here's why:

You're marketing to two audiences with opposite motivations. Families are anxious, often in crisis, researching care for someone they love. Caregivers are comparing pay rates and flexibility, probably applying to five agencies at once. The messaging that works for one audience doesn't work for the other.

Your buyers are rarely your users. The adult daughter researching care isn't the one receiving it. That creates a trust gap most industries don't have.

Your biggest growth problem might not be marketing. 59% of home care agencies say they're operating with insufficient staff. You can win all the clients you want. If you can't staff the cases, marketing just creates expensive problems.

A generalist agency will spend months learning what a home care specialist already knows. That's months of your money.

The Question That Makes Agencies Nervous

In every discovery call, there's one question that separates agencies who understand home care from those who don't:

"How will you help us recruit caregivers?"

Watch what happens when you ask this.

An agency that gets home care will lean forward. They'll talk about Indeed optimization, caregiver-focused content, social media targeting CNAs, employee referral campaigns. They have opinions. They've done it before.

An agency that doesn't get home care will pivot. They'll say something like "let's focus on getting you more clients first" or "recruitment is really more of an HR function."

That pivot is your answer.

Here's what's really happening in that moment: the agency realizes they don't have a recruitment offering, and they're trying to steer you toward what they do sell. That's fine for a restaurant. It's not fine for you.

The 7-Criteria Scorecard (What Actually Matters)

I built this scorecard after watching agency-client relationships succeed and fail over the years. The failures usually trace back to the same handful of problems, and you can spot them before you sign.

Not all criteria matter equally. Industry experience matters more than a fancy website. Recruitment capability matters more than awards.

Questions That Make Us Prove Our Work

These are the questions that separate serious evaluators from easy closes. Ask them. Watch what happens.

"How many home care clients do you work with right now?"

A specific number is good, even if it's small. Vague answers like "we work with healthcare clients" or "home care is similar to senior living" mean they're stretching.

"Can you show me results from an agency my size?"

This one catches agencies who only have enterprise case studies. A 200-location national brand and a 30-caregiver local agency have completely different challenges. Results from one don't transfer to the other.

"What does month one actually look like?"

Good answer: audits, strategy development, access setup, tracking implementation. Nothing has launched yet, and that's correct.

Bad answer: "We'll start running ads immediately." No audit? No strategy phase? That's a problem.

"Who will actually work on my account?"

The people in the pitch are often not the people doing the work. Senior leadership sells you, then hands you to junior staff you've never met. Ask specifically who does what.

"What doesn't work in home care marketing?"

This reveals whether they've actually worked in the industry. Someone with experience will have opinions. Broad national campaigns don't work for local service areas. Emotional messaging hits different for families vs. caregivers. Google Ads for "home care" is expensive because you're competing with job seekers.

If they say "marketing principles are universal," they haven't done this before.

Red Flags Worth Knowing (From the Inside)

Some of these are industry-wide problems. Some show up more often than they should.

Promises of Fast SEO Results

If someone guarantees first-page rankings in 30 days, they're either lying or doing something that will eventually hurt you. Real SEO takes 6-12 months. Anyone telling you otherwise is prioritizing the sale over the truth.

Here's the uncomfortable reality: we know fast-result promises work on prospects. They close deals. That's why some agencies keep making them, even knowing they can't deliver.

Rock-Bottom Pricing

The average marketing agency retainer is around $3,500/month. If someone quotes you $500/month for comprehensive marketing, the math doesn't work. That's 2-3 hours of senior strategist time. It's not enough to do the job well.

What's actually happening: the work is being outsourced overseas, automated beyond usefulness, or the agency is desperate for cash flow. None of those scenarios end well.

The Bait-and-Switch

You meet with experienced leadership during the pitch. You sign. Suddenly you're working with someone you've never met who sounds like they're reading from a script.

This isn't always malicious. Agencies grow, people specialize, account managers handle day-to-day. But you should know who you're actually working with before you sign.

Reports That Hide Instead of Reveal

Impressive and confusing look similar if you don't know what to watch for.

Vanity metrics: impressions, reach, clicks, time on page. These are inputs, not outcomes.

Real metrics: leads generated, cost per lead, leads by source, conversion rate, actual clients signed.

If the monthly report makes you feel good but you can't answer "how many clients did marketing bring us this month," the reporting isn't working.

Long Lock-In Contracts With No Exit

I understand why agencies want long contracts. I explained the business model above. But good agencies recommend 3-6 months initially, then month-to-month with notice periods.

Agencies that insist on 12-month contracts with steep cancellation penalties are telling you something: they're not confident their results will keep you around voluntarily.

What Good Actually Looks Like (Month by Month)

One of the most common questions on discovery calls is what to expect from a marketing engagement. Here's a realistic timeline:

Month 1: Foundation

Nothing visible has launched. That's correct.

What should happen: onboarding conversations, access setup (analytics, ad accounts, website), audit of current marketing, strategy development, tracking implementation so results can be measured.

If an agency is "running campaigns" in week one, they skipped the strategy phase. That's a problem.

Month 2: Implementation

Things go live. Data starts coming in.

What should happen: campaigns launch based on approved strategy, content creation begins, initial optimizations based on early signals, regular communication.

You shouldn't expect big results yet. But you should see activity and adjustment.

Month 3: Early Signals

What should happen: measurable improvements in leading indicators (traffic, lead volume, cost-per-lead trending down), clear reporting showing what's working, strategy refinement based on data.

For PPC, you should see lead flow by now. For SEO, you should see ranking movement and traffic growth, even if it hasn't translated to conversions yet. For social media, you should see engagement growth.

If month three arrives and the agency can't show measurable progress on anything, that's a serious conversation.

Months 4-12: Compounding

This is where real results build. SEO compounds: rankings improve, traffic grows, leads increase. PPC optimizes: cost-per-lead drops, conversion rates improve. Content accumulates: the library of useful material grows.

The difference between good and great agencies often shows up here. Good agencies maintain results. Great agencies compound them.

The Budget Conversation (What It Really Costs)

I'm going to be direct about money because I've watched too many agencies get surprised.

The SBA recommends businesses under $5M allocate 7-8% of revenue to marketing. Most home care agencies spend 1-2%. That gap explains a lot of the frustration I hear.

Here's what things actually cost:

• SEO only: $1,500-$4,000/month for meaningful work
• PPC management: $1,000-$3,000/month (plus ad spend)
• Social media: $1,000-$2,500/month
• Multi-channel retainer: $3,500-$8,000/month
• Comprehensive marketing: $7,000-$15,000/month
• Ad spend: Additional, typically $1,000-$5,000/month to start

Can you find cheaper? Yes. Will it be good? Usually not. The math doesn't support quality work at very low price points.

Can you spend more? Also yes. But more expensive doesn't automatically mean better. After a certain point, you're paying for overhead and office space, not results.

Contract Terms Worth Fighting For

Most business owners read the scope carefully but skim the contract. That's backwards.

Initial Term Length

Push for 3-6 months. Yes, marketing takes time. No, that doesn't mean you should be locked in for a year with an unproven partner.

Exit Clauses

After the initial term, 30-day notice to cancel should be standard. If an agency demands 60-90 days or charges cancellation fees, negotiate.

Asset Ownership

Who owns the website they build? The content they create? The ad accounts they manage?

Get this in writing. Some agencies hold websites hostage when relationships end. The domain, the content, the creative: these should belong to you.

Scope Definition

Vague scope ("marketing services") creates problems. Either you'll pay extra for things you thought were included, or the agency will cut corners claiming work was "outside scope."

Good contracts list deliverables specifically. Monthly reports, number of blog posts, ad campaigns included, hours of strategy time. Get it written down.

When You Don't Need an Agency

I'd be doing you a disservice if I didn't say this: not every home care agency needs a marketing partner.

Consider doing it yourself if:

• You're under $500K in revenue and need to preserve cash
• You can dedicate 10+ hours/week to marketing
• You're willing to learn and iterate
• Your growth goals are modest

Consider an agency if:

• You're $500K-$2M and need expertise you don't have
• You don't have time to do it properly
• You need multiple services (SEO + PPC + social + website)
• You want to grow faster than referrals alone allow

Consider hiring in-house if:

• You're over $2M in revenue
• You have enough work for a full-time person
• You want someone deeply embedded in your culture
• You're willing to manage and develop marketing staff

Many agencies in the $1-3M range do a hybrid: in-house coordinator for day-to-day, agency for specialized services like SEO or paid advertising. That often makes sense.

The Final Checklist

Before you sign with anyone, including us, confirm:

• ☑️ They have verifiable home care experience (ask for specific client names)
• ☑️ They can handle both client AND caregiver marketing
• ☑️ They show you real reports, not just pitch deck samples
• ☑️ They make realistic timeline promises (and can explain why)
• ☑️ They provide references from agencies your size
• ☑️ You know exactly who will work on your account
• ☑️ Contract terms are reasonable (3-6 month start, 30-day exit after)
• ☑️ You own your assets (website, content, accounts)
• ☑️ They passed the recruitment marketing test

Score them on the 7-criteria scorecard. 70+ is a serious candidate. Below that, keep looking.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long before I see results?

It depends on the channel. PPC can generate leads within weeks (though optimization takes 2-3 months). SEO takes 6-12 months for significant ranking improvements. Social media builds over time. Anyone promising dramatic results in 30 days is overselling.

Should I prioritize client marketing or caregiver recruitment?

Whichever one is your bigger bottleneck. If you're turning away cases because you can't staff them, recruitment comes first. If caregivers are sitting without hours, client acquisition comes first. Most agencies need both, which is why the dual-audience question matters.

What's the best marketing channel for home care?

There's no universal answer. Referral partnerships with healthcare providers often deliver the highest-quality leads. Local SEO captures families actively searching. PPC provides fast, scalable lead flow. Social media builds brand and helps recruitment. The right mix depends on your market, competition, and goals.

How do I know if my current agency is performing?

Ask for a meeting to review actual business results. Can they show leads generated? Cost per lead? Which channels produced them? If they can only talk about impressions and traffic without connecting it to real outcomes, you have a problem.