Selling to aged care providers works best by phone: find who owns the decision, call around shift handovers, roster deadlines and audits, and keep the first call short because teams are stretched. Residential, home care and NDIS providers buy differently, and software, services and supplies decisions often sit with different people, so map the buyer before you pitch.
This guide is for suppliers and software teams booking aged care sales meetings and NDIS provider sales meetings in Australia. Our role: Nousu books meetings and runs calling. We are not field reps, our callers make no therapeutic or clinical claims, do not promote prescription medicines, and your team runs the product conversation. We call provider decision makers, never residents, clients or participants.
Who actually makes the decision when selling to aged care providers?
It depends on what you sell and how big the provider is. Software, services and supplies decisions usually sit with different people, and a larger group often decides centrally.
| Role | What they own | How to reach them |
|---|---|---|
| Chief executive or general manager (smaller providers) | Priorities, budget and final approval | Direct, outside leadership and board meetings |
| Operations and rostering managers | Rostering, scheduling and care management software | Outside roster finalisation days and shift changes |
| Facility or service managers | Site services such as cleaning, catering and maintenance; local supplies | Mid-morning, after handover |
| Directors of nursing and care managers | Care workflows and staff time; influence on clinical supplies | Around handovers, at a facility-approved callback time |
| Finance and procurement leads | Supplier agreements, budgets and purchasing process | Outside month end and reporting deadlines |
Residential aged care decisions often start with the facility manager or director of nursing, with group operations or procurement approving. Home care providers are run from branches or a central team; scheduling and rostering software is usually an operations decision. NDIS providers range from large organisations to owner-operators, where one person may own every decision.
When is the best time to call aged care and NDIS providers?
Mid-morning after the morning handover and early afternoon before the next one. Avoid meal times, shift changes and the days rosters are finalised.
In our experience, audits and assessment visits take over a facility's week, so if a manager mentions one, ask when it ends and book the callback then. Many managers work on the floor as well as in management, so a booked time beats a cold call. Our guide to the best time to cold call in Australia covers the general windows and legal calling hours.
How do you get past aged care reception?
Reception is often a staff member covering several jobs. Say who you are and why, make it clear you won't take anyone off the floor, and ask for a time.
"Hi, it's (your name) from (your company). I'm calling for the facility manager about (topic, for example how cleaning services are scheduled). I don't want to pull anyone away from residents, so when's a good time to call back?"
If asked what it's about: "It's a business call about (topic), nothing to do with any resident. Is the facility manager the right person, or is that decided by the group?"
For home care: "Who looks after rostering and scheduling software for your branches, and is that here or with a central team?"
For an NDIS provider: "Is the owner the best person to speak to about (topic), and when are they usually free?"
Our guide to getting past the gatekeeper has more scripts.
What opener works with aged care providers?
One that respects the manager's time, names a real operational problem and asks one question.
"Hi Chris, it's Alex from (your company). I'll be quick because I know the floor keeps you busy. We work with providers on (problem, for example the time it takes to fill last-minute shifts). Is that something you're dealing with at the moment?"
Most aged care managers take the call between residents, so the promise to be quick matters. Unfilled shifts are a problem every facility recognises, which makes the question easy to answer honestly. Keep it general: avoid quoting reforms or figures you haven't checked, and never talk about individual residents or participants.
What objections will you hear from aged care and NDIS providers?
Most are about capacity and approvals. Respond briefly and get to a time.
| Objection | What it really means | Response |
|---|---|---|
| "We're short-staffed today." | Wrong moment, not a no. | "Understood. Which day is the roster usually settled? I'll call after that and keep it to a few minutes." |
| "That's decided by the group." | A central team approves suppliers. | "Thanks. Who should I speak to there, and do sites have any say?" |
| "We have an audit coming up." | Nothing new until it's done. | "Makes sense. When does it finish? I'll call after that." |
| "We don't have budget." | Not a priority yet, or the wrong buyer. | "Fair enough. When is budget set, and who's involved?" |
How do you follow up a "not now" from a provider?
Agree a specific callback, ask permission to email, and run a patient two-week cadence across phone, email and LinkedIn.
- Same day, email: two or three lines confirming the topic and the callback time.
- Next working day, LinkedIn: connect with the manager or operations lead; larger providers' leaders are more active there.
- Middle of week one, phone: call at the agreed time, outside handovers.
- End of week one, phone: if the decision sits with a group, call the central contact they named.
- Early in week two, email: one useful item your team has approved, such as a short note on implementation effort.
- End of week two, phone: last call. If it's still "not now", log the reason, such as an audit or budget cycle, and book the callback.
Follow-up emails must meet the Spam Act 2003: consent, a clear sender and a working unsubscribe. Owner-operators of small NDIS providers may use personal mobiles, which can be on the Do Not Call Register, so wash your list. Our Australian cold calling laws guide explains the rules. This is general information, not legal advice.
What counts as a qualified meeting with an aged care provider?
A meeting with the person who owns, or will approve, the decision for your category, about a problem they've described, with a confirmed date. Note the provider type, the number of sites in scope and whether a group sign-off is needed. Our guide on how an outbound agency defines a qualified meeting has a template.
Should selling to aged care providers be in-house or outsourced?
In-house suits a team with spare capacity and a short target list. Outsourcing suits national coverage across many providers, where callbacks and timing take most of the effort.
| Option | Pros | Cons |
|---|---|---|
| In-house | Sector knowledge; full control of messaging | Reaching busy managers takes many callbacks; reps lose selling time |
| Outsourced | Daily calling around handovers and rosters; callbacks tracked; meetings handed over with notes | Callers don't run product or care conversations; needs a clear brief and a minimum term |
See our aged care and NDIS outreach page and pricing. For other segments, see our overview of getting meetings with healthcare decision makers.
How does Nousu compare?
Nousu Collective's senior callers all work in-house in Sydney. We map provider decision makers across operations, care, finance and procurement and book meetings for your team, each with a handover brief. Pricing starts at $7,000 a month (ex GST), with the exact fee quoted after a 30-minute call. The initial term is 3 months, then rolling monthly, and first calls are 2 weeks from sign-off. Most campaigns book about 8 qualified meetings a month once running, within a range of 6 to 20, and from month two an agreed meeting floor applies, with a credit for every meeting short.
Frequently asked questions
How do you sell to aged care providers? Call the person who owns the decision for your category, usually operations, the facility manager, finance or procurement, depending on what you sell. Call around handovers, roster deadlines and audits, keep the first call short and ask for a specific callback. Follow up over two weeks by phone, email and LinkedIn.
Who decides on software at an aged care provider? Usually operations or rostering leads evaluate it, with finance and the chief executive or general manager approving. In larger groups, a central team often decides for every site. Care managers influence software that changes care workflows, so include them when the product affects how staff record or schedule care.
When is the best time to call an aged care facility? Mid-morning after the morning handover, or early afternoon before the next one. Avoid meal times, shift changes and roster finalisation days. If a facility has an audit or assessment visit coming up, ask when it ends and call back after that. Calls must stay within telemarketing hours.
Are NDIS providers different from aged care providers? Often, yes. NDIS providers range from large organisations to small owner-operated businesses, where one person may own every decision. Small providers decide quickly but have little time, so book a callback rather than pitching on the first call. Larger providers look more like aged care groups.
Do your callers contact residents or NDIS participants? No. We call provider decision makers about business offers, never residents, clients or participants about their care or health. Nousu books meetings and runs calling. We are not field reps, our callers make no therapeutic or clinical claims, and your team runs the product conversation.
How long should you follow up an aged care provider? Run a two-week cadence after a "not now", with calls, emails and LinkedIn spaced around the provider's routine. If the answer is still not now, log the reason, such as an audit or budget cycle, and book a callback for when it ends. Most timing objections are temporary.
Sources
- Federal Register of Legislation, Telecommunications (Telemarketing and Research Calls) Industry Standard 2017: https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2017L00323/asmade/2017-03-28/text/original/epub/OEBPS/document_1/document_1.html
- Do Not Call Register, Industry standards (calling hours, identification and calling line identification): https://www.donotcall.gov.au/industry/industry-overview/industry-standards
- Do Not Call Register, Industry guide (business numbers can't be registered; personal numbers can): https://www.donotcall.gov.au/media/1212/dncr-industry-guide.pdf
- Federal Register of Legislation, Spam Act 2003: https://www.legislation.gov.au/C2004A01214/latest/text
- Nousu call data: 218,000+ dials into Australian businesses, November 2024 to April 2026, published in Inside 200,000 Cold Calls.
Book a 30-minute call
Selling to aged care or NDIS providers? Book a 30-minute call with Harry Constant, our founder, and we'll talk through which buyers to call for your offer.