One Phone Call Could Be Your Best Resident Lead — Here’s Why

Phone calls remain the linchpin of senior living and care providers’ relationship-driven sales strategy, making every ring—and every answered call—an opportunity to outpace competitors. A new benchmark report from AI-powered revenue execution platform Invoca lays out practical steps for optimizing call routing, frontline coaching, and Google Ads spend—areas where digital ads spark phone conversations that turn prospects into residents.

Invoca’s multi-industry analysis of over 60 million calls found that 58 percent of incoming inquiries to senior living and care organizations connect directly with a live person. Home care providers led the way, answering 63 percent of calls, compared to 53 percent across independent living, assisted living, memory care communities, and skilled nursing facilities.

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Digging deeper, the report reveals that 36 percent of calls driven by digital marketing qualify as leads—proof that targeting is on point across long-term care. Even better, 41 percent of those leads convert to a sale during the call, with residential senior living and care communities hitting a 49 percent conversion rate versus 32 percent for home care.

“When calls go unanswered, it creates a devastating ripple effect—marketing ROI tanks, prospects grow frustrated, and revenue vanishes,” the report warns.

Coaching and Call-to-Action Gaps

Alarmingly, just 17 percent of residential long-term care operators prompt callers to book a tour or close a sale on the spot, spotlighting prime coaching opportunities for sales teams.

“It’s tempting to think digital channels have made phone calls obsolete. But for high-value services, live conversations still decide revenue wins or losses,” says Invoca CMO Peter Isaacson in the company’s news release.

Smart Staffing and Routing

To capture more leads, Invoca recommends tracking missed-call patterns by day and hour, then adjusting staffing levels accordingly. They also advise routing tour-booking inquiries straight to a person instead of an automated line.

Understanding lead and conversion rates by channel—paid versus organic—lets providers allocate marketing dollars more effectively. In residential senior living and care, organic search drives the highest share of answered calls that become leads (49 percent), followed by Google Business Profiles (37 percent) and Google Ads paid search (32 percent).

“The good news is that small tweaks to your answer, lead, and conversion rates can yield major business gains,” the report concludes.

For the full set of recommendations and data insights, read the Invoca report here.