Director of Sales & Marketing, Senior Living Recruiters
You need a senior living sales leader who can turn inquiries into appropriate move-ins without promising services your community cannot provide.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire.
Need someone now? Call 954-738-4689.
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What does this hire really come down to?
A Director of Sales & Marketing manages the path from first inquiry through tours, follow-up, deposits, and move-in coordination. We recruit for the actual assignment: personal selling, coaching a sales team, managing referral relationships, or directing several communities. Your hiring brief should identify which responsibilities this person will own.
Start with your sales bottleneck. If inquiries arrive but tours stall, ask about discovery conversations and follow-up discipline. If tours happen but families delay decisions, examine how candidates explain costs, address objections, and agree on next steps. More advertising will not necessarily fix weak conversations.
Separate sales judgment from admission decisions. This director should recognize when a family's expectations need review by nursing or community leadership. Ask how the candidate handles a promising prospect whose support needs may exceed available services. A useful answer includes a clear handoff, accurate documentation, and no unsupported promises.
What do we ask candidates about?
- Ask, “Walk us through an inquiry from an adult child who is comparing several communities.” Listen for questions about timing, budget, decision-makers, preferences, and care concerns. Strong answers describe an agreed next contact rather than repeated messages without purpose.
- Ask, “How would you prepare a tour when siblings disagree about the move?” Look for discovery before arrival, thoughtful involvement of the prospective resident, and a factual explanation of services. Pressure tactics should not substitute for resolving unanswered questions.
- Ask, “What do you review in the CRM each morning?” Useful answers cover overdue follow-ups, tour outcomes, stalled prospects, referral activity, and incomplete records. Ask what action follows each finding, not just which reports they can name.
- Ask, “How do you coach a salesperson whose tours rarely advance?” Look for observation, review of discovery notes, specific feedback, and a practice plan. Ask how the candidate distinguishes weak selling from price concerns or unsuitable inquiries.
- Ask, “Describe how you decide where marketing money goes.” Expect discussion of lead sources, inquiry quality, tour progression, move-ins, and attribution limits. Candidates should explain when they would stop spending on a channel that produces interest but few suitable prospects.
- Ask, “What happens after a deposit?” Look for communication with operations, clarification of pending assessments, accurate move-in expectations, and family follow-up. Confirm that sales commitments reach the people responsible for delivering the service.
We discuss experience and qualifications. Your team assesses clinical ability and completes the credential checks before hiring.
Where do we look, and why would they move?
We look at senior living operators, including independent living, assisted living, and memory care communities. Single-community leaders may bring direct selling experience; regional sales backgrounds may bring coaching and reporting experience. Neither background automatically proves readiness for your mix of hands-on selling and team management.
We may also consider related healthcare referral-development backgrounds when the candidate can demonstrate consumer-facing sales experience. People may consider a move for clearer operating support, a different community offering, or broader ownership of marketing decisions. We ask what they want to change and whether your position offers it.
Which mistakes stall the search?
Hiring on occupancy claims alone. Ask what changed during the candidate's tenure, what they controlled, and how pricing, renovations, or market conditions affected results.
Treating every senior living setting as interchangeable. Confirm how candidates explain independent living, assisted living, and memory care without overstating services.
Leaving evening tours and weekend events undefined. Agree on attendance expectations, staffing support, and how the director covers selling alongside management duties.
How does your search work?
Tell us who you need
We ask about the job, your team, the requirements and what you can offer.
We find and contact people
We research suitable backgrounds and speak with candidates about their experience and interest.
You meet the strongest candidates
We explain why we recommend each person and arrange introductions for your interviews.
We help you complete the hire
We help with feedback, the offer, notice and practical questions before the start.
Tell us the job, setting and location. We will discuss your requirements and the terms before a search begins.
What happens next
- The initial conversation clarifies the work, location and search terms.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- When we recommend someone, you get reasons for fit and open questions to assess. We support interviews and offer discussions.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
Where this search connects
Post-Acute, Senior Living & Home-Based Care Leadership
SpecialtySkilled Nursing & Post-Acute Care
SettingSenior Living (Assisted Living, Memory Care, CCRC)
SettingHome Health & Hospice
SettingPE-Backed Healthcare Platforms
SettingNursing Home Administrator (NHA)
Related roleAssistant Director of Nursing (ADON)
Related roleMDS Coordinator
Related roleRegional Nurse Consultant
Related roleNational median annual wage. SOC 11-2022, Sales Managers.
BLS reports Sales Managers as one occupation. It does not publish a separate estimate for Director of Sales & Marketing, Senior Living, its setting or its engagement terms.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS, 2025-05, released 2026-05-15. View source. See the full guide.
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What do employers ask us?
Should our director personally conduct tours?
Decide this before recruiting. A single-community director may need substantial personal selling time, while a larger team may need more coaching. Ask candidates how they would divide their week.
How can we test whether occupancy results are credible?
Ask candidates to explain the starting position, sales actions, and outside factors behind their results. Request examples they can discuss without sharing confidential resident information, and use references to check their account.
Can one director sell across independent living and memory care?
Potentially, but test both conversations. Ask how the candidate changes discovery questions, involves family members, and brings clinical colleagues into discussions. Familiarity with one offering does not establish skill in another.
Who should approve service promises made during tours?
Your community should define that authority. Ask how candidates handle requests about care, staffing, or accommodations that need operational review. Look for a documented answer rather than a sales commitment made without approval.
Should referral relationships outweigh digital marketing experience?
Match the balance to your inquiry sources. Ask candidates how they evaluate professional referrals and digital leads separately. Strong local relationships do not replace disciplined follow-up, and advertising knowledge does not prove effective family conversations.
What should you send us about this role?
Send us the role, where the person will work and what needs to change with this hire. We will ask about the work, not just the title. Share any license or schedule limits that could rule someone out before we begin the search.
Tell us where your sales process stalls and what this director will own. We can shape the search around those decisions.
No upfront fee. You pay only if you hire. We offer a candidate replacement guarantee on standard search agreements. The applicable period and exact terms are set out in the signed client recruiting agreement.
What happens next
- The initial conversation clarifies the work, location and search terms.
- Ivan or a senior team member will reach out soon.
- When we recommend someone, you get reasons for fit and open questions to assess. We support interviews and offer discussions.
- Fees.
- No upfront fee. Pay only if you hire, under the signed agreement.
- Exclusivity.
- Set out in the signed client agreement.
- Confidentiality.
- We agree the brief before outreach. This is not a promise of absolute anonymity.
- No hire.
- No hire means no fee on standard searches.
Which other positions in this family should you consider?
Health Services Director (Assisted Living) · Home Health Administrator