NDIS and aged care marketing
How participants
choose a provider.
Most NDIS participants don't find providers through ads. They're pointed to them by a support coordinator, a plan manager, family or other participants, then check them online. It isn't easy: an NDIS Commission study found 57% didn't find it easy to find providers. So the providers who get chosen are the ones whose service area, capacity and way of working are easy to find and easy to pass on.
Written by Dan Picken, a marketer who checks the sources. Last checked 2 November 2026.What the research
says.
The NDIS Commission asked participants how they choose providers. In its Choice insights report, 57% said finding providers wasn't easy, 39% said there weren't many providers available, and only 19% said they could easily find and contact providers. 9% only use providers recommended by family, carers or their support coordinator.
One participant said it took a couple of years to find the right providers. That's the gap marketing can close: not louder ads, but clearer information in the places people already look.
The NDIA's own survey points the same way. 83% of participants aged 15 and over say the NDIS gives them more choice and control, but choice only helps if people can find and compare the options.
Choice only helps if people can find the options.
The people
who refer.
Support coordinators help participants put their plan into action, which often means suggesting providers. Plan managers pay invoices for 69% of participants, for some or all of their plan, so they see which providers deliver and invoice properly.
Neither should be treated as a sales channel. A coordinator's job is the participant's choice, and the Code of Conduct asks providers to disclose conflicts of interest. What they need from you is accurate, current information they can pass on: where you work, what you do, who can start now and how to make contact.
Families matter too, especially for children and for people with high support needs. They're often the ones searching at night, after work.
Would a coordinator
pass you on?
Tick what someone could find about you today, on your site or in the pack you send referrers.
Referral check
Would a coordinator
pass you on?
Tick what a support coordinator, plan manager or family could find about you today.
You have
0 / 7
Fix first
How they
search.
When participants and families do search, they usually search for the support and the place: 'NDIS occupational therapist Gosford', 'SIL providers Newcastle', 'support workers near me'. A page for each service, with the suburbs you actually cover, does more than one page listing everything.
Your Google Business Profile carries the 'near me' searches. Google says local results are based on relevance, distance and prominence, so keep categories, service areas and hours accurate, and reply to reviews.
Say whether
you can start.
The most useful thing a provider can publish is often the one most leave off: whether you're taking new clients, and roughly how soon someone could start.
Update it monthly. If you have a waiting list, say so and explain how it works. A participant who rings five providers to find one with capacity will remember the one whose website told them.
The first
call.
Answer the phone, or ring back the same day. Many people contact several providers at once, and the first clear answer often wins.
Ask what the person wants to achieve before talking about what you offer. And be straight about cost: the Code says providers shouldn't use high-pressure sales, and a participant who feels rushed will go elsewhere anyway.
What I see most often
What I'd check first
on a provider's site.
- 1
No suburbs listed
A services page that never says where the provider works.
- 2
Capacity left out
Nothing to say whether new clients can start, so every enquiry starts with that question.
- 3
A pack nobody updates
A referral brochure with old services, old staff names or an old phone number.
The honest bit. Clearer information gets you more good referrals. It won't make up for a service that doesn't turn up, and in care, word gets around quickly either way.
Questions
people ask.
How do NDIS participants find providers?
Often through support coordinators, plan managers, family and other participants, then online search. The NDIS Commission found 57% didn't find it easy to find providers.
How do I get referrals from support coordinators?
Give them accurate, current information they can pass on: your service area, services, capacity, registration status and how to start. Don't offer anything in return: the Code of Conduct and new inducement laws apply.
Do plan managers refer clients?
Some do suggest providers. 69% of participants use a plan manager, and plan managers see which providers invoice accurately, which builds trust.
Should I list my capacity on my website?
Yes. Whether you can take new clients, and roughly when, is one of the first questions people ask. Update it at least monthly.
Related
Keep
going.
Get a free
search audit.
Takes a minute. Audits come back within 1 to 2 business days. For anything else, I'll get back to you as soon as possible.
What happens next
- 1I'll ask for read-only access, or just your website for a search audit.
- 2I go through it and write up the 3 biggest fixes.
- 3A 20-minute call to walk you through it. No pitch unless you ask.