Behavioral Health Growth Consulting

Experience-driven Expertise

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We helped AAC see a 20% lift in admissions in their TX, NV, and CA markets within 3 months of campaign launch.

20%

increase in admissions

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More Data Than Anyone Else in the Field

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Internally, we have over 2 billion dollars of behavioral health operational data and four hundred million of pure marketing data across geographies, levels of care, and sizes of organizations. We’ve helped grow providers from startups and de novos to some of the largest operators in the country.

On top of our quantitative data sets, we do a qualitative analysis of every provider we work with, completing hands-on evaluations of clinical programming, operations, marketing, and leadership. This affords us a width and breadth of insight unmatched in the field.

Nick Jaworski

Senior Marketing Executive

Nick specializes in multi-channel marketing strategies rooted in human psychology and data analytics to drive short, mid-term, and long-term growth for providers.

Branding & Positioning
Data Analytics, Tracking, & Martech Integration
Sophisticated Multi-channel Campaigns & Capital Allocation

Meet Our Consulting Team

Our consulting team is comprised of seasoned leaders, all with senior executive experience at enterprise-level organizations. We specialize in turnarounds, acquisitions, and de novo growth for both strategics and PE-based behavioral health providers. Unlike a McKinsey or a Bain & Co, we don't send you MBAs with no lived business experience. Our team is comprised of experienced executives who have literally walked the walk to get results.

Mukta Aggarwal

Senior Digital Marketing Executive

Mukta has over 10 years of experience in digital marketing, managing millions of dollars per month in ad spend across channels for organizations like UHS.

Full Funnel Digital Media Campaigns
AI-driven Performance Marketing
Predictive Analytics
Consumer Insights & Trend Analysis

Shelley K. Plemons, M.S.

Senior Business Development & Call Center Executive

Shelley has over 4 decades of experience in behavioral health, primarily leading Call Center and Business Development Operations for organizations such as Perimeter, American Addiction Centers, and Discovery Behavioral Health.

Initial & Ongoing Admissions and Biz Dev Training
Territory Analysis and Strategy
Local & National Sales Strategy

Michele Santagata

Call Center & SaaS Technology Executive

Founder of Santagata Consulting, Michele has built and managed everything from 4 to 100-person call centers covering more than 115 locations. She minimizes lost opportunities through training and technology while helping improve conversion rates on existing volume.

Staffing Models & Operational Optimization
Training & Quality Assurance
Salesforce, Call Tracking, & Analytics Integration
Technology Infrastructure, including AI-based, Tier-driven Call Routing

Jen Carvalho

Culture-driven Operations Executive

Jen Carvalho is a seasoned behavioral health executive and consultant with over two decades of C-suite leadership experience. She partners with healthcare organizations to solve complex operational challenges, drive sustainable growth, and enhance clinical excellence.

Operational Excellence & Turnarounds
Workforce Stabilization & Leadership Development
Quality & Compliance
Strategic Growth & Service Line Expansion

Our Steps to Working Together

Our consulting process is designed to keep every project strategic, transparent, and aligned with your goals. From discovery to implementation, we collaborate closely to ensure each step drives measurable impact and lasting results.

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Due Diligence, Valuation, Turn-arounds, and Exit Strategy

Initial large-scale forays into behavioral health have been plagued by write downs, bankruptcies, and other problems - UHS with Foundations Recovery Network, American Addiction Centers, Sovereign Health, Elements Behavioral, Solid Landings, Bayside, Liberation Way, the list goes on.

Behavioral Health is a very complex industry where early models have been shown to be unsustainable. At Circle Social, we define problems, not symptoms, then create real solutions that strengthen your organization, positioning it for sustainable growth.

Diagnose My Issue

addiction treatment marketing testimonial from Matt

Matt Feehery

Foundations Recovery Network - CEO

Circle Social helped Foundations Recovery Network streamline its digital marketing department, and SEO and SEM processes. Their efforts helped us significantly reduce our PPC expense while maintaining similar quality call volume and results. They developed and launched our Facebook marketing campaigns that yielded increased traffic to our websites and calls to our centers. They were collaborative, efficient, and affordable.

Tom Britton

American Addiction Centers - CEO

I'm so thankful to Nick and the Circle Social team for their support and strategic partnership. AAC is on the path to excellence with a focused mission to yield the highest quality care to maximize our patients ability to reach their full potential. It is through partnership and unity that our field moves into the new era of accountability and impact!

Laurie Mayer

Caron Treatment Centers - CMO

We are currently working with Circle Social via their 360 Degree Provider Optimization Plan. The work to-date that they have done for our organization is by far the most comprehensive and intentional that we have ever received. The amount of insight and recommendations they have shared in a very short period of time is incredible. I cannot stress enough how comprehensive their approach to the scope has been. We look forward to our continued partnership with Nick and his team.

Lee Dillworth

ReVIDA Recovery® Center - Owner & CEO

Circle Social has delivered on everything they promised for over two years. They are real pros -- subject matter experts who are honest, objective, consultative, creative -- and totally committed to their clients' success.

Mukta Aggarwal

UHS - Director of Digital Marketing

As part of UHS’s media team, I worked with Circle Social from 2017 to 2021. They started as consultants, they have an in-depth understanding of SUD/BH business, right from marketing to insurance to facility operations and patient care. Their recommendations helped us identify key areas of improvement that would impact bottom line.

Later in 2018, their team started supporting us in marketing campaigns. They are very ROI focused and help generate demand instead of just depending on intercepting it.

Heather Hudiburgh

Roots Renewal Ranch - COO

Circle Social has been a complete game changer for us in our business! Jared and Nick have been so communicative and have listened to all of our feedback. Circle Social is versed in behavioral health and has driven our SEO quickly and efficiently. Circle Social becomes part of your team and lends so much support and experience, we look forward to continuing to partner with them!

Tyler Tisdale

Pinnacle Peak Recovery - Owner & CEO

Circle Social has the most industry data bar none. Addiction treatment marketing is not only extremely competitive, but it can be confusing and expensive trying to navigate it. Nick and his team have been out to our center twice. They instilled confidence in our practices and we were able to cut a lot of overhead leveraging the data they have. I highly recommend using Nick and Circle Social for your consulting or marketing needs.

Parker Polidor

CaredFor - CEO

The team at Circle Social was so helpful with our LI and FB advertising. Of course the execution was on point, but more importantly they took the time to walk us through the "why" behind the "what". I felt that we had a true partnership and they invested time to really understand our business and it's long term goals. I'd definitely recommend Nick and the rest of the team.

Why Choose Circle Social?

We care about patients and your organization. More than anything, we want you to be able to deliver the best care possible to patients who need your services.

You wouldn't hire your kid's gym teacher to teach their algebra class. You shouldn't hire a random marketing agency to do your healthcare marketing. We have specialized expertise in healthcare that almost nobody else has. Having helped programs grow from the ground up as well as working with some of the largest providers in the country, we provide top to bottom support across your entire organization.
We're constantly innovating to stay ahead of changes in the field.
We build foundational systems and processes, then implement and execute on identified areas for growth that drive long-term, sustainable results for your organization.

Mukta is a marketing leader with 20+ years of driving revenue growth, with specialized expertise in the healthcare sector. Her career spans North America, Asia, and Europe, delivering results for organizations from early-stage startups to Fortune 300 companies.

Her significant healthcare experience includes executing growth strategies for over 300 hospitals with Universal Health Services (UHS). She spearheaded initiatives to expand referral networks and improve patient acquisition efficiency for Behavioral Health,

Substance Use Disorder, and Acute Care hospitals through integrated paid media and SEO campaigns. Previously, as Director of Marketing at Asurion, she managed multi-million-dollar budgets and built localized marketing strategies for a network of 750+ retail locations. Mukta's approach is rooted in AI-driven performance marketing, predictive analytics, and data-driven storytelling.

She now applies this expertise as a fractional CMO and through her firm, Multiplier Analytics, helping companies accurately measure advertising’s impact on revenue.

Key Focus Areas:

Growth Strategy Development: Adept at designing and socializing scalable growth strategies
AI-Driven Performance Marketing: Expertise in leveraging artificial intelligence and automation to optimize marketing spend and maximize ROI.
Predictive Analytics & Data-Driven Decision Making: Skilled in using predictive models and advanced analytics (e.g., marketing mix modeling, lift analysis) to guide strategy and improve campaign performance.
Consumer Insights & Trend Analysis: Leverages consumer behavior and market trends to shape effective, audience-centric marketing strategies.
Data-Driven Storytelling: Translates complex data into compelling narratives that inform strategy and influence stakeholders

With more than 30 years of behavioral health experience, Shelley has also served as Principle/ CEO of Strategic Health Care Partner, an independent consulting firm for behavioral health, and substance use treatment centers where she has generated growth with Residential Treatment Centers, Behavioral Health Hospitals, EAPs, Outpatient Counseling Centers, MAT Centers, Managed Care Organizations and Physician Practices. Shelley specializes in multi-facilities, start-ups, reorganizations, and consulting with De novo projects.

As a consultant, Shelley’s clients included: American Addiction Centers, Discovery Behavioral Health, Serenity Lane, Montare Behavioral Health, Oceans Healthcare, Gateway Foundation, CRC Health, Cenpatico Behavioral Health, UHS, CleanSlate, Perimeter Behavioral Health, Promont Wellness, ComPsych EAP, Interface EAP, Build Bright, Signature Behavioral Health and Strategic Healthcare to name a few.

Shelley previously served in a variety of positions within behavioral health including: SVP, Strategy and Growth for American Addiction Centers and Discovery Behavioral Health, Chief Operations Officer for Clearfork Academy a five-star residential treatment program for adolescents; Corporate Vice President, Business Development and Patient Access at New Vista Behavioral Health and CEO for WellBridge Healthcare.

Shelley has a passion for developing best practices through implementation of processes and systems. She is a dynamic trainer, bringing new skills and innovation to the sales, operations, call centers and admissions team. She uses a team approach in the development and integration of new standard operating procedures. In her leisure time Shelley enjoys traveling, she has been to all 50 states in over 23 countries. She resides in Fort Worth, Texas.

My areas of specialization:

Gap Analysis-A process of comparing your current performance in each department with the industry best practices and where you need to be as a company. It helps organizations pinpoint areas that are needing improvement in areas such as skill building, resources, processes, procedures strong management and more. The gap analysis identifies the gaps in each department and an action plan is created to close the gaps and achieve sustainable goals.
Business Development-involves activities like identifying new opportunities, forming strategic partnerships, expanding revenue streams and deepening relationships with referents to drive sustainable census growth and profitability. We delve in deep to determine the number of business development reps needed, proper placement and alignment. We identify customer and partner groups to target. We survey current clients to identify their needs are being met. There are 15 essential processes and procedures that are key to a well-oiled business development process.
Call Center Development-The call center rather it is a receptionist or a centralized hub with trained agents managing a high volume of callers, they act as the central point of contact for potential patients, families, referral sources and vendors. Development involves integrating people, processes and technology like EMR, IVR, CRM and AI to create an efficient and customer-focused operation. Call centers have evolved from simple telephone answering services to sophisticated operations that use data, automation and multi-channel communication to provide support, drive sales and build customer loyalty. We ensure that every caller is handled with care dignity and outstanding customer service to ensure every caller keeps the help they need. We are dealing with patient lives and we want to ensure that get the solution on the first call.
Admissions Team Development-We find that 3-5% of patients leave during the admissions process or enter the program frustrated at the admissions process. Admissions development often involves training, establishing clear roles, and navigating the stages of the admission process ultimately leading to a more efficient and successful department. We observe the current process and then we introduce best practices to fill in the gaps or make radical process improvement changes.
Strategic Planning -In its simplest form, involves establishing a clear direction and action plan to guide day-to-day activities. It is an ongoing organizational process of defining its vision, setting long-term goals, prioritizing efforts, and allocating resources to achieve those goals. It starts with an overarching plan for the entire organization and then is funnels down to individual department plans to support the organization plan and going a step farther you have individual staff strategic plans to achieve the department plan. This is a game changer in streamlining the work load and bringing efficiency to the organization. Strategic plans are proven in reducing staff turn-over and increasing revenue.
Strategic Planning Implementation-To ensure a good plan is effective it has to be implemented through out the organization. We translate broad strategies into specific actions, responsibilities and processes. Not only do we implement the plan but we monitore its progress to ensure success. We turn a high level strategy into tangible outcomes through execution.
Leadership structure and development with marketing, business development, call centers, admissions and discharge planning leaders. Implementing systems and processes to ensure the leaders and teams are cohesive and working together is vital to census growth and patient
satisfaction.
Management Mentorship-is a supportive relationship where years of experience and best practices are shared with the leader/manager in developing leadership skills, building a productive team, decision making skills, team supervision, team accountability and motivation. Its perfect for a new manager, new to industry or a seasoned professional looking to grow. It is also a good way to determine if your leader is the right person in the right seat.
Sales Training & Call Center Training- Training is essential to provide the employees with the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities to perform their role effectively and to contribute to the goals of the organization. A strong training program decreases turn-over and is directly tied to census achievement and growth.
Field Coaching-To gain an understanding of what your referral sources are saying and observing the effectiveness of your sales team. We conduct field coaching sessions with your team and offer real time coaching and mentorship. This informal, yet highly effective, method provides immediate, actionable feedback, and offers guidance to improve skills, messaging, strategy and increase sales performance. Most importantly, it helps implement and reinforce new skills taught in sales training.

Michele Santaga has over 15 years of national and international experience building call centers from the ground up and running teams of over 100 agents. From training to staffing models to SaaS technology integration such as AI-based call routing, Michele has extensve expertise in building, managing, and running high performance call teams.

Through her work, Michele minimizes call loss, increases conversions, and ensures optimized work flows from inquiry to CRM to EHR.

Specific technology expertise: Salesforce, CallRail, Call Tracking Metrics, Invoca, Five9, AI-based Call Routing, SMS Platforms, LiveChats

Jen Carvalho is a seasoned behavioral health executive and consultant with over two decades of C-suite leadership experience. She partners with healthcare organizations to solve complex operational challenges, drive sustainable growth, and enhance clinical excellence. Combining her extensive background as a President, COO, and CEO with her deep personal commitment to recovery, Jen offers a rare, 360-degree perspective that bridges the gap between high-level business strategy and compassionate, client-centered care.

Areas of Expertise & Consulting Focus:

Jen provides strategic guidance and hands-on support to help organizations achieve peak performance. Her core focus areas include:

Operational Excellence & Turnaround: Specializing in optimizing multi-site operations. Jen has a proven track record of managing diverse portfolios—from luxury residential facilities to commercial and outpatient service lines—and leading teams to surpass ambitious financial goals, including P&L responsibility for $50MM in annual revenue.
Workforce Stabilization & Leadership Development: A passionate advocate for care teams, Jen develops data-driven strategies to expand and stabilize the workforce. She excels at mentoring the next generation of leaders to create a culture of excellence and reduce staff turnover.
Quality & Compliance: Jen guides organizations through the complexities of accreditation and quality improvement, leveraging her experience in achieving Center of Excellence (COE) designations to ensure the consistent delivery of superior clinical outcomes.
Strategic Growth & Service Line Expansion: With experience across the full continuum of care, including SUD/MH hospitals, outpatient services, and innovative treatments like TMS, Jen helps organizations identify and capitalize on opportunities for market expansion.

Before launching her consulting practice, Jen held executive roles at leading national providers, including President and COO of Your Behavioral Health, Market CEO for Acadia Behavioral Health, and Division President at Discovery Behavioral Health. Her industry leadership extends to board service with CCAPP and NAATP and legislative advocacy with The Kennedy Forum, where she has worked to advance parity and solve critical workforce challenges.

Jen is known for her unwavering dedication to transforming lives by building stronger, more effective, and more resilient healthcare organizations.