1 Aug 2023 Report

Social Media Power List - Top 20 Large Care Home Groups

In this, the last of three reports, we examine the use and applications of social media in the adult social care sector. Using carehome.co.uk’s list of Top 20 Large Care Home Groups 2023, we construct a ‘power list’ of runners and riders among some of the leading care groups and each of their respective homes. We examine how they use social media, what platforms they use, for what, and how effective they are at growing their audiences.

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OVERVIEW

Social media is an increasingly important mechanism to support stakeholder engagement in the social care sector.

In this, the third and last of a series of reports, we examine the use and applications of social media in the adult social care sector. Using carehome.co.uk’s list of Top 20 Large Care Home Groups 2023, we construct a ‘power list’ of runners and riders among some of the leading care groups and each of their respective homes. We examine how they use social media, what platforms they use, for what, and how effective they are at growing their audiences.

But, to lay the groundwork in our understanding, it’s important to first understand the social media platforms themselves. We look at five of the most popular and relevant social media platforms to the adult social care sector: Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. We explore which are growing in influence and which are not. We also research the age demographics of their users.

We then use this information to identify the most appropriate platforms for common applications of social media for the sector, from domestic and overseas recruitment to community and stakeholder engagement.

After analysing our results, we turn our attention to the relative merits of group verses individual care home social media accounts to help you determine which is likely to be most effective for your group or home’s needs.

KEY FINDINGS

  • Since 2018, and of the five social media channels analysed in this study, LinkedIn and Facebook have enjoyed the largest growth in terms of user numbers.

  • TikTok has seen the largest proportional increase in its volume of users.

  • Facebook has the largest number of users across all age ranges apart from those aged 13-17 and those aged 25-34.

  • TikTok is likely to play an increasingly significant role in the adult social care’s social media strategy over the next two decades.

  • The groups and their respective care homes had a combined total of 1,479,802 followers across the five platforms.

  • Bupa and its care homes accounted for over 25 per cent (377,828) of the total follower count.

  • Excluding Bupa’s follower count, the groups and their respective homes had a combined total of 1,150,348.

  • Excluding Bupa, Facebook followers accounted for 61 per cent of the remaining group and home accounts.

  • Excluding Bupa, Barchester Healthcare (231,874) and Anchor (177,732) were clear outliers in the combined group and home rankings.

  • Barchester Healthcare has a significant LinkedIn following (50,570), which it uses to showcase group and staff achievement as well as for recruitment.

  • Anchor has the largest Twitter following (63,017).

  • Marham House Care Home tops the individual homes leader board due to its large TikTok following (30,800).

  • Barchester Healthcare also tops the individual group leader board with 70,893 followers across its Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn accounts.

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The team at Bridgehead Education have an expert knowledge and understanding of the education and skills landscape. They have delivered significant success in promoting awareness of the UTC programme through the media, both within the sector and among university and employer partners. I would be happy to recommend them to anyone in the sector.
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Ab Banerjee, Founder and Chief Executive, ViewsHub
Bridgehead Social Care have transformed our online presence by securing extensive coverage across the local, national, and trade media. Unlike other agencies they quantify their achievements. They regularly track the number of articles secured, size of audience reached, as well as benchmarking the coverage they achieve for each of our homes to the coverage secured for each of our key competitors' homes. They also suggest ideas for activities and events and regularly visit our homes in person. I enjoy working with Will and his team and couldn’t recommend them highly enough.
Kat Clayton, Marketing and Sales Director, Berkley Care Group
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