A content strategy will ensure any care home professional is maximising the potential to drive traffic, leads and ultimately fill their bed spaces. It ensures all content marketing is well planned and delivering to the right people, at the right time, in the right place.

With online communications used more now than ever before, care homes and healthcare businesses are recognising the need and urgency to turn to digital methods of marketing and PR. You want to be visible on the first page of Google’s search engine results when a prospective lead is looking for care in your area, and your content strategy will be the key to this achievement.

Content marketing is anything that is created, published and distributed to an audience online. Blogs, social media, videos, newsletters and even press releases can form part of your content marketing. The targeted approach to this is where the strategy comes into play.

Regardless of the size of your care business or the scale of PR activity being put in place, consideration of the target audience and the key messages being delivered is imperative. Identify the target audience and question their desires and motives. Consider what sort of home you have and use this USP to attract the right type of residents and the care they need. 

Once the audience and message have been identified, your strategy can be implemented and your content delivered. This can include everything from press releases regarding recent events or developments, right through to social media content that showcases a home’s best assets. 

Through these various activities, you will be appealing to your audience, as well as developing brand awareness and building a positive reputation within a home’s community. 

A website is often the heart of your digital presence, and a good content strategy will include making the most of this. Think about making each page of your website relevant and content rich. Your news and/or blog section should also be updated regularly, featuring all your latest news, updates and guidance. This will support your organic traffic – on average those who blog produce 67% more leads per month.

Linked to your website, your social media platforms should be engaging and relevant to the audience. Care homes should be providing a mix of updates for resident’s family and friends, as well as key information about the home for any prospective new residents. Social media is a huge part of people’s lives, and it will be an integral part of a content strategy for a care home. But there is such a thing as content overload, so targeting your key audience is essential. Think about who you are trying to reach in terms of that initial enquiry, and consider the demographic group of a social media platform. Some examples are below:

Facebook – the leading social network in the UK with its largest user group aged between 25 to 34. However, aged 65+ are the fastest growing demographic on this platform.

Instagram – most commonly used by males and females aged between 25 and 34 and a platform better suited to high video or image led content, with less engagement than Facebook.

TikTok – Popular with 13-20 year olds, disrupting the social media landscape with its short form video sharing capability.

Video is not always something you immediately consider when looking at content, but is one that simply cannot be ignored. As well as being more emotive and visual, consumers prefer to learn about a brand or service through video. It helps to build a relationship and provides so many communication options, including home tours, learning about the care team and even publicising your own career opportunities within the home.

There are so many more content options, with new platforms emerging continually across the media landscape. Doing your research and being aware of these options will ensure the very best content options are always being utilised.

Ultimately, your content strategy will provide a steady flow of communication that is targeted and informative to your audience. In time, you will see the results of your efforts as Google begins to recognise your content as reputable and relevant. As long as you recognise this as a long lasting commitment, your efforts will be rewarded. You just need to ensure you are ready for those enquiries.