The care home sector is evolving rapidly, with many operators seeking practical ways to increase visibility and boost occupancy without incurring high costs. Savills predicts the UK will require an additional 144,000 care home beds over the next decade to meet population demands. At the same time, there is a real trend toward larger, often luxury, private-pay focused homes opening, with carehome.co.uk reporting an average of 39 residents in new homes opened between 2024 and 2025.

This growing demand presents a valuable opportunity, but it also means competition is increasing across many regions. With the cost of agency staff and ongoing recruitment pressures continuing to impact margins, a targeted low-budget marketing and PR approach can offer simple wins that support both occupancy and retention.

The good news? The most effective marketing does not require a dedicated department/team or a six-figure budget. It requires consistency and a commitment to authenticity.

Care Homes and In-house Marketing

Before you invest in high-cost advertising, it is worth assessing what can be strengthened from within. A high-performing home is marketed effectively by every person who works there. Many marketing and PR activities, from managing social media to content planning, can and should be managed in-house. 

Deciding who leads the marketing and recruitment narrative is essential. It cannot sit as an additional task on a busy manager’s list.  A clear strategy and plan, even a simple one, ensures ownership, consistency and accountability. 

Another quick way to reduce expensive agency reliance is by improving internal retention and recruitment. Your workforce is one of your most powerful recruitment and marketing tools. A motivated team will promote your home organically, significantly lowering your recruitment costs and additionally boosting occupancy. Invite staff to contribute to the marketing of your home, encouraging them to provide ideas and heart-warming, meaningful resident stories that reflect daily life in the home.

Digital basics for care homes

Your digital presence will be the first place families look, and it should offer a genuine preview of your home. Focus on making the best use of the existing digital platforms you already have.

Your Google Business Profile is your free, 24/7, round-the-clock shop window. Ensure it is fully completed and regularly updated with recent photos and accurate service information. Local SEO remains one of the most effective, free marketing tools available.

Your website and social media platforms need to be authentic, and content should be refreshed regularly. Short videos, such as a 60-second walk-through or a resident interview, are far more impactful than polished stock footage. Authentic photography featuring your own staff and residents provides families with a true sense of the home. 

Social media should focus on storytelling, not selling. Decision-makers (adult children) often follow homes for months before making contact or moving forward with a care provider. Content should focus on painting a picture of daily life and the compassionate care you provide. 

Structure your posts around simple, consistent themes which could include staff spotlights, daily lifestyle activities and expert tips on care. Simple, short and unedited videos of an activity or a care worker with a resident wishing followers good morning often perform better than static images as they feel natural and relatable. 

Make use of Facebook community groups as this is where local families live and ask for recommendations. Monitor these groups for keywords like “care home,” “dementia,” or “respite’ and when you see a question, respond with genuinely helpful, non-promotional advice. You should be positioning the care home as a trusted advisor for the community, and only if someone explicitly asks for recommendations should you mention your services.

The Power of a Review

Nothing validates the quality of your service like genuine reviews and testimonials from families. They are valuable USPs.

Introduce a simple and consistent process that encourages a constant flow of reviews, such as following a positive moment with a direct link or QR code to the family member, asking them to leave a review.

Take the time to read and reflect on every review. Care homes should understand what families love about your home, and the feedback received could become a valuable USP you had not considered. Use them as the basis for your marketing messages and share them regularly across all platforms. 

Community wins

Community engagement can be time-consuming, but it is a low-budget resource that is essential for building regional brand awareness and reputation. Building genuine relationships with community groups, charities, and health partners strengthens your reputation organically while enriching the experiences of residents in the process. 

For regional brand awareness, don’t underestimate the power of a simple, well-timed local press release. Simple announcements and human-centred stories can turn into a media story for your regional newspaper, local radio or online news portal. This supports brand awareness and reinforces your home’s role in the community.

By prioritising internal marketing responsibilities, such as authentic digital basics and genuine community engagement, care homes can achieve significant marketing momentum and, critically, reduce costly recruitment dependencies – all without ever needing that ‘big marketing budget’.