What happened when I searched google to find a care home? - Care Home Marketing And PR

94% of families will go online during the course of searching for a care home.

So if your care home isn’t showing up on Google, you’re missing out on getting enquiries from families actively looking with intent.

In a real-time search test, here’s what I discovered when I searched for a care home in a specific catchment area by typing “care homes near me” or “care homes in [town name].” These are what I call “golden” keyword searches—and if you don’t appear near the top of page one, you’re not in the running.

(Watch ⬇️ my video “What happened when I searched google to find a care home?”!)

What Families See First On Google

Google Ads: Paid listings dominate the top. If your care home ads aren’t well targeted, you’re wasting money (e.g., showing “Basingstoke” homes to someone searching in Wiltshire).

Google Business Listings: Reviews count! Care homes with higher star ratings and more reviews rise to the top.

Organic SEO Listings: Carehome.co.uk has traditionally monopolised organic search, but individual homes can —and do—break through. Strong SEO means your care home can appear alongside (or above) national directories.

Key Lessons for Care Homes

“Golden” Keywords Matter: Families search “care homes near me” or “care homes in [town]” all the time. You must appear on page one – and at the top of page one – under these searches.

Be On Google’s Page One: If you’re not, families won’t find you.

Reviews Are Gold: Build up your Google reviews to climb the Google Maps and Google Business rankings.

Google Ad Photos & Headlines Count: Google Ads with photos and clear, relevant headlines grab attention.

Summary:

To get more enquiries from private-paying families searching online, you need to own Google page one.

That means smart Google Ads, strong SEO, and a proactive reviews strategy. Do this, and your care home will among the first choices for families to click on when searching online.

✅ Care Homes! Get Free Video On 7 Vital (And Proven) PR and Marketing Things You Must Do To Get 300% More Enquiries To Your Care Homes

✅ Join – Exclusive Facebook Care Home Owners + Managers Group

✅ Listen to the Care Home PR And Marketing Masterclass Podcast:

✅ Connect with Adam James on LinkedIn

Adam James2025-09-09T21:11:35+00:00September 9, 2025|

"Eighteen months ago we took what may be considered a strange and dangerous decision, we got rid of our in house sales and marketing experts deciding to outsource all of our marketing and manage bed sales clinically. We chose to work with Adam James and Spring Up PR and have seen our marketing targets that had previously been missed not only met but surpassed by some distance, our occupancy figures have improved to the point where our hardest task now is managing the high number of referrals and waiting lists for new admissions. Huge savings and increased income, while increasing our company profile in the best possible way. All thanks to Spring Up, Adam and his team, I would strongly recommend speaking with them"

"We’ve added £500K to annual turnover since joining with Springup PR – the KPIs have been absolutely fantastic.

“We increased occupancy to 95% and 99% respectively within 2 months. This has continued. We’re now looking to increase further the proportion of private pay residents.

“When we first approached Springup PR we faced a huge loss in turnover. But in relation to what we’ve achieved the monthly costs are negligible.

“Now when we are have a bed we can have 3 people waiting for it. It’s put the power back into our court.

“As a care provider we’re now viable and future proof. We always say we have that we have to look after the numbers to look after our residents.

“Moreover, working with Springup PR has been an absolute pleasure because they share our values.

“We are in the people business, and Springup PR is as well. As a family business it’s so important to us that our partners share our values.

“We’d highly recommend Springup PR to other care home providers.”

Liam Geach, financial director at English Oak Care Homes

By Adam James

Share this