Most child welfare systems don't use online marketing to recruit foster families, even though digital ads can target potential caregivers with specific characteristics your children need. Use social media and targeted digital campaigns to reach more potential families in your community.
How to do this
Build your general social media presence. Research which social media platforms your community is most active on and create accounts for your department. Create a regular schedule of content, including upcoming events, employee profiles, profiles of children in care, upcoming orientations or trainings, FAQs, and ways for people to support foster youth without becoming a foster parent. If you don't have a social media policy, create one.
Create targeted campaigns for specific needs. Work with a digital marketing expert to design your first campaign. Together, you can decide what types of caregivers you'd like to recruit, what materials (like email content or website pages) you'll need to create, and what the right budget is. For example, you can target families in specific ZIP codes or school districts, retired nurses, military families, or families who speak particular languages.
Online ads cost money, but can give you a higher return on investment than some traditional recruitment methods. After you're set up, these costs can go down significantly.
This strategy in action
Colorado posts about becoming a foster family on NextDoor.
Frederick County, MD has an active Facebook page.
Rhode Island DCYF maintains an active Facebook presence and posts a "Friday Win" (a bit of good news) every Friday on social media to build interaction.
Several California counties partnered with Mark Daley, a child welfare advocate and digital marketing specialist, to run targeted recruitment campaigns for specific types of homes, such as homes for youth who have experienced commercial sexual exploitation and child-specific campaigns.
Washington, D.C. runs paid Facebook marketing campaigns to attract the hardest-to-find types of families.