How public sector organisations can build trust and engage with local communities using Nextdoor

For public sector organisations looking to engage with local communities, Nextdoor is the go-to social media channel. With over ten million verified UK users, or “neighbours” as they’re known on the platform, it’s easy to understand why many public sector organisations already have a page. In fact, there are over 400 public sector organisations already using Nextdoor, covering 45% of local government organisations; 40% of the UK’s fire services; 30% of police forces, as well as standalone organisations such as NHS England and The Mayor of London.

As the only UK-based social media management tool to integrate with Nextdoor, Orlo invited the team to run through its benefits at our recent BIG Social 2024 event. Alice Skeats (Head of Partnerships – Public Sector, Government Relations and Local Businesses for Nextdoor) and Helen Spooner (Partnerships – Public Services for Nextdoor) took a deep dive into what makes Nextdoor an essential tool for public sector organisations looking to engage communities and build trust.

97% of UK households sit within launched Nextdoor neighbourhoods, which means that the social network’s coverage across the country is far and wide. Its ten million neighbours equate to 25% of UK households, which drops even further to one in three households in London.

Nextdoor’s core age demographic is aged 25-54 years old, and 66% of neighbours on Nextdoor have one or more children. The vast majority (78%) of the platform’s neighbours are also homeowners. Typically, users register on the platform to get local recommendations; sell or buy items; find tradespeople; post lost pet announcements or meet other neighbours.

Interestingly, many Nextdoor users favour the platform over other social media channels for regular use. The following percentages of neighbours that visit Nextdoor each month do not also visit the following sites: Instagram (42%), TikTok (45%), X (58%) and Snapchat (87%). The takeaway from this data is simple – public sector organisations must have a presence on Nextdoor to make sure that this demographic is catered to, alongside the other social networks that speak to a different audience.

Trust at the core of Nextdoor

Public sector organisations proactively sharing information with citizens, encouraging feedback and two-way dialogue, naturally builds trust. In addition, Nextdoor focuses on fostering trust and kindness through its features designed to protect users. For example, a discussion will automatically close if it receives a number of complaints, and neighbours about to post unkind comments will be prompted by a “Kindness Reminder” to rethink before publishing. Nextdoor creates an annual transparency report, and this year only 0.88% of content was reported as harmful.

Communities are ready and waiting to engage

Unique to Nextdoor is the fact that public sector pages are instantly connected with communities in their area, so there’s no need for public sector organisations to invest time, money and effort in building the right following. All public sector page posts reach genuine residents, rather than individuals who have perhaps left the area, and if a new person moves in then they are instantly served the right information from their relevant public sector organisation. Residents are also automatically subscribed to their local public sector organisations, thus increasing reach.

No fake or spam public sector accounts

Nextdoor creates every public sector page itself, meaning that there are never any fake or spam accounts on the platform – reassuring for public sector organisations and their communities alike. In order to accurately represent the area covered by the organisation, Nextdoor either uses public data or official boundaries information from the organisation directly, meaning that the page is always accurately tailored to the population it serves.

Nextdoor is free to use, with public sector pages set up as an umbrella page with unlimited users. These can be further broken down into teams or departments. Public sector teams aren’t able to access neighbours’ feeds, posts or comments – they can engage with communities in the comments on the organisation’s posts, or by replying to a neighbour’s direct message.

Types of public sector posts

General posts to inform and support communities

For communicating information, support and local services, resources, or encouraging feedback – examples could include crime prevention advice or information about food banks for those struggling with the cost of living crisis.

Polls for quick, reliable feedback

These are for gathering quick feedback amongst neighbours. Residents can only vote once, and must live within the organisation’s area, so public sector organisations can feel reassured that the data is reliable. For example, a fire service could post a poll to gain insights into how many local people regularly check their smoke alarm.

Events

As the name suggests, pages can post relevant events such as ‘Foster care information evening’. Local neighbours have the ability to RSVP.

Alerts for real-time emergency communication

Emergency alerts are an effective way to communicate an urgent situation in real-time, for example a local flood, high-risk missing person or temporary road closure. Alerts are shown as a banner running across the top of the screen, and depending on their settings, Nextdoor app users will get a push notification and email.

All posts can be geo-targeted down to postcode level for hyperlocal messaging, or broadcast to a wider geographic area. Organisations can access basic reporting or enhanced metrics once they’ve connected their account in Orlo.

Post regularly to stay visible

Nextdoor recommends posting at least three to four times per week, or even more if you’re targeting your content to specific areas. The more you post relevant updates, focusing on honesty and transparency as the foundation upon which trust is built, the more visibility you’ll have amongst your communities.

Use visual content to stand out

As most posts from neighbours will not contain images or videos, using visual content can help public sector organisations to stand out in their communities’ newsfeeds, thus boosting engagement.

Engage with communities to build trust

Although comments on public sector posts can be turned off, listening to communities’ feedback and engaging with them are crucial steps in building trust, according to our Trust Pyramid. Nextdoor recommends asking your community questions to drive comments, and interacting with them when they respond – in turn this will also improve the visibility of your posts.

Think outside of the box to drive interaction

Think creatively about how to engage your communities. Nextdoor shared an example of a council asking neighbours to share book recommendations for the upcoming Summer holidays, which generated a lively discussion while also promoting local library services. Sharing good news can also drive positive engagement, for example celebrating local “star litter pickers” when children took part in an anti-littering campaign.

Another example could include a healthcare campaign with the aim of encouraging communities to engage in a healthier lifestyle. We know that the average cost per year to achieve good health is £3,800 versus £13,500 once a health issue has presented, so a healthcare organisation could target a specific community with an awareness campaign around Type 2 diabetes, for example.

Currently, Orlo is the only social media management platform with a Nextdoor integration. Orlo customers can post content directly to Nextdoor, or draft and schedule content for a later date – a feature that’s exclusive to Orlo customers. In addition, there are certain Nextdoor reporting metrics only available through Orlo, such as click-through rates.

It’s clear that Nextdoor is an ideal channel for public sector organisations seeking to drive engagement and foster trust amongst their communities – and now they have the opportunity to manage their account alongside the rest of their social media activities, from one single platform.