Online reach and engagement of a child nutrition peer-education program (PICNIC): insights from social media and web analytics
Abstract Background Parents frequently seek parental advice online and on social media; thus, these channels should be better utilized in child health interventions. The Parents in Child Nutrition Informing Community (PICNIC) program aims to facilitate peer-to-peer sharing of evidence-based child fe...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2022-04-01
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| Series: | BMC Public Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-13252-3 |
| _version_ | 1811289445886853120 |
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| author | Maria Henström Kerith Duncanson Clare E. Collins Lee M. Ashton Emma Davidson Richard Ball |
| author_facet | Maria Henström Kerith Duncanson Clare E. Collins Lee M. Ashton Emma Davidson Richard Ball |
| author_sort | Maria Henström |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Parents frequently seek parental advice online and on social media; thus, these channels should be better utilized in child health interventions. The Parents in Child Nutrition Informing Community (PICNIC) program aims to facilitate peer-to-peer sharing of evidence-based child feeding information and support parents within their social networks. The present study aimed to explore web and social media analytics to evaluate reach and user engagement with the PICNIC online components. Methods Online user activity data from the PICNIC Facebook closed group and public Page were collected through Facebook Insights, and program-specific website traffic data through Google Analytics. Analytics data from Nov-2019 to April-2021 was evaluated through visualisation and summary statistics to obtain insights into program growth and current reach in Australia, compare demographics of audience reached through the online channels, and explore parents’ use and engagement in PICNIC content. Results Results showed steady program growth in the 18 months of recruitment; participant numbers grew from 102 to 261 peer educators while the Facebook Page audience increased threefold, totalling 1615 followers. Intervention posts shared on Facebook (4–5 posts/week) typically reached only a portion of PICNIC Page followers each week, but also reached a wider audience through their friends. Throughout the evaluated period, Facebook users actively engaged in PICNIC posts, although the level of engagement varied considerably from post to post. Furthermore, results from this study suggest the strategy of directing potentially interested parents from social media to the website for program sign-up was successful. Finally, the explored data gave insights into users’ availability, demographics and engagement, which will be used to inform refinement of the PICNIC website and social media strategies. Conclusions Our findings confirm the benefits of using a peer education approach and existing social network channels to disseminate evidence-based child feeding information to parents. This study also demonstrates the usefulness of web and social media analytics to be used as part of a continuous evaluation for gaining insight to inform further development and improvement of program strategies. Trial registration The PICNIC project was retrospectively submitted for registration with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR), ACTRN12622000230752 (09/02/2022). |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T03:54:57Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d95864cb71e748f1a1400535f2ba0ae6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1471-2458 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T03:54:57Z |
| publishDate | 2022-04-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Public Health |
| spelling | doaj.art-d95864cb71e748f1a1400535f2ba0ae62022-12-22T03:03:40ZengBMCBMC Public Health1471-24582022-04-0122111810.1186/s12889-022-13252-3Online reach and engagement of a child nutrition peer-education program (PICNIC): insights from social media and web analyticsMaria Henström0Kerith Duncanson1Clare E. Collins2Lee M. Ashton3Emma Davidson4Richard Ball5Department of Biosciences and Nutrition, Karolinska InstitutetSchool of Medicine and Public Health, College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing, University of NewcastleSchool of Health Sciences, College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing, University of NewcastleSchool of Health Sciences, College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing, University of NewcastleHunter New England Local Health DistrictSchool of Health Sciences, College of Health, Medicine and Wellbeing, University of NewcastleAbstract Background Parents frequently seek parental advice online and on social media; thus, these channels should be better utilized in child health interventions. The Parents in Child Nutrition Informing Community (PICNIC) program aims to facilitate peer-to-peer sharing of evidence-based child feeding information and support parents within their social networks. The present study aimed to explore web and social media analytics to evaluate reach and user engagement with the PICNIC online components. Methods Online user activity data from the PICNIC Facebook closed group and public Page were collected through Facebook Insights, and program-specific website traffic data through Google Analytics. Analytics data from Nov-2019 to April-2021 was evaluated through visualisation and summary statistics to obtain insights into program growth and current reach in Australia, compare demographics of audience reached through the online channels, and explore parents’ use and engagement in PICNIC content. Results Results showed steady program growth in the 18 months of recruitment; participant numbers grew from 102 to 261 peer educators while the Facebook Page audience increased threefold, totalling 1615 followers. Intervention posts shared on Facebook (4–5 posts/week) typically reached only a portion of PICNIC Page followers each week, but also reached a wider audience through their friends. Throughout the evaluated period, Facebook users actively engaged in PICNIC posts, although the level of engagement varied considerably from post to post. Furthermore, results from this study suggest the strategy of directing potentially interested parents from social media to the website for program sign-up was successful. Finally, the explored data gave insights into users’ availability, demographics and engagement, which will be used to inform refinement of the PICNIC website and social media strategies. Conclusions Our findings confirm the benefits of using a peer education approach and existing social network channels to disseminate evidence-based child feeding information to parents. This study also demonstrates the usefulness of web and social media analytics to be used as part of a continuous evaluation for gaining insight to inform further development and improvement of program strategies. Trial registration The PICNIC project was retrospectively submitted for registration with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR), ACTRN12622000230752 (09/02/2022).https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-13252-3Social mediaChild nutritionPeer educationChild feeding practicesParentseHealth intervention |
| spellingShingle | Maria Henström Kerith Duncanson Clare E. Collins Lee M. Ashton Emma Davidson Richard Ball Online reach and engagement of a child nutrition peer-education program (PICNIC): insights from social media and web analytics BMC Public Health Social media Child nutrition Peer education Child feeding practices Parents eHealth intervention |
| title | Online reach and engagement of a child nutrition peer-education program (PICNIC): insights from social media and web analytics |
| title_full | Online reach and engagement of a child nutrition peer-education program (PICNIC): insights from social media and web analytics |
| title_fullStr | Online reach and engagement of a child nutrition peer-education program (PICNIC): insights from social media and web analytics |
| title_full_unstemmed | Online reach and engagement of a child nutrition peer-education program (PICNIC): insights from social media and web analytics |
| title_short | Online reach and engagement of a child nutrition peer-education program (PICNIC): insights from social media and web analytics |
| title_sort | online reach and engagement of a child nutrition peer education program picnic insights from social media and web analytics |
| topic | Social media Child nutrition Peer education Child feeding practices Parents eHealth intervention |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-022-13252-3 |
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