Case Study: Barcelona City Council achieves massive follower, engagement and reach growth with Hootsuite

How Barcelona built an innovative social media strategy

Barcelona City Council, which governs a city of about 1.8 million residents, faced an uncoordinated social media landscape with over 600 inactive or off‑brand accounts and no clear strategy to engage constituents. The council needed to professionalize its digital communications, unify its online presence, and tell the city’s story more strategically.

Digital Marketing Manager Thais Ruiz De Alda audited and consolidated accounts to about 350, established two distinct brand voices (Barcelona.cat for community content and Bcn_ajuntament for official government communications), set up a Social Media Council, and onboarded departments to Hootsuite with training and collaboration tools. The changes drove major gains—300% follower growth YoY, 293% engagement growth, 1,400% increase in reach, more than 50 Hootsuite seats in use, and ongoing monthly engagement from a social audience of over 5 million.

Barcelona City Council

Thais Ruiz de Alda

Digital Marketing Manager, Barcelona City Council