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Social Divide in the City 2025: Firing on all Cylinders

An Analysis of How FTSE 100 Companies Are Using Social Media to Build Trust, Value and Visibility.

Just over ten years ago, we asked a deceptively simple question: how effectively were FTSE 100 companies using social media to support their financial communications.

The answer in 2014 wasn’t that no one was trying – around half the FTSE 100 posted about their results on Twitter (now X). But efforts were patchy, inconsistent and largely ineffective. Few used social media strategically to communicate performance. We called it the “Social Divide in the City” – a gap between digital potential and real business impact.

A decade on, the stakes are higher. Social media now plays a central role in a fast-moving, high-pressure environment shaped by geopolitical tensions, AI disruption, and rising expectations for transparency and leadership. What was once a nice-to-have is now business critical.

This report captures how far the FTSE 100 have come – and how far many still have to go. Using annual results season as our lens, we go beyond posts to analyse the full reputation engine: corporate accounts, executive voices, paid media, and employee advocacy.

The social divide hasn’t disappeared – it’s evolved. While some companies lead with clarity and impact, many still fall back on habit over strategy.

Here’s what good looks like – and how to get there.

Why the Reputation Engine Matters

99% of investors say effective digital communications are important for supporting investor relations

74% say digital communications are an influential factor in investment decision-making

71% would prefer to invest in a company whose senior leaders regularly communicate on social media

Employee Advocacy

Employees sit at the heart of today’s most pressing corporate challenges, including everything from navigating polarised political discourse to managing
the fallout of layoffs, ‘woke’ backlash, and return-to-office tensions.

These issues aren’t confined to internal channels. Increasingly, employees are taking to social media to share their experiences, frustrations and pride, shaping in real-time how external stakeholders perceive a company’s culture, leadership and brand.

In this context, employee advocacy is no longer a ‘nice to have’; it is a reputational imperative.

Click here to download the full report