Social media marketing requires significant consideration about
whether the return on investment for your practice will make it
effective - plus also your capacity to develop content, adopt an
appropriate tone and use social media marketing in a way that
adheres to the guidelines.
To engage in social media marketing requires a time investment -
to create the content and post it online. You may also elect to
invest financially, by spending money on Google and Facebook to
promote your website or Facebook content. By spending advertising
money on Google, you can promote your listing to be at the top or
right hand side of the page. By spending advertising money on
Facebook, you can promote your post so that it is seen by more
people.
It is possible to purchase 'likes' on Facebook and followers on
Twitter; these techniques are not recommended.
Social media: Facebook
If Facebook were a country it would be the world's third largest
nation - such is its reach. Some benefits to having a Facebook
account include additional inbound links (this has SEO benefits)
and options to promote your page and content. Difficulties include
generating interesting content, adhering to Medical Board of Australia advertising
guidelines and monitoring and responding to comments or
criticisms. Obtaining wide reach via Facebook either requires
creating exceptional content, or promoting your posts by paying
Facebook. Extreme care should be taken:
- if considering offering special deals with time limits (this
contravenes Medical Board of Australia guidelines)
- if offering a prize for Likes or Shares (this contravenes
Facebook competition rules)
- if responding to complaints and criticism in this publicly
visible medium. It is best to handle complaints offline both for
your own safety and also to respect the privacy of the individual
complainant. This approach can be detailed within your practice
complaints policy, allowing you to refer to this when advising a
patient that you will contact them directly about their concerns,
or asking the individual to contact your practice. Your complaints
policy can also state that both positive and negative comments
about the practice will be removed from the Facebook page in
accordance with the medical board's requirement that testimonials
not be permitted to remain on the page.
Social media: Twitter
Twitter is another social media option for you to use to create
an account with inbound links to your website, share content from
your website and interact with other users. Some practitioners find
novel uses for Twitter, such as broadcasting whether their
consulting sessions are running on time or if patients can expect a
delay.
Social media: Google Plus
Google has its own social media options for users - Google Plus
and Google Pages are options for individuals and practices to
promote themselves and their businesses. A Google page can also
assist in marketing by displaying a map along with your business
name in the search results when an appropriate keyword search is
performed on the Google search engine.
Social media: YouTube
YouTube offers the opportunity to post videos online. A video
introduction to your practice or videos of you can be a valuable
content addition to a website or social media account - providing
you do it well. Consider if you will allow comments on your videos
and how you will respond to queries or complaints.
Social media: feeds on your website
A Facebook or Twitter account can be used to create a content
module displaying the social feed from your social media account on
your website. This provides the opportunity to direct people from
your website to your social media account and also a way to
demonstrate that you have an active (not static) web presence.