Most medical and legal practices have a social media presence, and by that I mean a Facebook page, Twitter account and maybe even a YouTube channel or blog. Whether you employ one, two or all of the platforms every effort helps when it comes to marketing.
One of Your Marketing Liaison’s favorite social media tactics is themes. Check out our Facebook page and you’ll quickly see that we are extremely active. We’re able to easily do that by having daily themes such as Tip Tuesday, Feature Friday and Success Saturday. Our content ranges from marketing tips to inspirational quotes (because who doesn’t love those?!).
Social media is one of the most powerful, not to mention cost-effective, marketing tools you have. It allows you to distinguish yourself from competitors and establish an online reputation (which is becoming increasingly important thanks to review sites like Yelp and Angie’s List). It’s our job to help you and your practice stand out from the crowd. We firmly believe social media is the quickest and easiest way to do that so we’ve compiled some of the best tips we’ve come across.
Without further ado…
17 Social Media Tips for Your Medical or Legal Practice
- Make a Facebook Business Page- This is one of the first things we recommend to all of our clients, because it is probably the easiest thing to do. Plus, it is a great way to capture testimonials from current clients or patients.
- Create a Personal LinkedIn Profile- Another simple way to start building your online reputation. LinkedIn is more of a B2B social media platform, one that can connect you with like-minded professionals in your industry. Our Team at Your Marketing Liaison has personally seen the power of LinkedIn and it bringing together collaborative forces.
- Create a Company LinkedIn Profile- A strong company page will allow potential patients/clients and peers to learn more about your practice, specialities and give contact information.
- Join Relevant Groups- There are a plethora of medical and law-related groups on LinkedIn. You can learn a lot by becoming a member of these groups.
- Be Active and Contribute- The more you contribute to groups and get involved, the more eyeballs there will be looking at your profile and your company. This is when your online reputation and credibility begins to grow.
- Know Your Audience- Don’t use a whole bunch of legalese or latin medical jargon on your Facebook wall and expect to receive a great response. Speak your target audience language and you’ll get much better results.
- Use the 80/20 Rule- No matter if it’s your blog, Facebook or LinkedIn, you want 80% of your posts to be informational or educational and only 20% to be sales-related. The whole point is to gain a following of loyal fans, not to be over-promotional of your services.
- Outsource When Possible- There are plenty of services out there that take care of all your social media and content marketing. Bear in mind, it is a lot of work so these services can be pricey but if you can afford it, let the professionals take over the reigns. How do you think Your Marketing Liaison makes it look so easy to stay on top of everything?! We can help put some of these contacts to work for you too. Then you can focus solely on the practice and your clients/patients!
- Set up a Twitter Account- When you feel comfortable enough to add to your social media repertoire, or are able to outsource, add Twitter to your arsenal.
- Research What’s Trending- Use relevant hashtags (#) in your tweets and your exposure will increase with minimal effort.
- Start a Blog- The three little words no business likes to hear it seems. And yet, once they begin blogging on a regular basis, everyone never looks back. A blog can do wonders not only for your SEO, but it gives your practice authority and online muscle like no other tool can. Your Marketing Liaison has great bloggers and writers we can put you in touch with to assist you.
- Create Your Own YouTube Channel- Did you know that next to Google, YouTube is the second largest search engine on the web? And according to the video sharing site, YouTube has more than 4-billion video views per day. Imagine the impact even just a tiny piece of that audience could have on your business if you got yourself on YouTube!
- Embed Videos on Your Website and in Blog Posts- Sprinkle your YouTube videos around your company website and throughout your blog posts to help drive traffic your way and keep the audience engaged.
- Interact & Engage- Put yourself out there by subscribing, liking and responding to other people’s comments. This gives your company more exposure and allows you to be seen more as an authority in the industry.
- Post Responsibly- Especially to all of our lawyer friends out there, we know we’re preaching to the choir when we say this but… be sure to think before you post. Remember, as physicians and attorneys you are held to state and federal laws (such as HIPAA) that prevent you from revealing certain things publicly.
- Be a Good Listener- This may sound a bit odd, but honestly the ability to connect on social media by the simple act of listening is far underrated. The little search bar in the top right corner of most Facebook groups is a great place to start. Use it to find out what people are chatting about in one of your medical or law groups then present those people with some data on the topic or issue at hand. You could easily find a misconception or common myth being discussed and dispel it with your expert opinion/knowledge. (Hint, there are even tools out there that help monitor certain keywords and phrases for you).
- Don’t Forget About Pinterest or Instagram- Creating a board dedicated to healthy weight loss or motivational quotes and sharing on your website is a great, easy way to boost traffic and add a personal touch. Instagram is always a hit with foodies and fitness enthusiasts so physicians could easily incorporate an office or patient challenge into that social media platform.
Phew… that’s a long but certainly NOT exhaustive list. There are plenty more tips, tricks and ideas where those came from so if you’re looking to get your business more visible and in front of the RIGHT people, contact Your Marketing Liaison today. Our experienced team has the skills to take your medical or law practice wherever you want it to go.