“How is someone “liking” my practice going to help me increase my patient base?”
“I’m not really into sharing what type of coffee I had before I opened the office this morning.”
“I don’t use Facebook, so why should my practice?”
Many of our practices are skeptical about the need for a practice Facebook page. This skepticism is usually linked to the individual doctor’s personal perspective on Facebook. While skepticism is a healthy thing, in this case not making social media a part of your practice’s marketing can be costly. In fact, you’ll find that social media can provide an inexpensive way to add personality to your practice and to interact with patients in a completely different fashion than you would in the office.
Three parts to digital marketing
At MyAdvice, for nearly two decades we’ve been helping practices navigate the online wilderness. Social media is an increasing part of that process. We believe that a well-rounded digital marketing strategy is akin to a three-legged stool. The legs are SEO, pay-per-click advertising, and social media. If all three legs are functioning in unison, the exposure is strong. Take away one leg, such as social media, and gaps develop and opportunities are missed.
First, some numbers
Some people love Facebook; some people hate it. You could say there’s a lot of love — 1.71 billion people are monthly active users. Facebook adds 500,000 new users every day. Facebook takes up 22 percent of the Internet time Americans spend on mobile devices, compared with 11 percent spent on Google search and YouTube combined. Users spend an average of 20 minutes per day on Facebook.
And here’s a crazy statistic that gives you an idea of the scope of interaction — over 250 billion photos have been uploaded to Facebook! Holy scrapbook, Batman!
From a marketing standpoint, here are some other interesting Facebook facts:
- There are 50 million active small business pages.
- 49 percent of users like a Facebook page to support a brand or business.
- Posts published on Thursday and Friday receive the highest engagement.
A different kind of interaction
Many people have become less than enamored with their personal Facebook experience. Between the rampant political ranting, the excessive use by certain “friends” who document their every minute (“I just had the best free sample Hot Pocket at Costco.”), people forwarding fake news stories, and having to deal with friends bragging about their latest vacation to Fiji, many people can be irritated by their personal pages and friends.
But for your practice, Facebook gives those same people a break, if you use it wisely. Your Facebook page can present your practice in a non-threatening, non-promotional way that gives it a personality. If you just bought a new laser for skin resurfacing, put up a few pics of that bad boy. Tell a little about its new technology and what that means for your patients.
If your aestheticist just had a baby, post a few pics of the new addition. Give your patients and potential patients a little inside information, as you would a friend.
Post a recipe contest for the best summer rib recipes. Have visitors post their favorite recipe and give the winner a complimentary microdermabrasion session.
Your Facebook page allows you to show a different side of your practice and your people, a side your patients don’t get when they’re coming in for a procedure. By treating them as friends, rather than paying customers, you engender their loyalty. Plus, they’ll be encouraged to share some of your posts such as that new procedure you’re offering with their friends, expanding your reach to new potential patients.
For many people tired of some of the excesses of their personal pages, it can be refreshing to come to your practice page and see what interesting tidbits you’re sharing today. There isn’t a downside to this…and it’s free!
What social media can do for your practice
- Boost traffic to your website
- Improve client retention
- Introduce your practice to potential patients
- Increase brand awareness
- Showcase your practice and your staff
- Engage with patients outside the office environment
- Create a community
The health review website RealSelf posted an interesting Facebook stat related to the above benefits:
- 82 percent of those considering a procedure expect the practice to be active on social media.
Leave it to us
Now that you’re sold on the value of social media, particularly Facebook, you don’t have to spend every waking hour dealing with it — you have a practice to run! Let the team at MyAdvice handle your page instead.
Here’s what we do for our practices on social media:
- Provide a dedicated social media team that knows social media and its ever-changing ways
- Build custom Facebook and Google+ pages, or improve your existing page
- Aggregate and develop engaging, creative, educational content
- Publish three times per week on your Facebook and Google+ pages
- Provide a library of social media content
- Enhance name, address, and phone number on Facebook and Google+
- Provide monthly reporting to show you what’s happening
There’s no time like now to give your practice a presence on social media. Call your MyAdvice representative and let’s talk about how we can do it.
