- Oct 22, 2019
With a slew of acquisitions, mergers, and technological developments, the healthcare industry is turning into a highly competitive field. Hence, to ensure that your healthcare brand gets attention from the right patients and customers in the crowd, you need to have a strong digital presence. While other brands are engaging and communicating with the audience via online channels, you cannot rely on traditional marketing practices.
Moreover, it’s not just about having a website that will serve the purpose and strengthen your online presence. Healthcare companies need to be on social media channels like Twitter, Facebook, and others, to attract customers and engage with them by sharing valuable content and addressing their online queries. Leveraging social media marketing, healthcare providers, and facilities can establish one-to-one contact with potential patients and provide them value to influence their decisions related to healthcare products and services.
The number of users on social media platforms is increasing. The number of social media users is estimated to reach 2.77 billion by 2019. Hence if you want to take advantage of this growing user base, reaching out to them through social networking is essential. If you still don’t consider social media marketing significant for your healthcare business, then you really need a reality check.
But if you already have social media marketing plans for your healthcare brand, then these tips may help you get more likes, tweets, shares, and interactions on various social networking sites from your patients.
Start using the following tips to improve your healthcare social media strategy!
Talk About Trending Healthcare Topics
When you post what on social media does matter. Time-sensitive posts not only educate but also engages the audience as it happens to be relevant. When you publish content on hot or trending topics that the people are talking about, your post is most likely to get more likes, shares, and tweets. This is because when your audience finds you sharing the latest healthcare news and topics, your targeted audience tends to take interest and check what you have shared.
You can post articles on trending health epidemics, medicinal discoveries, recognition’s, and achievements in the healthcare field. Highlighting topics that are trending can help your social media shares draw attention. Use social media to share health quotes, medical procedure details, doctor tips, and more on various platforms like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, etc. This will trigger the responsiveness of your healthcare social media campaigns.
Share Educational Health-related Content
The social media marketing strategy of a healthcare brand or company must include sharing educational content that can keep patients informed about the various aspects of staying healthy and fighting back disease. Your patients expect helpful and informative health content from their hospitals, healthcare providers like physicians, nurses, and outpatient care centers to post an educational piece of content on social media accounts. Everyone today uses social media. If you can engage with your audience on these platforms, it will boost your brand image, credibility, and expand reach through re-shares within the network by your followers.
From blogs, videos, case studies to white papers, and testimonials, you can either create and share original content or re-share articles from third-party trusted sources. Your aim should be to cater to the knowledge thirst of your followers and keep them engaged with the brand. But remember one thing whatever content you share do check if it’s accurate and supported by facts. Posting wrong information can hamper your reputation and the trust patients have in your products and services.
Leverage User-generated Content from Social Media
More than brand created content, people like user-generated content (UGC) as they find other’s recommendations and reviews reliable and genuine. The scenario is similar even in the healthcare space. Patients tend to trust experiences shared or facilities endorsed by other patients more than when the brand representative speaks about it. Therefore, sharing UGC on your healthcare brand’s social media handle is highly recommended.
User-generated content (UGC) refers to content like images, text, reviews, videos, etc. that are created by the audience and not the brand. Sharing UGC on websites, social media accounts, and other marketing platforms helps brands in fostering a sense of trust and loyalty among people who may not be familiar with your brand.
Healthcare facilities like hospitals, clinics, etc. can use patient-generated content like testimonials regarding a treatment they undertook at the facility and share the same on social media to educate others. However, before promoting or re-sharing UGC, seek permission from the patient. With the help of user-generated content, you can drive better patient engagement and grow your followers on social media channels.
Run Branded Social Media Campaigns
Many healthcare brands are selling similar kinds of products and services that your company is also offering. Hence, establishing your mark in the crowd is essential. This is where social media campaigns can help in your branding initiatives. There is nothing much you have to do, apart from creating and maintain your brand’s unique identity and voice. You can use social media campaigns to spread brand awareness by highlighting your brand name in the content you share and in every conversation or interaction with your followers.
Healthcare brands have to utilize social media attention in their favor, and for that, they cannot miss any branding opportunity. From hashtag campaigns to holding polls or contests, including brand name innovatively in the campaigns can help healthcare companies or practices better engage with the audience and boost branding efforts.
Let Followers Know Your Company and Staff’s Accomplishments
The ultimate purpose of having a social media presence for a healthcare brand is to build relationships and win the trust of the audience. If that is the case, then why not let your social media followers be a part of your accomplishments. You can share the news of any awards or recognitions that your staff or your center may have achieved in the social media network.
Be it an appreciation for a healthcare service or recognition for medical research; you can highlight all such accomplishments on your social media profile to let the world and especially your followers know that they are trusting you with their health for all the right reasons.
Medical practitioners, hospitals, and medical insurance companies can go for sharing customer reviews on social media to showcase credibility. However, before sharing any patient feedback or testimonial, do take permission from the particular patient on whether you can share their feedback on a public platform or not.
Set Social Media Communication Protocols
In the social media age, there is hardly any business or company that doesn’t employ social media marketing. Every brand has its social media accounts on various platforms that they use to connect, market, network, and establish customer relationships. However, be it in healthcare or any other industry, every company must ensure a set of protocols to manage and conduct social media communication.
A well-thought policy should be formulated for all online communications. Healthcare organizations should train and educate their employees on making the right use of social media with care and conscience. Already there have been cases where social media misuse led to the loss of data and breach of privacy of customers. So, brands need to ensure that a strict guideline is followed while using social media and handling sensitive patient data even if it’s their social media profile details. Before any content gets published on your healthcare facility’s social page, make sure experts verify every medical information, health tips, and stats are verified. Also, make sure that patient queries and grievances should be attained on time and in a professional manner on all social media channels.
Concluding Note
Most of the patients today are hooked onto social media for health-related information, reviews, and for connecting with healthcare brands and professionals. Hence, there could be no other better place than social media to win their trust, spread brand awareness, and increase loyal followers. The market reach and global exposure of social media offers a boost to your marketing initiatives. You need to use social media wisely and in a planned manner to connect with the patients and drive them towards your brand.
