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A Starter's Guide to Using Social Media in Healthcare
(April 2009) -- According to Nielson Online, social networking sites and blogs surpassed personal email in online usage in 2008. And while many hospitals and healthcare organizations have been slow to jump on the social-networking bandwagon, many are using 2009 to make up for lost time. With social media, healthcare organizations are realizing they now have a more direct way of reaching a wide variety of audiences. Through blogs, videos, social networks and other user-generated media, the healthcare industry is actively cultivating relationships and opening dialog between patients and the medical industry. Moreover, by maintaining an active presence on sites like Facebook and Twitter, organizations are able to increase their top-of-mind awareness and capitalize on the networking aspect of these sites to encourage personal referrals.
What is your organization doing?
If you're just getting started and don't know what social media tools to use and how you can use them to your advantage, this article provides you a starting point. Overall, hospitals and physician groups are raising the most awareness using Facebook and Twitter, so we've focused on those tools here. We hope you find the suggestions for how you might use various Facebook and Twitter features helpful. Before we begin...
What are others doing?
From blogging about healthcare policy to Twittering about a surgery DURING the surgery, doctors and CEOs alike have discovered the benefits of social media and now embrace the medium with open arms. For instance, Mayo Clinic, which started its venture into social media by producing simple podcasts four years ago, now has a page on Facebook with more than 6,000 fans, a YouTube channel with educational videos, a blog that encourages readers to post patient stories and a Twitter account with more than 1,000 followers. Mayo is even creating "secret groups" on Facebook that act as private forums for patients with similar medical diagnoses. By engaging its audience where it lives, works and plays, Mayo has greatly increased its public exposure and made a name for itself in the social media community.
During a crisis, many healthcare organizations have found social media outlets to be highly effective tools in distributing communications to the public and press. In 2007, the American Red Cross became an active Twitter user when it used the microblogging site to send real-time updates on California wildfires and other natural disasters. More recently, Innovis Health in Fargo, N.D., used a blog and Twitter account to disseminate critical announcements during the Red River flooding this spring. Using social media to complement traditional media outlets allowed Innovis' communications team to establish an immediate communication channel while working remotely from Minneapolis. Innovis was able to take control the messages and post updates quickly, which decreased demand on the hospital from the media, and in turn, helped clear hospital phone lines for emergencies. Since Innovis began crisis communications for the flooding, more than 5000 people have visited its blog and its Twitter account has gained nearly 300 followers.
Ready to get started?Check out our crash courses in Facebook and Twitter below. They contain tips and ideas on how you can use healthcare's most popular Web 2.0 sites to benefit your organization.
Questions?
To learn more about how to incorporate social media into your marketing plan, contact Kelly Hemmingsen at 816.753.3336, ext. 331.
A Crash Course in Facebook
What is Facebook?
"A social networking Web site that connects people with friends and others who work, study and live around them." -Facebook
Fast Facts
- Facebook reports having more than 200 million active users.
- More than 70% of Facebook users are outside the United States.
- More than three-fourths of Facebook's U.S. traffic comes from people over age 25.
- Women make up 56.2% of Facebook's audience.
- Over recent months, the fastest growing demographic is women over age 55.
- In 2008, Facebook surpassed Myspace as the world's most popular social network.
Features and Practical Uses in Healthcare
|
Facebook Feature |
How Healthcare Can Use It |
|---|---|
| Create a company Page | Make a Page for your hospital, physician practice or organization to engage your "fans" where they already spend their time. (Read more about Pages under Other Facebook Functions.) |
| Post Videos and Photos | Use the Videos and Photos sections of your Page to post virtual tours of your facility, physician photos, educational videos (such as surgical procedures or tips on treating a cold), event photos and commercials. |
| Write Notes (blogs) | Keep your fans updated with news and announcements by using Facebook's blog feature called Notes. If you already have a blog on another site, simply use the Notes Import feature or add an RSS-feed Application and your new entries will be auto-populated into your Notes. |
| Send messages | Keep in touch with your fans by sending messages with updates and the latest happenings at your organization. |
| Host Events | Invite your fans to your next fundraiser, health screening or open house by creating an Event. Fans can RSVP, post comments and photos, and receive Event reminders and updates. |
| Facilitate Discussion Boards | Conduct pseudo focus groups with your fans by posting topics and questions on your Page's Discussion Board. |
| Add third-party Applications | Enhance your Page by adding Applications such as the YouTube Video Box that lets you add your YouTube videos directly to your Page. |
| Create Groups | Help your fans stay connected by developing unique Groups they can join, such as "I'm a Springfield Hospital baby," "Employees of County Medical Center," and "My child loves Smith Family Practice." |
| Advertise | Publicize your Page, Event, Video or Web site with Facebook Ads. This easy-to-use program allows daily budget limitations on a cost per click or cost per impression basis. Ads can be targeted by age, location, educational level, college name, workplace and keywords. Ads are limited to a picture, headline and a small amount of copy. |
| "Find Us on Facebook" Badge | Add the badge created by Facebook to your Web site to help drive traffic to your Page. |
Other Facebook Functions
Facebook Pages allow businesses, brands, musicians, politicians and other organizations to create a presence on Facebook for free. Users can interact and affiliate as a "fan" of a business or organization in the same way they interact with other user profiles. Businesses with social network pages can add photos and videos, update their fans with news, create surveys and games called "applications" and write/import blogs. Fans can share information about their favorite Pages with their friends. According to Facebook, more than 3.5 million users become fans of Pages each day. In February 2009, Facebook announced Page formatting would change to reflect same look and feel as member profile pages. Read more about the new Page features here.
Facebook Connect, launched in 2008, is an g that companies can add to their Web sites that allows a Facebook user to log in to the site with his or her Facebook ID and password. By doing so, the user's actions on the Web site can be fed back to the user's Facebook profile and news feeds. Depending on the site, users can add comments and reviews and see what their friends are doing on the site as well. It is rumored that the social networking site may combine its Facebook Connect and Facebook Ads programs to create a social ad network in the near future. Few, if any, healthcare organizations are currently utilizing this tool, but look for Facebook Connect to continue to evolve and become an integral part of the Facebook experience. See how non-healthcare organizations are using Facebook Connect.
A Crash Course in Twitter
What is Twitter?
A microblogging social networking site that allows users to answer the question "What are you doing?" in 140 characters or fewer.
Fast Facts
- Roughly 7 million people use the service.
- The short text messages created are called "tweets."
- Tweets are sent in real-time to contacts called "followers."
- Tweets can be forwarded, or "re-tweeted," and replied to.
Features and Practical Uses in Healthcare
|
Twitter Feature |
How Healthcare Can Use It |
|---|---|
| Send tweets | Keep your followers updated by announcing new physicians or services offered, health fairs, open houses and other news and events. Some hospitals are even sending Tweets during surgeries. |
| Add links to tweets | Many URLs are too long to fit in the 140 character limit. Instead, use sites such as www.tinyurl.com, www.bit.ly or www.is.gd to post links to health articles, surgery videos, event photos and hospital Web sites. |
| Become a follower and re-tweet | Receive updates from other Twitter accounts that are related to your organization, such as physicians or physician groups, associations or community groups; then re-tweet those updates to your followers. |
Make the Most of Your Tweets
Choose your words wisely.
140 characters amount to roughly 15-25 words and include spaces and punctuation. Use the most succinct, informative words possible to get your message heard.
Tweet with purpose.
Make sure your messages are worth reading and re-tweeting, or you'll risk losing followers.
Link to your Web site.
Drive followers to specific pages on your Web site by adding links to tweets. But make sure to include interesting text surrounding the link to entice people to click.
Be creative.
Twitter should not be used to send out every press release your organization distributes. Followers will grow tired of blatant marketing, so mix up your messages and keep in mind the wide variety of audiences you are reaching with your tweets.
Born-On Date: This article was written on April 7, 2009, using the best information available at the time.
