While the nation’s healthcare industry is growing, the market conditions are also changing which necessitates strong social media marketing alongside search engine optimization. Digital marketing for healthcare has become crucial as more and more people now go online to find ideal solutions for their medical problems. With so much information available online, healthcare brands and medical practices should focus on social media marketing to reach out to the targeted audience.
The ideal way to attract potential patients and healthcare customers is to be active on social media platforms. Here are some important considerations.
- What do you want to achieve with your social media plan? Many businesses jump into almost every social media platform in order to increase the number of followers but this is a waste of time and money. The most important thing is to create a plan regarding how you will reach out to your fans and followers. Decide whether you want to promote your sales page or your brand’s website.
- How will your profile serve your brand? Another way of attracting potential patients to your business is through podcasting or speaking events. Identify the best social media platform for your purpose. If your objective is to to build a professional network, your focus must be on Facebook or LinkedIn.
- Fix the time you will spend on social media each day: Once your medical brand starts picking up on social media networks, assign schedules for specific tasks. Set aside some time for each social media profile to create valuable content and this will provide room for building your business.
- Distinguish between the time set apart for professional and personal use: Assign some dedicated time for social media marketing during your working hours. Do not mix up your working hours with the time assigned for your personal use. This will prevent you from wasting your time on conversations and content that will not build your brand.
A recent article in mmm-online.com highlighted how healthcare businesses are using Instagram. Some of the companies mentioned are as follows.
- Medtronic, the medical device company that develops insulin pumps for diabetes patients has more than 16,000 followers in Instagram. Wendy Blackburn, EVP of Intouch Solutions says that Instagram is a good platform for diabetes marketing as it always has been a disease category active on social media and has a broad range of patients.
- In honour of the late Leonard Nimoy who played Mr. Spock in “Star Trek,” Philips Healthcare and the COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease) Foundation launched #BreatheBoldly campaign to raise awareness about COPD in November. Celebrities like Whoopi Goldberg and reality TV stars like Melissa Gorga posted videos on their Facebook page and Instagram pages to show the challenges of suffering from the condition.
- Pfizer has a number of trolls on its Instagram page, but does not delete those. Deleting comments even if they are negative may send the wrong message to prospective customers. It is important for brands to understand that there will always be a faction of haters and trolls.
- The Instagram page of Novartis’ contains images and videos that show their corporate history and important events as well as their social and humanitarian efforts. They also represent this drugmaker’s attention to education and training.
Interesting information combined with photos and videos are important ingredients to add to your social media pages. Marketing online will continue to develop and change; and healthcare businesses must stay abreast with the changes and dynamics. A Long Island SEO company can provide the required support you need for your medical content writing and social media optimization requirements.
