In healthcare, physicians and providers deal with a person’s health – a sensitive area of concern for anyone and his/her family. Trust and transparency are of paramount importance, without which relationships can’t go past a certain level. For making health decisions or to find the best healthcare provider, patients now get help from social media. It isn’t an exaggeration to say that Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Google+ and Pinterest have become search engines themselves. Given that the present scenarios are such, healthcare providers and hospitals can no longer ignore this opportunity to connect with existing and potential customers through social media channels and build brand equity.
Have you started putting efforts to build a brand for your healthcare practice on social media? If not, you can begin with keeping in mind these simple tips:
Post Useful Informative Content For Readers
The use of social media technology is an emerging trend for patients who are seeking health information. Digital holds promise for improving patient engagement and empowers them to make better health decisions. Physicians should leverage social media to educate patients. Patients can benefit from the use of social media through education, obtaining information, networking, performing research, receiving support, goal-setting and tracking personal progress.
You can frequently post information to promote health behaviors, motivate people to achieve their health goals and increase awareness about general health conditions and disease prevention. Providing scientifically accurate and quality health information on various social media channels will help increase your online visibility and can help create a sense of credibility.
Get Creative With Content
It’s said that a picture is worth a thousand words. Use good images, infographics, videos and screenshots, because these are eye-catching and stand out. Readers are more fascinated by depiction of information through images than text. If they like them, there is a strong chance that readers will share them with others through their profiles. It can be a great form of online marketing, which may open gateways to your website and motivate people to get in touch with you.
Be Responsive
Be proactive and respond to all comments and concerns of your patients on social media channels. While responding, make sure you never make any excuses or deal arrogantly with patients who are dissatisfied with your services. Instead, take a positive approach when responding to these reviews and use them as building blocks to improve patient experience and satisfaction.
Always remember that potential patients track your online profiles, and the way you respond to reviews is the decisive factor for them to conclude whether your services are worthy or not. Be responsive and don’t ignore unhappy patients or negative experiences they have described. Strike up a conversation with them and own up to mistakes that may have occurred. Avoid medical jargon and communicate in simple words. Just assure your patients that their health is of prime importance and you’ll do your best to resolve issues and provide the best healthcare services.
Be Sensitive To Patient Privacy
While using any online platform, physicians should be mindful of standards for patient privacy and confidentiality, which must be maintained in all environments. They should adopt a conservative approach for disclosing personal information about any patient, as online channels are public and can be accessed by anyone.
Social media usage numbers are exploding worldwide and are pervading healthcare like never before. The need of the hour is to understand the dynamics of this powerful medium and harness it meaningfully to grow online visibility and reputation. By representing your practice as a “brand” on social media, you can build your brand equity in the virtual world.