SOCIAL MEDIA FOR DOCTORS

As I’m sure you know, social media for doctors can help bring in new patients for a practice. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and now TikTok have marketing tactics any business can use, including the healthcare field. From making intriguing six-second videos to posting promotional content, social media can connect you to your current and new patients while boosting your authority in your field. 

The Importance of Social Media for Doctors 

Doctors don’t have to be serious all the time. While using social media to highlight a practice can definitely show off all of the years of medical school and intense research, it’s also time for doctors and providers to connect with their patients. Social media for doctors can be a platform for sharing helpful industry information and communicating with followers and patients in a different way than usual. Here’s how doctors can use social media for the benefit of their practice and the well-being of their trusting patients. 

Promote Your Practice

Social media can help you promote your practice in a way that attracts a larger group of patients when they research for cosmetic providers in their area. Having an online presence is key in today’s world to promote your services in a positive light that makes prospective patients trust your services and your doctors. When you promote your practice through social media, it’s important to highlight the great things about your practice, such as:  

• All of your physicians
• Where they studied
• Awards and degrees they may have
• How many years they have in practice
• Services you provide
• Your mission statement
• Testimonials

Every business has negative reviews from time to time, and it’s possible some of your past patients have not had the best experience. Your positive social media presence promoting your practice can combat any negative reviews and offer new patients comfort and ease as they read your site or pages. As you promote your practice, this is also a good time to establish your credibility and authority with your leading expertise in the industry. 

Create Educating Content

A doctor’s use of social media is going to be far different than popular influencers. Doctors can have fun on social media (we will get to that in a second), but following along establishes credibility; social media is a place for doctors to share educating content. Your followers and website visitors can see your expertise with any recent tips or information your post to your practice’s pages. A website is a perfect place to have a blog section full of in-depth information on how patients can have better fitness and wellness, overall well-being or learn more information about your specific experience. 

For instance, if you are a chiropractor, your blog can focus on giving patients in-depth tips and tricks from trusted doctors about how to have better posture, relieve aches and pains, or how to tell when it’s time to schedule an appointment. Nowadays, consumers are all about reading online blogs that are helpful, engaging, and informative in content. It is what helps the reader feel as if they can trust you and that they are getting the help they are searching for when they research information on the internet.  With the right SEO practices and keyword usage in your blogs and posts, you can attract more patients to your site to help them learn more about their health questions and trust you as a physician. 

Share Recent Findings

Along the same lines, your social media can be used to share recent findings in the health industry. You can promote case studies, groundbreaking breakthroughs in the medical field, and more that patients need to know. The key to having a strong social media presence for doctors is to remember why you are optimizing your site and content. Your goal is to educate the public and to show patients why they can trust you. By staying on top of industry findings and sharing them with the public and your social media viewers, not only are you educating the public and sharing relevant information, but you are also boosting your authority in your niche and increasing credibility with your patients. 

Communicate with Patients

Many providers are now using an online EMR platform that allows them to communicate directly with patients if a patient were to have a medical question. Social media is another communication tool between you and your patients, but it’s used in a different way. You can communicate with patients via social media to let your followers know about any upcoming events, closings, or other information your patients need to be aware of. It is also a great platform to communicate the new physicians that may be joining your office so current and prospective patients can see who they may meet during one of their visits. Your patients will appreciate being kept in the loop about certain details and updates that are happening at your practice.

Show a “Different Side” to Your Practice

While the use of social media for doctors is primarily to show your expertise and serious devotion to high-quality medical care, it doesn’t have to always be this way. Even doctors can use their social media presence for some fun and comedy. Engaging, witty relevant content relevant to your patients can help boost your business. Video and picture content is a great way to engage your audience by showing them a different side of your business and physicians. For instance, an Instagram video of your providers doing a trending dance while connecting to your industry expertise is a lighthearted way to grab prospective patients’ interest, promote your services, and educate the public. Lighthearted videos that show your physicians outside of their “natural element” is a fantastic way to use your marketing strategy to promote your practice and create a sense of relevance to your patients.

Engage with the Public

As we said earlier, the aesthetic industry is still a business. While businesses focus on customer satisfaction and customer retention, there is also the push to engage with the public and bring in more business. A social media strategy can help you achieve those goals. Almost every business has a digital marketing strategy to use for the various reasons we’ve covered so far. As a cosmetic provider, your goal is to serve the public with health and wellness information to benefit lives and promote healthy living. When a new customer goes to search for information or providers within your niche, the right keywords will lead them to you and your engaging content.

The way you engage with patients, new or prospective, on your social media platforms is entirely up to you. You can post content in the forms of: 

• Informational videos
• Sharing news from another trustworthy source
• Vibrant posts/pictures
• Links to information on your site

Having a clear goal as to what you want your content to say about your services and your physicians is key to being able to bridge the gap to the patients you want to bring in. 

Social Media for Doctors Based on Channels

Feeling convinced that it’s time to start implementing or increasing your social media presence? Here are the best social media sites for doctors to use. 

FaceBook

Facebook is one of the leading social media platforms for any business to use. With over 2.91 billion users, your content will be sure to land in front of the eyes you’re after. This social media platform has an Ad feature businesses can easily use to create campaigns and track funnels to see the success of customer views and reach. Facebook is always updating its algorithm to make sure the right ads are distributed to the right viewers. It gives you easy access to see what’s working and what’s not with your digital marketing tactics with this social media tool. Your practice will be able to create its own page with its own posts that your clientele can interact with. 

Instagram

Instagram is another powerful social media platform. Just like Facebook, it has one billion active users with similar features for businesses to create ads and promote their content and services. With Instagram, you can post picture, video, and live content to engage with the public, communicate with your audience, and grow your business. It’s the perfect place to showcase the great features of your services while putting your information in front of a large audience. 

TikTok

Are you trying to bring in a younger audience? TikTok could be the platform to do it! This social media avenue’s audience is 90% under 50, and there are still plenty of ad features for you to use. Not only can you make trendy videos that will show the different side of your business we talked about earlier, but you can still promote educational content to build authority and credibility. Appealing to a younger generation in a relevant way can provide results you’re looking for if you tailor your content to the right audience. 

Website

All of your social media platforms should have link directly to your website. Your own website is where you can show off your expertise further with long-form blog content, the research findings, and other valuable information that established trust with your audience. Your website is your home that allows patients to schedule appointments, find your contact information, and read more about the people working at your practice so patients can feel comfortable when they walk in the door. If you haven’t started a website for your business, it’s time you do so.

Benefits of Using Social Media for Doctors

Here’s how implementing a social media strategy for your doctors can benefit your practice and business. 

• Connects with Patients & Increases Retention
• Outshine the Competition
• Highlights Professionalism & Industry Knowledge
• Grows Your Practice

Going to the doctor can be scary for some people. Your social media presence can help patients relate to you and feel more at ease with the variety of content you offer. It’s a part of the customer experience that can help you connect with more patients and keep them satisfied to increase your retention.  ot every medical practice in the country has hopped on the social media train yet. However, your practice can get a head start and outshine the competition by posting valuable content that sets you apart from the rest and connects you to your audience.  We have mentioned several times about appearing to be the leader in your field because it is key in cosmetics! Social media for doctors gives these professionals an avenue to show off their extensive knowledge while maintaining professionalism.

Lastly, social media is a powerful tool that can help you grow your practice! It’s a great outreach tool to connect your ads with your target demographic and promote your services to prospective patients. 

How to Get Started with Your Social Media Campaigns

It is never too late to get started with your social media campaigns! Whether you already have social media platforms that need to be rebranded or you haven’t started, implementing social media in your marketing tactics is easier than you think. Do you need help with your social media presence? A digital marketing agency can provide you with the knowledge and tools to start a successful online presence that can help grow your business in monumental ways. In addition, the right digital marketing agency can consult with you and do a deep dive of your target market to create the best social media strategy for your doctors. If you’re ready to make a difference in your industry and connect with your patients, let a digital marketing agency get you the results you’re seeking!