The Role of Social Media in the

Medical Industry

Jennifer Schulman

President, Fortune Web Marketing

Your Presenter

• Penn State – BA

Telecommunications,

Minor English

• New York Institute

Technology – MBA,

Marketing Specialization

• 15+ years

• Technology, coding

• SEM

Audience Poll #1

Using social media

for business?

Audience Poll #2

Generating leads and

new patients using

social media?

3 Key Takeaways

Top 3

Social Channels &

What Each Offers

8 Steps

a Social Media

Strategy Should

Include

Do’s & Don’ts

When Setting Up

& Optimizing

Social Media

Pages

2 1 3

Agenda

• Usage Across Social Media

• The Influence of Social Media on Consumer Behavior • How and Why Social Influence Works

• Why Social is Important in the Medical Industry

• Overview: Top 3 Social Channels

• Background and Benefits: Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin

• Social Media Strategy

• 8 Essential Steps

• Examples

• Case Study – NorthEast Spine & Sports Medicine

• Social Media Guidelines for Physicians

• Do’s and Don’ts: Profile Setup

• Questions

By the Numbers: Usage

Social media is not a fad. Usage continues to increase (and is expected to continue to increase) over the years.

74% of online adults use a social networking site of some kind.

The Social Media Influence on Consumer

Behavior

89% Research

72% Reviews

78% Purchases

Sources: PR Newswire, SEJ, Forbes

How & Why Social Influence Works

Social Sharing

evokes

ACTION.

Word of mouth in digital form.

Social Media in the Medical Industry

Shocking Statistics...

• 41% of people said social media would affect their choice of a specific doctor,

hospital, or medial facility. (Source: The Spark Report)

• 60% of doctors say that social media improves the quality of care delivered to patients. (Source: The Spark Report)

• 60% of physicians say their most popular activity on social media is following what colleagues are sharing and discussing. (Source: Publicis Healthware International)

• 28% of health-related conversations on Facebook are supporting health-related causes, followed by 27% of people commenting about health experiences or updates. (Source: getreferralmd.com)

• 60% of social media users are the most likely to trust social media posts and activity by doctors over any other group. (Source: getreferralmd.com)

Most Accessed Online Resources for

Health Related Information

• 56% searched WebMD

• 31% on Wikipedia

• 29% on health magazine websites

• 17% used Facebook

• 15% used YouTube

• 13% used a blog or multiple blogs

• 12% used patient communities

• 6% used Twitter

Source: Mashable

Overview: Top 3

2006

Launched

‘SMS of the Internet’

March 2015

302 million monthly

active users

2004

Launched

College crew

March 2015

1.44 billion monthly

active users

2003

Launched

Network for professionals

July 2015

364+ million users

Social Media Strategy

1. Budget

2. Resources

3. Goals (short and long-term)

4. Target audience (patient personas)

5. Market analysis

6. Channels and tools

7. Content strategy

8. Measurement

Social Media Strategy: Budget

• Manager expenses

• Social advertising costs

• Possible tool costs

Social Media Strategy: Resources

• In-house

• Freelancer

• Agency

Social Media Strategy: Goals

• Short-term

• Achieve an online social media presence.

• Get 100 followers on Facebook, organically.

• Run first Facebook ad.

• Long-term

• Build a relationship with a local publication, get

published.

• Earn a following of 2,000 on each channel.

• Generate 25 leads.

Social Media Strategy:

Target Audience

Understand your

‘buyer persona’.

• Who is your target

audience?

• What are they all about?

Social Media Strategy: Market Analysis

• Target behaviors

• Market trends

• Surveying current patients

Social Media Strategy:

Channels & Tools

Determining Which Social Media Channels to Use

Relevance is key.

Social Media Strategy: Content

What to Post

• Address

target audience’s

pain points.

• Showcase

expertise.

• Relationships

• So what?

How Many

[Channel 1] X

times each week.

[Channel 2] X

times each week.

[Channel 3] X

times each week

Tools

Sprout

HootSuite

Google Analytics

BuzzSumo

Yahoo Trends

Google Trends

2 1 3

Social Media Strategy:

Facebook Post Example

Problem:

Low Energy

Solution:

Actionable article on

how to cure an energy

slump.

Social Media Strategy:

Twitter Post Example

Acknowledgement

/endorsement with

a RT.

Social Media Strategy:

Linkedin Post Example

• Humanizes brand

• Company news

Social Media Strategy: Measurement

Measuring Performance

• Tracking KPIs

• Adjusting

• Improving

CASE STUDY

Disclaimer: NorthEast is no longer a client. Data presented is from a time when they were.

Company Background

NorthEast Spine & Sports Medicine is an integrated wellness group that focuses on providing chiropractic care, acupuncture, physical therapy, and sports medicine Monmouth and Ocean Counties, New Jersey with a focus on athletes.

Executive Summary

NorthEast’s competitors were overpowering them in the search engines and on social media. NorthEast needed a strong digital marketing strategy to compete. As part of their strategy, Fortune Web suggested an aggressive Facebook Marketing Strategy.

Challenges

NorthEast Spine did not have a Facebook page or a large

budget to run Facebook ads. The Fortune Web Team had

to get creative in building the client’s following in order to

get the client desired results of:

•Increased brand awareness

•Website and blog traffic

•Leads and new patients

Results (12 Months)

•1,000%+ increase in followers

•1,063 website hits

•315 blog hits

•14 leads

•10+ reviews

•15+ leads

Content Examples

Social Media Guidelines for Physicians

Get Educated

•Patient privacy and HIPAA

When writing about individual patients, adding reviews and

photos are okay with their signed consent.

Keep posts on a community level, not patient level – write about

conditions, treatment options, and research in general terms

such as: Pediatric Should and Elbow Injury Prevention (Source:

AAFP)

•Use caution when contacting patients via

social media messages; take them offline to secure

privacy.

Social Media Guidelines for Physicians

• Never initiate medical conversions with patients via

social media – insist on a visit.

• Never diagnose – educate.

• Be aware of perceptions.

• Give credit where credit is due.

• Use a friendly but professional tone.

• Limit number of staff who have access to social

accounts – they each need to be properly trained.

• Follow specific state laws.

-AAFP

Do’s & Don’ts: Setting Up & Optimizing Your Social Media Pages

DO

Include strategic keywords.

Fill out every section on business accounts – add other social

media account links where applicable.

(ie. about section on Facebook, links section on Google

Plus).

Use clear, engaging images and copy.

DON’T

Plagiarize.

Use poor grammar.

Questions?

Special Offer for Attending

Sign up for any of our

social media services,

mention code FSACOFP, and

get 10% off.

Contact

Jennifer Schulman

Jennifer@FortuneWebMarketing.com

FortuneWebMarketing.com

732-481-4512