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Serve your patients, grow your practice with social media
The platform also allows you to network with other optometrists without leaving home.
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It was expected that nearly one in every two people worldwide was already using some form of social media by 2015, according to Social Media Today, and we know that number has been increasing ever since. More and more people are participating in sites that allow users to promote, engage and even share details of their lives.
Here is a look at popular and innovative ways people are using social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest today.
Networking
From ODs on Facebook to ODWire.org, there is a chance for you to meet other ODs without leaving your office. Social media allows us to network merely by reaching for our phones or computers; all we need is an online connection to find potential colleagues in the field. Social media sites like LinkedIn and Facebook connect people with common interests and allow them to network. In today’s environment, any business owner can build an entire network of partners and clients by engaging with them through social media.
Promoting what you do
If you are living in an urban area in today’s world, businesses run on social media. Your office can link up with potential patients online.
Retailers can arrange for shipments from their wholesalers on social media messaging apps. Just like the big companies, you can use online ads and have dedicated pages within your website to market your specific products and services. From vision therapy treatments to eye allergies, you can deliver your message on this platform. Some doctors’ offices are even getting creative and engaging their patients by letting them become part of their marketing strategy. Just allowing your patients to upload user-generated content onto your website or social media page is a winner.
Build your brand, services
Many people are taking advantage of niches in the services we provide, from myopia control to scleral lenses and dry eye. With a profile of who you want to advertise to you can use social media marketing strategies to target, promote and build your expertise.
Two good examples are Google and Veriton. Google collects data about its users’ habits and sells them to companies so they can plan their marketing strategies. Veriton offers much of the same service but differentiates it a bit. Veriton buys the data from companies like Google, analyzes, interprets and arranges it, then sells it to consumer firms to use in planning.
Google and Veriton are just two examples of a multitude of companies taking creative advantage of social media for profitability that are eager to help you market strategically.
Providing health care services
Make no mistake, the era of smart apps is upon us, and we had better get used to sharing the space. Even better, see how creative you can become in enabling and helping your patients. The concept of telemedicine is not new, but the surge of computing power will enable companies like Opternative to improve in service delivery. Just look at online stores like Therapy on Demand. Among other services, they allow doctors and patients to interact and have their sessions over the web.
Social media is a powerful platform for our practices, and numerous companies are learning to conduct their business and interact with their consumers and each other. It allows people to forge bonds, get treatments, network and even learn. The challenging question for our offices is not, “Should we be on social media?” but rather, “What can we create with social media?”
- References:
- Ragan K. 10 amazing social media growth stats from 2015. Social Media Today. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/social-networks/kadie-regan/2015-08-10/10-amazing-social-media-growth-stats-2015. Posted Aug. 10, 2015.
- Orendorff A. User-generated content is how you get your customers to sell for you. Entrepreneur. https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/278152. Posted July 11, 2016.
- For more information:
- Agustin L. Gonzalez, OD, FAAO, ABCMO, practices at Eye and Vision’s North Texas Center for Dry Eye and Ocular Surface Disease. He also founded a dry eye clinic in the North Texas area and has a special interest in cornea and external disease. Gonzalez is a member of the Primary Care Optometry News Editorial Board. He can be reached at: gonzalez.agu@gmail.com.
Disclosure: Gonzalez reports no relevant financial disclosures.