Healthy and Safe Social Media Practice
Image Courtesy of smarnad on FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Inbound marketing wizards at Hubspot promote blogging and social media best practices and tips on their very own blog. Things like…
- Just write, don’t be scared or over think it
- Write with empathy – people enjoy reading content that they can relate to
- Take the good and constructive criticism with the bad
- Cut corners – blogs are not a masterpiece of the most perfect content ever crafted
- Show personality and have a unique voice that will stand out
As we know, blogging and engaging in social media can present risks and challenges for healthcare, so executing best practices in a tactful and graceful way is certainly important. Mary Beth Thomsen goes a little more in-depth with tips for healthcare social media in particular include:
- Well balanced level of sharing within the Rule of Thirds – 1/3 about yourself, 1/3 about the industry and 1/3 about personal interactions.
- Use of images and photos are super important.
- Take the compliments with the complaints but don’t take the complaints personal.
- Be clever and catchy in order to encourage interactions.
- Short is sweet but be sure to check for grammar!
- Be approachable to your audience by posting like a human – not an automated social media robot.
Image Courtesy of John Lynn’s actual Twitter page
John Lynn, the founder of the healthcare blog network, HealthcareScene.com, demonstrates a well-executed blog strategy and strong use of best practices. From blogging real-time comments on social media regarding current healthcare topics, to sharing interviews with industry leaders, to fun and unique posts that add light humor to this normally less-than-sexy industry of healthcare, John Lynn is demonstrating that social media can really be executed in any industry, despite risks and challenges.
Image Courtesy of Mayo Clinic’s actual Twitter page
I know by this point, it has begun to sink in that Mayo Clinic is a healthcare-social-media-maven, but, I’m going to raise the example again. Mayo Clinic also demonstrates successful social media strategies and are strictly held to HIPAA compliance regulations. By using a broad spectrum of platforms, frequently yet relevantly posting quality and self-generated content and creating a human engagement, the organization achieves their mission “To inspire hope and contribute to health and well being” one post at a time.