It takes intelligence, talent and thousands of hours of education to become a physician. You are well suited as a healer and clinician, but you need new patients and referrals to make your medical practice a success. Social media for physicians and their practices makes it easy for prospective patients to learn about you and for happy clients to share their testimonials.

Different from personal posts or tweets, professional social media efforts require a strategic approach. Catalyst Healthcare Marketing integrates marketing goals with advertising, websites, Facebook pages and other social media platforms.

Social media for physicians begins with Facebook

We recommend that you master one form of social media before beginning another, beginning with Facebook. You’ll have two types of followers:

Visible. Current or former patients with success stories often comment or like posts. For example, if you are a fertility specialist, they may post pictures of their babies or offer encouragement to others still TTC. They are a great source of referrals when they share your posts.

Watchers. You will not see 70 percent of your followers, but they are watching what you do and what others post. At a cosmetic surgery practice, these may be potential or former patients considering treatment or services.

Facebook advantages

Facebook is the easiest and most effective form of social media for physicians to initiate. It offers many advantages.

• Controlling content. Talk about medical breakthroughs, new techniques offered and current successes.
• Establishing a community of support. Followers can share their experiences and your posts with friends.
• Leveraging your blog or website. Brief posts and videos are effective tools in social media for physicians. Readers can link to your blog or website for in-depth information.
• Improving SEO algorithms. An active Facebook page linked to your website increases your ranking with search engines.
• Advertising opportunities. Facebook advertising is highly targeted.

Put your best face forward

Your Facebook presence represents your practice. Make sure that the person posting on your behalf is professional and familiar with HIPAA privacy laws and your marketing plan – not a staffer who has many Facebook friends and exchanges funny cat videos and memes. Continually monitor feedback and comment or adjust as necessary.

If you would “like” to learn how to leverage Facebook and other social media for physicians, contact Catalyst Healthcare Marketing. We’ll help you get people talking about your practice.