doctor profiles on social media
Check out these doctor profiles on social media
For once, we don’t discuss the big question if you should be on social media as a doctor. If you have decided to use Facebook or Instagram, what can you do? Let’s take a look at some inspiring profiles and learn from them. We can learn by looking at what works and investigating what appears to be less effective.
doctor profiles on social media
Check out these doctor profiles on social media
Kris Borgraeve
March 14, 2022
Not working? The “look-at-me” profile
social for doctors
Dr Eric Topol in the United States is often praised for his effective social media presence. Yet, doing a quick scan of the 10 most recent posts and their engagement with the audience casts a doubt over that praise for two main reasons:
- There is a lot of focus on “my book, my work, my content”, not really on ‘you’ as a patient or a human being.
- The feed appears to attract controversy and haters, and not a lot of raving fans.
Take-away message:
If you choose to build a social media presence that is focused on your personality, achievements, title, status or career, you might get really low levels of engagement and miss out on the main opportunity with social media, which is to offer value.
Unveiling the SEO myths around medical marketing
facebook case studies for doctors
Orthopaedic Surgeon and Sports Medicine Specialist Dr Howard Luks runs a remarkable Facebook feed with a very wide educational scope that is not just about orthopaedics.
The great thing is that there is always a medical/scientific angle and that this creates lots of opportunities to show up in people’s feed when someone in Dr Luks’ community shares a message.
The feed does not come across as promotion because there is always a connection with people’s lives and not just with the technicalities of knee surgery or shoulder surgery.
Take-away message:
Doing Facebook right as a doctor is not about finding the ultimate angle to constantly talk about your specialty. If you develop a credible profile as an educator, you can use your broad medical expertise to help your audience understand health-related topics and this builds your authority both on social media and on your website.
Working but given up? The ‘media personality’ approach
media for doctors
Dr Wendy Sue Swanson is often praised for her social media presence but appears to have given up in 2020.
Her ‘Seattle Mama Doc’ profile was populated with lots of posts and references to other media work, television appearances and public speaking gigs. Yet, at some point, the feed dried up and there are no recent posts.
Many doctors I work with have gone through a similar process. They jumped onto Facebook or Instagram when someone told them they had to because it was the new thing to do.
Without a clear strategic long-term plan, we often see this scenario where it becomes clear that there is no direct connection between the resources allocated to this social media work, and the success of a private practice.
Take-away message:
Your social media and general media strategy as a doctor is not a standalone activity. Ideally, it is integrated with your general business strategy, targeting your audience with content that adds value and builds trust and authority.
Flagship strategy: Authority and authenticity
social media examples doctors
When we take a closer look at Dr Tamara Hunter’s strategy in gynaecology, women’s health and fertility, we can see an amazing example of integrated social media strategy.
On Facebook, a perfect blend of women’s health topics, personal inspiration, patient stories, and tributes to other healthcare professionals gives people a reason to follow the doctor. Why? Because we’re not just talking about the doctor. We are talking about life in general, about the one pillar that is ‘health’ and the subspecialty that is ‘women’s health’.
"If you decide to do social media as a doctor, think about it as a success recipe. You need more than one ingredient and the one that many doctors seem to forget is story. Not big dramatic life stories, but the simple story about everyday life"
The more you use your social media feed to connect the small stories of every day, to the complex topic that is your medical specialty, the more your social media mix will create impact and return on investment.
Dr Hunter also does regular live sessions on Facebook and IGTV (Instagram), with other experts, creating more value in her own feed, whilst at the same time tapping into the online and offline network of these respected colleagues.
A 10/10 is not exaggerated here.
Social media or Google?
social media tips for surgeons
Surgeons and specialist doctors sometimes ask me what to do first: social media campaigns or investing in Google visibility.
If you can do both, you will see the benefits of the combined strategy but…
"Sending followers to a website that has little or no content, is like inviting people into a fancy restaurant with expensive signage, to then tell them that the chef only starts next month."
So one could argue that the logical and more cost-effective order of things is this:
- Strategic focus on what your most important services mean for the patient in terms of FAQs they type in Google.
- Content and website production to make sure patients can land on pages that display valuable information.
- Check your visibility for the most common Google searches by patients in regards to your most important income-earning services, treatments or procedures.
- Drive extra traffic to that amazing content using social media channels.
There are niche areas where social media is able to carry the entire process so you don’t depend on your website. In general and for most specialties in medical marketing, the order presented here is the most logical and most successful one.
Ready to talk social media strategy?
social media profiles for doctors
It doesn’t matter if you are only just exploring social media or ready to revamp your accounts. We help you configure and set up your foundation, map the topics that will generate engagement and build the pre-vetted content that can be scheduled to your Facebook or Instagram accounts, in line with AHPRA regulations and your brand. So why not book a free consult so we can discuss your social media strategy?
- Tags: Social media
