Driving awareness and loyalty

Your Facebook page will not enhance your marketing programme if people cannot easily find you. Make sure the categories you select are the most applicable. From your page, click ‘Edit Info’ to be able to review and edit your Basic Information page. If you choose the general category called ‘Companies & Organizations’, a possible second tier category of ‘Health/Medical/Pharmaceuticals’ might be a suitable choice. If you choose general category ‘Local Businesses & Places’ then the second tier ‘Hospital/Clinic’ may be better for your page. Select the most relevant options so patients and colleagues can find you in as few clicks as possible.

Creating a unique URL is also crucial to be found more easily and direct people to your page (e.g. www.facebook.com/cosmeticmedrx). Once you choose a unique URL, changing your page name again may involve a longer process of contacting Facebook to prove that you are the owner of the page. The administration panel helps you to be able to manage your page. You can use it to view statistics, social insights, and a log of your own activity as you grow your page.

Driving awareness of your page among the 38 million others requires you to reach as many relevant users as possible. The numbers of fans for business pages definitely ranges depending on type of company. Look at how many people actually know and use your product/service and how many fans their competitors have in order to set reasonable targets. Facebook ads can boost your fan base, but these fans do not know you or your clinic, so you will have to work harder to earn their loyalty.

People usually have strong ties to only a handful of their connections, but social media has considerably increased reach. Users may not always value purchasing advice from every single one of their connections, but if friends share content, people are most likely to see it. If the content is appealing, users are most likely to click it. A great way to drive awareness is to create videos that people want to share. However, the video needs to be compelling enough to actually share, since it takes more effort than merely liking or commenting.

People talk to the same five to ten people 80% of the time. People are tightly connected to five small groups, on average, with which they share a common interest or affinity. Influence can be so strong between these few connections that it can actually generate new customers. One way to capitalise on the social aspects of Facebook as a marketing platform is to create very exclusive offers rather than pitching the same ones to everyone at once. This strategy encourages users to share with their most relevant and trusted connections.

Great posts that attract Likes and Shares tend to be short; under 250 characters. According to Facebook, photo albums, pictures, and videos get 180%, 120%, and 100% more engagement respectively, which is important to keep in mind. Posts that are only text may not be effective to attract interest.

Promote your Facebook page wherever you have access to your customers, so that they like it — both online and offline. Then, provide these customers with engaging content that will start a conversation between your customers, their friends and your brand.

The objection is to start a conversation, so Facebook page content should be more about your customers than about you. Getting your customers to engage with your content is paramount. It will deepen your relationship with them and thus, increase their loyalty. It will also turn your customers into your best advocates and most valuable assets in social media.

Facebook can help you achieve key marketing objectives with unprecedented results. But do not try to apply old media strategies to social media. Rather, brands on Facebook should see themselves as regular users, and provide valuable input to start meaningful conversations around their content. Ultimately, this will help you boost results from your efforts.

Managing negative Facebook posts

Review sites are becoming important sources of information for consumers seeking cosmetic doctors, whether we like it or not. Consumers are more inclined to vent and air their grievances on social networks.

The challenge with social media networks is that negative comments or bogus posts are a distinct possibility. These are often from random strangers, foreign SEO freelancers, spammers, and sometimes from aggressive web marketing companies. In some cases, unwanted comments may be posted by your patients. The fear of negative comments can be a tremendous deterrent for some practitioners to become active on Facebook and Twitter. The good news, however, is that you have the ability to control who posts on your wall, and anything can be removed and the user can be blocked with relative ease.

Having a Facebook page for your practice allows you to promote your business, interact with existing and potential clients and create positive relationships. You will be able to talk about the services you offer, products you sell, and procedures you perform. Ultimately, a successful Facebook page should help to raise your profile by reaching a large audience and increase the engagement between your practice and existing patients, as well as increase your visibility to potential new patients.

The potential audience for your practice on Facebook is huge and global. Your existing patients and clients may ‘like’ your page and by this recommendation, their friends will also be made aware of your practice. Customers can write comments on your page in the form of queries about your products or services, sharing news, weighing in on popular trends and topics, or by talking about their experiences.

However, one must assume that at some point negative comments may be posted on your page, so devise a strategy for how to respond most appropriately — if at all. Always monitor your page, so that when a negative comment is received, you are able to respond quickly. It is important to listen to your customers and help resolve any negative experiences they may have had with you. Receiving a negative comment may feel like an attack against you personally and/or your practice. Assess the nature of the comment and respond in a constructive way (if at all). Responding quickly is important, but it is equally important to take the conversation offline in private, and to never respond in a defensive or dismissive tone.