THINK OF SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING SUCCESS in your dental or orthodontic practice like you would a three-legged stool. Here at our My Social Practice offices in Utah, we use tons of whiteboards. They’re everywhere! Some are mounted to walls. Some sit on easels. Most of them are huge, but some are very small and hand held. We’re constantly using them to wireframe, diagram, brainstorm and explore social media ideas and strategies for our clients.
Three-Legged Stools Need ALL Three Legs To Stand
The whiteboard granddaddy—an old, very heavy 4×8 footer—sits in our conference room on a huge easel with 2×4 construction. It’s awesome. At the foot of that bad boy stands an rusted-metal, three-legged stool with a bowl of markers on top. Every time I look at that stool it reminds me of how important it is for our valued clients to understand this concept.
The Right Person (or in some cases, people)
Do you already have a social media whiz in your practice? If so, great. IF NOT, DON’T WORRY! MOST PRACTICES DON’T! We can help!
So how do you decide who should take on this responsibility? Here are a few questions you may be asking yourself—and some answers:
Must We Choose Someone Who Works In Our Practice?
Of course, rules are made to be broken, and sometimes a doctor’s or team member’s spouse or other family member who doesn’t work in the practice can do a good job. However, generally speaking, our observation is that the most successful practices use someone who works in the practice each day. That person has a hands-on relationship with your team members and your patients. That person is closely tied to each patient experience, to the promotions and offers you’re running, and to the subtleties of your practice culture.
Should We Have More Than One Person In Charge?
Preferably not. However, that doesn’t mean that the small tasks can’t be shared! As long as one person is clearly responsible for the “big picture” it’s great to get more people involved. Keep in mind that consistency is another big contributor to social media success in your practice—so, make sure one person feels fully responsible.
The Right Tools
If you’re already one of our valued clients, you’re familiar with the tool set that we recommend, design, program, and support for your practice. These integrated social media solution tools work together to assist you in creating traction. In addition to simply “having” the right tools, it’s important that you become familiar with how to use them. Fortunately, the vast majority of the time, using them is pretty simple. With just a tiny bit of effort, you’ll become an expert (functionally) in no time. Here is a short list of tools we recommend, but if you’ll not already one of our clients, you can learn more about our integrated approach by clicking >HERE:
- Blog & Blog Posts
- Promotions & Offers
- Facebook Presence
- Twitter Account
- YouTube Channel
- Patient Newsletter eMail
- In-office Print Materials
The Right Mindset, Ideas, Strategies & Training
There’s a lot of noise out there about social media marketing in dental and orthodontic practices. Social media marketing in your practice isn’t just about tools. Yes, the tools are important… But anybody can design tools. Keep in mind that just because you put a hammer in somebody’s hands doesn’t mean they know how to build a house. Starting with the right mindset revolves around “the Why” of social media marketing for your practice. The right mindset not only makes the strategy and tactics easier to implement, but it also makes your efforts more fun, passion-filled, and effective.
It’s one thing to talk strategy—but it’s another thing to bring it right down to where the rubber meets the road. Some days you likely find yourself saying, “I don’t have much time today! I just need a quick idea! And, I need it NOW!” Access to quick ideas that are highly tactical (without a lot of talk about mindset or strategy) is important too. Often there’s no time to read, think, and ponder.
Need a quick idea for your Facebook wall? Considering a QR code strategy for your practice? Not sure how to create a Facebook deal? Trying to get more Likes on Facebook? Anxious to understand how dental practices take advantage of Twitter? It’s nice to have a little training.
We’ve found that the majority of our most successful client practices are committed to spending a few minutes with their social media tools EVERY day. They “get” the mindset, they “get” the strategy, they spend a little time training themselves, and they make a little progress daily.
A Note We Received This Week
Thanks go out to our client and friends at Michael Richards Orthodontics for the kind, unsolicited note they sent us this week:
Is Your Practice Ready? Do You Have All Three Components In Place?
It’s the right time to keep your dental or orthodontic practice on the leading edge and to take advantage of social media marketing. Contact us today.
