It was about this time a year ago that some of my clients started asking me about social networking as a means of marketing their practices. There were some specialty online communities that were popping up trying to focus a discussion specifically on cosmetic procedures. That started the discussion and I gave the same answer a year ago that I give now: “Don’t expect a lot from specialized online communities.”
You want to swim in the big pool, not be part of a small, focused interest group if you want to market cosmetic services. Broad services with millions of users, such as Facebook, Twitter or MySpace offer you a broad reach. And that is what you want.
Let’s talk about Facebook, for example. Millions are interconnected on Facebook. It is a virtual representation of our society, only enhanced by technology. Literally, you can trace paths of who is connected with who. And, information is passed along rather easily, connecting people with comments, links, photos and more. The important principle here is that it is just like the real world. The technology just makes it easier to network.
This is where you have to have two different schools of thought working at once. The first concept is networking. You need to be available, active and consistent. In other words participate actively. The second concept is an advertising principle of broadcasting. On this medium, you can niche market to your friends but you have the ability to broadcast into their circles of influence. If any of this sounds foreign to you, just join up. Go to Facebook.com now and sign up. It’s free. You can start by searching me (Donald Griswold if you are not paying attention) and just start clicking through to my friends, interests, etc. This is how it is with everybody on this social networking site.
If you do this, you will see Amy Norman, DDS PS. This is a leading edge client who has been developing a Facebook strategy for several weeks now. It is an example of your could look like. Offline and online, they are inviting everyone they know to be part of their Circle of Influence online. And, every day or so, they touch that database with something related to the practice. From there, it is visible to the people who visit their friends’ pages.
Now the networking part... think of that like any other database-building project. It is hands on. The broadcasting part.. think of that like buying radio spots. You are broadcasting only you are doing it in a written format that stays around for a while. So, how do you use that post for more than just name recognition and branding?
Well, how about thinking like a broadcast station? A radio station generates lots of buzz for its clients with giveaways. We’ve all heard the old “13th caller gets...” giveaway scenario. It works because a lot of people hear it and receive the promotional buzz but only one comes away with the prize. This principle can easily be used on Facebook. Just post on your wall specials that go to the first person to contact you and ask for it and you will be using a very successful and affordable promotional model. Be regular with it and people will expect it and turn their like-minded friends onto it. And, look at that, you are networking and your patients and friends are helping you market your practice.
These are just a few thoughts. It is free form right now because this media is relatively new. You already know you should be networking, so why not do it? If you have any questions about using social networking for your practice, please email me at donald@dogstarmedia.com.
