THE SOCIAL PRACTICE
TO PROMOTE A BUSINESS, YOU HAVE TO DIRECTLY REACH CUSTOMERS. FOR
BUSINESSES IN ALMOST EVERY FIELD – OPTOMETRY INCLUDED – THAT MEANS
CRAFTING A SOCIAL MEDIA PRESENCE. SOCIAL MEDIA HAS BECOME ONE OF
THE DOMINANT WAYS OF REACHING POTENTIAL CUSTOMERS, BUT IT CAN ALSO
BE A DAUNTING, EVER-CHANGING MEDIUM.
HERE’S TEN TIPS TO HELP EYE CARE PROFESSIONALS UNDERSTAND
THE SOCIAL WEB AND USE IT TO BETTER MARKET YOUR PRACTICE.
1
LISTEN
FIRST,
THEN SHARE
For total beginners, social media
should start with a search. See
what your partners and competitors are doing and look up
the brands you carry on Facebook,
Twitter and LinkedIn.
Doing comparative research will
help you see where you business
will fit in online.
Searching your business name is
another good practice. Regularly
search your name and applicable
keywords (ie: contacts, eye care)
on Facebook, Twitters and Google
often to see what customers are
saying. This will help determine
what social actions you’ll need
to take.
3
2
DECIDE WHICH SOCIAL
NETWORKS ARE RIGHT FOR YOU
New social networks emerge
constantly, but not every one is
right for your business. The right
social channel for marketing depends on your brand and clientele.
If your customer base is mainly
business professionals, you might
focus on LinkedIn.
If you cater to young, fashionfocused millennials, try Instagram
or Tumblr. Facebook and Twitter
are the biggest social networks and
most likely to work as a marketing
channel for optometrists. However, take a look through several
networks, searching for relevant
keywords to see if there are active
conversations that apply to your
business. If there are, it’s likely a
good channel for you.
DETERMINE WHO WILL RUN SOCIAL MEDIA
Most optometrists don’t have the budget for a full-time community manager.
However, it’s best practice to have a single person spearhead social. Trading
off duties may help manage workloads, but it’s good to have one person lead
strategy and planning. This isn’t necessarily the most senior person – look
for someone who has an interest or expertise in social.
10 Optical Prism | December 2014