Healthcare social media: it’s about location, location, location

One of the biggest trends in healthcare social media is location-based services such as Foursquare, Gowalla, Loopt, Britekite, Google Places for businesses, Google Latitude – and now, Facebook Places.   Twitter also incorporates location sourcing as well as the online review site, Yelp!

Location-based social media channels are game-like apps that allow you to “check in” wherever you are – home, Starbucks, a ballgame, the hospital – to share your location and see where your friends are.

Retailers like Starbucks and Gap have jumped on the opportunity to offer benefits to those who check-in frequently at a store or entice those in the area with instant coupons.  Sort of the ultimate in geo-targeting.  Facebook Places also is gearing up for location-sensitive advertising. 

As popular as these social media services have been, Facebook has just brought them to them to the masses – all 500 million members.

So, if you don’t already have a profile set up for your healthcare organization, you soon will – courtesy of your patients.  That could be an important first impression for your hospital.

Check to see what listings may already exist in case they need to be corrected or enhanced.  If none, here are some how-tos on getting your hospital set up:

• Facebook Places – You must claim your Place and validate your information.  Per Facebook’s Help Center: If your business’s Place already exists on Facebook, click on it to visit its page.  At the bottom left side of your Place there will be a link that says “Is this your business?”  Click on the link and you will be directed to a claiming flow.
• Foursquare
• Gowalla.  This app is becoming a go-to channel for travelers, so take note if your hospital is near a major interstate or part of a tourist destination.
• Google Places
• Twitter Places
• Yelp!
• Localeze.  This company is providing some of the business listings for Facebook Places, Twitter Places and other search engines.  You may want to check or set up your listing with them as well.

Location-based services help patients and families integrate your healthcare organization in their social media outreach.  Imagine them sharing “baby’s on the way” or “headed to emergency surgery” or “last chemo treatment!” 

We’d love to hear any other examples or benefits from social media geo-tagging or location listings.

Social Media Use in Southeast Hospitals

Social media in healthcare seems to be growing exponentially. Or does it?  For starters, let’s look at hospitals in the Southeast. 

Based on the Hospital Social Network List (last updated July 24), 112 hospitals across six Southeastern states engage in social media.  That’s an average of just 16% of short term acute care hospitals (not including children’s hospitals).

State	Using SM	Total ST-Acute (AHD.com)	% in SM	YouTube	Facebook	Twitter	Blogs
AL	6	100	6%	4	5	5	0
FL	40	213	19%	20	27	26	5
GA	19	115	17%	12	18	11	2
NC	17	106	16%	8	10	16	5
SC	16	64	25%	7	14	14	3
TN	14	117	12%	8	9	12	2
Totals	112	715	16%	59	83	84	17

While social media may not be right for all of these hospitals, the numbers seem surprisingly low – especially when considering the wealth of facts validating the top social platforms.

Danny Brown recently shared excellent stats on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and blogs.  Some of the highlights: 

Facebook  

• The average Facebook user has 130 friends.
• There are more than 100 million active users currently accessing Facebook through their mobile devices. [Does your hospital have a mobile-friendly site? What about your Facebook page design?]
• People that access Facebook via mobile are twice as active than non-mobile users.
• More than 25 billion pieces of content (web links, news stories, blog posts, notes, photo albums, etc.) is shared each month.
• The average Facebook user is connected to 60 pages, groups and events.
• People spend over 500 billion minutes per month on Facebook.

Statistics from Facebook press office. 

Twitter 

• Twitter gets more than 300,000 new users every day.
• There are currently 110 million users of Twitter’s services.
• Twitter receives 180 million unique visits each month.
• There are more than 600 million searches on Twitter every day – more than Yahoo and Bing combined.
• More than a third of users access Twitter via their mobile phone.

Statistics from Twitter and the Chirp Conference.　 

YouTube 

• The very first video uploaded in April 2005. By June 2006, more than 65,000 videos were being uploaded every day.
• YouTube receives more than 2 billion viewers per day.
• Every minute, 24 hours of video is uploaded to YouTube.

Statistics from YouTube press center. 

Blogs 

• 77% of Internet users read blogs.
• There are currently 133 million blogs listed on leading blog directory Technorati.
• Bloggers use an average of five different social sites to drive traffic to their blog.

Statistics from Technorati’s State of the Blogosphere 2009 .　 
Hopefully, these stats may help you build a case for jumping into social media at your healthcare organization – or expanding your outreach into other channels. 
　

The Big List of Smart Hospital Marketing Ideas

Ideas are the lifeblood of what we do.  Particularly, smart healthcare marketing ideas that work.  My colleagues and I have come across some great ones in the last few months at conferences, in blog posts, on social media and via healthcare trades.

Problem is, where are all these ideas when you need a little inspiration?  Maybe tucked in the back of your head, on some Delicious posts, RSS, bookmarked pages, saved emails, Twitter favorites or a good-old-fashioned, printed-out tickler file.  Maybe a little too spread out to be a good resource.

So, here are a few of our recent favorites jam-packed into one post for easy access.

From the South Carolina Hospital Association Conference in June 2010 featuring University of Maryland Medical Center’s Ed Bennett and Reed Smith, a consultant for St. David’s HealthCare in Texas (Full recap here and following #smrev)

• Tell people where they can connect with you on social media every chance you get.  Beyond your website, include social media icons in print ads, online banner ads and TV spots – plus direct mail, collateral, health education sessions, registration, discharge, etc.
• Develop custom tabs on Facebook for service lines, news, your Twitter feed, etc.  UMMC features good web content on an active Ask the Expert tab.
• Or kill two birds with one stone like Children’s Hospital Boston, which has a Connect tab of links to all its Facebook pages, Twitter feed, YouTube channels, eBooks and more.
• Consider setting up profiles on user-generated sites such as Yelp, Foursquare and Gowalla so patients and families can integrate your organization in their social media outreach.  Imagine them sharing “baby’s on the way” or “headed to emergency surgery”!  (Not so sure? Foursquare just hit 1 million check-ins per day.)
• Use Facebook as another outlet to discover powerful patient stories. They often start with one unsolicited comment from a reader.
• Facebook walls also are good place for employees to see the impact they make in people’s lives.  Share examples of what consumers saying about your hospital online, as well as through traditional feedback channels.
• Remember that beyond connecting, Facebook is good (and cheap) for target advertising.  See one hospital’s experiment and results here.
• Non-profit hospitals can set up a free call to action to embed on YouTube videos.  That could give a big boost to Foundation efforts.
• To encourage more views on YouTube, include a full explanation with keywords on every video post.
• Does your organization have its own Wikipedia page? Or hi-res pics on Flickr for the media?
• Embed e-newsletters and podcasts on YouTube & Podbean for exposure beyond Facebook or Twitter.
• Ask which social media channels your audiences are using – on exit surveys, class registrations, consumer research, etc – to best target your efforts (and help prove value if needed).  
• During registration for any event, have staff ask if your spouse would be interested in any topics (and draw them in).
• Some hospitals are having success offering couples screening packages, especially about cardiac and stroke.
• During employee orientation, talk about appropriate social media and web use.  Outline your hospital’s social media policy in detail.
• Search Twitter and other social media sites for people asking for physician recommendations and kindly suggest the hospital physician referral services. (Twitter just surpassed Yahoo & Bing as the fastest growing search engine.)  
• Lead a social media workshop for board, senior team, top hospital ambassadors and any doubters.

From the Georgia Society for Healthcare Marketing and Public Relations conference, May 2010. (Full recap here and following #gshmpr)

• If you haven’t already, look into a mobile platform for your website.  Usually these are completely different sites and maintained separately from the main site.
• At a minimum, make sure ER & urgent care info is on your mobile platform. Most people search on their way.
• Explore greater mobile connectivity with additional options. —E-community has a pregnancy text message program (great for hospitals promoting women’s services). — Northshore Long Island Jewish Hospital has the mobile option to share your location while en route.  — Beth Israel Deaconess and Scott White Healthcare have multiple iPhone apps. Some have Blackberry apps due to high physician adoption.
• Be sure to check which browsers access your mobile site the most.  (You may see mostly iPhone and Blackberry but Droid and iPad numbers are rising quickly.)

Other great ideas

• Orlando Health launched an integrated campaign called “Family Is” and asked patients to submit photos, videos, and statements of what family means to them – via Facebook.  The “Family Is e-Scrapbook” has received hundreds of responses so far.
• The No. 1 Element of an Effective Hospital Fan Page is a custom Facebook URL. Then, direct audiences to your URL. Put it in all marketing like your main site.
• Think “find us on” or “follow me on” sound self-centered, not patient-centered? Create your own “talk to us” on Twitter badge.
• Create employee webisodes for consumer outreach, employee relations and recruiting. Peer-recommended staffers can tell what they love about the hospital. Post across social media channels, then put all videos on a loop to show during career fairs.
• Randolph Hospital hosted an event at its cancer center featuring five laptops for staff to show unfamiliar patients how to get on social media – to connect with friends and the hospital. 
• In June, the Mayo Clinic launched The Mayo Effect, an ambitious internal communication effort with a twist. Each face-to-face meeting that leaders conducted opened with an edgy “You-Tube-style” video, followed by a presentation by the CEO (filled with stories rather than lots of PowerPoint) and an open discussion with him.  Mayo made these meetings and discussions available to all employees through different media. The CEO also pointed employees to a refreshed website and new blog as the main resources for the details of the plan. Within the first few weeks, 22,000 employees logged on to the website. 

Of course, this list is just a start.  Add your own, and let’s build a great healthcare idea resource.

Say You Want a Revolution in Healthcare Marketing? Alright…

Following some great regional healthcare marketing conferences (CHPRMS and GSHMPR – see recaps here), the South Carolina Hospital Association is putting on the Social Media Revolution June 23 in Columbia, S.C.

It’s a one-day workshop – in partnership with Carolinas Healthcare PR and Marketing Society – featuring some “Twitterati” in these two sessions:

Social Media in Healthcare: Making it Work for You – Ed Bennett, Director of Web Strategies at the University of Maryland Medical System, will discuss best ways to frame appropriate policies and launch a social media revolution in hospitals of all sizes.  He’s also known for maintaining the Hospital Social Network List, which tracks the digital activities of over 500 U.S. Hospitals.

The Social Media Revolution: From Here to Beyond – Reed Smith, an interactive media consultant who created hospital social media guides and best practices while at the Texas Hospital Association, will show how to implement a team approach inside the hospital to coordinate social media efforts.

Other sessions we’re looking forward to:

• Measuring ROI of Social Media Strategies
• Avoiding Legal Pitfalls of Social Media
• Panel Discussion – SC and NC hospitals of all sizes outline their strategies, reasons why, lessons learned and organizational goals for social media.

Hope to see you there and share more resources for healthcare social media, and strategy.  If you can’t make it, follow live updates on Twitter (hashtags: #smrev #hcsm) and check our blog for the event recap.

CHPRMS Spring Conference & GSHMPR Recap

Friday we headed to the Carolinas Healthcare Marketing and PR Society (CHPRMS) Spring Conference at Great Wolf Lodge in Concord, NC.

 The first session was about growing both your personal brand and company’s. Good takeaways:

• A healthcare brand is a “trust mark.” How do you demonstrate that your brand is trustworthy?
• Credibility is a leader’s most prized resource. Even if you’re not the top hospital in your market, do you act like it?
•  If you’re not working on something that scares the *#$%* out of you, you’re not growing.

A CHPRMS member then gave an inspiring report on her mission trip to provide healthcare in Haiti during the earthquake. CHPRMS surprised her with a check for $1,000 for more aid.  Very touching!

Sessions 2 and 3 focused on consumer research and a national consumer campaign.  Quick points:

• The economy has made consumers seek more meaningful experiences. Trust is crucial. How is your hospital delivering?
• AHA research shows hospitals that best demonstrate trust will be best positioned for future growth.
• What will motivate an audience in pre-contemplative stage (ignorance) regarding healthcare issues? Smart social marketing and intrusive media.

GSHMPR – Day 3

Back at Lake Oconee, the last day of GSHMPR at the Ritz Carlton at Reynolds Plantation highlighted web strategy and making the most of opportunities.

A Georgia hospital is taking advantage of a unique opportunity with a new local TV station to develop health programming.  By partnering with University students and the station, Athens Regional Medical Center is developing a ongoing, 30-minute show on community wellness – including tips to keep you healthier and out of the hospital as well as great personal stories.  The station is soliciting advertisers for the show, creating a win-win-win.

As for website strategery:

• Nielsen’s #1 rule of Web usability: “99% of the time your users spend online, they spend on sites other than yours.” (And they compare you to everything else.)
• Understand your audience and listen – ask target audiences/award winners/Web 2.0 leaders what they want from your site.
• Develop a strategic plan for achieving those goals through social media and other communications channels.
• 79% of users scan pages, while only 16% read word-by-word (Source: Useit.com).  Use 50% less words than traditional advertising.
• Physician directory – place links where they’re highly visible and where users opt-in for information.
• Use web analytics to track results.

Whew!  Three days jam-packed with good info and fun people.  If you attended GSHMPR or CHPRMS, we’d love to hear what your top takeaways were.  Drop us a comment!

GSHMPR Recap – Day 2 of Georgia Healthcare Marketing

Today was all about healthcare social media.  Our first session was a good 101 with some nuggets:

• Remember that beyond connecting, Facebook is good (and cheap) for target advertising.
• Non-profit hospitals can set up a free call to action to embed on YouTube videos.
• Does your organization have its own Wikipedia page? Or hi-res pics on Flickr for the media?
• Embed e-newsletters on YouTube & Podbean for exposure beyond Facebook or Twitter.
• Direct audiences to a custom (vanity) Facebook URL for your hospital – put it in all marketing like you main site URL.
• Are you developing custom tabs on Facebook for service lines, news, your Twitter feed, etc?

Session 2 focused on selling social media to all the Doubting Thomases in the organization.  Good points:

• Define expectations and ROI with the senior team.  ROI may be best tracked on short-term campaigns, not an overall effort.
• If you aren’t already, search Twitter and other social media sites for people asking for physician recommendations and kindly suggest the hospital physician referral services.
• 71% of all organizations block social media sites, but staff can (and are) are accessing them via mobile devices, regardless.  Teach them staff to use social media wisely.  One hospital posted flyers with reminders and simple guidelines.
• Share examples of what consumers saying about your hospital online, as well as traditional feedback channels.
• Lead a social media workshop for board, senior team, top hospital ambassadors and any doubters.
• Ask which social media channels your audiences are using – on exit surveys, class registrations, consumer research, etc – to best target your efforts (and help prove value if needed).  

 After a little break, we’ll find out who won this year’s Target Awards!  Stay tuned.

GSHMPR – Day 1 of Georgia Healthcare Marketing Conference

While it was tough to be inside on a glorious day on Lake Oconee, two good sessions kicked off the Georgia Society of Healthcare Marketing and PR annual conference. 

The first, Marketing to Men, outlined ideas for targeting the other half, noting:

• Healthcare is an irrelevant topic to men until 40+ years old.
• Men do react to an emotional appeal, but open with facts first.
• During registration for any event, have staff ask if your spouse would be interested in any topics (and draw them in).
• Some hospitals are having success offering couples screening packages, especially about cardiac and stroke.
• Guys like high tech – how can best can you play that up?
• When marketing to men, always appeal to the woman, too.

Which leads me back to: Do we really need to target men?  What do you think?

 Session 2 focused on mobile websites – scaled-down versions of a main hospital website for mobile phone viewing – including:

• Make sure ER & urgent care info is on your mobile platform. Most people search on their way.
• Nearly 30% of hospitals surveyed don’t have plans to develop a mobile version (much higher than I thought).
• Average cost for an external partner to create a mobile website: $11,000.  Usually these are completely different sites and maintained separately from the main site.
• E-community has pregnancy text message program on its mobile website (great for hospitals promoting women’s services)
• Northshore Long Island Jewish Hospital has a mobile option to share your location while en route.  Imagine sharing “baby’s on the way” or “headed to emergency surgery”!
• Beth Israel Deaconess and Scott White Healthcare each have developed multiple iPhone apps. Some have Blackberry apps due to high physician adoption. Be sure to check which browsers use your mobile site the most. Our audience is seeing mostly iPhone and Blackberry but Droid and iPad numbers are rising quickly and may require site adjustments.

After that, we celebrated Cinco de Mayo with a margarita (or two) as the sun set over the lake, followed by the Ritz’s nightly custom of s’mores by the fire pit.  Can Day 2 top that?!

Georgia’s on My Mind for Healthcare Marketing, Then I’m Going to Carolina…

Two excellent regional healthcare marketing events are on tap next week: the Georgia and Carolinas healthcare marketing society conferences.

Georgia’s annual meeting is held each year in Greensboro, Ga., on Lake Oconee at the Ritz Carlton.  This year’s GSHMPR sessions May 5-7 include:

• Marketing to Men
• Preparing your Website for Mobile Users
• The Role of Social Media in Healthcare
• Selling Social Media to Administration
• A Case Study in Multi-Media Marketing
• 2010 Target Awards

The Carolinas Healthcare Marketing & PR Society (CHPRMS) spring meeting is May 7 in Concord, N.C., at Great Wolf Lodge.  Topics for the day conference:

• Building and Marketing a Better Brand for your Company and You
• Thinking Outside the Den – Marketing to One Customer at a Time
• Earning Customers’ Respect and Loyalty with Social Marketing
• In-hospital Retail Marketing
• Hands-on Healthcare Marketing in Haiti

Hope to see you there and share some great resources for hospital marketing, strategy and branding!  If you can’t make it, follow our live updates on Twitter (hashtags: #gshmpr and #chprms) and check our blog for daily recaps.

Should Rooms Move Perceptions of Healthcare?

When Mom had inpatient shoulder surgery last week, we shared an excellent healthcare experience from both sides of the procedure – except one  thing.

The Good

The pre-op nurse was very informative, but we appreciated his sense of humor most.  It was a welcome relief for mom’s anxiety.

Another nurse personally escorted me to the family waiting room, where other loved ones and I were doted on by a volunteer hostess.  The first nurse soon returned, bringing me the medical power of attorney forms that I forgot I’d even asked for earlier.  I helped myself to complimentary hot tea and wi-fi.  The director of surgical services even stopped in to check on everyone, making sure we had fresh coffee and fast Internet connections.

Mom’s surgeon was thorough in explaining how the procedure went. She patiently answered all my questions and then some – with a smile. 

Although Mom had some trouble with pain later that day and overnight, each nurse was attentive and kind to both patient and daughter until she rested comfortably.  They used the latest technology to cross-check medications with her electronic medical record. Clinically, we could not have asked for better care.

The nutritional services staff even called Mom by name each time they cheerfully brought and collected meals.  The discharge process was smooth. JCAHO and Press Ganey reps would be proud.

The Ugly

So what was wrong?  Her room betrayed every other touchpoint.  Although clean and spacious, it was very old.  Holes dotted the walls, laminate peeled back from the counter corners, furniture showed wear to the raw wood, and painted cabinetry screamed early 70s.  This was the progressive hospital the surgeon and we chose?  

In a leadership book by J. Richard Hackman, a frustrated airline executive once said, “What does a customer think if one of our tray tables is dirty?  That if they can’t even keep their tray tables clean, how well do they take care of their engines?”  Exactly.

How much should the condition of her room affect our overall impression of care? 

 

Stay real with social media

I’ve noticed a few healthcare organizations that recently jumpstarted aggressive social media programs.  Way to dive in, I thought – until I noticed that their content matched up with other organizations’ posts.  Turns out it’s syndicated content.  It looks and acts like a local voice, but it’s not.

For a small business or hospital, starting a social media program may seem daunting, especially in terms of time to do it well.  If weighed against the prospect of not engaging in social media at all, pre-packaged information wins. 

Or does it? 

How effective is syndicated social media content when consumers crave the real thing: authentic people and experiences they can connect with? 

And if they connect – thinking it’s a local personality or voice they can trust – what happens when customers realize otherwise?