"You’re going to be a brand no matter what."

“It’s just a question of whether you’re going to let other folks do it for you, or whether you put things out there on your own and control your own brand,” Dr. Gaines said. That doesn’t necessarily mean posting 10 times a day to Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and so on, but it does mean finding your niche and seeing what you have to add to the social conversation that is already happening within your specialty or in your local health care community.

“You want to make sure you’re up to date on any buzz related to that niche, so that you’re posting, writing or commenting and being part of that conversation.” Social media is not the only way to do that, but smart use can amplify other brand-building efforts such as speaking engagements, medical journal articles or news media engagements.

Having an online social media presence can help increase loyalty and engagement with your brand, a.k.a. your doctor.

One university study showed that brands engaging regularly on social media have higher customer loyalty rates.

During a regular office visit, a doctor might be a bit rushed and not have the opportunity to engage with his patients the way he’d like. Social media allows him to reach out to them en masse and share his thoughts about their overall health.

It is also a good way to keep up with birthdays and big life events. Creating that ongoing dialogue that social media allows is something patients will appreciate. They aren’t likely to go to another doctor in the area if you are offering them everything, they need both online and off.

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There are few things more infuriating for a patient than a busy signal at the doctor’s office.

You wake up feeling extremely ill or with a high fever, and you pick up the phone to call and make an appointment—only to be met with either a busy signal or nonstop ringing. You might even lose patients over this type of thing.

The issue at many doctors’ offices is that the receptionist taking the calls for the appointments also has to greet patients as they arrive, pull files, and do various other tasks. It’s a lot for one or two people to handle.

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Customers expect you to be on social media...

... with approximately 67% heading there for customer service needs. If your competition offers online customer service options and you do not, you risk losing customers. Even though the doctor likely doesn’t have time to answer questions and deal with customer complaints, assigning the office manager or another employee to handle these issues on social media can put you a step ahead.

Imagine, instead of spending so much on an answering service that you have, a registered nurse or nurse practitioners who takes live chat online. They can let patients know if they need to go to the emergency room or if the issue is minor and can wait until the next day. Ideally, this person would be able to schedule an appointment on the spot, too.

Simply Social Media can create a successful content marketing strategy for your medical practice.

Social media offers doctors the opportunity to educate patients and the general public.

There are a number of ways to educate via social media. One way is to upload a link to new research about your area of specialty. For example, if you are a cardiologist, you might share a study that was just completed about the impact of high cholesterol on overall cardiovascular health.

Another idea is to record Facebook Live or YouTube videos and share them with your followers and the public at large. Do you have a suggestion that you think would improve the overall health of your patients? This is a great way to share that info.

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While few patients are likely to trace their decision to seek out your practice to a particular social media posting...

...the overall impression formed by an active social media plan that highlights the physician’s or practice’s role can tip the scales.

We all know that being a social media expert doesn’t necessarily mean you’re the best doctor, but there’s something to be said for building your presence. You’re showing that you’re involved with the community, and allowing patients to feel like they will be seeing someone who is a trusted voice in health care.

There’s a ton of great research that never makes it to the lay public, and social media is absolutely a way to spread it far and wide.

Engaging with and promoting high-quality research on social media also can help educate medical students and aspiring physicians, as well as help reporters and editors who are looking for story ideas to pursue.

“I know some physicians think they can get through their whole career and not deal with social media,” Dr. Gaines said. “And I don’t think it’s mandatory to be on social media to take care of patients. But it’s such an opportunity to broaden your reach as a physician. We have so much knowledge after going through our training. Why limit it to the 40 patients you see a day when you could be reaching thousands of patients a day on social media?”

This will be as unique as you are.

Dr. Gaines, for example, did a lot of writing and research on health care disparities during her time as a health care editor, and specifically explored matters affecting the African-American community.

The beauty of social media is that you can reach people who wouldn’t automatically read or digest that information. By using some of the social media tools or hashtags, you can bring your information to a much wider audience than would normally read what you publish” for a physician or medical audience.

As your professional interests change with time, so can the focus of your social media postings. “As long as you are deliberate about it, you can definitely drive something home for a while, and then explore a different passion.”

You still have to create the situation where your social media machine runs smoothly and follows your protocols.

That takes time and can sometimes be a bit of work. Here are some things you have to figure out to get started:

• Find where your patients congregate online
• Keep all contact information up to date
• Identify and use searchable keywords in your profiles and posted content
• Continually advertise your availability
• Become a thought leader in your field by finding and sharing smart, useful content
• Build relationships with patients
• Share updates about the services and promotions you offer

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