We began our list last week with blogs. Here are the social media platform essentials for developing your online presence:
- Facebook - still the most relevant social media site there is, Facebook is remarkably resilient in the face of competitive pressure, especially from Google. This is where everybody is. Create a Facebook Page for your practice and use a personal page as well
- Twitter - as much as most of you will dislike this tool, it is widely used and can be very useful in staying top of mind with thousands of people in your market.
- LinkedIn -a professional social media tool that is helpful in staying connected to other professionals. While this is not as essential as Facebook, it is still useful and helpful in building your social media footprint.
- Google + - Google + is Google's attempt to wipe out Facebook and the Yellow Pages in one blow. It is still struggling with taking out Facebook, but is single handedly destroying the Yellow Pages and sending it to the dust bin of history. This is essential.
- Pinterest - in this social media tool you post or "pin" your favorite images. Most of you will just scratch your heads and wonder "who thinks this stuff up?!", but "she" is there and she is engaged. This is now a must do.
- A Whole Lot More - there are other social media outlets and tools that can be pursued and this is a changing landscape as all of this evolves. As you get good at this you can examine others, but to get started and to do this well -the list above is a great way to start
Really?
I can just see you as you read this blog as you look up and say "Really?" And I answer with, yes really. We live in interesting and exciting times. The hard part is the supposed complexity, fast pace, and the new way of communicating. But think about this, before the advent of this technology -communicating and marketing to your community was extremely expensive (the newspapers and the Yellow Books made hundreds of millions of dollars because they controlled the channels for decades. We are no longer limited by our inability to find the patients who need us. This is really good news for all podiatrists. Those who will prosper and thrive in the next decade will have open minds and embrace the world they live in instead of wishing for a time that is forever gone. Podiatrists are blessed to be in a specialty that is more relevant and needed than ever before. There are thousands of patients near your office who need you desperately, the only question is will they be able to find you? Social media can ensure that you will be in the exact spot that "she" is looking for help.
See you online.
