eHealth Articles & White Papers

Five Reasons Why Social Media isn't a Waste of Time

By Eric Engelmann - President & CEO

I belong to a CEO roundtable that was on the receiving end of a "Why Social Media Matters" presentation by a 26-year old social media guru. It was a tough sell, even though he already had at least one sympathetic ear: mine.

When he left, the group pretty much summed up his presentation as "this stuff is a waste of time." Or perhaps more to the point: "I've got lots of pressing challenges; why should I care about this?"

The thought that social media is a waste of time is common, most often among the higher-ups who don't see the connection between these new tools and strategic priorities. And often, they're right - playing with social media is much more fun than "Whatever You're Supposed To Be Doing," and does drain resources from more critical priorities.

However, I've been giving this a lot of thought lately, especially as I'm beginning to dabble in some of the new tools. And I'd like to share some of my ideas of how to connect the tool of social media with strategic goals that matter.

How can you attach social media to accomplishing critical strategic priorities?

1. Personal growth: Use social media for personal knowledge growth

Although your boss may not find this reason as compelling as the ones that follow, you can use social media tools for personal growth. I've found that by following key industry players - and interesting people - on Twitter, I'm pointed to information that I use in my work life all the time. I'm amazed at the good ideas and references I've found, and the conversations of smart people.

Of course, that implies you follow people with the right ideas. Ashton Kutcher may or may not be relevant to your work life.

Select the right people to follow and you can cut the time you search for information in half. I used to spend time each day perusing a handful of Web sites and blogs - often over my lunch hour. Now by noon each day, I have a series of ideas or links from people I "know," making my lunch hour much more fruitful.

You'll also get information in a more timely manner - breaking news spreads instantly via many social media networks - and if you're tuned into the right sources, you'll be informed of industry happenings (like the drafts of "meaningful use" and the debates about the Healthcare IT stimulus funding) as they happen.

2. Critical conversations: Have critical conversations and connect with individuals you'd otherwise never reach

Social media allows you to make important connections - socially and professionally.

A friend of mine wrote in Facebook that she had landed at the airport and was hungry. Within minutes, the owner of a local restaurant had offered her a dinner on the house!

Another friend complained via Twitter that Sprint's customer service was poor - and received a message directly from the VP of Investor Relations. In no other medium would he have connected with such an individual.

I tweeted about a book I was reading, and 15 minutes later the author was following me.

The trick is to use this power strategically. Need an introduction to a powerhouse industry luminary? Work your Twitter contacts. Need the inside scoop on a vendor's product? Search for, and make friends with, users of the product and ask them directly. Want the latest information on a competitor's moves? Follow their employees. Attending a conference with a particularly good speaker? Connect with them directly. If they're a bad speaker, take the conversation online in real time and ignore the presenter entirely.

3. Transparency: You can be transparent through social media much faster than through traditional channels

Healthcare organizations can take cues from other industries to be more transparent - a key goal for most hospitals and health systems.

Twitter allows you to search quickly and easily for mentions of your organization and key doctors. Responding in real time to conversations about your hospital and your brand are an important part of being transparent. If someone complains about some aspect of their care, you can openly and clearly address the issue - even if it's just offering a personal contact to help.

Rackspace, for example, is a hosting provider that recently experienced an outage in their data centers. Within minutes, they had tweeted that an issue had been detected, and they provided several updates along the way as they brought systems back online. Not only did they get kudos from their clients and the industry for being open about it, they doubled their Twitter followers.

In a crisis situation, social media can play an important part in your response efforts.

4. Amplification: You can amplify important time-sensitive events

The ability to construct an echo chamber of sorts throughout the various channels allows you to reinforce discussion, especially when they're about time-sensitive events. By cultivating relationships with important influencers, you can build a network so that when you do have something important to announce, it's repeated throughout and amplified beyond your initial efforts.

Additionally, you can foster social media "coverage" of your events, such as conferences and seminars, by setting up hash tags in advance and promoting social media during the event.

Social media also allows you to gain important insight into the true perceptions of attendees (and those following the conversation that aren't attending). It gives you insight into what's on the minds of attendees that they didn't say in person.

5. Lead Generation: Bring in new referrals and new relationships

Leveraging social media to drive new business - even in healthcare - is certainly possible. Using blogs to bring patient stories to the forefront is one thing. Actively monitoring for potential patients (or referring doctors) and starting conversations is another.

For example, did you know that with Twitter you can search for "Diabetes near Cedar Rapids, Iowa" and begin conversations with people you deem potential patients? "Our hospital has the most advanced Diabetic Center in Eastern Iowa, read more about it here ..." is an interesting way to begin a potential patient relationship.

Try it out

That last item in particular - trolling for prospective patients - is outside the comfort zone of many organizations. But that's kind of the point: social media is outside the comfort zone of most healthcare organizations. In order for social media to be used strategically, you and your organization need to be comfortable exploring its potential.

There was a time when the Internet as a whole was seen as a distraction. Today it's an indispensable business tool. Social media is just another in a long series of tools that can be applied strategically.

The question is whether you're willing to put together a plan to make it happen. If you need help building strategic social media plans, give us a call.