Posting Without a Plan
To the untrained eye, the most successful social media profiles look effortless. Their content is engaging, entertaining and should teach you something new. Contrary to belief, most of these profiles post content that has been pre-planned, not shared spontaneously.
Take a page from their book and take the time to carefully plan out the majority of your content in advance. Define what your goals are and create a calendar for how you plan to get there. The best way to do this is by developing a content calendar.
Content calendars allow orthodontic practices to prep and organize content based on key dates and events. This content can then be used for posts to be shared across different platforms. More importantly, it helps maintain consistency – which social media algorithms love. As a matter of fact, the more consistent your posts, the higher they move up on your followers’ feeds.
Focusing on Followers, not Engagement
While the common belief is that having thousands of followers is the goal of social media – it is not. Having a large number of followers does nothing for your orthodontic practice if you cannot convert them into patients. Comparatively, the same can be said for engagement.
If you have 1,000 followers but only average 30 or 40 likes, shares, or comments on your posts, your engagement is not doing well. According to the influencer marketing platform, Scrunch, engagement rates between 1% and 3.5% are average to good. This means if you have 1,000 followers, at least 100 to 350 should be liking, sharing or commenting on your posts.
Too Many Profiles
Just because a social media platform exists, does not mean your practice should have a profile on it. We often come across practices that have four or more social media profiles but little to no activity on at least two of those platforms. It’s better to have great engagement on one or two platforms than to be on several and have nothing to share. The trick is to find out where your target audience is most active and go there.
Understanding your audience is key to having a successful social media presence. Find out which platforms potential patients and their guardians are using and create a profile. To demonstrate, let’s use Facebook as an example.
Source: Pew Research Center
As reported in a Pew Research Center survey conducted Jan. 8 to Feb. 7, 2019:
- 7 in 10 adults (69%) say they use Facebook.
- Facebook use is relatively common across a range of age groups, with 68% of those ages 50 to 64 and nearly half of those 65 and older saying they use the site.
- Just under 80% of users age 30-49 use Facebook.
Based on this information, it’s safe to conclude that Facebook is the best platform to target parents. If you haven’t done so already, create a business page for your practice. If you already have a business page, start becoming more active by posting weekly content to boost your engagement.
Ignoring the Competition
Do you know what o doing on social media? One of the worst social media mistakes you can make is not looking at your local competition. Some questions you should be asking about your competitors include:
- What are other orthodontists in your area doing on Facebook or Instagram?
- What types of content are they sharing?
- What does their engagement look like?
- How often are they posting?
Once you are able to answer these questions, you’ll be able to better plan your content calendar. Look to your competition for ideas on what to post or ways you can do it better. Technology is ever-changing. Pay attention to how they incorporate it into their practice both online and offline.
Failure to Measure Success
How will you know where you’re going if you don’t know where you’ve been? This is one of the key elements of managing social media profiles. Monitoring your progress will help you to focus on what areas need your attention and where you excel. This way, you can make the most of your online presence.
As a starting point, check the insights of the platforms you’re using. Focus on:
- Engagement: Likes, comments, shares, and clicks
- Awareness: Impressions and reach
- Return on Investment (ROI): Referrals, consultations, and conversions
- Recommendations (Facebook only)
Check these numbers before, during, and after each campaign, you run. Even if you aren’t running any campaigns and are simply posting content, check your insights. It’s important to know what’s working and what is not so it can be changed.
Orthopreneur Can Help
Navigating the world of social media can be a bit overwhelming at times. The important thing to remember is that you are not alone. Orthopreneur’s team of experts can help answer any questions about social media and help steer you in the right direction. To learn more about our social media services, send us a message or call us toll-free at (877) 295-5611. We’ve got you covered online.