Applying strategy is critical to social media success.

99 ways to use Twitter?

There are plenty of articles on the Internet that outline the 17 ways to use Twitter or the 32 ways to use Facebook. If your approach to social media has been to start with these types of articles, you may be focusing too quickly on tactics without an appropriate social media strategy. Tactics without a strategy are particularly bad because they often end up being ineffective, hard to measure and mask real opportunities a more strategic version of the tactic may provide.

Because social media tools are so accessible and seemingly easy to use, a planning/strategy phase is often skipped, perhaps also in part because the realm of social media seems so complex. Because there is no clear place to begin, there is a tendency to start with tactics, a fatal mistake.

How to approach the problem

One technique for approaching a problem that seems complex is to break it down into a series of simpler problems. This is a great approach when it comes to the social media landscape. Instead of looking at a list of 50 ways to use Twitter, it makes more sense to look at a smaller list of ways to use social media in general. Read the rest of this entry »

Why online advertising is important for hospitals.

By: Kelly Hocutt and David Michaluk

Are you still reluctant to advertise your hospital on the web? Maybe you’re bound by tradition. Or maybe you think healthcare is too private for the web — and people seek information only from people they can trust. But research by OTX and Google shows that adding search and web advertising to your marketing mix is more than just helpful — it’s essential.

That’s right. Consumers are increasingly going online for hospital information. 41% go to the Internet before seeking advice from healthcare professionals or friends and relatives. When these information-seekers get to the Internet, 76% go to hospital websites, 62% to search engines and 56% to health websites. They’re using more than one destination — which means if you’re not using search engine ads and ad networks, you’re missing a sizable audience. If they don’t see you, you don’t exist. Read the rest of this entry »

Dashboards can help drive marketing strategy.

Looking for an easy way to gauge your client’s driving forces? Ask what’s on his or her dashboard.

Dashboards are a businessperson’s CliffsNotes®, condensing tomes of information into readily digestible nuggets. Where do overall profits stand? Any new leads from the northeast territory? Is maternity patient volume up? Dashboards provide a snapshot of the key metrics your client needs to succeed.

Which brings us, as usual, to marketing strategy. Knowing what’s on a client’s dashboard enables you to customize a plan that speaks to his or her exact needs and goals. And that’s a plan you can get some serious mileage from.

Social Media Strategy and Success Stories

About to plan your social media marketing strategy? Wondering about the return you’ll get on your investment? Check out Socialnomics: Social Media ROI. This short video showcases success stories, plus some interesting facts. For example:

• More than 300,000 businesses have a presence on Facebook; about a third of these are small businesses.

• A Wetpaint/Altimeter Study found that companies that are heavily into social media blow away their peers in both revenues and profits. The study also found that companies using social media the most increased sales by 18%, while companies with the least social activity saw sales decline 6%.

• Dell sold $3,000,000 worth of computers on Twitter.

• eBay found that participants in online communities spend 54% more money.

What’s your social media strategy?

How to measure effective recruitment marketing?

Recruitment marketing is a simple balancing act, right? Place your message on one side of the scale, and your communication medium on the other. If your message clearly illustrates the value of the position you are trying to fill, great. But if you don’t balance your strong message with an effective way to get it across to potential candidates, well, not so great. Conversely, if you have excellent communication tactics but a weak message, your scale will again be out of balance.

But something’s missing in this scale analogy: the fulcrum. Read the rest of this entry »

The Philadelphia Phillies - an example of great strategy!

It’s one of my favorite performances: George C. Scott as General George S. Patton. Love the attitude. But, most of all, I relate to what Patton was all about. This is a guy who knew what he had to do. He wasn’t popular because of it. He knew a thing or two about strategy. In one situation, when interrogating a German office, he wouldn’t give the guy the satisfaction of speaking to him in German — even though Patton spoke the language fluently. Strategy in action! The quote I remember most says it all, when Patton articulated what it would take to stymie the Nazi rampage — “First, you have to have a plan.”

Flash-forward about 80 years. A battle of a different sort — this time on the baseball field. The Philadelphia Phillies become contenders for the National League pennant and the World Series — not once, but twice. The first time, nobody saw them coming. Like Patton, these guys don’t leave anything to chance. Pitching rotations. Batter and pitcher matchups. Right down to who can be tempted with a high-pitch fastball for an easy out. They grasped the concept of having a plan. They’ve put together a formula to win. Read the rest of this entry »