710,000 Facebook fans is not enough

Or, why getting people to your content is only the first step toward social media success

Matt Cyr: @mattcyr Content Director & Managing EditorBoston Children’s Hospital

@ChildrensBoston and @ThrivingKids

What you’ll learn today• Why not being social in health care isn’t an

option anymore• Social, from SEA to shining SEA• The unexpected connection between blogs

and pink pants• The magical properties of Facebook, Twitter

and YouTube• Some nuts and bolts

Why social and mobile?• Women >55 fastest growing

Facebook demo• YouTube #2 search engine (after

Google)• Twitter fastest growing search

engine (after Google)• Pinterest drove more traffic to

blogs than Twitter in March • The rise of tablets• Smartphones fast replacing PCs

Why social and mobile in health care?• 1/3 of consumers use social media for health-

related activities• 40% have sought reviews of treatments, physicians,

etc• 45% say info from social sources would affect

decisions• 73% would use social tools like make an

appointment, or ask a question

From PricewaterhouseCoopers report “Social media ‘likes’ healthcare: From marketing to social business” April 2012

via edbennett.org

Social Media:From SEA to shining SEA

SEA: Strategic

• Strategize: Let your goals be your guide– Volume building? Reputation building?

Thought leadership? Patient support?• Execute: Use the right tool for the specific goal• Assess: Was it successful?

– If yes, evaluate what went well and replicate– If not, learn and improve

SEA: Tactical• Share

– Find great stories, personalities, voices, images, videos– Give yourself time to share the content you create

• Engage– Identify and connect with those most likely to be

interested in a topic or story – Be personal—and not just when you need something– Return the favor

• Amplify– Use internal resources to spread the word– Then get help from others outside your organization

Social and mobile at Children’s

• Brand new app• Website

– 27,000+ pages• Blogs

– Thriving: pediatric health– Vector: science and innovation

• 25+ Facebook pages • 15+ Twitter feeds• Internal collaboration social network

Why is Children’s doing it?• Augment and enhance website activities• Volume, volume, volume• Open up two-way communication• Position us as a leader in pedi health info• Online reputation improves brick and mortar

reputation• Respond in real-time to service issues,

complaints and opportunities

Blogging• Platform to share timely,

relevant news and info• More personal tone

than website• Real-time feedback on

content• Control messaging• Brand building• SEO and visibility

benefits

Blogging

• Decide what your blog is—and isn’t

• Different medium, same rules

• Let others do the talking• Multipurpose when

possible• Get blogs on relevant

website pages

Blog success: it’s all about the pants• GQ calls Boston worst-

dressed city, suffering from “Style Down Syndrome”

• Dr. Brian Skotko wrote “Mock my pants, not my sister”

• “Style Down Syndrome is strong-willed, persevering and forgiving—because it has to be.”

It’s all about the pants, continued• Post viewed almost

100,000 times• Hundreds of comments,

tens of thousands of shares

• Covered on washingtonpost.com, The Boston Globe, Boston Business Journal, Boston Magazine, Fox 25 News

Children’s on Facebook• 710,000 likes: largest hospital

Facebook page in the world• More than:

– Total visits per year to Boston Children’s

– # of people living in Boston• Benefits:

– Everyone’s there; it’s part of everyday life

– Very easy to share and interact– Great, cost-effective way to

push out content

Facebook how-to’s• How we use Facebook:

– Share our stories– Give others a place to share their stories – Service recovery tool – Morale builder for staff and families– Political engager – Source of referrals

• Create something to engage your audience

Children’s on Twitter

• 16,000+ total followers• Benefits:

– Real-time communication– Push out our content– Personal touch; easy to

build relationships– Cheap and easy to

maintain

Twitter how-to’s• Followers/Following

– Connect with reputable, like-minded organizations– Quality and quantity

• Keep it relevant– Be current, compelling – Less likely to get lost in the din

• Share and share alike – Can share more content than with other tools– Promotes good will, brings good content to your

followers and can lead to more re-Tweets

Children’s on YouTube

• 750 subscribers, almost 700,000 views• #2 search engine in the world• Brings your organization to life

Social media and HIPAA• The safety of blogging • Know the statute• Moderate your

comments• Make your policies

clear, esp around medical advice

• The fine line between openness and protection

The care and feeding of social media

• Feed the beast• Stay connected• Practice makes (almost)

perfect• Embrace your inner data geek

Last thoughts

• Share the good stuff; make a plan for dealing with the bad stuff

• You can’t buy buy-in; building trust throughout the organization will pay off

• Don’t be afraid to fail, but be planful• Health care’s compelling, important, always

relevant—communicate that

Matt Cyr: @mattcyr Content Director & Managing EditorBoston Children’s Hospitalmatthew.cyr@childrens.harvard.edu

@ChildrensBoston