You Want Me to What ?!
Rural Health discovers Social Media
Created April 2009 by John Eich, WI Office of Rural Health

The Setting
Information = Internet
[Today]
• Searching for health info?
• Looking for others with your condition?
• Trying to find a doctor? Choosing a hospital?
Open a browser…

Finding You
So when your customers search,
do they find you?
Sure! You’ve uploaded . . .
your website, your marketing, your message

one small problem . . .

The Twist
In 1995, Amazon.com was launched.
People are increasingly relying on peers for
advice—experts have been outsourced.
Where do they find peers willing to give advice?
→ on Social Networks & other ‘social media’
(ie, they’re not listening to your message)

Social Whatsis??
Blogs – tell your story, get feedback
Micro-blogs – exchange ideas, converse with peers
Videos and Photo Albums – show it
Social Networks – find your people, share your life

#2 search engine in the world
In March of 2008, 84.8 million viewers watched 4.27 billion videos
(13 hours of video uploaded every minute)

>260 million active users worldwide
One of the fastest growing demographics = over 35
(In the last 6 months it’s almost tripled)

3 million Tweets/day
(April 2009)
1 in 5 of active internet users
(Dec. 2008)
18-35 have used a service like twitter

Trust
Need a new car?
Ask your friends what they like
Looking for good schools for your kids?
Ask other parents about their experiences
“Anyone know a good doctor..?”
14% of people trust ads
78% trust rec’s from other consumers
(Nielsen Trust in Advertising, Oct 2007)

Controlling your Message
“If we don’t enter the arena, our customers
will know to trust only our information”
(see previous slide – only 14% trust your messages)
→ Your customers are discussing you right now online;
do you want to join that conversation?

The Network
“In my small MN town of 14,000 people, over
7,000 are on Facebook” Steve Gasser
Good
Experience..?
She’s heard

Funny Name, Big Business
• In 1963, how many middle-aged adults snickered over
“The Beatles”?
a band their kids loved called
• In 1998, “Google”
how many thought was a stupid
name no one would ever remember?
Twitter
• It’s 2009 . . .

Hockey Stick
get
eed to
’t n
ou didn .
2008 y l m e dia
In cia
with so
d
involve l.
you wil
By 2010
[In 2010, Millenials will outnumber Boomers]
• They spend >16 hrs/wk online. 96% have joined a
social network.
• They don’t trust your ad, they trust their friends.

Hospital Use

Rural on YouTube?
I discovered a video by Val Schott, my Oklahoma colleague
[Personal takeaway]
I didn’t know he was posting videos - he didn’t know I was interested.

ok, ok…
So how do we start?

The Problem

Focus
What are your goals?
Select a social media strategy that fits your existing plan.
– Customer service outreach
– Extend your marketing reach
– Get feedback from community on their needs
– Expand your patient base among growing demographic
Combine traditional marketing with social media—don’t ignore either

Measure
• Social Media is a tool, put toward a strategic goal.
– It’s not enough to “get one of those Facebook pages”
• Effort without measurement is a Hail Mary pass
• Consider utilizing SEO firm to help with analytics
– take baby steps; analyze-adjust-repeat
• Start by mapping where your customers are online,
and choose SM tool to target them

ffed!
ersta
und
lready
’r e a
We
→ Deputize those who understand it
→ Look outside your box (friends, family, interns, non c-suite)
→ Create ‘social media guidelines’ for your team
→ Shift from “control” model to “support”
→ Duplicate existing content (Newsletter, reports, videos)

Example
Internal Process
(Team members all
upload content for
communication.
Social media deputies
then submit pieces to
their venues (twitter,
facebook, etc)
Made Transparent
(Public website, where
external media can
pull items at will)

The Key
Conversation Conversation
Conversation
Conversation
Traditional media
• Authorized channels using in a “broadcasting” format
New media
• Team-based approach
• Engaging customers via dialogue as peers
With transparency
Sometimes messy…

Start by…
• Monitoring your brand
– Google Alerts, regional Twitter searches
• Listening and Learning
– Poke around Facebook, Twitter, Blogs, YouTube
• Sharing value
– Offer personal health resources, info, assistance, widgets
• Finally, add in some of your message (~10%)
“Create opportunities for people to feel ownership of the brand” @mzkagan

Another Example
@EdBennet’s story:
While monitoring twitter, discovered a negative comment
• “UMMC sucks”
He reached out
• “Sorry to hear that. Can I help?”
Clarification: different ‘UMMC’ – not Ed’s hospital!
…Envy
• “I wish my hospital cared for their patients like yours…”

Cautions
• In SM you measure “engagement” – if you’re
not ready to really engage, don’t start
• “Millennials won’t select you solely on website, but
they will reject you solely on it” (Interact.com??)
• But don’t just create a great website – do that AND
reach out to where your customers are (local media
comments, etc)
• On Twitter, who you follow defines your experience

Resources
• How To Listen To Your Online Community
http://beth.typepad.com/files/how_to_listen_to_your_online_community.pdf
• Five Phases of Social Media Marketing
http://janetleejohnson.com/2009/03/23/five-phases-of-social-media-marketing/
• The Social Media Newsroom Template
http://www.pr-squared.com/2007/02/the_social_media_newsroom_temp.html
• 5 Elements of a Successful Facebook Fan Page
http://mashable.com/2009/03/30/successful-facebook-fan-page/
• Top Five Myths of Healthcare Social Media Marketing
http://hospitalonlinemarketingeducation.ning.com/profiles/blogs/top-five-myths-of-healthcare
• 30+ Examples of Social Media Policies
http://123socialmedia.com/2009/01/23/social-media-policy-examples/
• How To Track Social Media Analytics
http://mashable.com/2009/04/19/social-media-analytics/
• Social Media Metrics
http://www.thesocialorganization.com/social-media-metrics.html

Thanks!
John Eich
Director, Wisconsin Office of Rural Health
eich@wisc.edu, @ruraltech, www.worh.org