Tweeting, Blogging, SEO and Strategy for Medical Editors

1. Tweeting, Blogging, SEO, and Strategy: Online Content Planning for Medical Editors Brande N. Martin, MA American Medical Writers Association Conference 2013 Thursday, November 7, 2013

2. Goals of Today’s Sessions • Learn about o The Changing Role of Editors in the Online/Digital Space o What is Content Strategy? o Ways to Plan Online Content o Integrated Communication Strategies 2

3. About Me: Brande Martin, MA Content Strategy, Communications, & Editorial Management Professional • The College of American Pathologists • Medscape/WebMD • Northern Illinois University • American Dental Association • American Medical Association • Rapid Science Publishers (now part of Wolters Kluwer) 3

4. The Word is Out!: Content, Content Is Everywhere… 4

5. The Changing Content Spaces 5

6. The Traditional Role of a Medical Editor 6 • Working for o news outlet (Reuters Health), o online medical journal (JAMA), or o other online sources (Medscape) • Edit and fact check content • Understand and use style manuals • Write/Rewrite content

7. • Identify and prioritize topics to cover • Give assignments to writers/editors • Maintain an editorial calendar • May oversee/train writers and other editors © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 7

8. Our New Editorial Responsibilities • All of the traditional tasks plus… o Web Content Strategy o Marketing Strategy o Social Media Strategy © 2013 College of American Pathologists. All rights reserved. 8

9. Online Content Planning • Step 1: Plan a content strategy • Step 2: Focus on your audience needs • Step 3: Write/Edit/Deliver Good Content • Step 4: Repurpose/Integrate content for social and email (and mobile) channels • Step 5: Measure and manage the content © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 9

10. Content is King!: Content Strategy © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 10 •Can user find the content? What is the content that meets the audience’s needs? Up-to-date content Editorial Calendars Content Owners/ Subject Matter Experts

12. Patients’/Consumers’ Online Use for Health Info • 81% of US adults use the internet • 59% say they have looked online for health information in the past year Source: Pew Research Center, Health Online 2013; Jan. 15, 2013 http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2013/Health-online.aspx • 52% of US adults gather health information on their smartphones Source: Pew Research Center, Mobile Health 2012; Nov. 8, 2012 http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2013/Health-online.aspx © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 12

13. • 33% of consumers use social media sites for health- related matters, including seeking health information… Source: Demi & Cooper Advertising and DC Interactive Group, Rising Use of Social & Mobile in Healthcare: Inforgraphic; 2012 http://thesparkreport.com/wp- content/uploads/2012/12/SparkReportHealthcareGraphicLarge.jpg © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 13

14. Content Development Strategy • Who is the audience you trying to reach with your content? • What are the goals for the content? • What topics are of most interest to my audience? • What type of content should I plan to add (write/edit) to the Web site? • What content should I remove from the Web site? • How should I plan the editorial calendar? © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 14

15. Writing the Content Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Definition: SEO is the process of affecting the visibility of a Web site or a Web page in a search engine's "natural" or unpaid ("organic") search results. Write Quality Content! © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 15

16. Keywords o Determine best keywords for your landing pages or pages where you want users to visit o Add to page – headlines/titles/descriptions o Meta-data: page title and description o Use Google Adwords © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 16

18. Social Media Strategy • Use Twitter or Facebook o promote content on your site o encourage audience engagement • How to do this o Repurpose content from your site o Come up with questions on the topic that engage readers o Use graphics/clever copywriting content Goal: Drive audience back to the Web site © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 18

22. • Blogging o Have doctor write a blog about the topic o Have a patient write a blog telling a personal story about the topic © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 22 Source: http://thesparkreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/SparkReportHealthcareGraphicLarge.jpg

24. Informed Decision-Making for Content Plan • Follow the trends o What topics are most popular <<stress>> o What are most common patient health concerns, illnesses, conditions o What events are happening (breast cancer awareness month, heart healthy month) • Follow your best judgment • Assess competition (what are others covering) © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 24

25. • Work with your business intelligence, digital team, or Internet services team • Assess and review your analytics (statistical trends) o Unique page views o Conversion Goal Rates <<sign ups/order>> o Referrer pages © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 25

26. Case Study • You write patient health education materials and post the following on your organization’s Web site: o Fact sheet on weight loss (HTML page, not a downloadable PDF) o Call-to-action for audience to sign up for a new monthly newsletter on weight loss <<Pilot newsletter>> • Goal: You want users to come to Web site to sign up for the monthly newsletter • Topic: Weight Loss • Audience: Women 18-55 years old © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 26

27. Content Plan/Editorial Calendar • What types of content from the weight loss fact sheet can you repurpose for other channels (ie, Twitter, blog, or print)? • Recipes • Fad Diets • Weight Loss Plans • Exercise Tips © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 27

28. Editorial Calendar • When will you plan to release the content on weight loss in the different channels (editorial calendar)? • Fall: College Semester Begins • Winter: Holidays • Spring: Wedding • Summer: Swim Suit Season © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 28

29. Keyword List • List the top keywords (groupings) that a user may consider when searching for the topic on weight loss • Weight Loss • Obesity • Dieting • Fad Diets • Quick weight loss © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 29

32. Key Points • Medical editors must consider new content strategies • Online content planning includes web, social, and mobile strategies • Always remember your audience’s needs • Always write quality content • Track, measure, and analyze your data for best content results © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 32

33. Resources • Content Strategy for the Web by Kristina Halvorson http://contentstrategy.com/ • Aha Media Group – Content Strategy http://www.ahamediagroup.com/index.html • Search Engine Land: SEO http://searchengineland.com/guide/what-is-seo • How to analyze, interpret and report data trends in Google Analytics http://www.seotakeaways.com/analyze-interpret-report- data-trends-google-analytics/ © 2013 Brande Martin. All rights reserved. 33