In today’s web-driven age, internet has reached every corner of the globe and each nook of India. This is an era of social media explosion. Even as you are reading this blog, there may be scores of people around you who are browsing the net for a physician of your caliber or a hospital. You can bait all these potential patients if your hospital has an impressive social media presence. You can connect and communicate with your patient community and establish a long-term connect through this all-encompassing medium.

Four reasons to build your hospital’s social media presence

1. Patient connection

Gone are the days when patients used to choose hospitals on the recommendation of friends or family doctors. Today/s net-savvy patient prefers to browse the web, read reviews, explore websites, and finally choose a hospital.

There is cut-throat competition in healthcare segment too. If you have a sturdy social media presence, your potential client is more likely to choose you over the numerous hospitals in your locality. As most people look online for health information, a sturdy social media presence will make your hospital seem more accessible and relatable to your target customers.

       Nowadays, stories sell more than products…hence you must climb on the social media platform and share your hospital’s success tales if you want to gain recognition and remembrance.

2. Building brand equity

A robust social media presence can curate your hospital’s brand identity and enhance your reputation. If you build stories around subjects like valuable feedback about your panel of doctors, your infrastructure, your team’s compassionate and passionate service etc. and post it on your social media channels; people will connect with you and your hospital’s brand image will be enhanced manifold.

3. Share reliable medical information

There is an endless gamut of medical information available on the net. However, not all of it is validated. Your hospital can share authentic and scientific information with your patients through your social media channels.

You can organize educational and informative podcasts, webinars, campaigns etc. which will help in creating awareness about various health conditions. This is a socially responsible action plan that is beneficial to the community and at the same time sculpts your hospital’s reputation and brand equity and helps you build a legacy of trust.

Moreover, you can ask your patients to tag or share your campaigns, this makes them feel like they are participating in a health awareness movement. This creates a feeling of commitment and involvement which eventually shapes the course of public opinion about your company or brand.

4. Social media gives a human face to healthcare

Healthcare is often perceived as clinical and cold. Physicians who lead hectic lives and have long queues of patients waiting in their waiting rooms cannot spare the time to connect with their patients. However, a physician can effectively bond with their patients effortlessly through social media channels. This can give a human face to your hospital. When a physician or a surgeon explains a procedure or a mode of treatment, it gives a sense of confidence, and the patients feel more empowered to be a participant in the treatment.

Making your brand stories evolve around a touching testimonial by a patient or around an inspirational success story of a patient who overcame a deadly disease can forge a deep connection between your target audience and your hospital because nothing succeeds like emotions. Thus, you can harness social media to attract new clientele and retain your patient base by presenting your company’s humane and socially responsible face.

To summarize, social media is a valuable arsenal which you should use to enhance your hospital’s brand image. If used effectively, social media gives hospitals several benefits like increased revenue, increased customer satisfaction and multiplied brand presence. If you want to leverage social media to improve quality care, build loyalty and engage your target audience, be sure to get in touch with Hospertz, a leading hospital consultancy firm of India. We have a cohort of experts from diverse fields who can help you formulate your social media strategy and implement it in a well-planned manner.

Blog has been written by Dr. Vishal Jadhav, a veteran in the field of hospital consultancy with a rich experience of more than 20 years and founder of the Healthcare Consultancy Firm, Hospertz.

Dr. Vishal Jadhav, Director
hospertz@gmail.com
+91 9867712705/ 9820833149