Cast & Curious

Tag: marketing

  • Part IV: Assigning SMART metrics to social media channels

    Ideally, there should be a standard of metrics to measure each of this social media channels. However, such industry benchmarks have yet to be standardized across a fast changing platform that is social media.  It all boils dow to what or how you (and your advocacy) define key metrics and should be at least “aligned” with your advocacy’s goals. Let me introduce, SMART Metrics.

    • S-SPECIFIC
      At the very least, such metrics should be specific and sensitive enough to detect changes across and within the different social media channels.
    • M-MANAGEABLE
      KISS or the keep it simple and manageable, is all the more important to logistically challenge advocacy group and should be a key factor in choosing which metric demonstrate early success.
    • A-ACTIONABLE
      Of course measuring impact on the different channels is useless if you can’t act on it. A metric should trigger corresponding action to achieve your advocacy/ social media goals. Can you improve on what this metric have measured?
    • R-RELEVANT
      I cannot overemphasize the fact any metric should be relevant to your overall advocacy/social media goals. Does it add value to your advocacy? Will your advocacy group be interested in it?
    • T-TIME BOUND
      I keep on repeating that you choose metrics that demonstrate early success. Giving your metrics “deadlines”. Otherwise, it will just be meaningless flutter of data.

    Here are other goal setting strategies on social media according to buffersocial.com. Note it also characterize key metrics.

    This figure illustrates the social media channels and the key metrics along the social media funnel. Choose SMART Metrics:)
    nk06105categoriesofmeasurement

    I’m not going delve deeper into formulas and calculations for each of these metrics. Suffice to say, there are existing  metrics online to measure social media success. Doing a SWOT analysis of each of your goals and aligning these with whats important for your advocacy help you choose which metrics to use. Once you’ve identified your metrics, finding your formula should be easier than you think.

    For our next activity, identify metrics from the figure above and list it down beside the different segments of the social media funnel. Again, choose one that potentially demonstrate immediate success.

    After this activity, you are ready to monitor performance for each of these segments in the social media funnel that adds value to your social media strategy and advocacy goals!

  • Physician branding on social media

    Do you think it’s ethical for doctors to “advertise” their professional services on social media? How come healthcare institutions do it and we don’t ?
    Somebody asked me these questions after my talk on medical professionalism on social media.  Good questions, but very tough ones to answer.  I clarified two things before I answered:

    1. “Advertising” is different from “branding” in social media. The latter is more of establishing perceived value to patients and the public. (You can read more about branding in Marie Ennis O’Connor’s post here)
    2. “Legal” and “ethical” are overlapping concepts but these two are different when taken into context. What’s legal may not always be ethical for everyone else in the healthcare community

    Having been on social media for quite sometime, my answer to these have evolved over the years, but I’ll reserved that for another post. What interest me is this;

    Healthcare professionals are beginning to ask questions now.

    I have this feeling that since social media is pervasive and that everyone else in healthcare industry (including patients) are using it, healthcare professionals are catching up and  are studying its potential in healthcare. The hint? Confusion. Social media for most HCPs is an entirely new environment. What better way to start threading this path than asking questions?

    The closest professional industry I can think of that began branding their reputation and services on social media are the academicians. It’s an industry where advertising one’s professional services is also considered taboo among its ranks. Social media is deemed “less scholarly” by most academicians. Yet, some academicians began the slow process of building up perceived value on social media and expanded their reach to the public. Is this good? I don’t know. What I know is that the more conservative healthcare community is no different. Apart from the lack of time and that “less scholarly” attribute, ethical considerations plays a good deal of reason why healthcare professionals is playing catch up to social media healthcare branding.

    But,  I’ll be very interested in what you – colleagues and patients, would say about, physician branding on social media. Join us this Saturday June 27, 2014, 9PM Manila time as we discuss the ethics of healthcare professional’s branding on social media:

    • T1: As a physician do you consider physician branding on social media, legal? Ethical?Why?
    • T2. As a patient, would you seek clinic consult with a physician you found on social media?Why or why not?
    • T3. What do you think is the most important value that a physician should establish when branding on social media? Expertise? Patient care? Healthcare information?

    Almost all  healthcare stakeholders (patients, healthcare institutions, policy makers) began embracing social media as a tool to improve healthcare. All except healthcare professionals. As closing thoughts what take home message would you give healthcare professionals when they brand their services on social media?