A Social Media Cheat Sheet for Facebook 2013

I'm often asked how do I build engagement on Facebook. There is no one size fits all answer to this question but the following cheat sheet  from the folks at Linchpin SEO gives some handy tips to building compelling content and how to work with your community to build engagement. What has worked for you? Love to hear your tips?

Trend Watch 2013 - Will Doctors "Prescribe” HealthCare Websites For Certain Patients

1.2 trillion online searches, 146 languages. What did the world search for in 2012 and what were the top health issues? It seems Cancer, Diabetes and Depression were the top 3 most searched health issues on Google (US) in it's year review of 2012.Trending top 3 health issues were: Hemorrhoid. Gastroesophageal reflux disease and Sexually Transmitted Disease. You can view the full list released by Google below in this blog post.

These trends also indicate the growing significance of the movement known as Participatory Medicine. One of the leaders of the movement here in Australia is HealthShare, an expert Q & A health site and Australia's fastest growing interactive network. Check it out if you haven't already.

Similarly, blogs are popping up, building whole communities relating to health issues and diseases. 

Therefore playing it forward in 2013, likely to flourish in 2013 are the following: 

Peer-to-peer  
On blogs like Diabetes Mine, people can ask questions and get answers from others living with exactly those conditions. (One post about a new drug now has 2,000 comments.) “About 1 in 5 Internet users have gone online to find others who have similar health concerns,” says Susannah Fox from Pew Research.

Mobile, slowly 
Of course it’s growing, but when it comes to health, perhaps slower than the hype. “In 2012, 85% of U.S. adults owned a cell phone, but only 31% used it to search for health info online.” Mobile apps for exercise and dieting are popular, but we’re not yet using our phones as a primary source of health info–or to get text health alerts. By contrast, while the same percentage of Americans have access to the Internet, 84% have used it to search health information.

Participatory medicine
Once, perhaps, your doctor was the main source of health info. Now many people go online before they see their docs. Some physicians welcome that, a movement call Participatory Medicine. Some even “prescribe” websites for certain patients.

“The mindset is changing,” says Daniel Sands, MD, MPH, assistant clinical professor at Harvard Medical School and co-founder of the Society for Participatory Medicine. “Doctors may direct patients to health care websites, rather than just prescribing drugs.” At the same time, doctors who subscribe to participatory medicine–they can actually get a seal from the website–welcome patients who learn about health online.

“We should ask every single patient, ‘Do you go online? What sites do you find useful?,” says Dr. Sands. “We need to let them know that they can share information with us. It’s a very important part of our relationship with our patients.” Over the next few years, more and more patients will be able to view their health records online, download and transmit it to someone else, and communicate with their doctors, he says. “The era of medicine as a spectator sport – ‘I’m sick, doctor, fix me’ – is over. The new model is participatory medicine.”

Here again are the 2012 Google Zeitgeist lists. 

United States Trending Health Issues 2012
1. Hemorrhoid
2. Gastroesophageal reflux disease
3. Sexually Transmitted Disease
4. Diaper Rash
5. Diarrhea
6. Urinary tract infection
7. Miscarriage
8. Heartburn
9. Celiac disease
10. PTSD

United States Most-Searched Health Issues 2012
1. Cancer
2. Diabetes
3. Depression
4. Acne
5. Herpes
6. Back pain
7. Burns
8. Breast cancer
9. Autism
10. Diarrhea

United States Most-Searched Symptoms 2012
1. Pregnancy symptoms
2. Diabetes symptoms
3. Flu symptoms
4. UTI symptoms
5. Mono symptoms
6. Strep Throat symptoms
7. HIV symptoms
8. Lupus symptoms
9. Heart Attack symptoms
10. Lyme Disease symptoms

Let the 2013 searching begin!

Footnote: E-Patient Dave widely known as one of the greatest patient advocates for Participatory Medicine with the catch cry - 'Let Patients Help' will be visiting Australian in late June 2012 for a series of public speaker engagements. Anyone interested in Dave addressing your organisation should contact me directly to determine if your activity can be accommodated into his tour schedule. There is an applicable fee for all speaking engagements.

Bloggers might be interested also in the upcoming blogger conference - Healthivate that aims to share personal health stories, educate and explore the growing Participatory Medicine Movement. Tickets to attend available at http://www.healthivate.com

How to Master Storytelling To Ignite Revenue And Increase Engagement

There are some great tips in this info graphic for Health Care Professionals. Mastering your story not just in the real world but within online communities is a powerful tool for engagement. Too often when I coach health care professionals in social media there is an initial expectation that I am going to show you how to 'win' at social media. This is not the purpose. Social Media offers a wonderful forum for building engagement with your communities, for educating beyond the hospital wall and for advocating healthy lifestyle changes. What lessons have your learnt from this info graphic?

Do you know your #hcsm target market?

Not getting marketing results the way you originally anticipated? I cannot tell you how often I have worked with intelligent, seasoned professionals in the healthcare industry who tell me their #hcsmanz target market is EVERYONE! Think about what a silly statement that actually is - how can any business reach everyone?

It's neither plausible in the first instance or fiscally achievable. Effective marketing is all about audience segmentation and in the era of social media we are now able to micro segment audiences in ways marketers never dreamed was previously possible. If your healthcare business is stuck where to start in market segmentation the above video is sure to be a thought provoker with you team. Over the coming days I'll be posting tips about marketing to your actual low hanging fruit  target audiences and tools via social media to escalate SEO and your digital footprint to attract those target markets to your product service or #hcsm healthcare clinic.