Hello! My name is Valerie Barro and I'm the Director of Digital Marketing here at Grey Matter Marketing. Last week I attended the annual meeting of the American Hospital Association (ACA) Society for Healthcare Strategy and Market Development (SHSMD). There I was honored to speak on a rapid-fire panel discussion on Messaging.
Two wonderful speakers, Christopher Lukack and Kris Laufer joined me. Together we covered how to prepare internally for social media, how to manage a social media crisis and how to create a message map for your brand.
My favorite part of any presentation is the Q&A section. I find this is when we actually get at the issues that are really impacting someone’s business.
During this particular Q&A session, we talked about limited budgets for social media and how targeting the right networks can help focus your expenditures. One audience member astutely asked how companies are to know which networks will make the most impact. Great question!
It just so happens Grey Matter Marketing is in the process of writing a digital marketing guide for medical technology companies that covers this question. Below is a preview from Part 1: Social Media.
The SHSMD conference was enjoyable and informative. I’m looking forward to going to San Diego next year. If not as a speaker, as an attendee!
~ Valerie
Choosing the Right Platforms
A preview from our upcoming guide, “Digital Marketing for Medical Technology Companies”
There are two common mistakes that medical marketers make when developing a social media plan: underexposure and overexposure on a particular platform. Some marketers do not understand the wide variety of available social media channels, and they grossly underestimate their target audience’s participation. Other marketers use a “shotgun approach,” setting up profiles on all available networks, and assume results will follow.
Neither of these strategies is effective. It takes more than a passing knowledge of a few social channels to truly understand your audience and develop a successful social media strategy. An effective strategy depends on having a clear understanding of who your target audience is and what social networks they prefer.
Marketing professionals typically choose social media platforms using a variety of methods. The optimal selection method is highly dependent on the type of company, resources available, budget allocation, and timeline. Some common methods of selecting social media platforms include:
- Social media audit: an in-depth review and analysis of how your customers and competitors currently use various platforms to engage in social media.
- Buyer persona exercise: research and development of archetypal representations of customers and buyers that model behavior and goals
- Platform analysis: outlining the general participation rates, strengths, and weaknesses of various platforms as they relate to your business objectives
If you're interested in learning more about social media platform selection or digital marketing - including the latest trends, ROI, and how to sell-in digital marketing to your management team – set up a free phone consultation. Email us at info@greymattermarketing.com to set up a call.
