How to Win Fans and Influence People
Date: July 16, 2014Category: Author: Danielle Azar
One of the most valuable features of social media is it’s ability to strengthen relationships and build an online community of devoted fans. Unfortunately, not everyone understands how to take advantage of the tools they have in front of them while some fail to create a social media strategy altogether.
Many brands post something just to get their name in front of their followers. That’s fine, but with a little extra effort, a decent camera phone, and a bit of strategy, you can create posts that resonate with your audience giving them exactly what they wanted when they liked your page in the first place. If your social media has gone stagnant, here are some guidelines that will help you grow a community of advocates. (Hint: camera phones at the ready!)
Lesson #1: Tell the story of your office
Time and time again, when I ask clients for office updates, they reply;
“We’re a really boring office. We never do anything news worthy”.
Let me be the first to tell you: you are not as boring as you think you are. Your fans follow you because they’re interested, so give them your story. Are you having a team meeting? Take a shot of the group deep in discussion. Post it with a funny description. It’s as simple as that. There are so many seemingly mundane things that happen in your office every day that your fans want to know about so I’ve created a list of post-worthy office events.
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Continuing Education
- Taking a continuing ed class? Have someone get a photo of you and the lecturer. Be sure to tag them in the post so they can share it as well. Your patients will praise you for expanding your knowledge with the assumption that it will ultimately benefit them.
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Community involvement
- Community involvement is a huge social booster for local businesses. If you don’t do anything in your local community, start now. It can be something as small as sponsoring a little league team to something big like a dental mission trip. Show your community you care and they will care about you.
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Special Events
- Special industry-related events like dental shows or team building exercises are always fun and are a great way to highlight some activities out of the office.
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Kid’s Play
- Everyone brings their little ones to work now and then and they’re always great at livening up the office. Document it and show off those little angels.
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Awards and new certifications
- If you’re studying for accreditation in a certain dental specialty, document the journey you took to achieve it. Post pictures of you at the lectures, studying for your exams, and especially when you finally achieve it. Your fans will cheer you on.
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Personal milestones
- Are you celebrating your 20th wedding anniversary? Share it! Did you just complete a half marathon? Share that too! A lot of the stuff you would post on your personal page could be shared with your fans. Personally, I try to friend all my clients on Facebook so I can see what they’re up to (I’m not a stalker). You’d be surprised at all the stuff they share on their personal pages that’s related to their work!
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Your Employees
- Your employees are a literal gold mine of post material. Every person in your office celebrates a birthday, a work anniversary, gets married, has children, and has personal milestones and achievements that they’re proud of. Share their stories on your page and let your fans celebrate with them.
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Holidays
- Do you dress your office up for impending holidays? Show it off! Not every patient is going to get to come in and see them. Bonus points if you can get some photos of your team doing the decorating. Don’t forget to post holiday party pictures as well.
This is a very small sampling of social media post ideas generated from you and your employees. In reality, any day can be news-worthy with the right attitude and a little extra effort.
What do you think of my list? Do you have a community-building practice that works for you? Leave it in the comments because I’m always looking for new ideas!
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