If you’re regularly posting on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn for your pharmacy, but not seeing the results you’d like, your social media content may need a tune up.
Regularly posting on social media probably places a significant demand on your time or that of a pharmacy tech or other employee. If you’re investing your valuable time or your employees’ valuable time into social media, it’s important that you see a return on investment. To get the most out of every tweet, post, and share, you have to make each one spur your followers to try the product, attend the event or visit your pharmacy.
Here are five ways to make your pharmacy’s social media more effective by encouraging your patients to take action.
1. Have a call-to-action
Ask patients to take a specific action in every social media post you write.
For example, use specific action words and phrases, such as, “visit today,” “call now,” “check out our new product” or “click to learn more.” Make it clear what you want your followers to do after they read your post.
Using the right call-to-action can make a difference. For example, if you’re writing a post about a new product, “call now” might not be the strongest call-to-action option. Instead, ask your followers to, “come try it today,” or “visit our pharmacy for your free sample.”
Forgetting to include a call-to-action can leave your followers unsure of what to do. For example, if you’re promoting an event but don’t have a call-to-action, your followers won’t know what to do next. Should they call to learn more? Do they need to reserve their spot, or can they just show up the day of the event?
2. Include links
Make it easy for your followers to take the next step from your social media posts by including links to relevant websites, blog posts or pages on your website.
Share a direct link to your latest blog post, to a sign-up form on your website or to a page on your website with more information. Make it as easy as possible for your followers to take action by showing them the next step.
Also, always check your links to make sure they work. It’s frustrating for your social media followers to try to click through and learn more, only to find out that the link isn’t working.
3. Keep your audience in mind
Write your social media posts with your followers in mind. Be sure to include information that motivates them to take action.
For example, you’ll get more users to take action if you include special offers in your social media, such as “Mention this post and receive 10 percent off your entire purchase,” or “Come in today to take advantage of discounts off of our entire selection of wound-care products.”
Make sure the product or service you’re promoting is relevant to patients. For example, instead of promoting cold and flu products in the middle of June, try highlighting sunscreen and lip balm on your social media accounts.
4. Repeat your message
Don’t be afraid of sounding like a broken record.
Repeating your message multiple times, on different days and at different times, will increase the likelihood that your followers will see your message. And, make sure to post about the message on all of your social media channels.
For example, post about your latest vitamin promotion on Facebook and Twitter, and then write about it on your blog or website. Just make sure to tailor the language of the post to work well on each channel.
Consider posting about the promotion multiple times per week to make sure as many followers as possible see the message, and that users see it enough for it to sink in. Using the power of repetition can help your message make an impression on followers, and remind them to take action.
5. Create urgency
Using a time-restricted promotion on social media can help encourage your followers to take action sooner rather than later.
Include information about how long the special promotion or event registration lasts in every post so patients know they have limited time to take action.
Mentioning that your vitamin promotion only lasts through the end of the month, that the special on your compression stockings is only good until the end of this week or that sign up for the event ends tomorrow can create a sense of urgency that compels your followers to do something now.
Don’t run out of ideas for your pharmacy’s social media. Keep it fresh with these innovative tips.
