Morning Session on Social Media

Social Media

Marketing, Practical Use,
Reputation Management

Dr. Jim Humphries
Adjunct Professor
Media and Communications
Texas A&M University
College of Veterinary Medicine
Founder:
Veterinary News Network
American Society of Veterinary
Journalists

Copyright 2013, Veterinary News Network

Many Thanks To
Ceva Animal Health
For Sponsoring This
Unique Presentation!


Our Goals Today:
First Hour:
Traditional Media and
How Social Media
Changes The Game
Second Hour:
Practical Side of
Social Media
Third Hour:
Some “button pushing”

Fourth Hour:
Reputation Management


Communications:
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Media
Public
Internet
Personal
Client


Some must be very short
Some much longer
Dependent Upon:

1. The Message
2. The Audience
3. The Method

A Crash Course In Media Interactions
(Traditional and On-Line)


Television
“video”
 Content Is King!
 Broadcast TV is great
 Emerging media is morphing that.
 On-Line and mobile video viewing is way up!
 Video will always work!
 You should learn basic video production skills
 Animal stories highly popular
 They are visual / newsworthy / entertaining.

Radio
 Reaches huge audience
 Satellite Radio giving radio new Life!

 Weekly On-Line Radio Audience Sharply Up 17%
 Average person spends 21 hours each week.
 81% of all Adults listen to radio in the car each week

 Talk Radio has LOTS of time to fill!!
 Easy to do!

Print Media
 Much electronic media comes from print
 Half of Americans read print news daily
 Print companies finding new media strategy
 Citizen journalists: blogging
 Can be done when you have the time (stored)
 Can be re-purposed; clients / site / blogs


NEW Media!
Why The Explosion?
Today we SEEK
news/information, rather than wait!
Technology is wildly popular
60% believe traditional media does not
report facts or are biased!
Only 39% Trust Today’s Media

NEW Media
How Has It Changed
Regular Media?
Pushed Traditional into a “New” approach
More responsive
Smaller stories get a look

Audience input - immediate
Evens playing field – citizen journalists

To Be Effective:
• Courage / Desire
• Preparation / Rehearsal
• Leads to Confidence
• Understand their side
• To have a good story
• To be “easy” to produce

Keep in Mind:

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Remember news is happening NOW
News is VISUAL
News is information and entertaining
News has an EDGE
Local news is LOCAL
News Producers are very pressed for time
Be Quick!


Television
• Not everyone is cut out for TV
• BE up-beat, fun and entertaining
• Practice your performance in advance so you
don’t ramble.
• Make your points then STOP.

• Be ready to answer “off point” questions, then
“bridge” back to your main message.

Radio
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ENERGY!
ENTERTAINMENT
CONTROVERSY
INFORMATION!
A CALL TO ACTION


News People Are:
• Ignorant of your issues
• In a huge hurry – driven by deadlines
• Rarely have underlying agenda
• Don’t usually want too much detail
• Like the negative or sensational
• They are skeptical and probing
• Think in sound bites or headlines
• Not your friends
• Not your enemies
• They are a tool you use correctly

Therefore You Must:
• Think in sound bites and headlines
• Speak only in concise rehearsed bites
• Deliver information so that it is
“consumable”
• Give them an up-beat “performance”
• Make your schedule flex to theirs
• Help them do their job
• Afterwards - offer lots of resources
(why are some better than others?)

How Can We Be Successful?
• Understand the media business
• Learn the skills they need from you
• Practice the skills
• Don’t be shy about calling them
• Become a valuable “source”
• Keep contacts up-to-date
• Help them with stories unrelated to your work
• Thank them
• Send them story ideas


Sell Them The Story

The Media Is A Tool!
Using the media is the process of
supplying them information that
you don’t control in hopes that
they will run your story for their
audiences. Some call it “earned
media”.

To be effective and
trusted, you must provide
them a steady stream of
interesting, newsworthy
stories that reporters and
editors want to run – with few
adjustments.
www.MyVNN.com

How Do We Use
Media For Marketing?
Earned Vs. Paid Exposure
Local daily, weekly, monthly paper
Coupons, Ads, Events…
Guest appearances
Newsworthy stories, contests,
Become media source
Regular apperances

What Makes A Good Story?
• Something that is happening NOW
• HOT stories
• The local angle on national news
• A seasonal event
• An unusual case
• The results of a new survey
• A new product or service that will benefit people
• “How to” stories
• Things that make people’s lives easier
• Local happenings
• Good causes
• Controversial issues
• Government approval of something new

How Do We React To
Media?


You are asked to do a media
interview…
1.What do you do?
2.How do you prepare?
3.What do you say?
4.Your position?
5.What impact will this have?
6.Should you say no?

1) Meet The Reporters Needs
2) Get Your Point Across

Keep in Mind:
Your reason for being there?
Your PR goal?

Reacting Properly – Ask Some Questions:
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Why have they called you?
How did this story come to their attention?
Who else are they interviewing?
What is the news of the day?
What type of show is this?
What impact will this have on your
practice, the association or the profession?
• Can you have some time to prepare?
• Do you know the reporter from their work
on the air?
• Will they come to you or do they need you
in-studio?

What Do They Want?
• Is this interview soft or hard?
• Will this interview be controversial or general
care?
• Do they want short answers or extensive
answers?
• Is this print or electronic media?
• Do I have to do this immediately, or do I have
some notice?
• The angle or their “take” on the story
• What are their needs – then try to meet them


Things To Remember!
• You do NOT have to agree to an interview
• You do not have to agree to their terms
• Reporters are neither your enemy nor your
friend
• Reporters are driven by deadlines, in a
hurry, not interested in too much
detail, like negative or sensational
things, are skeptical and probing!
• Stay with the subject at hand


- Deep Breath Now Prepare…..
• Anticipate the questions you will
receive
• Write 7-15 second answers. Craft

them!

• Practice out loud with help
• Be sure to practice your answers “out
of order”
• Practice getting your points in early!


Here is how you do that:
• Write down all questions you can think of
• Write down all the answers

• Craft Your Message Points from these answers
• Identify Some Good Bridging Statements

• List Some Positive Points You’d Like To Bridge To


Here’s what that looks like:
Q: Why do you vets still consider pets “property” instead
of sentient beings?

A: First let me say veterinarians must abide by state law. It is the state
law that determines the legal status of animals. I personally believe pets
are very special, but we cannot step outside of the law in when using
words that have deeper legal meaning.

MP: Remember, simply changing words, or classifications of our
pets, does not mean that care will improve!

Bridge: The good news in this issue is…
Positive: Veterinary medicine today provides the best medical and
surgical care for our pets. We at Riverside Animal Hospital are proud of
the care we deliver every day.

The Perfect Answer:

Answer or Deflect…
Perhaps a Positive Statement 
Bridge 
Message Point 

A Practical Overview Of
Social Media


Oh There Are More!!


What Social Media Is NOT…
A quick path to success
Something for someone else to do
An immediate increase of new clients
A foolproof way to market your practice
A “set it and forget it” way…
A replacement for other publicity

Don’t believe that Social Media
is a fix for bad client service…
Without a well run, client friendly practice and staff,
social media can be a real double edged sword.
In fact, social media can allow an upset client to
reach thousands before they leave your parking lot! .
That will kill you.

Focus on outstanding client service and people will
sing your praises – Online and OFF-line.

What Social Media IS…
An inexpensive and easy way to target clients
and potential clients in your area
A way to create a positive first impression about
you, your hospital – before they even meet you!
Social Media allows you to earn a reputation as
a caring expert
An interactive, dynamic and high-tech tool that
enables you to educate and motivate clients

What Social Media IS…
Your website and/or blogs
Review sites (Yelp)
Comments on news stories/articles
Networking sites (Facebook, Twitter, Linked
In)
Video sites (YouTube, Vimeo)
Forums
Which social tool reaches the audience that
is best for you?

Authenticity and Transparency
These two terms are important concepts
for success in any social media interaction
or outreach
– Authenticity: When what you believe and
what you are saying are the same thing.
“Walking the Walk”
– Transparency: Honesty, even in difficult
situations
– Be Who You Are: with your voice!
– Don’t OUTSOURCE this important job!

Success in social media is NOT
measured by the number of “fans”,
“followers” or “likes”
Success is measured by the quality of
the community

Engagement occurs when other
people like and share your content,
widening your audience
Don’t OUTSOURCE this important
job!

Websites
• Beautiful & Simple
• Image and Impression

• FUNCTIONALITY:

Flash rotator
Map & hours
Services
Virtual tour
Staff Photos!
Appointments
Rx refills

Library
Few Links
Testimonials
Logos
Emergencies
Boarding & Grooming
After care instructions

Recommendations
InFront: Based in Colorado Springs. They host
our Veterinary News Network site, and our
Mobile PetDocs site.
VetNetwork: New Hampshire. Owned by Dr.
Mark Feltz, veterinarian. They host the site for
the American Society of Veterinary Journalists
(www.asvj.org)
VetLearn, VetMatrix

Final note on websites
Remember…this is your HOME.
• Proof-read and triple check all content for spelling
errors, bad grammar and mistakes.
• Double check all links and navigation
• Keep the pages fresh, especially the home page.
Don’t let months go by without updating the home
page.
i.e. Pet food recall information still on some
veterinary websites!
Per VetLearn…54% of practices updates their
site a few times a year or NEVER!!
Phone Number “Above The Fold” Please!

Example of what not to do


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Founded in 2004
Easy sign up, use and navigation
Currently the largest social network (>1 Billion!)
More than ½ log on every day!
Very informal, social, friendly
Can be used for Marketing, Education
Relationship building (personal or business)
Sort of a huge High School Reunion!
Should have a Personal Profile and a Business
Page!


You Personally Have A “Profile”
You Have “Friends”
Your Business Has A “Page”
You Build “Likes”

Facebook Profile
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Personal use
Connect with family, friends
Share things you “like”
Build “Friends”
Even be outspoken or political
It is NOT the Business You!


Profile


“Pages”
Facebook offers “Pages” as the method for
businesses to connect with the world.
Don’t set up your business as a “profile”.
A Facebook page can be a powerful tool for
any practice, association, school, or nonprofit.

Facebook (Business) Page
• For business, groups, non-profits,
artists, etc
• Educate, interact and engage with
clients.
• Allow clients come to know you by
your posts and interactions
• Build “Likes”


Page


What To Put On
Your Page
Clients “like” your page because they are interested
in you and your hospital!
Anything that would be interesting to clients:
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Interesting cases
Photos / Videos
Your Blog Posts
What you are doing for the community
Fun Facts about Pets
Share other interesting business pages
Make sure your Page is connected to your
website!


Warning!
A Facebook Page does NOT replace your
website!
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Facebook will always “own” the page and can remove
it at any time, without warning
Facebook’s platform, although powerful, is limited.
Not easy to explain complex issues or topics.
Facebook is the “party”, your practice website is
HOME!
Focus on bringing people to your home on the web


A House Build On Many Supports!


Best Practices for
A Facebook Page?
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Many practices get frustrated with lack of
interaction and engagement on their page
The BIGGEST reasons that Facebook pages don’t
grow or fail to engage are:
 Too many posts daily
 Too much marketing
 Posts are too long or too infrequent
 Lack of interaction from page.
Therefore, be Interactive!


Important Concepts
To Remember!
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More than 95% of people who “like” your page
will never return to it!
 That’s not a bad thing…they are simply
viewing your posts via their NewsFeed
Your posts must show up in their NewsFeed
before any interaction can occur.
BUT…30 BILLION pieces of content are shared
on Facebook every month!!
How can you make sure your posts are being
seen?
Understand: FACEBOOK EDGERANK


Understanding
EdgeRank
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Facebook looks at each piece of content as an
“object” and the interactions between that object
and the end user is called an “edge”

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In simple terms, the more interaction between the
end user and your Facebook page, the higher the
Edgerank. Higher Edgeranks lead to a greater
probability of the post being seen by the end user.

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Types of posts (Video, photo, links) are also
weighed, and also the age of the post.


Making Facebook work…
Less is more!
– Posting constantly will cause people to
view you as spam. Consider 2-5 posts
weekly or 1-2 posts per day as a good
benchmark for success.

Less is still more!
– LONG postings do not get read! Keep
your posts and updates to about 80 – 120
characters and you will increase your
interactions.

Vary the types of postings you create.
Don’t just focus on status updates (“We
love taking care of your pets”) or links.
• Try including pictures of interesting cases
• Video
• Sample questions

When posting links, use the full link, not
the shortened link generated by many
third party apps.

Consider the time you are posting.
According to Buddy Media, pages that
posted after normal business hours saw a
20% increase in engagement

Thursdays and Fridays often show a
higher level of engagement compared to
other days, but this could be skewed by
type of industry.
Take home? Research your own Insights
results.

Even though third party apps make life
a little easier and more efficient for us,
Facebook does not rank those posts as
high as manual posts.
• So…try to make at least 1-2 of your daily
postings directly on Facebook rather than
using TweetDeck or HootSuite.


Important reminders:
Staff involvement should be
encouraged, but monitored
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If staff members “like” the page (and why
wouldn’t they?), encourage interaction but set
ground rules
• Staff personal profiles should be set to
strict privacy settings. (next slide shows
why!)
Explain and enforce client confidentiality
Get ideas from staff!


Is this what you want your clients seeing
when they visit your staff member’s
profile?


Important reminders:
Marketing should only be done on
rare occasions.
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People don’t like to be “sold to” in social
media.
Keep marketing efforts to a minimum on
Facebook page (80/20)
However…there are good examples of this
working…


Other Facebook Steps:
Take advantage of the “Post as
Page” feature!
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Instead of posting comments on other Pages as
you, post as your hospital!

•

Look for pet related pages in your area, the local
Chamber of Commerce, TV and radio stations, etc.

•

Remember, focus on adding to the
conversation, not necessarily marketing yourself
or your hospital.

•

You can change the “default” setting when posting
on your own page.


Use Facebook
as Page


You can change your
voice here


Facebook Ads

•

Facebook Ads
• Targeted Marketing to pet lovers in your
area!
• People who like your page (and THEIR
friends) are significantly more likely to spend
more money with you than the general
population (Time Magazine, Aug 2012)
• Choose cost per click, cost per impression or
allow Facebook to budget for you


Promoted Posts
Fairly new to Facebook (2012)
Businesses, and now even individuals,
can pay to promote specific posts in order
to gain more audience.
Costs are $5 to $75 to gain an extra
estimated reach of 500 to 15,000.
(Individual profiles pay a flat $7)


Facebook Ads/Sponsored
Stories
Target marketing
• Can select age, gender, broad category
interests and even refine down to zip code
• Set budget for amount spent per day or
lifetime budget
Can optimize for impressions or clicks
Impressions are charged in cost per thousand
(approximately $0.14)
Pay per click can range from $2-$10

Our Practice Experience
Ran Facebook ads from Oct 8 – Nov 8,
2012.
– Total budget spent: $58.70
– Impressions: 647,335 over 30 days (average
21,000/day) ($0.09 cpm)
645,940 from ad, 1395 from Sponsored Story

– 46 people clicked on the ad ($1.28 per click)
– 2 new page likes
– No business generated that we have seen
yet.

Facebook Insights
Visible only to page administrators, this
analytic tool can help you fine tune your
efforts on Facebook
Insights allow you to monitor total number
of likes, friends of fans, how many people
are talking about your page and your
weekly reach.
Access Insights from Admin panel on page

Connect with Twitter
Recommend connecting your Twitter
account with your Facebook Page
• www.facebook.com/twitter
• Allows your posts to be simultaneously
“tweeted”
• Keeps a presence on Twitter without extra
effort


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Began in 2011
Around 400 million registered users
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>100 million visit every month
Individual profiles and business pages allowed
“Makes connecting on the web more like connecting in
the real world”
Easy method of sharing different things with different
people.
•
Circles, Hangouts


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Began in 2005
Second largest search engine
60 hours of video are uploaded every minute
500 Years of video are watched everyday on
Facebook
4 billion videos viewed daily
4 billion hours of video viewed monthly
SEARCH?? Your chances of being “Google One”
are 53 Times Greater with Video!


If you already have a Google account (gmail,
blogger, adwords, ad sense) for your practice,
you can easily start your YouTube channel.
– Are you using it?
Videos are great for mobile users
– Mobile viewers watch videos about 3x longer
than those on a desktop PC
Videos can help you build rapport with clients
and prospective clients. But not easy for
average practice.

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Began in 2003
More than 200 Million Users + 1 million new per
week (~100 M in US)
Professional / Executive
Huge Data Base and Search
Great Research Tool
Connecting gives you 3 levels of connections
Connect with highly connected people
Answers section very helpful


Linked In - Recommendations
Endorsements written by connections that
highlight your skills and strengths
Useful as people search to learn about
you (for business, hiring, etc)
Recommendations can be requested or
generated
• The visibility of recommendations can also be
managed on your profile

Linked In - Endorsements
An easy way to let people know that you
recognize someone for their skills
• Without the need for a well-crafted
recommendation

Only available to first degree connections
Some endorsements can be hidden
Since Sept, 2012, >200 million
endorsements have been issused (~10
million per day)

LinkedIn Groups
More secure than Facebook Pages and Groups
May provide “safe” place to share profession
specific opinions and thoughts
Away from public eye

Dozens of veterinary specific groups already in
place


Began as invitation only site in 2010
Immediate acceptance, grew into one of
the top ten largest social network sites by
end of 2011
Touted for driving lots of traffic to retailers
83% of users are women
Users “pin” photos, recipes, etc and share
among each other

Experts recommend
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Post lots of content
Use TALL images
Add images to all posts
Ask clients using Pinterest to pin pictures of
themselves and tag you
• LIMITATION: Can only add photos from web,
not from your computer like FB.

Twitter
Learning to Listen
Many people don’t “get” Twitter or even find
it annoying.


It is “short bursts of inconsequential information”
A micro-blogging site, originally designed for people
to answer the question: What are you doing? In 140
characters or less!
Now, functions more as a real time search for
trending topics and news as well as a connection
platform for sharing informative links.
Because of brevity, no depth, younger generation
and mobile use higher.

Traditional media and journalists are quickly
discovering the value of Twitter
Short tweets “teasing” a breaking story or
upcoming news item can lead to increased web
traffic/viewers

Twitter users:
Come to find information (research), read tweets
and consume content.
NOTE: They are also coming to vent, complain
and, occasionally, praise services and
companies.

Is Twitter For Real?
OR a Fad?
• 80% of Twitter accounts are inactive
• @ 500 million users
• 340 million tweets daily
• Most do not know how to use and
abandon
• 94% of accounts have < 100 followers
• 5% of users = 75% of all activity
• The Twitter “core” is very committed.

Twitter (and other social media sites) represent a
leveling of the playing field when it comes to
interactions with companies
• Emails and phone calls can be ignored
• Social media gives upset clients a place to vent
beyond normal social interactions.
• Some clients may just search for “XYZ Animal
Hospital fails” and add to the conversation…others
will actively make it a personal mission to embarrass
you.
• Mobile devices allow complaints to happen when
the clients are still in your parking lot!

What are people doing on
Twitter?
• According to research done by Pear Analytics
(2009), tweets can be separated into six
categories
•Pointless babble – 40%
•Conversational – 38%
•Pass-along value – 9%
•Self promotion – 6%
•Spam – 4%
•News -4%
• The NEWS category is growing! As news
gathering / research in real time.

A VNN Member who just did not get the whole Twitter
Thing….dove in and tried it.

A week later he is being followed by his local
NBC TV station AND he scored a weekly gig.

What Do I Do With A
Twitter Account?
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Even if you don’t “tweet” regularly, it can help
you monitor what is being said about you or
your hospital.
Use it for real time intelligence/ information
(listening / “search terms”) and feedback to
build relationships with clients.
Also Marketing: 140 character announcements,
promotions, PR, specials, good cases and
updates… not as big as the others.


TweetDeck


HootSuite


On-Line Reputation Management
For Veterinary Professionals
Manage or Remove Negative Reviews


Manage or Remove Negative Reviews

Listen
Respond
Claim Ownership
Remove Bad Reviews
Keep New Content Flowing


Listen!
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Google Alerts
Google
Twitter
Sproutsocial ($)

Review sites like:
• Yelp / Yahoo
• Google Places
• Citysearch

Keep Track of Comments:
• Word or Excel
• Record of actions

Respond Quickly
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Half of all companies do not
First try old fashioned customer service
Respond to recent complaints (discuss)
On prominent sites
Facebook? Post Policy then delete
Defend honestly and professionally
Try to take “off-line”
Satisfied clients – ask for positive reviews
Sometimes all you can do is apologize and
leave the conversation


Reputation Management: Step 1

• Claim Ownership
• Find all complaint sites that have
reviews about you and claim your
business. Without this you have no
voice!

• Be sure good key-words in descriptions

Step 2: Remove Reviews
Yelp: look up your hospital
red flag reviews, inappropriate or false


Fight Back


For Bad Reviews;
Respond Compassionately
Publically, Briefly
• Remember the “talk radio” rule; answer for
all the other listeners not necessarily the
caller.
• Don’t get into detail or blow-by-blow
answers, or use inflammatory words etc.
• Trick is to show compassion and take the
conversation off-line, to a person to person if
possible!

Google Places: flag as inappropriate


City Search: flag when logged in “report
abuse”


Step 3: Move Them Down!
• Using your web sites or blogs to move
higher with key word rich content
• Depends on your “key words” within
hospital name
• Social media helps - active Facebook
and Twitter accounts help!


Confirm You Are “Known”
• See if you are “indexed”
• Site:myvnn.com – and see results
• Use Webmaster tools from Google and
Bing
• Google.com/webmasters
• Bing.com/toolbox/webmaster

Up-To-Date Content
• Dynamic content (where?)
• Multi-media content
• Practice web site update (2X / month)
• Social sites update (2-3X/ week)


Become A Certified Veterinary Journalist!
American Society of Veterinary Journalists

www.ASVJ.org

www.MyVNN.com
Our Thanks
Again To…

Morning Session on Social Media

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