Week 15: Final Thoughts

As someone who knew they were never going to be done with learning, but pretty wrapped up with education in the formal setting, I took this class to get a better feel for Social Media outside of the funny pictures and shark cat video locators. 

I knew there was a world behind Facebook; that there was a reason why a particular company keeps popping up in my feed. I knew, but now I know I didn't know. Through this class, I was able to explore platforms that I normally would not gravitate towards for personal use. I learned that I actually do like to write and keep a blog. I learned that this is something I actually want to pursue because I like being social. 

I have been given an opportunity to work with a non profit on their social media strategy and to help promote a fundraising event. I am looking forward to using these new tools I have acquired in this class and throughout the semester achieving this Certificate in Social Media for Business to not only fuel a passion, but do something I feel that I am good at. I have made some great connections and friends and while this semester proved to be tough, thanks to a little guy who likes to "help out" while Mommy is trying to get homework done, I have learned a great deal about myself and how I want to take on the world of Social Media, both as a behind the scenes operator and now a more educated consumer. 

Thank you for this opportunity!

Shamless plug apologizing for the delay in some of my assignments (Photo courtesy of Fotograafe Studios)

Week 13: Optimization

So one of the great things about Facebook is that it basically does all of the work for you provides you with the analytics necessary to see what kind of return you are getting on the work you have put in.

A few key insights that came about as a result of getting these new likes:

As you can see, we get some key demographic information from the fans. Males and Females ages 25-34 seem to be a pretty large chunk of the "likers." In comparison, it looks like the page isn't getting much love from the 55-64 demographic. This is actually a very key demographic that would be a great segment to market directly to. Shall we proceed?

Clearly, a huge number of my page likes came from this class assignment. But what if www.claudiafaulkdesign.com was a site that I didn't think I would get much traffic from? Or what if I was spending all kinds of advertising money at blackboard.miracosta.edu? I'd be a little more than upset and probably reach out to where I'm getting the hits from, right? Right.

Page and tab visits are a great way for me to figure out when people are coming and how many times they are coming back. Was I running a special on November 25-27? Was I just extremely funny those days? Did someone post an angry review and people kept coming to my page to add to the frustration? Whether good, bad, or indifferent, you need to be in the know on it all!

Week Fourteen: Strategic Strategery

Review what you have covered in class this semester and the work you have done using the various social media platforms. Which ones integrate best with the type of business you have created? Which have you enjoyed using the most? The enthusiasm or lack there of for a type of media is often shared along with the posts we write. This class gave you an opportunity to experiment with a variety of them. Now you can focus in on what seems the most effective ones to use. 

Which work best on a daily use pattern?

Which can you still use effectively on a much less frequent time schedule?

Considering the variables from recent lectures, decide which tools from the semester you would implement in your online marketing strategy. How much time do you think your business should spend on social media marketing and why? In your blog, please explain why you chose the tools you did, and how you might use them to use and test a strategy over the next six months. Plot out a rough draft plan of the next month of content across the sites you’ve chosen, and how you hope they might grow or sustain your business. Be as detailed as possible, including daily or weekly time requirements to meet the goals.

So back to this idea of the toolbox. I like having a set of standard and a set of metric on hand because you never know what you will be working on. Same with marketing. New things come up. New ideas come to the table. How can you use the tools you have to get the results you want?

Over the semester, we learned about a variety of platforms, additional tools, apps, ways to reach and engage and ways to get our business name out there. What tools work best and what set should I keep in my everyday toolbox?

Facebook

It's the obvious choice, I know. But it does everything! It's magical. Ok....well, maybe not magical, but it's pretty darn amazing. I like Twitter; i'm sure it has it's place in the universe. But I clearly do not think in under 140 characters. And I want all of my information in one place. I hate clicking on ambiguous hyperlinks to completely read a thought or to see the rest of the post/article. 

Twitter

I know, I just bashed poor Twitter less than one full sentence ago. However, it has its place. And that place is for the "which can you still use effectively on a much less frequent time schedule." Which brings me to...

Scheduling

I'm a planner. I like to have a plan. Quarterly planning is ideal; monthly planning sometimes works best. And when I say monthly planning, I mean a month ahead planning for the next month. Something as simple as a Basic Calendar Template is great to refer to when you actually schedule out your posts.

Time of day is another key factor in the scheduling component. While Facebook doesn't give you the minute by minute breakdown of when your fans are surfing the inter webs, your page demographics can be very telling and a clue to help figure out when inside the when. One study followed 7.446 Android and iOS users ages 18-44 during one week in March, 2013 and came up with some very interesting data:

Knowing your demographics is the key to unlocking the mystery of Social Media Marketing.

Week 12: Additional Tools

What four additional online marketing tools do you believe could be important to the growth of your business? 

How could you integrate them into your current strategy?

If you choose to create a new account in GooglePlus, or create a location on a Google map, let us know. 

Think about a coupon deal you could develop. What product or service do you think would be one that would increase traffic to your business? 

Having additional tools in your toolbox never hurts, unless they are not for the job you are working on currently. At that point, it just becomes unnecessary extra weight you are dragging around with you from job to job. You grow tired, weary, and can't find anything. Don't let that happen...Keep the tools that will help you get the job done! 

The tools I think will benefit LoBue's offices include:

Google+ 

It's one of those. Did Google+ become the revolutionary new social media magnate it was billed as? No. Was it the about the equivalent of Geraldo uncovering the "mystery" of Al Capone's vaults? Yes. Does having a Google+ account still get your name and business to show up when searching for "eye doctor murrieta" ? Yes. Pretty much, that is the greatest reason to have it. 

Yelp

I will admit it...I'm a Yelper. I Yelp the good and the not so good. And I check Yelp whenever I am making a decision on where to take my business. I judge. Businesses should utilize this tool as an introspective tool. Is your receptionist really nasty to people, or is she doing the job of three people and needs help? Why is your average wait time 47 minutes? Continuous improvement is the key. While the customer may not always be right, they are the ones providing the review. You should know where you stand.

LinkedIn 

I will also admit that I check LinkedIn. Especially for doctors. Do your colleagues find you difficult to work with? Does your work profile say that you graduated from Emory and were a Tri-Lamb when LinkedIn has zero reference and connections? Yes, I know that is weird to pick up on, but did you know that 60% of hiring managers have caught lies on people's resumes? I can vouch for this, as my previous career in HR showed me the light. 

Google Maps

Having been to LoBue's offices, I can say that Google Maps would be an EXCELLENT function to have available to patients, especially given the demographics of LoBue's patients. In addition, because the surgery center and 3 offices are all located within about 15 miles of each others, it would be best to know where you are going and where you have been. Nothing says fail like having to tell a patient they are in the wrong location for their procedure. 

Coupons

Ahhhh, coupons. Personally, I love them. I love saving money. I'm not quite the Extreme Couponer status but if there is a deal, I am intrigued. Because this is a doctor's office, sometimes you don't have the luxury of shopping or waiting for a coupon to come. I am not a fan of Groupon for business (for personal use, sure. Bring on the $15 dollar massage!) because I think it not only cheapens the brand, but is a headache for both the business and the consumer if something goes awry. But I do believe that LoBue could offer specials to entice customers to get their yearly eye exams. 

One special that I think is great is Back To School Eye Exams. Nothing is worse than getting the phone call 2/3 of the way through the school year to hear that your child is failing and come to find out, they can't see. A simple problem that could have been caught with an beginning of the school year eye exam. Again, as a person requiring corrective vision, I can't tell you the exact point between ages 7 and 8 when my vision started to blur. I can tell you that I remember the day when I put my glasses on and realized that I had been in that blur. That is a hugely important area to capitalize on. 

So there you have it. My recommended tools for the job at hand. 

Week 10: Extra! Extra! Read All About It!

After reading the lecture and text book assignment, write a blog post in response to this assignment:  Newsletters can be sent weekly, monthly, quarterly, or even twice a year for certain businesses. With that in mind, what information could your business use for a newsletter, and how often would you send one? Write a list of content ideas you think your customers would enjoy seeing and why.

I think newsletters are a great tool for a business to utilize to not only welcome new customers and provide information in a push type format, but as a way to remind your customers that you are still around. I know I can't be in the minority when I say that although I don't mind newsletters being sent to my e-mail from business that I have actually done business with, but there are two things that I require in order for me to consider reading your newsletter:

• ease of opening/accessing - every month, I am sent a newsletter from my child's pediatrician's office. In order to access it, you have to click open a new window in which you are required to enter your patient portal number (which, because of HIPAA, is not anything remotely related to your email, name, number, or any other commonly used function to log in with) and some obscure password that I know I was given when we first started going to this office. Well, if you don't have kids, here's how that first office visit goes: about 48-72 hours hours after having a human whatever way you needed to, you are asked to bring said human into the pediatrician's office for whatever examination and hovering wasn't taken care of in the time frame the child has been alive. Since newborn infants don't care about things like a good night's sleep or the mental health of their parental units, you drag your zombie-esque self into said pediatrician's office barely remembering to brush your teeth, let alone the obscure password you are given while filling out the mounts of paperwork require to enter. So that being said, I have never opened a newsletter from this doctor's office. 
• layout - if your layout is convoluted and you have re-written War and Peace to tell me that you are having a 20% off sale, I will delete it faster than....well, I don't know what, but it will be fast.

For LoBue Laser & Eye Medical Centers, I think a newsletter could be of value to the business, especially because this is not an business that is frequented for the majority of their patient base. I do my once a year standard eye exam, but otherwise, it's a good thing to not be seeing Dr. LoBue or his staff once a month. However, if LoBue forgot about me the rest of the 11 months, would there be a chance I would forget about them the one month I was supposed to go? Maybe? So this is where the newsletter would come in. 

For LoBue's offices, I would recommend a quarterly newsletter for the existing patients. For new patients, I would definitely send a welcome newsletter along with the currently quarterly newsletter. The ideas that I think patients would find interesting include:

• Current specials for exams
• Current optical discounts and sales
• Eye health news
• A personal message from Dr. LoBue or his staff
• A welcome section featuring new staff members
• Philanthropic or Community centered activities and events from the staff
• I would also include a trivia question or hide and seek/treasure hunt kind of item that would help to engage customers. You can not change when insurance chooses to cover a yearly eye exam, but as someone who loves finding and submitting those Get1Free "Where is Freebee?" contests, (Yes, I am a dork.) I may not use anything right away, but I could tell you what the junk mailer was called, right? 

These are just some ideas - the major component, as I stated earlier, are ease of use and layout. Without those keys, unlocking the tool box is never going to happen. 

Week Nine: Categorical Categorization

Since we are discussing categories, let's take time to figure out in which category you belong...it's ok, this is a safe zone.

A little bit rock 'n roll?

A little bit country...

Are you....

Personally, I'm a little bit country. I nerd out at Staples buying colored highlighters and Post-Its and notebooks with dividers. But when things get crazy (which happens more often than not), I tend to leave the organizing until last and my rock 'n roll side tends to come out. Then I let it build up, forget about it all and rage when I can't find anything. So the moral of the story: it's a GREAT idea to get the organizational foundation in place so when things do get crazy (because they will), the upkeep is easy. That is where categories come into play when blogging about your business. Another bonus, categories are another beacon in the SEO sea to help people locate your content.

Categories I think would be useful to list on LoBue Laser & Eye Medical Center's blog include:

• Eye conditions, such as:
• Astigmatism
• Glaucoma
• Myopia
• Cataracts
• Frames
• Designer frames
• Specials
• Contact Lenses
• Age-based information
• Pediatric Eye Care
• Events
• Philanthropy
• Locations, including:
• Menifee
• Temecula
• Murrieta
• Surgeries:
• LASIK
• Research and News
• Eye Health
• Categories for the individual doctors who would be asked to post, on occasion

I think these categories would help the business grow by allowing new customers who google "eye doctor temecula" to have a greater chance of finding LoBue's offices. In addition, the posts would let the potential new patient have a more personal glimpse into the practice and how Dr. LoBue and his staff care about you and your eye health

Part Two: Comments

I've left my comments on the following blogs:

Sean Phillips
Brian Gilb
Leanna Gill

Week Nine: Let's Get Personal

After reading the lecture and text book assignment, write a blog post explaining how personal you think you can be on your blog. When does it make sense to add personality to a post, and when does it not?

If you've been periodically popping in throughout the semester and seeing what the haps are on my blog, then A) Thanks! and B) you can tell that I am not a serious person. At all. AT ALL. If you haven't, that's cool. Go ahead, hop in the virtual DeLorean (be sure to get up to 88 - just because it's virtual doesn't mean the 88 doesn't apply. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, then we DEFINITELY need to catch you up) and start clicking! Don't worry, I'll wait. 


No, I'm serious. I'll wait. It's cool. I promise. I'm just killing time. 

Up to speed? Ok...let's go! 

So, now to the question of "how personal do you think you can be on your blog?" Well, you can see like to have fun. However, having fun and being personal are two TOTALLY different things. Being personal in a "hey, I totally am going through that exact same thing right now and I feel like I relate to you" way is great if the goal of your blog is to invoke those emotions. In business, it is important to build and reinforce personal relationships. But do you really want to know if the owner of your favorite restaurant is frustrated because they failed their Health Department inspection? My guess is no. If my guess is wrong, cool. If you say yes, then good for you! I like a risk taker! 

My opinion is that you should always strive to add personality to a post. Even the most straightforward post about amoebas is much easier to read with a little bit of personality added in. Just as we have learned throughout our journey through life, humor and personality have a time and a place. If you wouldn't say whatever it is you are thinking about writing in your blog directly to the face of your customer, then my advice would be taking a step back and reconsider your writing. 

Week Eight: Let's Get Visual!

Find examples of 2 or 3 business that are similar to yours. See what visual social media they are using and how they are using it.  Is it effective? Some businesses work best when they have visual support. Does visual media work for the type of business you have started? 

I love this quote because of how it resonates in both personal and professional ways. If you are a horse with blinders on, you only see what's in front of you. While a horse might be able to operate just fine, one can't say the same for a business owner trying to make their way down the road to prosperity. 

With regards to LoBue, I think a visual component to their marketing and design is HUGELY important....after all, they are a VISION center. The problem is finding where the boundaries are. Let's take a look at businesses similar to LoBue and what how visual media finds its way into their marketing mix. 

Southern California Eye Physicians & Associates

In addition to a very well developed website, SoCalEye offers a Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and a blog that contains video clips as well as written content. This is the vision I see for LoBue's offices, but with one important difference - a connection to their customers. I love the continuity and flow between the various websites, but I feel somewhat sterile when I read everything. I know there are humans that work in Dr. LoBue's offices. I don't necessarily want to know what they all had for lunch, but I want to feel a connection to the office. Given the 25+ years LoBue has been in business in a relatively small (well, used to be relatively small) community, I feel this is an important factor to have. 

Saddleback Eye Medical Associates 

Saddleback Eye Medical Associates appears to be set up similar to LoBue's offices, which is why I selected this for comparison. Upon visiting their website, it looks well put together and complete. However....yes, there is a but. There is nothing showing that they have any social media presence. I was able to find their Facebook, but it was as dry as the Sahara. As we've stated in the past, social media is a GREAT tool...but does you no good if your entire toolbox has fallen off the truck. Even the "Contact Us" page leaves a visitor empty handed. Users want to connect with businesses on Facebook, but they can't unless you let them!

Week Eight: Get The Picture?

So, as we discussed back in Week One, there are a number of platforms you could use to jump into the world of Social Media. While it's great to be connected, there is such a thing as being TOO connected - or should that be over connected? Think of how you use social media in your personal life. If you are someone who isn't too into pictures and thinks content and writing are what's important, is Instagram your favorite go-to site? My guess is probably not. How a business determines what's right for their style is done much in the same fashion. Take a look at the four most visual platforms and let's see how LoBue (the company I am using) fits into these profiles:

YouTube

YouTube is a great platform, there is no denying that. But how could LoBue use it in a business context? Internally, it might be difficult to do because laws like HIPAA and various privacy acts prohibit a lot of what a medical practice can disclose. However, there are MANY topics that can be discussed by Dr. LoBue himself that a patient might find interesting. As a bespectacled individual for over a quarter century, I can tell you that I STILL get the "so if you take your glasses off, can you see me if I do *this* (usually holding up three fingers...or maybe just a middle, if they are really funny)" questions. Or the "let me try your glasses on.....WHOA! ARE YOU BLIND?!" is another favorite. While a video highlighting POV and allowing people to see what it's like to have -4.00 vision (which is not that bad, btw!), a more telling story would be seeing through the eyes of someone who has been dealing with vision loss and how correction surgery has helped. Or, for some of you people who like this kind of stuff - the actual surgery process done using stock video not captured by Dr. LoBue, but with him narrating what is happening.

Instagram

Again, because of HIPAA and other fun things, you really cannot discuss patient privacy information on social media. But you can discuss things like lenses, frames, and colored contact lenses. Americans spend nearly $30 Billion dollars per year on eye products and services. If you are an eye doctor, you DEFINITELY want a piece of that pie coming into your office.

What if you could feature new lines of frames coming in? Or use pictures to SHOW vs. TELL your customers why that anti glare lens coating that most people think is along the lines of rental car insurance is actually a beneficial add on to have. Instagram would be a great place to do so.

Tumblr

I digress for a moment, but I feel really old when I have to look up social media sites. Like the first time I looked up what Snapchat was...

Anyways, with Tumblr - I believe a blog is always a good thing and would give more exposure, but I don't know that I would read a blog from my doctor's office unless my doctor was Dr. Oz or one of the doctors on The Doctors. That's just my $0.02, but I think the efforts necessary to produce a read worthy blog might be better spent somewhere else in the office.

Pinterest

Much for the same reasons as Instagram, a virtual pinboard showing how you can accessorize with different frames would be great. But much for the same reasons as Tumblr, exposure is great but not helpful when you are showing your product to someone in Anchorage. By the same token, you don't want your locals thinking they can do EVERYTHING eye related online. So if you have the manpower to operate this well, great! But I would not make Pinterest my first focus for Dr. LoBue's offices.

Week Six: Looking Towards The Future

Here are screenshots showing what's in store for LoBue Laser & Eye Medical Centers:

highlighting the revamped Social Media presence

A very spooky article about a frightening trend!

Giving back to the communities we serve

Please note: I have the dates set so far into the future because I am still working with the Marketing Director on gaining publishing rights. I wanted to make sure that these were not accidentally posted before I had full clearance. Thanks! 

Week Six: Strategic Partnerships – They Are Everywhere

LoBue Laser & Eye Medical Centers has been around the Temecula/Murrieta Valley for over 21 years. That’s a pretty long time, so they have got to be doing something right…right? As a patient, I can say that I love the office. The staff is awesome, the doctors are friendly and knowledgeable, and you never leave with the feeling that you are just a pair of eyeballs attached to a credit card. They take the time to care about YOU!

That being said, I think they might be spending a little too much time caring about my eyeballs and not enough about putting eyeballs on their website and social media marketing (hence, why I discussed this project with my darling sister who, if you recall, is a longtime employee and Surgical Assistant to the one and only Dr. LoBue, and convinced her to let me have a go at it. She’s pretty trusting, don’t you think?) That is not a horrible problem to have, but it’s still a problem. Building up brand loyalty is what a business wants and LoBue Laser & Eye Medical Centers seems to have that with their patients. But you also want to be remembered not just for that yearly eye exam. A lot can happen in a year. You may know the trends and latest developments within your business, but do your patients or clients? They trust you for those developments – so why not utilize that trust you built to remain in the forefront of the patients mind whenever you pop up in their Facebook feed? And just because you have remained in business for 21 years, does that mean you’ve had the same crop of patients for that entire time? Probably not. The Temecula Valley area has grown IMMENSELY in the last 21 years. You need ways to bring in new patients and keep the business growing!

That’s where strategic partnerships and the ever-coveted Facebook Like come in. The pages that you like are not only an endorsement BY your business, but an endorsement OF your business as well. For LoBue, I believe the following pages are great to help grow their business:

City of Temecula – It is always a good idea to know what is going on in the community in which you do business.

City of Murrieta – same reason as above.

Temecula Valley Chamber of Commerce – This will allow you to see what other businesses owners are doing and provide GREAT opportunities for networking!
Mixers, collaborations, strategic partnerships…so many ideas and possibilities!

America Optometric Association – straight from the AOA’s website, “The American Optometric Association is the acknowledged leader and recognized authority for eye and vision care in the world.” Talk about a great resource for information to pass on to your patients.

NVISION Laser Eye Center – This is the Laser Eye Center Dr. LoBue partners with to perform LASIK vision correction. Being liked by your business partner is probably a good thing.

California Optometric Association – another great resources to have to pass on information. In addition to passing on information to clients, you can post something and tag COA to be featured on their page as well. More connections = greater reach.

OneSight – OneSight is a charitable organization that optometrists volunteer with to provide eye exams, vision care, and eyewear to adults and children worldwide. According to a 2010 study, 85% of consumers have a more positive image of a product or company when it supports a cause they care about. So not only are you doing good, but spreading good.

Week Five: Reach or Engage? What's More Important?

Post reach can be defined as how many people’s News Feeds you were and how well you are getting your name out there. We all know that you could scream your name from the rooftops, but if that rooftop happens to be above…say California School for the Deaf, chances are you won’t be heard. That’s where post engagement comes in. Post engagement is how many people actually do something with what pops up in that news feed. Those comments, likes, or shares are what matters. WHO wants to know what you have to say? WHO is telling their friends about you?

A business can use Facebook Insights to better serve their customers by seeing what customers have been the most responsive to. If you posted about your upcoming sale and it reached 5% of the people who liked your page…well, then you need to ask why. What if 85% of your followers are male and view your page the most on Monday nights and are happen to be huge Chargers fans and your post was on Sunday right in the middle of the Chargers/Raiders game? I’m going to guess that your post went down without notice (which, coincidentally, is how I feel about the Chargers.  Oooooooooh, I know! Burn!! Those are fighting words here in San Diego!)  

When your fans are online is key, but also what do they respond to? Unless you have a crystal ball or have chipped every one of your followers’ brains, that can be hard to decipher. So ask questions! Questions can drive your interactions up by 10-20%! That’s huge! Here are some other thought provoking questions you can use to help reach out to your followers:

http://www.splashscore.com/10-most-engaging-questions-to-ask-your-facebook-fans/

In my BUS138 class, we had Bridget Ayers of GSW Consulting come to speak about this very topic. As she so beautifully illustrated using her client Visit Oceanside, people react well to and want to engage with images. People also love to see themselves featured. So how did she and her team manage to make a hole in one? Visit Oceanside began reposting user-generated images to their Facebook and Instagram feeds. The beautiful sunset that you snapped a picture of while you were out for your evening run on the Pier? What if half of the 23,830 followers saw your awesome picture and half of that half reposted/shared it? You’d feel pretty cool…and probably take more pictures. And then maybe you’d use those #visitoceanside #oceansidepier hashtags to see if you get reposted again? Boom – post engagement!

Bottom line - there are many ways to go about getting the numbers, but no one wants to be a number! Talk to your people! They liked you for a reason, right?