15 Tips to Dominate Twitter for Emergency Rooms in Houston Texas
As is revealed in discussions on the same over at runrex.com, unlike on most other social media platforms, people use Twitter for information and to stay up-to-date with the latest news and developments. This means that it can be an excellent platform to help build your credibility and establish your thought leadership while also helping you attract new patients to your emergency room. If you are a Houston Texas emergency room and are looking to try out Twitter marketing, this article will look to help by highlighting 15 tips that will help you dominate on the platform.
- Get your profile right
The first thing you need to do if you want to establish a presence for your ER on Twitter is to create an account. Here, as is explained over at guttulus.com, you should use an appropriate username or handle, preferably your emergency room’s name to make it easier for people to find you on Twitter. Also, make sure that you use an appropriate photo for both your profile picture and your header photo. Here, you can use a photo of your team of physicians as your profile picture, and a photo of your premises as your header photo for example. Using a photo of your physicians as your profile picture will make your account appear more human, attracting more followers as people connect better with people rather than with logos.
- Incorporate your website link to your profile
It is also important that you include a link to your website when completing the profile of your ER’s Twitter account. You want to convert your Twitter followers as well as any visitors into patients at your ER, which is why it is important to include a link to your website to allow users to check you out if they are looking for services like the ones you offer.
- Don’t forget about your location
According to the subject matter experts over at runrex.com, it is also important that you include your city or your most relevant geographical area such as your neighborhood when filling out your profile’s account. This is where you indicate that you are a Houston, Texas emergency room so that users know where you are based, allowing them to decide if you are within reach before coming over, something that is important given how time-sensitive medical emergencies are.
- Craft an engaging bio
Twitter gives you some 160 characters to craft a bio for your account, and you should use this space wisely if you are to be successful on the platform. Craft a bio that showcases what makes you unique as an emergency room, while also showcasing your expertise, the services that you offer, as well as your personality as a practice. You want to convince users to click on the link provided and engage with your ER.
- Incorporate relevant hashtags in your bio
When crafting the bio for your emergency room’s Twitter account, the gurus over at guttulus.com point out that you should not forget to incorporate relevant hashtags into the copy. This is important as it will help your account, and by extension your emergency room, to appear in Twitter search results for the services you offer and things you specialize in.
- Brand your page
Remember, your Twitter account is an extension of your emergency room’s brand, and you should treat it as such. This means making sure that you use color palettes and the same tone and language that are consistent with your brand. You want people to easily recognize you and to make a connection between your account and your ER, building trust, and avoiding confusion.
- Consider scheduling tweets
As the subject matter experts over at runrex.com point out, emergency rooms can get quite busy, which means that you may have little to no time to put up tweets and engage with users. This is why you should consider automating part of the process to ensure that you post regularly even during busy periods. Scheduling software like Hootsuite will allow you to schedule your tweets allowing you to put up tweets even without having to log in to Twitter.
- Be ethical in your dealings on Twitter
You mustn’t break any rules even as you engage with your audience on Twitter. This means that you should ensure that you abide by the HIPAA rules, taking care not to reveal any sensitive information about your patients. You should also never give people medical advice on Twitter. Tweet out useful tips, news, and studies, but avoid diagnosing or giving anyone specific advice.
- Come up with your own branded hashtag
You should also develop your own branded hashtag, which as per discussions on the same over at guttulus.com, will help people to find your content when looking for it on Twitter. The hashtag you choose to be your branded hashtag should be both keyword-rich and memorable so that people can easily remember it and can find it catchy and engaging.
- Promote your Twitter page
Remember, just having a Twitter page is not enough if you are to dominate on the platform. If you want to grow your account, make sure that you have it promoted on your website, blog, in your office through signage, to patients directly through word-of-mouth, as well as on your other social media platforms. You should also consider giving people an incentive to follow you, like offering weekly tips on Twitter that are only exclusive to your followers.
- Monitor chatter about your ER
It is also important that you regularly monitor chatter about your emergency room and the services offered there, and respond when appropriate as per the experts over at runrex.com. This will help you know if there is an issue with your services, allowing you to respond to issues and have them fixed before they get out of hand, and you are faced with a full-blown PR crisis.
- Tweet out helpful content
You should ensure that you tweet out helpful content using your ER’s Twitter account, such as helpful tips, articles and resources. Try as much as possible to include hyperlinks to your tweets as these are shared 86% more than tweets that don’t have links. Also, avoid putting out tweets that are over-promotional as this will backfire badly on you. Focus instead on providing your audience with value.
- Post visual content
You should also avoid putting up text-only tweets, instead make sure that your tweets contain visual content such as videos, images, GIFs, and infographics. This is because, as explained over at guttulus.com, tweets with visual content get more engagements and are shared more, through retweets, than those without.
- Be social
You should also avoid one-way interactions on Twitter. Try as much as you can to engage with your audience, putting up tweets that encourage interactions, and replying to all the comments you get, whether positive or negative. Ask your followers questions or their opinions regarding your content, and then take the time to reply, doing so as quickly as possible.
- Be consistent
If you are to get the best out of your emergency room’s Twitter account, you have to make sure that you tweet regularly. The lifespan of a tweet is shorter than that of any other post on the other social media platforms, which is why you should maintain a consistent presence on Twitter, tweeting at least once daily.
Remember, if you are looking for help with your Twitter marketing efforts, then look no further than the excellent runrex.com and guttulus.com, the best marketing agencies in Houston, Texas.