Did you know there are
500 million tweets sent out every day? That’s 5,787 tweets being sent out every second! According to Twitter in 2018, 326 million people were using Twitter daily. That number continues to grow every day. That is a lot of potential engagement for a platform that mostly goes inactive for most business owners, specifically Orthodontist.
Several accounts are set up for practices but rarely are updated or remain inactive. It can be a challenge for orthodontic offices to use this social media platform, especially if they do not know what to publish in the first place. Assuming most orthodontic practices are active on Facebook or Instagram, they may ask themselves, do I post the same thing from Facebook? How do I even share something on Twitter? Will anyone even see it?
Before you follow these tips, be sure your Twitter account has all the appropriate links, bio description, and images, all match your website and other social media profiles. Here are 5 Twitter marketing tips for an orthodontist to utilize on Twitter, expand their audience reach, build a following and engage with potential customers.
1. Tag / Engage with Accounts:
Social media is meant to be social. Engaging with other accounts will help you build a following and provide value. By tagging other accounts (such as the local chamber of commerce, a school that visited your office or brands) you are starting a conversation online. This also helps with Twitter algorithms, which determine how your tweets get seen by followers.
For example Kelly Orthodontics, in Saint Charles, Illinois, tweeted this fantastic photo of a patient with an American Doll, comforting her as she received braces. Kelly Orthodontics tagged American Girl Doll and their tweet was seen by 323 non-followers.
2. Utilize a Branded Hashtag (#)
A hashtag is a word or phrase comprised of letters, numbers or an emoji, preceded by the hashtag symbol (
#). This clickable word the main feature for social media platforms, especially on Twitter. You can see who posts content using that same hashtag.
For example, if I wanted to find what Twitter users are currently saying about braces, I would simply type in #braces and I would see the latest and top post of twitter users talking about braces. Using a branded hashtag for your practice, allows you to see what other people are posting.
Wentz Orthodontics uses the hashtag #WentzOrthoodontics in every tweet they sent out and encourage others to use that same hashtag across Twitter and Instagram. By clicking on that tweet, Wentz Orthodontics can discover other users who have used the hashtag and tagged their photos or comments.
3. Follow People in Your Community
Growing a following on Twitter can be a challenge, especially if you are choosing to do so organically. The most simple and effective way to gain twitter followers is to compile a list of businesses, organizations, and people in your community who are [active] on twitter. By following them, it is most likely they will follow back, thus creating a digital community online that is truly a representation of your hometown (or home state).
One easy way to discover twitter accounts within your community is to search for your local city government or local news stations on Twitter. They will most likely be following other businesses and organizations already.
4. RT Relevant Information
Twitter is an engaging platform that has the ability to spread information so fast, it is often the place where news breaks. With millions of tweets being sent out every day, there is a great wealth of content being shared and spread throughout twitter. As an orthodontist, spreading relevant information on teeth and overall health tips can be easy following different people within the industry. A Retweet can help connect and engage with others in your industry and gain a following.
5. Cross-Promote Correctly
Cross-posting is posting the same content across multiple social networks, often from one place. For example, posting an image from Facebook and automatically posting on Twitter. Which looks like this:
The negative perceptions can be laziness, losing credibility and bad for branding, which can ultimately lead to a decline in engagement and social media growth. For orthodontists and staff members, it might be the easiest way to “be active on social media.” However, there is a difference between cross-posting and cross-promoting.
Cross promoting allows you to tailor your social media content/message to each platform. This includes specific information, image sizes, using hashtags and tagging people such as using the @ symbol. This will allow your content to stand out on Twitter and be Retweeted by others. Each message should be tailored to each platform to ultimately accomplish your goals on Twitter.
Need help with social media or some tips, contact us for more information at info@solutionsbydesign.com.