As social media begins to take hold, it is transforming digital communications in both the health and vision arenas. Today, it is generally accepted as more than just a marketing fad for younger people on the web and has entered a new realm that translates to very real relationships and business opportunities for both customers and patients.

In order to help you navigate this brave new e-world, here are Alan Glazier’s Top 11 Blog Posts on Social Media, excerpted from SightNation.com. Alan N. Glazier, OD, FAAO is the founder/CEO of Shady Grove Eye and Vision Care in Rockville, Md. A search and social optimization consultant, he a regular contributor to VM’s e-newsletter CLICK and also writes a regular blog for SightNation.com.

To learn even more about VM’s “11 Ways Social Media Is Changing Your Business,”
read Vision Monday’s Special Report.

           

1. SM & Your Eyecare Business: A Step By Step Guide to Starting Your Conversation 

Last week I posted an introduction to social media (SM) as a more effective marketing tool and one that will save you money. This week I’d like to discuss how to get your conversation in SM started. More »

2. SM & Your Eyecare Business: Be a Blogger 

Not too long ago, most of the information and news we received was filtered through major media organizations controlled by a few very wealthy individuals or corporations. We heard what they wanted us to hear based on what they chose to publish or not publish. More »

3. SM & Your Eyecare Business: Facebook for Business 

The goals of a social media campaign are different for a business than for an individual who wishes to socialize. The goals are also different than those of a traditional marketing campaign where one attempts to drive customers directly into their small business. Social media in general works through connections. More »

4. SM & Your Eyecare Business: Twitter 

Twitter launched as the Internet’s first “micro-blogging” site. A “micro-blog” is a blog post whose content is condensed to 140 characters or less. “Tweeting” for our purposes does not describe the sound one makes when passing gas – it is known as the act of posting on the social media suite Twitter. More »

5. SM & Your Eyecare Business: Social Media Aggregation and “LifeStreaming” 

The more social networking sites you sign up for, the harder it is to keep track of everything, and at a certain point it becomes impossible. How do you reconcile the fact that it benefits your online efforts to sign up for as many sites as possible, yet the more sites you participate on, the more confusing and difficult your online marketing efforts become? Time for you to “LifeStream.” More »

6. SM & Your Eyecare Business: Using Google Analytics 

This is a somewhat dryer subject than what I've covered in the past, but it is an extremely important topic. Analytics allows you to observe what is working for you and what is not, and make the appropriate changes. This is the place you start saving money by finding out how effective your paid advertising campaigns have been. It’s also the place you go to find out if your website is an effective marketing machine… or a web 1.0 dinosaur that’s rarely visited except when someone’s finger slips on the keyboard and ends up at your site by accident. As I’ve said before, having a marketing effort on the internet without Analytics is like running a business without accounting. More »

 

7. SM & Your Eyecare Business: Online Reputation Control 

Something is happening online that you need to be aware of. People are talking about you and your business using social networking and review sites like Yelp and Yahoo local. Sitting on the sidelines, not wrapping your head around it and refusing to pay attention to what’s being said about your business will hurt your marketing efforts… not to mention your bottom line. More »


8. SM & Your Eyecare Business: Social Dealing; A New Trend 

Groupon, LivingSocial, PlumDistrict are all websites that you can partner with to create a special “deal-of-the-day” campaign, driving people into your business. A relatively new phenomenon, “deal-of-the-day” websites are powerful tools gaining momentum among consumers. These companies offer daily deals at highly discounted prices through the power of group buying. More »

9. SM & Your Eyecare Business: Social eMail: The Importance of Integrating Social Media 
in Your Email Marketing 

In 2009, Boston College suspended the distribution of email addresses to incoming freshmen in favor of using social media. More »

10. SM & Your Eyecare Business: Social Media Monitoring Tools 

Remember six years ago, when the tenet “one happy patient will tell two people about your business but one unhappy patient will tell 10” still held? More »

11. SM & Your Eyecare Business: 4 Major Social Media Trend Predictions for 2011 

As much as I hate predictions, this blog seems to be the perfect place to do just that. More »

 



   

 








Glazier is at aglazier@youreyesite.com and his regular
posts can be found via his Twitter handle: @EyeInfo,
his blog: eyeinfo.wordpress.com and his website:
YourEyeSite.com.