Demandforce

Social Media: What Should I Post?

Thu, 01 Mar 2012 09:23:00 -0800

Do you ever feel stumped when it comes to posting on your business’s social media pages? Its only natural to feel a bit of stage fright. After all, your business decisions are important ones.

Demandforce recommends that you post to your Facebook and Twitter pages at least once per day to stay relevant with your patients. If once a day sounds overwhelming, try starting with 2 posts per week. If you don’t feel particularly savvy with social media, consider asking someone on your staff to take on this responsibility. Or, make the time to tune in for a quick lesson and you will be a pro in no time. We’re serious, it’s that simple.

Have you established a ‘voice’ for communicating with your patients?

Use this question as a guideline for what you intend on posting. Unlike a personal Facebook page, its important that posts on your business page maintain some consistency. For example, we use Demandforce’s Twitter account as a tool for sharing top stories in the small business world. Weekly, we research the latest articles in business, social media, marketing, strategy, and technology to share with our customers. For your business page, you may consider choosing few relevant sources from which you can grab content. Demandforce likes to use Mashable, The Huffington Post, Entrepreneur, and Social Times as a few great resources for our tweets. Find the ones that relate to you and create a bookmark tab for the websites you will be using frequently for easy access.

Helpful Tools

Google Alerts: Not enough time in the day to even THINK about social media? Google alerts can help. These are email updates of the latest relevant Google results (web, news, etc.) based on your specific search terms. Simply enter a term you’d like to monitor and the results will be delivered to your inbox daily. You may choose something like “Social Media Ideas for Dental” or “San Francisco Events” for posting topics. You are free to choose the type and frequency of the results. 50 % of the time that we receive a “Demandforce” Google alert, the information is applicable to our social media pages.
Timely: Sound familiar? This time saving tool is found in your Demandforce portal. Timely grants you the ability to schedule your Facebook and Twitter posts AHEAD of time. Take 30 minutes out of 1 day and set up all your posts for the month. We like to say, “Set it and forget it.” As we encounter useful articles throughout our day, we simply add them to our Timely queue for future posting. Learn more about Timely.

Ideas for Posting

Events: Use the events in your community to create participation on your page.

Mention that you’ll be attending the homecoming game this Friday.
Attending an amazing concert this weekend? Tell everyone about it.
Excited about the upcoming baseball season? Ask who they think will make it to the World Series this season!

Highlight Your 5 Star Reviews: Show your patients that you care about their feedback.

Take pride in these accomplishments and post them to your wall.
“I LOVE Smiles SF, they always treat me like a VIP!”
Make sure you thank them with a shout out, “Thanks for the love, Jamie!”

Quotes & Fun Facts: Everyone loves learning something new.

“Did you know, the average person swallows 8 spiders in a lifetime? Make sure you brush in the morning!”
“If you’ve been to the dentist multiple times, you know the drill.”
“A wise man ought to realize that health is his most valuable possession.” -Hippocrates

Photos: Provide a more personal approach to your patients.

Did Haley just get her braces taken off? Take a picture of her new smile and share the joy.
Who are your most loyal patients? Feature a cool fact about them on your page with a photo.
Choose a “patient of the week”. Tell everyone why this patient is so amazing.

Videos: Show off your creative side.

Patient testimonials will highlight happy patients and show off your awesome customer service.
Share the YouTube videos that you just can’t get enough of. Have a little fun.
Showcase your awesome staff. What are the perks of working at your practice?

Celebrate Your Team’s Achievements: What does your staff do outside the office?

Congratulate your receptionist on getting accepted into graduate school.
Share your involvement in any fundraising events .
Invite your patients to join you!

Giveaways & Contests: Everyone loves free swag.

“Where did Dr. Smith go to dental school? First person to call/ email us with the answer will receive 2 movie tickets!”
Have a raffle! Donate the proceeds to the cause of your choice.
The latest Demandforce contest is all about Campaigns. Customers who create the coolest Campaigns are winning a pizza party on us!

Holidays: Use these special days as opportunities to wish your patients well.

Engage your patients by asking what they are doing to celebrate the day.

Ask for Input: Different perspectives can be highly beneficial to your business.

Ask your patients for their thoughts on any changes to the office.

Many of these ideas include casual involvement from your patients. The small investment in these posts will be returned the second just ONE patient comes in for a visit! Remember, your social media pages are essential for building these connections with your patient base.

Okay, time to get post happy! Have some fun getting your patients involved.

Small Business Spending Confidence At Highest Level In Four Years

Thu, 23 Feb 2012 10:10:00 -0800

Small Business Spending Confidence At Highest Level In Four Years:

The proportion of small businesses planning to increase their capital spending in the next 12 months is at its highest rate in four years, according to a new Gallup poll.

9 Hot Tips for Small Business Marketing on Facebook

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 16:17:12 -0800

9 Hot Tips for Small Business Marketing on Facebook:

This post originally appeared on the American Express OPEN Forum, where Mashable regularly contributes articles about leveraging social media and technology in small business. With 845 million users, Facebook has become an increasingly useful tool for brands, and it’s important to have a stron…

Increase Email Effectiveness Now With These Key Tips By now...

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 14:08:00 -0800

Increase Email Effectiveness Now With These Key Tips

By now you’ve sent enough in the way of Newsletters and Custom Promotions to know the basics. Here are a few tips on how to supercharge your Newsletters and Custom Promotions to get what you really want from email marketing – more business! Read our Blog Post here.

Exciting Updates To Your Campaigns Tab

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 14:06:42 -0800

You may have noticed some changes in your Campaigns Tab over the last few days. These new feature updates will help you reach your customers in an even more effective, and easier, way.

The new Campaigns module provides you:

New and improved campaign creation experience
Image Gallery to host pictures online
Upgraded content editor
Ability to customize colors and layout of your template
Ability to upload your own lists

For more great tips and best practices on sending out effective email campaigns, read this post from our Customer Service Director, Annie Tsai, and supercharge your marketing efforts today!

As always, we welcome your questions and feedback. Please do not hesitate to contact us at support@demandforce.com

Useful Tips To Grow Your Small Business – Announcing Demandforce Whiteboard & Quick Tips

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 14:05:45 -0800

If you’ve ever felt that it’s too time-consuming and difficult to keep up with the changes on the Internet and learn to use the new technology to help grow your business, you are NOT alone. To help you learn some tools and technology (including Demandforce) that you can easily put to use in your everyday work life, we’ve created a free video program called “Demandforce Whiteboard and Quick Tips”. Curious? Here’s a sneak peek of Lauren’s whiteboard video below.

Meet the Presenters.

Demandforce Whiteboard: Lauren shows you how Facebook Check-ins...

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 14:03:00 -0800

Demandforce Whiteboard: Lauren shows you how Facebook Check-ins work.

Ken of S.A.S. German Auto Shares His Secrets for Success

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 14:01:24 -0800

Ken of S.A.S. German Auto Shares His Secrets for Success

Meet Your Demandforce Ambassador – Stages SalonSpa

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:58:49 -0800

Meet Your Demandforce Ambassador – Stages SalonSpa

Raise Your Game

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:57:43 -0800

Raise Your Game:

Hey Chiro customers, raise your game with these marketing tips! This article features Demandforce’s own marketing director, Chris Brubaker.

Social Marketing Made Easy

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:56:59 -0800

Social Marketing Made Easy :

Social marketing is vital for your small business. Here’s the 411 from our friends at Flowtown with a special Demandforce shoutout.

Discover what Real Clients are Saying about Demandforce

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:55:16 -0800

Discover what Real Clients are Saying about Demandforce

Extreme DemandForce Makeover – Campaign Edition

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:38:58 -0800

Hello Demandforcers! Want an office pizza party on us? Participate in our E-mail campaign contest! Follow the link to Our Blog to check out the contest rules! Have fun, and work up that appetite!

Ever endured a bad review? Here's 5 tips from Flowtown for proactive damage control.

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 13:33:09 -0800

Ever endured a bad review? Here's 5 tips from Flowtown for proactive damage control.