Whether you’re targeting hospitals or distributors, our Digital Marketing in Healthcare E-Guide can help you harness the power of Facebook to:
- Reach a wider audience
- Improve your brand’s visibility
- Boost your sales
We will also go over some marketing mistakes we see manufacturers of healthcare products make all too often – and advise you what to do instead.
And if you’re having second thoughts about whether it’s a good idea to spend what could be a sizeable chunk of your marketing budget on a Facebook campaign, consider this: Facebook is still the world’s most popular social network. As such, it really ought to play a big part in your broader online marketing strategy.
Quick Takeaways
- Facebook is the world’s most popular social media network. If you don’t develop a Facebook marketing campaign, you may miss out on many business opportunities.
- That said, generating leads through Facebook is only half the work. You should then nurture them by engaging with them and addressing their unique needs.
- When it comes to Facebook marketing in medical device sales, what you don’t do may be just as important as what you do. Avoiding common mistakes could be critical for the success of your marketing strategy.
Share Moving Media’s Digital Marketing in Healthcare E-Guide: How to Use Facebook Marketing in Medical Device Sales
Without further ado, let’s take a look at our tried-and-tested tips on Facebook marketing in medical device sales.
1. Set Measurable Goals and Draw Up a Plan
Social media content may come across as informal and spontaneous – and sometimes, it is. However, if you want to maximize the ROI on your Facebook marketing strategy, you shouldn’t approach it like throwing wet spaghetti at a wall in the hope that some might stick.
Don’t leave things to chance. Define your goals, make an action plan, and stick to it. To quantify your goals, use metrics such as:
- Click-through rate
- Number of prospects converted to leads
- Number of leads converted to paying customers
It’s also a good idea to create a content calendar to ensure you publish consistently. You should aim to post frequently and at the optimal time of day, based on the number of views and click-throughs. Share Moving Media can help you set up and manage a content calendar across all platforms.
2. Get to Know Your Audience
If you haven’t already created your ideal buyer’s persona, do so before progressing any further with your Facebook marketing. The goal is to reach the right customers – namely, GPOs – with the right message. You won’t be able to do that if you don’t hone in on your target group, or if you publish irrelevant content that doesn’t address their pain points.
That said, you may want to connect with patients themselves, too. While they may not be your target demographic, many patients these days are familiar with healthcare brands and products and may leave reviews and ratings on Facebook. This, in turn, could influence the purchasing decisions of your direct customers: GPOs.
3. Consider Carefully What Types of Content to Post
As a general rule, any marketing content you post on Facebook should be informative, helpful, up-to-date, and focused on improving patient care. Beyond that, you should consider what formats to use – and when to use them. Examples include:
- Company updates
- Information about new products
- Answers to frequently asked questions
- Links to your blog articles
- Links to landing pages with promotions and special offers
- Market surveys or questions to start a conversation
- Case studies, success stories, practical tips, statistics, and other educational content
Don’t forget to throw in some photos, infographics, and short videos for good measure.
In any case, any content you publish on Facebook should be consistent with the rest of your marketing and your brand image.
4. Look Into Paid Facebook Ads
Don’t overlook the opportunity to use paid Facebook ads. One of the platform’s biggest advantages is its targetability. Your market may be a relatively small niche within the healthcare supply chain, but paid ads can ensure that you zero in on the GPOs you want to reach.
5. Direct People to Your Website
The ultimate goal of your Facebook presence is to generate leads and increase sales. To do that, use irresistible offers and relevant calls to action (CTAs) to bring your followers to specific landing pages within your website.
Don’t forget that the process works the other way around, too: always encourage website visitors to join you on Facebook to learn more and get in touch.
Mistakes to Avoid When Developing Your Facebook Marketing in Medical Device Sales
Some healthcare product manufacturers shoot themselves in the foot when they make these common but preventable mistakes.
1. Failing to Engage with Your Followers
Engaging with your audience is crucial to building trust and brand loyalty, and getting to know your customers better. This includes:
- Replying to questions
- Acknowledging comments
- Reacting to likes and shares
- Responding to customer feedback
2. Not Following Up on Leads
Generating leads through Facebook is only half the job. What you should be doing next is nurturing them. Usually, this involves providing them with a personalized and timely engagement process that addresses their specific needs.
3. Using Inappropriate CTAs or Hashtags
Irrelevant or improper CTAs and hashtags do more harm than good. A wrong hashtag can cause you to target the wrong audience, and a confusing CTA may result in your customers not doing what you want them to do.
4. Not Optimizing for Mobile
98.8% of users access social media using a mobile device. That means one thing: if you fail to create mobile-friendly content – including ads – you will not reach as many people as you otherwise could.
Facebook Marketing in Medical Device Sales: The Bottom Line
We hope that you found our Digital Marketing in Healthcare E-Guide informative. However, there’s a lot more that goes into building a successful Facebook marketing strategy.
Share Moving Media is a full service media organization designed specifically for healthcare suppliers. We write blogs, produce podcasts and webinars, host live events, publish magazines, white papers, case studies, articles, and produce video and online training modules. We do all of this in context to the audience you want to reach.
To learn more tips on how you can use Facebook marketing to take your business to the next level, contact our team. We’d be more than happy to help!