By Peter Lyle DeHaan, Ph.D.
Mention social media and people have one of three responses: “I love it,” “I can’t stand it,” or “I don’t have time.”
We hear much about social media, perhaps too much, but it’s bound to continue and will occur with increasing frequency. Social media is not going away anytime soon – and if it ever does disappear, it will become even more prevalent before that happens.
The nagging reality is that it’s becoming increasingly important for people and organizations to have a presence on social media. Do you?
While it’s not practical to be on every social media site – there are hundreds, if not thousands – there are some biggies to consider, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter, as well as blogging.
AnswerStat Online: Before we look at AnswerStat magazine’s social media presence, there is something more important to consider first. Our online presence starts with our Website, containing over 600 pages of information, including articles, resources, and related material. We also have a complete archive of all past issues of the magazine, saved as PDF files, which allow easy access for readers to view, forward, save, and even print.
Our online presence extends to our newsfeed and blog, now exceeding 280 pages. Here we post relevant industry news and commentary, as well as a schedule of upcoming healthcare call center conventions, conferences, and meetings. Plus, we recently added the option for guest posts, and we look forward to your submissions. Every post includes the option to comment and share via social media. Each time you comment or share, you help make it easier for more people to find our information, elevating us and the industry in the process.
Currently our Website and blog are two separate sites, but we plan to merge the two next year at AnswerStat.com, with a fresh new look.
AnswerStat on Social Media: In addition to our blog, AnswerStat has an online presence on Twitter and Facebook. (AnswerStat isn’t on LinkedIn, but I am, as Peter DeHaan.)
We are most active on Twitter, where we also have the biggest social media following. There we tweet each new blog post and news item. The tweets include a link to our blog, allowing for one-click access to the full text. Of course, each time a reader favors or retweets one of our tweets, more people then have the opportunity to see it.
Next is Facebook. On Facebook, we post links to each blog post and news item, as well as each new issue of AnswerStat magazine and our e-newsletter, Medical Call Center News. A limitation of Facebook is that not everyone who “friends” or “likes” something actually sees their posts, but only a small subset. However, as more people like and comment on a post, Facebook shows it to a greater audience.
Read more in Peter Lyle DeHaan’s Healthcare Call Center Essentials, available in hardcover, paperback, and e-book.
Peter Lyle DeHaan, PhD, is the publisher and editor-in-chief of AnswerStat and Medical Call Center News covering the healthcare call center industry. Read his latest book, Sticky Customer Service.