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Facebook vs. Twitter – Which One is Best for Your Practice?
When it comes to your practice’s social media strategy, the goal shouldn’t always be about finding the latest or greatest network out there. It’s more about discovering which social media networks are the right fit for your office and learning where you can connect to the right community.
Knowing where to invest your efforts can be a downright difficult task. That said, learning the difference between social networks, such as Facebook and Twitter, should help ease that decision and will likely save you time in the long run. Each network has its own pros and cons, ranging from user base to levels of engagement.
In this post, I’ll breakdown both Facebook and Twitter, which should help you decide which of these networks (both may also be the answer) is the right fit for you!
Facebook is known as the crème de la crème of social media platforms for business owners. Having a social media strategy that involves Facebook is pretty typical these days. Being the most heavily trafficked site means there’s a higher chance of your name and content getting in front of prospective patients.
On average, Facebook’s userbase leans older than other networks such as Twitter and Instagram. If your goal is attaining new patients, focusing on Facebook can help you target people who make the purchasing decisions for their family. Along with more users, Facebook posts on average typically experience higher levels of engagement for offices. If staying connected to your patients is important to you, investing your time in Facebook is definitely worth the payoff.
Facebook also allows various forms of content on its network, which is a huge plus. Certain networks cater specifically to a form of media, i.e. – TikTok only allows videos, and Instagram doesn’t support text posts or links.
Facebook’s advantage is that it allows for many different types of media. Like other networks, Facebook supports photos and videos but unlike their competitors, Facebook is also great for sharing blog links, articles, live streams, albums, events, and such. A strategy filled with diverse types of content gives you more options and will likely be easier to plan out in the long run.
Twitter is another popular social media network. Whereas Facebook is great for longform posts, quick quips and funny anecdotes are what really shine on Twitter. In the past, Twitter has limited posts to 140 characters, meaning you only have a sentence to get your message across. This has recently expanded to 280 characters but the saying still holds true for Twitter – keep it short and sweet. Twitter is great at showing off a practice’s unique personality. If your office has someone who has a unique perspective, Twitter could be a great place to build a following.
If you’re trying to connect with younger patients, Twitter is a great option. Twitter’s average user age leans much younger than Facebook’s. Twitter users are not necessarily making decisions when it comes to selecting health care providers, but their influence is definitely heard. Having an authentic Twitter account can show off your office’s unique voice to attract new patients from demographics you might not have reached before.
Getting Started
These days there are a ton of ways to connect with new and current patients online. Utilizing many different networks seems like a smart strategy but the quality of your posts can quickly start slipping when you have too much on your plate.
We always suggest focusing on one or two networks to start out with and, once you’ve built a solid following, start dipping your toes into the others. It’s important to always remember the golden rule of social media – quality over quantity!
—Tyler Harris, Lead Social Media Specialist, Sesame Communications