The irony of advocating the usage of social media for hospital marketing is that it unintentionally is inviting people to create new problems for themselves.
That statement is even more ironic since one of the ways we advocate social media is by touting its many benefits and ease of use—which is something we stand behind.
However, if you are going to engage in social media—personally, professionally or both—you must monitor your accounts, for reasons both good and bad.
The Good
As I do at least once a day, I scan the “Mentions” column in my TweetDeck application (my preferred app for Twitter, both on my computer and my iPhone; but I would love to hear about what you use!).
Usually, tweets in my “Mentions” column are exciting and affirming. I almost always thank the people that mention me, and if I’m not already following them, I also usually end up doing so.
The Bad
However, the other day, I saw a retweet in the Mentions column that supposedly originated from my account; it also contained a link to a bogus “work for Google at home” scam.
What’s noteworthy is that the tweet was written in a way where it wasn’t immediately obvious that the link was a scam. Since I immediately reported the tweet as spam, it was stricken from the Twitter record, so I can’t find what it actually said. However, it was along the lines of “I agree with @derekrudnak!” with a shortened link to the scam’s Website.
Had I not been diligent about monitoring my account—or even trusted what seemed to be a benign and slightly flattering statement—this tweet would still be floating around out there…essentially telling the world that I support that Website and its related scam.
It’s not hard to extrapolate the potential damage this type of fraudulent tweeting practice can do to the reputation of a person—such as a doctor, a hospital administrator, or perhaps even an entire hospital. Monitor those accounts, folks!
Does your hospital have a trusted and reliable partner to build, manage and plan your online marketing strategies? AVID Design offers free assessments for Websites, content, strategy and more.
The irony of advocating the usage of social media for hospital marketing is that it unintentionally is inviting people to create new problems for themselves.
Most of the time, tweets in the “Mentions” column are positive—but don’t just scan the column. Be sure you know exactly what is being said (and where links go) in Tweets that mention your name.
That statement is even more ironic since one of the ways we advocate social media is by touting its many benefits and ease of use—which is something we stand behind.
However, if you are going to engage in social media—personally, professionally or both—you must monitor your accounts, for reasons both good and bad.
The Good
As I do at least once a day, I scan the “Mentions” column in my TweetDeck application (my preferred app for Twitter, both on my computer and my iPhone; but I would love to hear about what you use!).
Usually, tweets in my “Mentions” column are exciting and affirming. I almost always thank the people that mention me, and if I’m not already following them, I also usually end up doing so.
The Bad
However, the other day, I saw a retweet in the Mentions column that supposedly originated from my account; it also contained a link to a bogus “work for Google at home” scam.
What’s noteworthy is that the tweet was written in a way where it wasn’t immediately obvious that the link was a scam. Since I immediately reported the tweet as spam, it was stricken from the Twitter record, so I can’t find what it actually said. However, it was along the lines of “I agree with @derekrudnak!” with a shortened link to the scam’s Website.
Had I not been diligent about monitoring my account—or even trusted what seemed to be a benign and slightly flattering statement—this tweet would still be floating around out there…essentially telling the world that I support that Website and its related scam.
It’s not hard to extrapolate the potential damage this type of fraudulent tweeting practice can do to the reputation of a person—such as a doctor, a hospital administrator, or perhaps even an entire hospital. Monitor those accounts, folks!
Does your hospital have a trusted and reliable partner to build, manage and plan your online marketing strategies? AVID Design offers free assessments for Websites, content, strategy and more.
Derek Rudnak | Communications Specialist | AVID Design
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This entry was posted
on Thursday, September 24th, 2009 at 2:06 pm and is filed under Brand Monitoring, Social Media, Web 2.0.
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