It should go without saying that social networking and it’s impact on marketing is pervasive and runs the gamut from corporate to institution to association to study club to the lowest life form in that pecking order (perceived by the others of course in terms of categorization), the dentist. The tragedy in force as this blog has pointed out repeatedly, with no response from the so called superior life forms including those who sell their souls to governance and licensing bodies and you know who you are, is that no one is willing to discourse. The usual reason given is the possibility of flaming or slander or libel or whatever. Bottom line to this blogger, is you should have nothing to fear from the truth, it’s the only thing you never need remember and as to dialogue, hard to do in another person’s “court”, ask any professional sports team…..the psychological dynamics of home court advantage are daunting, even colour selection impacts on performance – would an undertaker wear pink?. So to be bold and daring, resolve to consider the following for 2012 or stand your ground in the face of calumny and encourage others to do the same because when you shift the process and move the mainstream into more effective pathways, the end result works for all concerned.
Resolve to find a systematic means of measuring marketing effectiveness. The need for meaningful metrics has never been greater and the score card required to assess performance is essential to planning. Without mentioning names, my local society has the potential for 800+ members. It has on file, barely 100+. An inquiry to an unnamed association, located between Manitoba and Quebec for email addresses gets the following response; we can’t release them, but we can send a missive to them from your society. First and foremost, your society has just been granted a subsidiary position, ergo, the importance of membership is already in question. Centralization of intranets et al work in corporations, when did dental associations decide they should be corporate? The concept of REPLY ALL puts you above the radar and possibly on the bread lines – shades of back room power broking.
The issue of polling has been addressed in this blog before. Surveymonkey.com is used pervasively by societies; wonder why they don’t set up simple electronic polling. As to the relevance for a practice, how do you monitor your internal marketing, or do you just buy off the shelf newsletters et al…….like everyone else. It’s the era of individualism and individuation – be bold, be daring. Empower your employees, be creative, take a chance, it’s high time you joined in the dance.
Resolve to seek power partnerships. Coalesce your brand around ideas that are bigger than any one individual, practice or company can create. Stretch your dollars and reach new targets. I proposed to Oral Health, the CDA and U of T, and would propose the same to any university with a significant SIMLAB or training centre, that they create a unified platform entity online….MENTOR – Multiplatform Educational Nexus Terminal for Online Resources and stop creating independent infrastructures – an open forum where each entity provides it’s unique resource and the endgame is a never ending educational NEXUS TERMINAL for Canadian dentists to shine shine shine. For some, an article is an ordeal, for others iMOVIE an avocation and Spielbergian (wet dream) oops, can’t say that, okay, lets go with emulation…..it’s not about the top tier, it’s about Ladders, Layers and Leadership, there is a place for one and for all.
Resolve to ensure the highest calibre content. POLL THE CONSUMER – find out their wants and needs; don’t bring material to the table to ingratiate yourself with a manufacturing entity who provides you patronage – how Mediccian or Borgian. Today’s new magic toy is tomorrow’s doorstop in far too many cases. Set the content standards high; be dismissive of mediocrity or irrelevancy or self-promotion on fiduciary alliances proposing magic and wonder in new technology. There is a basic biologic mandate and flow for all things dental.
Resolve to engage your customer community with speed, agility, better decision making and reduced risk. Check the ideas with them to garner full commitment. Have you ever done a practice analysis using a poll of your client base……a true poll, accepting that criticism is actually GOOD FOR BUSINESS. It’s a corporate colonic and so many corporations are in need of a BOTTOM LINE colonic…..serving the bottom line is not always good business….purge, purge into the darkness on the road to enlightenment.
SOCIAL MEDIA IS NOT AN ADVERTISING CHANNEL. FACEBOOK, TWITTER, YOUTUBE PUSH MESSAGES OUT AND ARE INHERENTLY EFFECTIVE FOR RESEARCH, CUSTOMER SERVICE AND OTHER VENTURES CUSTOMERS MAY FIND VALUABLE. TOP OF THE FOOD CHAIN TO BOTTOM FEEDERS – YOU PICK THE POSITION – IT APPLIES TO ONE AND ALL. LEARN TO EXTRAPOLATE. BE UNAFRAID…..CRITICISM IS USUALLY DIRECTED BACK BY THE FEARFUL, THE CROWD THAT EXEMPLIFIES DO AS I SAY, NOT AS I DO ARE SCARED WHEN CONFRONTED EN MASSE – you say you want a revolution? You do, it’s called democracy in action.
DON’T BE THE LAST ONE IN YOUR INDUSTRY OR AREA TO BUILD A MOBILE SITE. EVERYONE HAS A SMARTPHONE THESE DAYS OR WILL SOON – GET WITH THE PROGRAM – BIG OR SMALL IT APPLIES TO ONE AND ALL.
Many thanks to Jim Carroll for his vision and erudition.
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