Ouch. No one likes to get rejected, especially when that judgment occurs before the person even gets a chance to know you.
In today’s media-first world, human beings have to carefully curate their online presence for both personal and professional reasons. Get matched with someone on a dating app? They’re doing a deep dive into your Instagram. Apply to your dream job? You best bet the recruiter has eyes on your Facebook page. And if they see something they don’t like… it’s game over. Your competitor has a lot fewer drunken-night-out selfies than you on their page, and they’re looking pretty good to Ms. HR right about now!
So how does this apply to the skilled nursing industry?
Gone are the days where you can rely on great customer service and local word of mouth to get people through your doors. Simply put, you have to look good online. And we mean really good. Think of your online presence like a dating profile. Judgments are going to be made based on anything and everything on your page, from your photo to your chosen hobbies. One unanswered negative review, one small mistake with your contact info on the website, one discontinued social media page—any of these seemingly minor infractions can be a massive “X” next to your name in a decision maker’s notes.
If you want to run a successful healthcare facility, we all know the name of the game is filling census. If your admissions are plateauing despite your marketers’ best efforts, it’s time to evaluate if the story being told about your facility online is one you want potential residents to see.
Because we have literal decades of shared experience in making SNFs, ALFs, and rehab centers look good online, we’ve aggregated our top ten ways your online presence could be hurting admissions and what to do about it.
- You’re not posting on social media
- Your social media pages are boring or unappealing
- Negative comments on social media
- Negative reviews on Google, Facebook, Caring.com
- Your Google star rating is low
- Your Google My Business isn’t optimized
- Contact info (or any info) on website is wrong
- Contact info is hard to find
- Your website is dry and unappealing
- Unanswered questions, comments, Google reviews
- You’re not posting on social media
Why is posting on social media so critical? Many people underestimate the benefits of having an active social media presence. To the layperson, posting on social media is just a fun way to show off what your residents are up to. While that’s definitely a perk, posting on social accomplishes several goals adjacent to admissions:
- If your social media pages are active and up-to-date, potential residents researching your facility see that you’re a real place, with fun, kind staff members, and a robust program. This builds brand trust.
- Posting on social media helps boost your SEO (Search Engine Optimization, or where you rank on Google’s results page.) This helps with admissions because your name will pop up in several search results when researching you.
- By highlighting the staff, residents, services, and amenities that set your facility apart, you can edge out the competition simply by boosting your professional image on social media platforms.
By not posting on social media, not only are you missing out on a critical opportunity to stand out to potential residents, but it makes you appear less legitimate as a business.
- Your social media pages are boring or unappealing
Ok, so we convinced you that you’re going to start posting on social media. But before you start frantically snapping photos and uploading them with abandon, stop and consider: do you have a strategy? What are your posts accomplishing? Are they really highlighting your facility in the most flattering light?
If your posts are boring and dry, you’ll quickly fall to the wayside as an option. Let’s be real: If one facility is posting about bringing in an Elvis impersonator for Rock n’ Roll month, and one facility is posting about how angry they are that their local mayor isn’t Christian… which facility would YOU choose for your loved one?
Another example: two facilities post about their holiday party. One posts a simple collage featuring a severely handicapped resident who appears to be in tears while wearing a Santa hat, and another posts a lively, upbeat montage of the staff dancing in the hallways set to Maria Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You.” You don’t have to be a social media guru to see which has better optics.
TypoDuctions helps skilled nursing facilities post incredible, engaging content on social media that is not only dynamic and eye-catching, but ensures that any imagery or videos that would show your facility in an unflattering light are not posted—a common issue we see when untrained parties are put in charge of managing social media. Another common issue:
- Negative comments on social media
You can have the most gorgeous posts in the feed. These posts can even go viral! But if the comments on your posts are primarily negative, you’re going to turn more people away than draw them in. Some critically harmful comments that we’ve seen in real life include:
- “Nice of you to throw parties all day, while my mom sits in her bed begging someone to help her out.”
- “Shane is the worst CNA and a terrible person. Why are you letting him sing with the residents?”
- “This is so fake. I worked at the facility and I would know. The staff is treated like S**t.”
These comments are a massive turn-off for potential residents and staff. Can you blame them? These were left by real people who had a negative experience with your facility. They’re going to take their word for it, no matter how outlandish the claim. Whether it’s true or not is irrelevant in the court of public opinion!
So how do you fix negative comments on social media? There are several strategies our team uses to ensure these comments are removed as swiftly as possible. What we recommend in general is to keep an eye out on your social posts as often as possible and address negative comments as soon as they are posted.
If you’re struggling with this on your social media pages, please reach out to our team today. We can help you get this negativity under control so your social media posts don’t do more harm than good. We have an entire team dedicated to monitoring online reviews, responding to negative comments, and reporting damaging feedback so it has a higher percent chance of getting removed off the page.
Stay tuned for Part 2 of this series to learn more about ways your online presence is hurting admissions! What has your biggest takeaway been so far?
If you’re struggling with any of the above challenges, please reach out to our Business Development team today so we can help craft a strategy for you. Contact jonah@typoductions.com TODAY to help boost your admissions!
