Healthcare marketers tackle Pinterest
How the new social media site can work for hospitals
The newest social media site, Pinterest, is growing rapidly. According to Arik Hanson, Pinterest drives more traffic than Google+, LinkedIn and MySpace combined, and has 10.4 million registered users. Considering the reach and the simplicity of setting up and maintaining an account, it’s no surprise that healthcare marketers are starting to experiment with Pinterest.
For those who aren’t familiar, Pinterest is a social media site that can be equated to an online pinboard. People create different themed pinboards where they can “pin” photos and videos into neat categories to share with others, and they can also discover new things by browsing others’ pinboards.
While companies such as Whole Foods, Nordstrom, Kate Spade and Chobani have already built a large following on Pinterest, the healthcare sector has been slow to catch on. The advantages to a hospital utilizing Pinterest may not be as obvious as those in retail or consumer goods, but there are a few creative ways to get involved and promote not just a service, but a lifestyle. Some good examples of Pinterest accounts in the healthcare sector are Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, OH, Baylor Health in North Texas, and Dayton Children’s Medical Center in Dayton, OH.
These users pin a combination of pictures, videos and infographics. While some of them are their own, many them are “repinned” from other users, which helps them build a sense of community among their followers. Here are a few examples of their pinboards to get you started:
- Photos of the hospital, especially new renovations
- Inspirational pictures and quotes
- Healthy recipes and holiday recipes
- Fitness tips and motivation
- Photos of special events or fundraisers
- Patient stories or miracle stories
- Health tips and health awareness videos and infographics
- Photos of employees
- Photos of events or landmarks in the city where it’s located
According to Jessica Levco, Baylor Health also uses interactive health quizzes and “printable checklists for good health, which include information on questions to ask your doctor during a visit, how to create an emergency kit, and tips for losing weight.”
An infographic recently created by Mashable shows the majority of Pinterest users are women, between the ages of 25 and 34, and 50% of Pinterest users have children. That being said, Pinterest would be a great place to target patients if you specialize in maternity, women’s health, or pediatrics. Here are some pinboard ideas for this demographic:
- Maternity photos, tips, and products
- Breast cancer awareness
- Heart disease awareness
- Children’s safety
- Kid-friendly recipes
- Photos of children’s center
- Photos of artwork made by child patients
ConnectHer Women & Infants Hospital in Providence, RI has a neat pinboard titled “What to bring to the hospital with you,” for maternity patients that includes items such as a robe, toothbrush, deodorant, comfy pillow, and slippers. Newton-Wellesley Hospital in MA is utilizing a public pinboard titled “I was born at Newton-Wellesley,” that invites people to pin photos of their children to it.
Is your hospital or health center using Pinterest yet? Post links to your pinboard in the comments below.