Massive international medical device company, Medtronic Inc., shows the medical device community how to use twitter to connect with employees, patients, and customers. Lets take a look at some bullet points on how they achieve this:
- Commitment to Philanthropy
- Philanthropy is a win-win for any large organization. “Corporate America” inherently has a negative stigma with a society ultra informed through social media. Medtronic has committed time, money, and engagement with a philanthropic commitment. Medtronic tenet 6 of their mission states: To maintain good citizenship as a company. Corporations can really brand themselves by illustrating their good deeds through social media. This also doubles as a great way to pre-plan to deal with crisis and opportunity. Having a social media management team that can communicate to employees and consumers in the face of disaster is vital (Weintraub, 2008).
- Positive Social Change
- Medtronic does a wonderful job showing its understanding of its ability to create positive social change which again is great way to create a positive image and connection with those on social media.
- Marketing
- Twitter is a great place for advertising and should be used extensively by a medical device company to inform potential customers of their product line(s) and the differences it can make for patients. Imagery and bold statements are a must.
- Promote Expertise
- In the medical device field this is especially important. Consumers strongly desire trust in the products they purchase, especially when the products can adversely help or hurt their health. Building an emotional connection with consumers through Twitter is a must. Showing the every day people who support the company mission will do so. A company comprised of great people should be promoted (Schawbel, 2008).
Sources
Schawbel, D. (2009). 5 ways to take control of your personal brand. Mashable: The Social Media Guide. Retrieved from https://mashable.com/2009/04/30/control-personal-brand/
Weintraub, M. (2008). Nine essential tactics for reputation management in social media. Retrieved from https://searchengineland.com/nine-essential-tactics-for-reputation-management-in-social-media-13572
Matt's Medical Device Thoughts 