VNN Media Insider
October 7th, 2010 |
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| Dear VNN Member: |
Fall is in the air across the country! Sadly, I missed some of the colors while I was in Colorado two weeks ago, but Dr. Jim has posted some really nice pictures on his Facebook page. Finally, don't forget about that spooky holiday that's just around the corner.... Halloween Safety for Pets is always a great discussion topic in any media. |
| American Society of Veterinary Journalists |
 CONGRATULATIONS to our newest ASVJ certified veterinary journalists! These doctors have shown that they not only understand the importance of educating pet owners, but that they also understand the unique requirements of their specific media!
Dr. Jen Mathis - Iowa
Dr. Amber Andersen - California
Dr. Jennifer Hennessey - Texas
We are also excited to report that we have more than 20 additional applicants currently in the process of becoming certified. These folks are waiting to join these three doctors as well as the other 20 ASVJ certified veterinary journalists!
Are you tired of seeing bad information about pet care on TV or the Internet? You can make a difference by joining ASVJ. Learn more at www.asvj.org. |
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| How NOT To Waste Your Time In Social Media |
Social Media Marketing is a helpful tool, but you have to be careful not to waste time on unnecessary and even harmful actions in your quest to make the most of this new tool. Here are six big time-wasters to avoid:
Reading every Tweet or Facebook Post. Once you begin to follow a big crowd you can't catch every little thing. So don't feel guilty if you miss some posts. I recommend making Favorites Lists ("Groups" in Facebook) so that you can make sure to catch everything that the most relevant people have to say. Now if you have time to read then, read as much as you realistically have time for. I think listening (reading) is one of the most important parts of social media marketing, but don't kill your productivity by reading all day long. Facebook is about to roll out a new way to "organize" your friends that will help with this as well. Also, set your friends into different lists in Facebook...work, family, VNN, etc.
Subscribing to too many Blogs. You should subscribe to relevant blogs, but be picky, be realistic. You cannot be everywhere, you just can't. So choose your feeds wisely. Following blogs won't do you any good if you don't have time to read, understand, and respond when necessary. You may want to respond by sharing with others, you might join the conversation, you might need to adjust something you are doing based on this new information. So don't over do it, because if you read ALL the relevant blogs there will be no time to respond accordingly. Perhaps have a trusted staff member read half of what interests you. Use an aggregator like iGoggle to sort your blogs. The Google reader also gives you each blog's headline and a quick way to reveiw the blog.
Getting involved in too many different social media sites. Keep focus on the sites that are most relevant to you. We use Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, Blogs, and our Forums (www.PetDocsOnCall.com) . Our forum is a great "safe base" for you. I suggest you blog, or comment on blog articles where you can add some value . Also maintain your Twitter posts, Facebook pages (personal and business), LinkedIn (I believe is pretty important) and YouTube profiles. This is where we find our specific community interacts. Don't be afraid to ask clients where they "hang-out", and don't be afraid to try something, give it the appropriate time to see if it works, and then make your exit if you find it does not work for your needs. Social media is still in a growth and "find what works" phase. Many of the social sites can be linked so that you only need to "post" once and the information can be disseminated to your various accounts.
Checking your social media too often. I know this one gets me and can really chew you're your productivity. Block out specific times of day where you spend 30 minutes or an hour, reading and replying on your social media pages. Don't let the urge to hop over and check it every hour pull you under. Building a practice and your social media presence, sure you would want to spend more time here, but in a busy practice setting, limit it to a set time per day. Don't automatically choose to receive email notifications of everything your friends post or receive a text message for everyone you follow on Twitter. Be selective!
Following or Friending people who are not a part of your community. Do you automatically let anyone who asks you to be a friend, be a friend? Do you automatically follow any Twitter follower that follows you? This can be a humongous waste of time. If you check my twitter account (PetDocsOnCall) you will see I simply do not follow very many people. I follow news and a few pet industry types I'm interested in. The "Follow everyone that follows you" philosophy is an old one and in my opinion, a real time waster. Twitter is a tool and it will take time to learn how best to use it. Don't let anyone who is not relevant to your business take any of your time or energy. There are many types of relevant people in this world; mentors, prospects, clients, industry experts, P.R. connections, local connections, you will have to make the final decision. The important thing here is to not let a bunch of spamming, get rich quick, time wasters get mixed into your community.
Your time is precious, but social media is powerful and can really bring you new clients. Use it wisely!!
Please let Tom or me know how we can help you! |
| More Video Resources Coming From VNN! |
 For several months, we have been describing the capability of VNN to create customized "video blogs" or "vBlogs" for our members. We can put your face and voice to our videos for a unique and personal resource for your website.
We are also creating "welcome videos" for hospitals. These short videos can help introduce new clients (or even established clients) to your hospital and really show off everything you have to offer!!
Take a look at this two videos that we recently completed:
I am sure you can see how intensely valuable professional videos like this could be to your hospital.
Have you been interviewed on camera recently? Do you have a link to a website with a video of you that you would like to capture for your media kit? Contact us and we may be able to help you grab that video and use in your social media or even at your hospital website or blog! |
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Welcome to our new members from Oklahoma, Texas, South Carolina and Florida!
Sincerely,
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