ASK ALEX

Should our clinic have a LinkedIn page?

ALEX BUGG

Alex Bugg works for Web Marketing Clinic, a family-run digital agency, which specialises in medical aesthetics. The business builds websites and delivers marketing campaigns for doctors, nurses, dentists, distributors and brands. Contact her: alex@webmarketingclinic.co.uk or follow her on Instagram: @webmarketingclinic

LinkedIn is like Marmite. It’s full of B2B sales, cheesy motivation and marketers trying to sell you Google Ads. Millions of users log in to grow their professional network, stay in touch with colleagues and hunt for their next job.

Some marketers believe that LinkedIn, with its high-rolling, tired-looking execs, is the perfect place to go hard on the sell with aesthetics. These sales posts are often a big turn-off for power LinkedIn users.

However, it’s a very interesting place to network professionally, which is what it was set up to do. As a business owner, you should have a personal, professional profile. LinkedIn allows you to showcase your expertise and credibility, connect with your colleagues and alumni, and join global networking groups. You should also use it to gather endorsements from colleagues.

I recommend every clinic owner signs up to LinkedIn and checks in with it weekly. In 2022 a lot of businesses seem to forget the meaning of social networking. It’s intended to be social: give and take.

On your personal LinkedIn, it’s not enough to purely post your own content. You should be joining in the debate, sharing content and celebrating others. Ten minutes a week is absolutely worth it!

Building a name for yourself on the business side of aesthetics can be useful if you are interested in furthering your studies or establishing connections/KOL roles with aesthetic brands. LinkedIn is one of the places these companies check out to ascertain your network and influence.

Like any other online platform, a half-baked effort doesn’t look good and doesn’t please the LinkedIn algorithm. That means filling in every box and including the keywords associated with your clinic: your headline treatments, products and conditions treated. Use high-quality imagery throughout your clinic’s page, as first impressions count.

LinkedIn business pages aren’t Instagram. You don’t have to post daily. A thought-out update once a week is enough, however, don’t leave the page to stagnate. Tell stories about the business aspect of your clinic, don’t just share case studies.

Building a brand means giving people an insight into clinic life, the achievements of the team and the patient experience. You don’t have to jam your post full of business lingo in order to succeed.

Avoid the hard sell by posting educational, insightful and entertaining content and look to LinkedIn as a longterm professional destination for your aesthetic practice. This doesn’t mean you can’t sell via relationship building so consider using clear calls to action, where appropriate, to invite people to book consultations.

If you’ve got a team of staff, ask them to set up their own profiles so they can also post. This will allow you to share their posts to your business page, which is an easy way to build up content.

Making a LinkedIn business page for your clinic is just one small avenue for marketing your business online. While it won’t necessarily drive dozens of enquiries from the CEOs of your area, it’s another way of putting your brand out there and building a positive brand reputation.