Social media:
How to do more with less in a busy practice
We often see practices who feel pressure to be posting on social media every day – but equally, those who never post at all.
But how much is the right amount? It can be a tough one to get right. What you’re looking for is the Goldilocks amount – and we have a porridge recipe for you.
Most practices are in the same situation. You’re using Facebook because it’s your comfort zone, you’re maybe posting the same content to Instagram – and the idea of TikTok terrifies you.
So you’ll apply your focus in the same proportions. But it’s important to think about what you’re trying to achieve.
When you post on Facebook, you’re talking to people who already follow your page. The only way to reach new people is to hope your post gets shared – which is almost impossible to achieve reliably – or you pay to boost to new audiences.
That means there’s a limited scope for what content to share. It’s about connection and community – building even closer relationships with the people who already love you, sharing tips that can help them and influencing how they use your service.
In practice, what does this mean? If you want to encourage sign ups to your pet health plan, Facebook is a great place to speak about its benefits. But if you’re running a campaign offering free health checks for new pets, you might want to look elsewhere.
Remember, followers and likes have no intrinsic value of their own. Growing a Facebook following is only useful to your practice if you’re using it properly and making it work for you.
But word of mouth is your most powerful marketing tool and the most commonly cited reason that pet owners join a practice. So talking directly to your existing clients on Facebook enables you to stay front of mind, raising the prospects they’ll recommend you to their pet owning friends.
So, now you know what you’re trying to do, let’s look at how you do it.
When to post – and how often
How often to post is perhaps the biggest concern for many businesses dabbling in social media – but in reality it’s totally the wrong question.
The right question? How much do you have to say.
If you have team members passionate about social media who are fizzing with ideas and managing their own output, and a community that engages with all of your posts, then first of all, well done you. There’s no reason to put an artificial ceiling on how often to post, just carry on doing what’s working.
In reality, the vast majority of practices will not be in that position. So remember, less is more. Always. Quality over quantity. All of the cliches. You hear them often because their true.
If you can come up with one authentic story to tell a week, that is so much better than churning through posts recycling generic pet advice. It’s important not to make commitments you won’t be able to stick to.
For example, a well run blog is the perfect complement to a social media strategy – but also takes a massive amount of effort to maintain. So often we see practice websites with prominent news or advice sections that haven’t been updated for years. And at that point, they’re a negative asset, a permanent reminder to clients that an idea you had ran out of steam.
The other thing to consider here is when to post, and this is a debate that has gone on for years without a definitive answer.
Is it in the evenings, when clients are at home in front of the telly? During their lunch break? Breakfast? Friday evenings or Sunday mornings?
The fact is every one of your clients will have a different schedule – and every social media platform has a different algorithm by which it decides who to show your content to, and when. And guess what? The algorithm is constantly changing, too.
So don’t sweat it. Do good things and the results will come.
Authenticity is key
What this means is that there has been an explosion in content generated by the robots and trust is being eroded by fake news.
So how do we stand out among the hullabaloo? Authenticity is key.
Be real on your socials. People connect with people and veterinary is a relationship-driven business.
So showcase your team, invest the time to tell your stories and celebrate the role you play in your local community.
Trust your clients to tell the difference between your authentic voice and the mass of AI content they’re bombarded with.
Types of content
Here are a few ideas you could consider putting together for your clients, beyond your usual seasonal advice and promotions.
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Posts that highlight your team members, both current and new joiners, build trust and familiarity by showing the people behind your practice, and the warmth and personality of the team they love.
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Photos of pets relaxed at the clinic reassure owners that their pets will be safe and well cared for and reinforces the thought and love your team into keeping patients comfortable.
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Photos of thank-you cards or gifts from clients highlight the love owners feel for your team, and shows that appreciation goes both ways. If it’s for a specific team member, give them a shoutout in the caption too!
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Photos of the team taking part in training or workshops show your commitment to improving your service and give a behind-the-scenes look at your team's dedication.
Some last thoughts
Find inspiration that speaks to you
Other practice’s social media channels are great for inspiration – and the place to learn new tricks and skills.
For the Practice Made Purrfect team, we like browsing the profiles of practices such as Creature Comforts, Sandymoor Vets, Beacon View Vets and The Ralph.
We recommend social content branded to your practice rather than reshared content in the branding of your suppliers – and Canva is a fantastic tool for quickly and creatively matching your posts to your brand.
Set up your brand kit with your brand colours, fonts and brand voice to keep everything consistent across posts; upload your photos, logo and icons; and build reusable templates with the right ratios for different platforms so you don’t have to start from scratch each time.
One size doesn’t always fit all
Instagram now uses a 4:5 aspect ratio (portrait) instead of the old 1:1 square format.
For Facebook, aim for 1200x630px (1.91:1 aspect ratio), or use 1080x1080px (1:1) for square posts, and 1080x1350px (4:5) for portrait.
Reuse your Instagram posts on Facebook for convenience.
Sticking to the right sizes ensures your text or logo won’t be cut off, making your posts look clean and professional.
Linking on Instagram
Instagram captions don’t support clickable links like Facebook. You have two options: use Instagram’s “external link” feature to add up to five links in your bio, or set up a Linktree to share multiple links in one place. Add this line at the end of your caption: “Click the link in bio for more.”
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