Will patients take my clinic or me as a therapist seriously if I’m posting on TikTok?
This is a new question that is in the back of the minds of many healthcare professionals. My answer to this question is yes, 100% it does belong in healthcare, and yes, people will take you and your clinic seriously if you’re posting on TikTok.
I think it’s good to start this conversation by understanding things from the consumer’s point of view. At this current moment, the idea of therapists wearing a dress shirt and clinics looking like doctors’ offices is no longer essential to be considered creditable. This doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with what I just mentioned; it’s just that consumers will not disregard healthcare information coming from individuals dressed in casual clothes on platforms such as TikTok or Instagram.
My theory why this is happening is that consumers are looking to get information from individuals they find relatable. With social media, there is so much access to therapists that consumers now have a selection of whom they want to choose to work with. The idea of producing content on TikTok hurting your creditability may do the opposite and grow your patient base of people that want to hear what you have to say. TikTok is creating a place to show what you offer and giving consumers a choice to work with you if they feel like they can relate to you. On a side note, I think this is why it is essential to be yourself and speak your truth on platforms like TikTok and Instagram to help attract the correct type of patient that wants to work with you.
If you are unsure of making the jump to social media platforms like TikTok, consider taking three months to give it a try. The first week is just downloading the app to get used to how it works and watching YouTube videos on how to edit the app. The next few weeks after is putting out content and improving your editing/creative skills. In the last month, you should be capable of producing decent quality content, and now you have some results to judge whether this is something that is helping your business grow or not. In no way am I saying you’re going to be an expert at using the platform with thousands of followers, but this should be enough to fairly judge the original thought of TikTok helping or hurting my healthcare business.
