In the healthcare industry, there is a clear giant in the social media space. Mayo Clinic has positioned itself as a leader in social media strategy for healthcare. Other health systems across the country benchmark themselves against Mayo Clinic, and oftentimes, mirror their efforts after Mayo Clinic, as well.
Currently, Mayo Clinic has a presence on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Pinterest and Flickr. The system also has a patient story blog and its own social network for discussions, news and videos hosted it on its website. Mayo Clinic uses their social presence to drive website and blog traffic, as well as to promote scheduling appointments, downloading their mobile application, and upcoming events. In addition, Mayo Clinic cross promotes their networks using Facebook applications, URLS in their Twitter background, and placing social networking icons on their website very visibly.
Cleveland Clinic, a health system in northern Ohio, has a similar social strategy with a presence on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Pinterest. Cleveland Clinic also has a blog; however, it is focused more on sharing health advice as opposed to patient stories. In addition to promoting blog posts on their social networks, Cleveland Clinic also promotes their health newsletter to encourage subscriptions. The Cleveland Clinic does not, however, visibly promote their social networks from their website as Mayo does.
When looking at performance metrics on each of the system’s networks, we can clearly see that both systems have exceptional brand recognition and large followings. While Mayo Clinic’s following as a whole is much larger than the Cleveland Clinic’s, the Cleveland Clinic does have more Facebook fans than Mayo and a much larger rate of engagement (“people talking about this” in relation to “likes”).
At a high level, Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic execute their social strategy very similarly. Both have identified the appropriate networks to reach their target audiences and execute their efforts around driving blog and website traffic, as well as promoting services and encouraging appointments.
Lauren Kiser 
Great topic! Do you think that the Cleveland Clinic’s larger social media following is due to patients or employees? It is interesting to think about who are fans. Are they, “customers” who have experience or employees who are on the the spectrum…?
Great blog. It is interesting to see that the health care industry is opening up more and more to social media. I also like the different approaches patient stories versus health care information. However, providing health care tips is more one-way than a two-way conversation. I would consume the information but probably not respond to it.