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The Social DVM

10 Ways to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile

10/12/2021

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10 Ways to Improve Your LinkedIn Profile

LinkedIn is a social media platform focused on professional networking and career development. It offers personal profiles as well as company pages for businesses. Over 167 million Americans utilize the platform, with more than half of them college-educated. 

While Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and Snapchat may be full of veterinary professionals, LinkedIn is the platform that routinely gets overlooked and is steadily gaining traction in the veterinary industry. It offers both individuals and practices the opportunity to network, share information and ideas, earn reviews and accolades, and find the next great job (or great hire). 

Follow the tips below to get your LinkedIn profile noticed, and you’ll be making new connections in no time!

  1. Update your picture and bio. Validate your profile by uploading a current headshot, and provide a glimpse of your background by including a short bio in the “About” section that summarizes your professional experience and/or passion. Here’s a look at mine: ​​​
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  • Make your headline more than just your title. Your headline, located directly under your name in your LinkedIn profile, is a short, descriptive tagline that tells your connections who you are. Rather than using a the default (your current job title), be creative and give your connections a reason to delve deeper into your profile. Instead of simply “Veterinarian,” I added a little personality to mine as well as my company name. 
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  1. Make sure your employer is listed (and linked to the proper page). Clearly identify your current employer in the introduction section of your profile and ensure its LinkedIn business profile is easily accessible. By doing so, you will give your connections another opportunity to learn more about your business and what it has to offer.
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  1. Make your profile as robust as possible. Completing all sections of your LinkedIn profile will allow you to get noticed and make it easy for prospective employers, colleagues, and connections to identify the expertise you have to offer, plus help them identify common ground so striking up a real-life conversation is even easier. 

  2. Ask for a recommendation. Colleagues and potential employers want to know that you have credibility in the industry. Request a recommendation from a colleague, previous employer, or expert in your field who is willing to provide a testimonial about your work ethic and/or experience. ​​
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  1. ​Write a recommendation. Likewise, show your support by writing a review on behalf of a connection. Be specific about why you recommend this person, what they have contributed to their organization or field, or what they have to offer a potential employer. Note that you must be sent a request, so don’t hesitate to reach out to your connection and ask them to initiate the recommendation process if you feel so compelled.

  2. Share an update. Post relevant, informative content about your practice, your company and/or the veterinary profession. Share specific information that could spark comments or reactions from your connections. Publish an article? See a cool case? Read an interesting study? See something on a colleague’s feed? Make a post and add your thoughts! 

  3. Share an article from a trusted source's feed. Sharing articles is a great way to collaborate with other reliable sources and bring awareness to important topics within your industry. It’s also a great way to find content without having to reinvent the wheel.

  4. Connect with colleagues you know. One of the bonuses of joining LinkedIn is being able to connect with millions of people around the world. Specifically, you can connect with colleagues who may be part of your inner circle or those whose paths you have crossed at some point in your professional career. Establishing these connections can lead to meaningful professional opportunities. Connect with me here! 

  5. Schedule time to log in and make connections. Make a habit to log in to your LinkedIn account three times a week and spend at least 10 minutes browsing your news feed for worthwhile information, accepting invitations from viable connections, and responding to significant messages.

Set up or improve your profile today, and start connecting! Need more help with LinkedIn? Take a peek at my on-demand course!

Let's connect! 
​Caitlin
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Three Posts Your Practice Should Have In Draft Form

2/16/2021

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​As I woke up this morning to a barrage of texts and emails canceling school, closing the clinic and weather safety, I knew one of my tasks for the day could be done quickly-- sharing the closure announcement on social media. I keep three posts as drafts in my practice’s social media accounts at all times, and I think you should too. Save yourself time and stress by having these branded graphics ready to go, along with a standard caption, so instead of scrambling for an image and wording, you can simply adjust a few details, click “post” and move on. 
  • The “Closing Early” post
  • The “We’re Straight Up Closed” post
  • The “Our Phones are Down” post
Below are examples of each of these posts. Copy and paste away! Want the graphics, too? 
I think this is so helpful for veterinary clinics, I’ve made you the graphics-- use this Canva template to get you started. Drag and drop your logo and customize how you’d like. Captions are going to be more variable based on the practice and situation, but here’s how to get started: 

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GATHER SOME INFO
  • As you get started on drafting the copy, it’s helpful to have the following details handy: 
  • Local emergency clinic phone numbers, social media handles (so you can tag them) and websites
  • Your book now/request and appointment link
  • Your telemedicine link (if that’s an option utilized by your practice)
  • Any on-call information or veterinary triage service information (if relevant e.g. Guardian Vets, PetTriage, etc.
  • Weather safety related pet articles (geographic specific but can include cold weather, thunderstorm, hurricane/tornado preparedness, etc). These are best shared from your practice’s blog, but if you don’t have a relevant article I’ve dropped a few trusted resources here: 
    • Cold weather safety
    • Wildfire safety
    • Hurricane and flood safety
    • Large animal evacuation and disaster response 

Second best contact option for your clinic if standard phone service is down: consider what would be the best for your clinic to use. There is no right or wrong answer, but your practice may want to have a “Plan B” contact method(s) ready to use and the team should be aware of it. Possible options to consider/include: 
  • Practice app chat (if available)
  • Email (and which email address)
  • Facebook messenger (any team members with the practice Page’s access will be able to respond to messages from the practice Facebook page on desktop or the Facebook Business Suite app on their phones/clinic tablet).
    •  ​​​​​Pro Tip: add your Page’s username to the end of the url m.me/ to get your Messenger Link. 
    • Example: You can message our practice directly through our page or click m.me/yourvetpractice! 
  • Google voice number (this can be accessed via email or a Google Voice app if cell phone/internet access still available). Have this bookmarked on your practice computer’s and/or the app downloaded on a practice cell phone or tablet. 
  • A backup phone number (if the practice has a separate cell phone, etc). Ideally this is not a team member’s phone!
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WE’RE CLOSING EARLY
Due to inclement weather, our practice will be closing today at <INSERT TIME> so our team members can get home safely. We’ll be reaching out to anyone with a scheduled appointment directly. If you’d like to reschedule your appointment, please <CLICK HERE FOR ONLINE BOOKING/EMAIL US AT _______/CALL US AT (555) 555-5555.>
If your pet needs emergency medical attention, please contact: 
  • On-call/pet triage information if available 
  • Emergency clinic name (tag if possible with @handle) at (555) 555-5555. INSERT WEBSITE. 
  • Emergency clinic #2 name (tag if possible with @handle) at (555) 555-5555. INSERT WEBSITE. 

We’re hoping you and your pets stay safe, and we plan to reopen <INSERT ANTICIPATED TIME e.g. TOMORROW MORNING AT 8 AM> as usual. Check back here for the latest info! 

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OUR PRACTICE IS CLOSED
Due to inclement weather, our practice will be closed today to ensure everyone’s safety. We’ll be reaching out to anyone with a scheduled appointment directly. If you’d like to reschedule your appointment, please <CLICK HERE FOR ONLINE BOOKING/EMAIL US AT _______/CALL US AT (555) 555-5555.>
If your pet needs emergency medical attention, please contact: 
  • On-call/pet triage information if available 
  • Emergency clinic name (tag if possible with @handle) at (555) 555-5555. INSERT WEBSITE. 
  • Emergency clinic #2 name (tag if possible with @handle) at (555) 555-5555. INSERT WEBSITE. 

We’re hoping you and your pets stay safe, and we plan to reopen <INSERT ANTICIPATED TIME e.g. TOMORROW MORNING AT 8 AM> as usual. Check back here for the latest info! ​

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OUR PHONES ARE DOWN
Our phone service is currently down and we are unable to accept calls, but we are still here for you and your pets! If you’d like to reach out, we are open our normal business hours today and can be reached via: 
  • <INSERT PLAN B CONTACT METHOD 1> 
  • <INSERT PLAN B CONTACT METHOD 2> 
Check back here for the latest info! As always, we’re here for you and your pets! 

I hope this will save you some precious time and energy at your practice. Stay safe out there! 
-Caitlin DeWilde, DVM
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Guest Blog Series: Dr. Ryan Llera

12/3/2014

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Just shy of one year ago, I decided to focus on teaching other veterinarians about social media. In a hyper-connected world, I saw that clients were turning more often to "Dr. Google" instead of to their veterinarians. I saw a once-powerful relationship between a veterinarian and their clients diminishing, growing business difficulties among my profession, and most importantly, an abundance of pet health information presented online -- and not by veterinarians. To me, taking charge and making a serious effort to connect with our clients in the new ways that they preferred to communicate seemed the most plausible solution. And thus, The Social DVM was born.  I soon realized there were other veterinarians who felt the same way -- who had taken that same step, forged ahead, learned the lingo, and succeeded in connecting with their clients. As many of you know, I love nothing more than to  talk about veterinary medicine and social media. But there are more stories to tell. More experiences to draw upon, more successes to admire, and more sources of inspiration to help your clinic. I invited some of these talented veterinary professionals to share their story, and will be featuring each of them over the coming weeks. Each presents a unique practice, a unique approach, and a unique personality. I hope you can learn as much as I have from their stories. 
--Caitlin DeWilde, DVM

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Meet Dr. Ryan Llera
Our second guest blogger is a small animal veterinarian currently living and practicing in Kingston, Ontario. His wife Jennifer is also a small animal veterinarian. He  graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2006 and moved to Canada in 2009.  I started following Ryan on social media after realizing (1) he was a U of I grad so obviously had to be awesome and (2) seeing how he was connecting with pet owners, not just specific veterinary clients, on social media by telling powerful stories. His website, articles and social media content conveys solid pet advice and information via a personal and empathetic story, sometimes about his own animals. This kind of human-animal bond storytelling is what pet owners love to read! His story begins: 

Social Media....Not Contagious But It Should Be

-By Ryan Llera, DVM

Who are you?  Are you new here?  Did you just graduate?  My dog is just getting old doc, I don't want to put him through anything.  Is it true that tea tree oil can help with fleas?  How do you handle euthanasia?  I was looking around on the internet....

These are many of the questions or comments I get in the exam room.  Yes, I'm sure you've been asked them as well.  But what are you doing about it?  Some of them are easy to answer in the exam room, others not so much.  For a moment though, let’s stop and think about how much more we as vets could accomplish by making our presence known out in the world.

You know you hate those appointments where the client has waited several days to bring in their sick pet and they only did so after trying some things they found “on the internet.”  Yes, good old Dr. Google who does not have a DVM or VMD.  So why give them a chance to find the webpage of one person's experience that will make your job harder?  Remember the raging firestorm this past summer with the post about ice cubes causing bloat that went viral?  These are precisely the types of things we should be trying to pre-emptively avoid rather than arguing against the court of public opinion later.  For some people, they might see us as just the “greedy veterinarian” trying to drum up business by saying the stuff on the internet is wrong.

I started blogging and using social media (mainly Facebook & Twitter) just at the beginning of this year.  My purpose was 3 fold: 
1) I wasn't happy with the lack of use or limited use by the clinic I work at.  
2) I wanted to build my brand for the future.  
3) The perception of veterinarians in the public and the periodic monotony of daytime practice were getting to me. 
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If we aren't harnessing the attention of clients locally, they will either go to another clinic, or even worse they may ignore getting pet care altogether.  People will try home remedies they find randomly on the internet and delay treatment thereby making our job harder.  For something like Facebook, you need a good mixture of fun and information.  Cute memes will only get you so far but realize that people LOVE personal stories about real patients.  They like to see the cute ones and wish other ones good luck after surgery or to see what other interesting things you might be up to.

I don't know what the future holds.  Whether I get to buy in to the clinic I'm at, start a new one, or buy a different one in town, I don't want to not be known.  Look, people have called me Doogie Howser and think I'm a new grad.  I'm short and I age very well.  My blog and use of social media are getting me out there.  When the time comes, I will have a portfolio essentially that says, “I'm a professional.  I know what I'm doing and I want to help you.”  The possibilities of what I can do with a brand are endless.

It's been at least 10 years since veterinarians were perceived as these wonderful, loving, caring people as a whole.  Yes, your “A” clients will think of you that way but in the age of the internet, rising costs, and poor economy, we are often seen now as “just in it for the money.”  Heck, even my grandmother thought I made $180k a year (oh I wish...it would be easier to travel, support the horse habit, and do more goodwill).  Part of this is what drove me to my first blog posts.  My dog Charlie, who has an absolutely fascinating story that I've considered a book someday, had a bleeding splenic mass.  I used this experience to show that I have a heart and am a pet owner too; I wanted to humanize myself.  It also served as a creative outlet.  Varying blog topics between medical topics as well as stories or topics that you can bring an opinion to are the types of things I strive for.

One of the exciting things I've had happen due to social media is joining up with internet celebrity on the rise Miss Edie the Pug.  Edie & her human have over 5000 Twitter followers, 1500 Facebook fans, and a frequently updated blog.  After connecting on Twitter and her reading my blog, I was asked to write a guest blog post every 3-4 weeks on something veterinary related.  I've just started this but a few of the topic requests are submitted by her readers.  The important thing to note about this is that I've been able to expand my reach and influence while making a new friend & ally in pet care.

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Admittedly, starting on social media and then keeping up with it are scary things and can be difficult to stick with.  It can also be time consuming...trust me on that one.  I'd love to be as wildly popular as some of the other vets out there (Marty Becker, Andy Roark) who jumped on this train a while ago but I'm focused on building locally first.  The important thing is to know that if you help just one pet or family, it's a positive difference in their life.  Now is the time to focus on further building our professional relationships with our clients and potential clients.

You can learn more about Dr. Llera at www.drryanllera.com or follow him on Facebook and Twitter @DrRyanLleraDVM. 
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