As more and more surgical facilities create Facebook pages to promote their services, the rules of proper etiquette in the brave new world of social media are being written (and broken) each day. Here's advice on creating and maintaining a professional online presence for your facility.

Meet and greet online
Facebook lets patients, staff and surgeons know your facility on a personal level and helps them feel connected. A Facebook page can also help bring people to your website. A Facebook profile is just another way that patients and perhaps even surgeons looking for your presence on the Internet can find you, leading them to your website to find out more information and possibly contact you.

Facebook can be a tremendous networking tool. Business pages on Facebook can elevate your website status through search engine optimization. In addition, a Facebook business page link on your website's home page can let patients feel that they know you and your office before coming in for surgery.

Policing social media use
A recent study of companies with 1,000 employees found that 8% of their employees have been dismissed for their behavior on sites like Facebook and LinkedIn. That's double from the previous year. Companies have also fired employees for sharing sensitive details about the business and their clients. In addition, team members have been sanctioned and fired for making unprofessional remarks about their boss via social networking sites.

Have specific guidelines that apply to social media use. There are 2 factors at work here: You need to closely monitor social media sites and your staff needs to use common sense when posting about work life. Staff needs to be careful about sharing sensitive information as well as making foolish remarks about their employer.

Here are some basic guidelines for using social media in business. These apply to every member of the team, including you and your surgeons:

• Never post anything that directly or indirectly insults patients, co-workers or the facility itself.
• When posting on personal and social media sites, be nice and keep it clean. Develop verbal cue cards on what to say and not to say on social media. Have clearly developed expectations that apply to all team members.
• Consider leveraging your facility's Facebook profile to start positive conversations about your employees and your services. You can do this by posting testimonials from patients.
• With your patients' permission, involve them in your efforts. You can do this by connecting with them and posting information about their businesses.
• If you have a personal page and a business page, consider your policy regarding clients who want to become your personal friend. You could lose a family of patients if you decline someone's personal friend request.
• Create a page in your office policy manual regarding Facebook and social media posting so each employee understands the do's and don'ts.
• Designate one or more employees to be responsible for posting on and updating your sites. Update the business page content frequently and consistently to ensure the Wall tab stays fresh. Carve out 1 to 2 hours a week dedicated to marketing on the web.

For the good
With a clearly established policy and an understanding of the good, bad and ugly, Facebook and social media can be a great asset to your facility. By enforcing social media policies and following these guidelines, you'll see great results from your efforts.