You attended years of school and training. But by now you know that there’s more to being a doctor than what you learned in the classroom. Sure, a suture can heal and the right medication can manage the in-between time. But a smile goes a long way toward the same and a word of encouragement moves a patient toward their best outcome.

So, what have we learned about social media that might make a difference in your practice? After all, there’s more to doing it right than merely creating an account and updating your Facebook status or Twitter feed. The technology is several years into its use life. You’d think most doctors would have figured this out by now. But a recent review of the top healthcare brands in our community taught me that they haven’t.

However, you can demonstrate social media savvy and connect with patients by using these Best Practices as a guide:

Enable More Voices.It’s difficult to build community without conversation. Creating good content isn’t good enough. Invite trusted sources to guest post on your page. Host a Facebook Q&A with a physician from your team. Get a conversation started. And don’t be afraid of what you hear. Helping people get it right makes you the most valuable voice in the community.

Avoid Broadcasting.Announcements don’t compel interaction (see Just One Voice). If your social media presence is largely dedicated to announcements regarding office hours, new staff members and new services – you’re Charlie Brown’s school teacher. Sure she had important information to share but all the kids heard was, “Wah, wah, wah.”

Patients Look for Themselves.I’m sorry to report this but people want to know if your brand advocates (those who like your social media pages) have anything in common with them. Potential new patients are smart and have learned to use your Facebook wall as a place to find out who makes up your community. If they don’t see people like themselves, they’ll be less inclined to connect. We’re clearly not advocating excluding any one. We are encouraging you to be intentional in your marketing. A grandmother who likes a pediatrician’s page is not nearly as good a match to potential new patient as a young woman who does.

Raise Your Hand.Okay, that’s code for “buy some ads.” Facebook advertising is relatively inexpensive but there is a right and wrong way to do it. Here’s a simple truth: Facebook changed the algorithm that determines what percentage of your target audience sees your posts shrinking your natural reach. If you want all, most or more than a single digit percentage to connect with you there, you’re going to have to buy ads and boost your posts with ad dollars.

But more than anything else it’s about this,

Know What They Want. If your OB/GYN practice wants to reach women, maybe you should share some content from SELF Magazine. But it’ll be more meaningful if a member of your physician staff has a commentary on the subject and can connect it to those in your practice community in a personal way. What they want is to know what you think.

Maybe you’ve heard some of this before, but by judging the social media pages of your peer network, nobody’s listening. You can be a leader in empowering a healthcare community, who in turn advocates for your brand and sees you as among the best practices.

Tim C. Nicholson is the President of Bigfish, LLC. His Memphis-based firm connects physicians, clinics and hospitals to patients and one another through healthcare social media solutions, branding initiatives and websites. His column, “Hey Doc”, appears here monthly. Find him on twitter @timbigfish or email tim@gobigfishgo.com