Digital Strategies of Three Diabetes Care Organizations

Briana NestorDigital Strategies for Health CommunicationEmerson College/Tufts University School of MedicineDigital Strategies of Three Diabetes Care Organizations

For this project, I chose to analyze the American Diabetes Association, Taking Control of Your Diabetes, and the National Diabetes Clearinghouse.

I chose these three organizations because the missions of each organization focus on diabetes care and patient education, but each goes about doing so in different ways.

I also find that there is so much information about diabetes, and to me, it was a large, almost abstract topic, so I decided to learn more. 1The American Diabetes Association (ADA)Prevent and cure diabetes, and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes

People affected by the disease PatientsCaregiversMedical professionals

According to the ADAs website, the organization is a national recognized education and resource group for people living with and caring for people with diabetes that aims to prevent and cure diabetes, and to improve the lives of all people affected by diabetes.

It does this by Funding diabetes researchDelivering services to communitiesProviding accurate, reliable informationIncreasing access to and opportunities for advocacy

Target audiences PatientsCaregiversMedical professionals.

For its overall digital strategy, it uses six outlets: a website, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube, and a blog.

For the purpose of this presentation, Im only going to focus on the website, Facebook, and Twitter pages of each organization.

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This is a screenshot from the homepage of its website.

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This is a screenshot from the ADAs About Us page. 4

To start, Ill go over the strengths and weaknesses of each outlet, then tell you my recommendations before I move onto the next organization. Ill do this for each organization.

This is a screenshot from one of the ADAs informational pages.

STRENGTHS of websiteMain tabs on homepage are labeled clearly, ordered in a logical fashionWebsite is colorful, contains large, bold fonts, can be changed to Spanish and text can be made larger. Also contains a speaking option for hearing impaired. Informational pages are reliable, fact-checked, written in plain language. Images included where necessary.Contains many resources, events, and services for people to choose from.

WEAKNESSES of websiteHomepage is cluttered, busy so many images and so much text! No focus wit regard to whats posted.Mission statement not listed anywhere. No concise description of the association anywhere. About Us is difficult to locate.No contact information for media or lay peopleSocial media not promoted clearly.5

This a screenshot of the ADAs banner on its Facebook page.

They recently held an informational session at the end of June, titled Scientific Session, and changed its cover photo to reflect and promote that event.

As of June 30 340,439 likes

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These are three examples of Facebook posts.

Themed - Recipe Wednesdays, Fun Fact Fridays, etc.InformationalPatient stories

STRENGTHS of Facebook pageAbout section is thorough mission statement, contact information, office locations., etc.Includes link to a Facebook page thats in SpanishPosts are varied, organized well, interesting, and relevant. Most contain an interactive element of some sort. Language is plain, clear.Photo albums are interesting, labeled and ordered clearly. Photos are active.

WEAKNESSES of Facebook page. Difficult to find under search functionSome posts are lengthy, especially research-oriented ones

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This is a screenshot of the ADAs Twitter account.

As of June 30 48,781 followers, 5,926 tweets, following 536 individuals, associations, or organizations8

Here are three examples of tweets.

Similar in content to the Facebook posts I showed earlier.

InformationalThemedRecipe suggestions

STRENGTHS of Twitter accountMirror Facebook postsTweets contain links, imagesResearch-oriented posts are condensed to the 140-character limit. More information in a link.

WEAKNESSES of Twitter accountTwitter handle looks odd.Difficult to find under Twitters search functionColors of the account page are dark, almost ominous does not reflect the upbeat, positive messaging and attitudes of the ADA. 9RecommendationsLow-costStrategize content for focusConsistent use of themes, colors

Higher-costSocial media specialistRedesign homepageLOW-COST RecommendationsStrategize content needs to be focused, not scatteredUse the same themes and colors across all outlets create consistency, credibility

HIGHER-COST RecommendationsHire a social media specialist redesign Twitter page, write concise Facebook posts, improve SEO terms when searching for ADA on social mediaRedesign homepage so its focused, not overwhelming in terms of content (texts, images, advertisements)

10Taking Control of Your Diabetes (TCOYD)Non-profit that educates and motivates people with diabetes to take a more active role in their conditionProvides innovative, integrative continuing diabetes education

Patients with diabetesMedical professionals

The second organization I chose to analyze was Taking Control of Your Diabetes.

Nonprofit that aims to educate and motivate people with diabetes to take a more active role in their condition, and provides innovative and integrative continuing diabetic education for medical professionals who care for people with diabetes, according to its website.

The mission statement is grounded in the belief that every person with diabetes has the right to live a happy, healthy, and productive life.

It does this mostly by hosting, sponsoring, or appearing at various conferences and health fairs throughout the U.S.

Target audiences Patients with diabetesMedical professionals

For its digital strategy, it includes a website, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, and LinkedIn. 11

This is a screenshot of TCOYDs homepage.12

This is a screenshot of TCOYDs About Us page.

STRENGTHS of websiteAll pages are user-friendly, intuitive to use, well organizedHomepage content is used well, given the space its in, and does not appear cluttered or busy. Is also focused, not scattered. Themes and colors are consistent across all outlets increases credibility and professionalism. Contains live Facebook feed most popular social media outlet for TCOYDLinks to social media are bold, easy to locate

WEAKNESSES of websiteNo language or hearing-related preferences, cannot change font size not good for hearing or visually impaired, non-English speakers.Blog tab listed on homepage blog not finished, yet no promotion or advertisement of launch date

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This is a screenshot of TCOYDs banner on its Facebook page.

As of July 2 3,088 likes

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These are three examples of posts on the Facebook page.

TCOYD publishes a quarterly e-newsletterAlso puts out a weekly informational video series through YouTube, The Edelman Report.Uses popular memes in some of its posts (some ecards)

STRENGTHS of Facebook pageThe About section is concise, thoroughThere are photo albums for just about every conference and health fair TCOYD has been present at since 2010.TCOYD Facebook posts are consistent, frequent, and contain interesting, relevant information. Some even use popular cultural memes and images to appeal to younger audiences. Twitter account is tied into the Facebook page,

WEAKNESSES of Facebook pageWhen searching for TCOYD on Facebook, two pages appear a business page and an interest page. The business page is the real page can be confusing.There are not any photos from conferences or health fairs from this year.

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This is a screenshot of TCOYDs Twitter account.

As of July 2 2,310 followers, 1,729 tweets, following 901 individuals, associations, or organizations

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Three examples of tweets.

Conference announcementsEdelman Reports

STRENGTHS of Twitter accountThe colors, themes, and information is consistent across all outletsMost tweets are interactive and contain links or images for users to explore or readTweets mirror Facebook posts, which provides consistency

WEAKNESSES of Twitter accountTCOYD does not live tweet from any conferences or health fairs17RecommendationsLow-costLanguage preferences for non-English, Spanish speakersEliminate Interest page

Higher-CostLive tweet

LOW-COST RecommendationsWebsite Create language preference settings, especially since diabetes often affects minority and non-English speaking populations (Office of Minority Health, 2012). Eliminate the Interest page for TCOYD avoid confusion, create consistency

HIGHER-COST RecommendationsLive tweet from conferences and health fairs have to pay someone for his/her timeWould be interesting to do that in Spanish and English

18The National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse (NDIC)Service of the NIH and NIDDK

Aims to provide information about diabetes to people with diabetes, health care professionals, and the public

The third and final organization I looked at was the National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse, which is part of the NIH and NIDDK.

Aims to provide information about diabetes to people with diabetes, health care professionals, and the public according to its website.

Does this by answering inquiries, develops and distributes publications, and works closely with professionals and patient organizations, and Govt agencies to coordinate resources about diabetes.

Target audiences PatientsMedical professionals

Uses only one outlet a website. 19

This is a screenshot of the NDICs homepage.20

This is a screenshot of the NDICs A-Z Topics page.

STRENGTHS of websiteContact information for media and lay audiences is easy to locate, clearly labeled, conciseInformation and resources are reliable, accurate, comprehensive, and fact-checked.The website is accessible to those who need to read large text or who speak Spanish. All materials can be printed in PDF form, in English and Spanish.

WEAKNESSES of websiteWebsite itself is business-like in appearance seems cold, off-puttingThe A-Z Topic list is comprehensive, but overwhelming. Many of the topics are similar, overlap, and can be condensed into similar categories.The website uses all available space on the screen items on the sides, away from the center, are easy to miss. The subscription sign-up for the e-newsletter is poorly placed, not promoted anywhere on the website.OVERALL no social media. Missing out on a major patient audience!

21RecommendationsLow-cost Social media pagesCondense topic list

Higher-costNew server or host siteSocial media specialistLOW-COST RecommendationsCreate social media pages to reach a wider audience and increase visibility. Research which social media outlets are used frequently by the NDICs target audiences.Condense the A-Z Topic list so it is shorter, contains fewer categories

HIGHER-COST RecommendationsPurchase a new host site or server for the website to utilize white space, make more user-friendly and invitingHire a social media specialist to create outreach and visibility22Comparison of Strategies

Most effective, thoroughWell planned, but needs improvementsMinimal, needs social mediaBased on my observations, TCOYD had the most thorough and most effective digital strategy.

HAD popular social media, used it well.Website was organized, focused, and user-friendly.Consistent appearance, mission, and usage

ADA well planned, but needed a few improvements

WEBSITE was scattered can be improved by choosing a few topics to include, instead of including everythingThe ADA also needs to use a consistent theme across of its outlets, like TCOYD does. The Twitter page and ADAs website look like two different organizations, and the Twitter theme is dark, almost ominous.

NDIC minimal

NEED to include social media, given its widespread use and ability to reach a greater audienceWebsite also needs to be updated, given a more user-friendly, welcoming feel23ResourcesDiabetes Stops Here Blog. (2013). [Blog]. Retrieved from http://diabetesstopshere.org/.

Google Images

The American Diabetes Association. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.diabetes.org/.

The American Diabetes Association. (2013). The American Diabetes Association Facebook page. Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/AmericanDiabetesAssociation.

The American Diabetes Association. (2013.) The American Diabetes Association Pinterest account. Retrieved from http://pinterest.com/amdiabetesassn/

The American Diabetes Association. (2013). The American Diabetes Association Twitter account. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/AmDiabetesAssn.

The American Diabetes Association. (2013). The American Diabetes Association YouTube account. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/user/AmericanDiabetesAssn

The National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse. (2012). Retrieved from http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/.

Taking Control of Your Diabetes. (2013). Retrieved from http://tcoyd.org/.

Taking Control of Your Diabetes. (2013). TCOYD Facebook page. Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/TCOYD?fref=ts.

Taking Control of Your Diabetes. (2013). TCOYD Flickr account. Retrieved from http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=TCOYD&f=hp.

Taking Control of Your Diabetes. (2013). TCOYD LinkedIn account. Retrieved from http://www.linkedin.com/company/taking-control-of-your-diabetes.

Taking Control of Your Diabetes. (2013). TCOYD Twitter account. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/TCOYD.

Taking Control of Your Diabetes. (2013). TCOYD YouTube account. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/user/TCOYDtv.