7 reasons to join your online health communities
How do people decide whether to join an online health community? I posted late last year about my search through food allergy websites after my daughter had several severe food allergy reactions. As always, the search made me try to identifywhat exactly I’m looking for when I seek out health communities. Here’s what I think influences me. 1. Recency The site should have posts from the (very) recent past – if I’m posting to a health forum, I’m hoping for a reply quickly. A site with no posts in the last week is not likely to be a great source of advice. 2....
Read MoreFinding online communities for allergy support
Social media and severe allergies Last week, I got involved in a Twitter discussion on health care, blogging and social media – the regular discussion (#hcsm and #hcsmeu) hosted by Andrew Spong. I find these discussions interesting but also somewhat perplexing. The ‘perplexing’ part is undoubtedly because the contributors are health policy experts, and the discussion is extremely general. The ‘interesting’ part – well, I’m the mother of a little girl with severe food allergies and as such have been a rather more active user of health services than...
Read MoreThat thing I do
I act as a one-person R&D department, helping organisations to research and develop communications, training and new products that their audiences will love. I specialise in online communication – websites, communities, digital engagement and e-learning. Why do you do it? Do you love it, or do you just have one of those creepy knacks? I love it. I believe that great conversation design is the foundation for success, however you want to measure it; I love to see communities that hum with discussion, or retail sites that are a pleasure to shop. I’m constantly looking at good stuff...
Read MoreManifesto
Some of us find it quite simple to put our real organisations and authentic selves online.
Others - well, let's just say that some of us can't bear to look at our own websites.
My mission is to help you transform your online presence so that other people understand and appreciate what you really have to offer. So that you can achieve what you want - whether that's better engagement, more readers, or more sales.