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Megan Walker: Hello and welcome to the Healthcare Online Podcast. My name is Megan Walker and our very special guest today is Amanda Casinha. Hi Amanda. How are you?

Amanda Casinha: Hello I'm good. Thank you for having me.

Megan Walker: You are so welcome. Amanda is a brilliant entrepreneurial business owner. I'll get her to explain much better than I'm doing justice to in just a moment.

She is all in the world of social media and happens to manage my social media accounts for me, which I'm so grateful for. I've brought Amanda along today to talk about trends in social media in relation to health and medical course creators. Amanda, kick us off. Tell us a bit about your background and properly introduce yourself. Tell us what you do.

Amanda Casinha: I don't know if it'll be proper. I'm the worst at introducing myself for somebody who does public speaking. I am the worst at doing introductions. I'm Amanda Casinha and I own the company Grind Social Media and Co. We're a full digital marketing agency and we focus on organic content for social media marketing.

We do ad creation (we don't manage ads) and we have a copy house and a team of copywriters. We create landing pages, website copy, all of the good stuff.

Megan Walker: Beautiful. Now tell us about the role of social media for healthcare course creators.

Amanda Casinha: Yeah, so you know, it's really interesting because we've seen courses just take off in the online space in the last couple of years.

And so I really feel like right now for course creators on social, it's about getting the message out there that you have something to offer to the world. Because if you're not doing it through these public channels and your email and potentially ads, but if you're not doing it through these organic channels, you're missing out on an opportunity of just free space, you know, free space in the world to get that out there, to make some money to help inspire others to help change lives.

Whatever it is that you're doing this course for, you've put the time and the energy and the effort and the investment into it, so you're doing a disservice to those people that you know need it. Mm-Hmm. And so if you're not out there talking about your actual programs, then why did you create it in the first place?

Megan Walker: Absolutely. And so in terms of making the sale of selling the online course is that the role of social media?

Amanda Casinha: So when I look if we talk about Instagram and Facebook, we're top of funnel when it comes to organic.

It's almost like the new Google. So people are using social media as their search engines. We know this. TikTok has done the research on it. Instagram has done the research on it, so they're using that social like a search engine. They're using the little bar at the top and they're typing in what they're looking for.

And so when we look at our social media, we should really look at it as top of funnel. People are coming, they're getting to experience you. If you are the person delivering the program, if they're having touchpoint with you, why am I going to buy from you if I don't know who you are? And what you offer, what your experience is, what is it that you're actually going to be teaching me?

As a consumer, as somebody that does buy courses, if I don't know who that person is, then I am not really trusting to purchase from a stranger on the internet so when we look at our social, we look at it as top of funnel. Where does it go?

We need to be sending them somewhere. Whether that's a free webinar, a lead magnet, or directly into your actual information. When we look at how somebody uses social media, they're looking at it almost like a website. So we want to make sure that if we're driving traffic into our social media, if we want people to know who we are, we need to make sure that that journey in our social media makes sense.

So is our content about the thing that we are selling? Mm-Hmm. Is our bio optimised to let that person know instantly what it is that we do and what it is that we are offering. So there's very simple things that you can do on social so that people, when they get there, they stay there. 

They kind of go around and then they're like, they click that link and now they're in your actual website, but they're not going to get to the website if you have nothing on your social. Nothing talking to them, nothing inspiring them, nothing engaging. So when we look at what that sales process looks like, we're looking at it as a foot in the door to get to know you. Right. Start the relationship.

Megan Walker: I love that. Some of our course creators in the healthcare space, have topics that the consumer, the people they want to build a relationship with, might not be "search aware". They're sort of problem aware and, but not yet solution aware. And what I'm getting at is say, let's say someone older in life has had an ADHD diagnosis. They might not know what to do with that. They might not know that there's strategies that they can have in their life that will make things easier.

So in that situation, how can you use social media as an education tool to start with those people and help them and then encourage them into a program down the track.

Amanda Casinha: So it's really about putting what your knowledge base is out there in a unique way. Mm-Hmm. Anybody can google that information, especially in the health field, right?

Especially in my world, in the marketing world. Does that mean that I don't put myself out there and share what I have to share? No. I have my own unique perspective. I have my own unique experiences. I have my own unique takes on it, and so I'm going to take the same information that is out there that is public knowledge to everybody, but I'm going to present it in a very authentic and real way.

And it's almost an extension of myself. So it's very real and it's engaging and it's educational and it's value packed and it's that craveable. It makes people want to come back for more. Some people not so much. I'm not for everybody, I'm very outspoken, but for the people that get it, love it.

They want that. That style of information and education, they're going to stick around, they're going to want to look and it's going to make them stay there. So I would tell people, you need to lean into exactly who it is that you are with your experiences and use that to help others and deliver that information.

And we're not going to do it in like the stereotypical like "three ways to help you, da, da dah". No. Like use storytelling, use past experiences. You know, obviously we can't use clients because like just privacy laws and stuff, but we can use the learnings from what people have taken from your course or working with you, right?

I hear this a lot like. Well, this is the first time I'm doing this. Like I don't have any experience and I'm like, yes you do. You've had clients before. Absolutely. You've had work experience, like you're not just creating this because one day you woke up and decided to create a course on ADHD, right?

Like you obviously have a tie into this. Share your own unique experience and why it is that you're here. So using that storytelling element will help you.

Megan Walker: Yeah. I often tell people that there's a line to keep them safe from their regulatory bodies and insurance and all the rest of it. And then I'd love to hear your thoughts on this ... the what and the why sits above the line. And then there's the line and then there's the how which you save for your paid program.

Amanda Casinha: mm-Hmm.

Megan Walker: So if it is relating to ADHD that we'd talk about the what the why, but we wouldn't get into the how to create a smooth morning routine or how to do XYZ. Can you add to that your thoughts? I know I've come up with that to be quite black and white to keep practitioners safe, but what creativity can you do without getting sort of caught into feeling like I'm giving away all of my knowledge,

Amanda Casinha: So I have a bit of a different perspective on this. I think it's okay to give it all away. I don't think you should gate keep. Ooh. And here's the thing, because I can give you everything, right? But the reality is, is that you're still going to need some part of my company, me, my services, my courses, whatever it is, in order to actually implement it.

Mm-Hmm. So we're not giving it away in like a 400 minute video. We're going to give it away in small segments? Because we need to have like bite-sized pieces, especially if we're talking about video on social media, just in terms of our attention span currently in the space. So I look at it as, you know, where people will hang on to your every word is how you deliver the information.

What you say is important as well. But is it entertaining? Is it educational? Is it providing value? Are you really giving that solution upfront? That person will probably trust you a lot faster than the tactics, which are like just read it in the caption. No, I'm just going to tell you in the video like nobody has time for this.

It also depends on your audience. Who is your audience? If I'm working with busy entrepreneurs, do you think that they have time to read a PhD dissertation in marketing? No, they just need the answer. They're just like, tell me how to do it. So I just tell you how to do it, and then if you still need help, you know where to reach me.

So when we're looking at how we present the information on social, don't be afraid to give it away. As long as you're not giving away the formula or the clinical steps. That's a little different. And there's different regulatory like bodies that you have to observe there, but I think it's okay to actually put a little bit more out there.

It's different, it's unique. And if your ability to deliver that information is holding their attention then why wouldn't you just keep going? We like to get them to a webinar but I'm not going to go to your webinar if you're just going to tease me. You've got to give me a little bit.

Megan Walker: Okay. So let me paint a picture for you. I've been guilty of advising people make social media quite formulaic. So Mondays we'll have motivational posts. Wednesdays we'll have a tip. Fridays we might go live and let's say we are cycling through that. But we are scheduling it all in advance. We're not really engaging and we are not getting our posts visible. So if that's the basics. Mm-Hmm. Tell me what's best practice?

Amanda Casinha: Yeah. Okay. So I'm not opposed to that getting ahead and scheduling thing. I'm really not, because at the end of the day, especially for somebody who's not used to putting themselves out there, if that works, it is accessible to you, and you are going to be consistent that way, then start there.

And that's a perfect place to start, but it's the beginning. From there, we need to remember what social media is. We need to be social on the app. And so that doesn't mean that you need to be there every single day showing up, doing the thing. I do have people that do that because their social media is the moneymaker. So we have to look at what is the goal? Is the goal to create trust and awareness? You're probably going to have to show up a little bit more than two times per week. Is the goal to sell and like really sell out launches? I sell out everything on my social. I don't run ads, like everything is done on social, but I am a very active person on social.

It is not for everybody. So if the goal is to build trust, build awareness and sell. You're going to need to do more than just a generic tip and a motivation Monday post. Right? Like that's not going to push the needle. So we have to take actions in line with our goals when it comes to social. So what I would say is that if you're looking to really sell, then to start doing things that are ... I hate using the word trend because it doesn't always fit for every single business to do trendy things. But taking the components of what makes something trendy and applying that to your business in a unique way will work for you. Above all of that, you need to make relationships. So if you're not having engaging captions that are creating conversations in your comment section, if you are not posting on your stories that's kind of test as to whether or not you're engaging with your audience properly is the amount of dms that you're getting or questions or comments. So you're creating conversations, you're creating social media. So essentially people forget that. And they've gotten into this habit of, I need to keep up with the Joneses.

I just need to post every day. Yeah. Well, if we just post and post, we're not going to really make any movements. Yeah. We need to post with intention. So what am I trying to say with this post? Who am I trying to reach? What kind of conversation do I want to have out of this? That is where we come from when we come at our content.

So it's okay to have Monday and Wednesday and Friday set up, but what could we be doing on Tuesday and Thursday then that I'm only actually now telling you you have to show up twice a week. You could do that. You probably can do that. You probably can find 10 minutes on a Monday or a Tuesday and 10 minutes on a Thursday to go in there and have conversations.

And a lot of the sales and the relationships, like true relationships that I've built has been because of my stories and not really in my reels. Like if you go to my personal account, which has a large following, in my bio it says find me in my stories because I very rarely post in my feed because I just don't have time to create content.

But I'm constantly showing up in my stories, and I've built and sold out two book launches, like just from stories and one in feed post, like we're talking hundreds of copies. So it's possible, but it's what? What's the intention? What are you willing to put in? To then get out, right? Yes. So when people are like, well, I've been posting two carousels a week for six months and I have seen zero return. Social media isn't for me. And I'm like, no, no. Social media really isn't for you. If you think that posting two carousels a week for six months is going to get you anywhere, right? Like we have to move in the direction in which social is right now, which is video. Like we, if you don't like it, hire somebody to do it for you.

Because if that is a channel in which you are going to gain customers, then you need to be with the times. And sometimes it's a hard conversation to have with people because they really don't want to. And so then that conversation turns to, okay, do you have a really great email list? Do you have ad budget? What else can you be doing to market yourself? Do you do a lot of networking? Like where are these leads coming from?

Megan Walker: Absolutely.

Amanda Casinha: Do you do all of the things? Try all of it. Don't just go, I did those two carousels and it didn't work so there's something wrong with my audience.

Megan Walker: That's so amazing. Like it's a whole different culture shift of living, breathing, being inside social media. I'm hearing the difference to "set and forget" which is kind of basic. You've painted us a really good picture. I can almost hear my audience with their pushback, and they're saying to us, but I'm seeing seven patients every day. I can't give away clinical advice. Okay. I'm so time poor and I'm exhausted. I can't find the head space. What do you say to people to help them adopt this more and bring social media more into the culture of their week?

Amanda Casinha: I say this. Do you do webinars? Do you have any video content of you whatsoever? Because any of that can be turned into a post. Can you take a video of yourself sitting down at your desk about to get ready for your day? Some weeks I can't show up because it's busy. And I will literally, like today, I posted today and I have five podcast recordings today.

I posted "my washing machine is broken. My children have been sick for five days and I do not have the capacity to be here. Guys, peace out. See you in a couple of days". And that was it. And you know what that did - so many conversations "I'm having a crap time too" and "this is great and how are you doing this all" and "good for you and you're so inspiring" and "when you have a minute, can we book a call"?

Now they want to work with me because it's just honest and real. So there are moments where you can just take a quick snap and like put it into your stories, let people know what you're up to. It's building credibility as well.

So if I have a goal of public speaking more this year then I need to be announcing that I am doing public speaking, that I am on podcasts, that I'm on stages that I've already booked, and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Like I need to put that out there so it comes back to me. So people notice and they're like, oh, you need this girl. She does all these other talks and blah, blah, blah.

Take those opportunities. Do you do, do you speak on stages? Get your friend in the crowd to take a video of you. Use that as a post.

Megan Walker: Yes.

Amanda Casinha: You know, are you walking down the street? Take a video of the flowers, like B-roll is amazing. It's so easy. Throw some text on it and for people that truly are slammed, then get some extra help.

If you can afford it, outsource that for you. You know, I work with very busy law firms. Try getting lawyers on camera, it's very difficult. 

Megan Walker: Same with clinicians. And it is a real mindset shift and I think it goes hand in hand with practitioners and therapists and clinicians saying, I'm going to own the space of ADHD support, type two diabetes, mindfulness, whatever. I'm going to own that space. And in owning that space, it is showing up publicly. On social media, like your Brene Brown.

Tell me trends, and then I want to as we start to wrap up how people can work with you. What's trendy, what's cool? What are the cool kids doing on social media?

Amanda Cashina: What's trendy right now is a lot of very real, authentic content. You get stuck in these perfectionist moments and we all think it has to be perfect and polished and beautiful. And what happens is it ends up looking like an ad and just like a TV commercial. 

What do you do when a commercial comes on? You go do something else, you change the channel, you whatever. It's like kind of the same thing right now. So if it looks too much like an ad, it's not going to perform as well as you think. So those raw real conversations unscripted, unedited, almost, you know, just like very, like authentic pieces of video content is a lot more of what we're seeing. We're humans at the end of the day and I like talking to a human. And we forget that we get stuck in this feeling like it has to appear a certain way. Well, when you go into your office, I'm sure you're not looking like a supermodel every single day and on point every single day, all day. I like to show up in all of those times really authentically.

Other things that are trending are trending audios are just great to use in general. It helps push out your content. It doesn't mean that you have to dance, it doesn't mean that you have to like point do silly things. No more please. No more pointing. No more hopping on. You're not a bloody rabbit. So we're not doing that. Throwing balls we can use. We can use the trending audio like underlaid with our voiceovers. I love a good green screen, especially in your niche and for your people this is great.

Find other people's content. You don't have time to create your own, find other content that you either really agree with or maybe you have a difference of opinion and green screen it so there's a copy of it behind you. You're a little floating head in the bottom screen and talk. You know, there's different options on Instagram now that's similar to TikTok where you can stitch it so the person's video starts first and then you can talk afterwards.

There's a lot of really cool features that you can use. And going back to like the single post, the carousels. If you are on Canva creating carousels, you have time to pick up your phone and record a 30 to 45 second video. It will actually save you time. So next time you're making a carousel, then try and just do something that's interesting on video.

It'll actually save you like a solid couple of hours a week to be completely honest. Unless you're a graphic designer and can do it in your sleep which these days people are probably not. 

Who are they? Who are you targeting? What demographic are they? What are they used to seeing? What are they involved with? Where do they shop? What do they do? What are their struggles? Then we can create the content in line with what it is that they're looking for.

Megan Walker: We are going to touch on bots very quickly, only to say that I'm building one that will help practices create healthcare content more quickly. You can register your interest at www.meganwalker.com/bot, not with the intent that it will take all of this work off you, but the idea creation and the content ideas. But strategy and authenticity we've already heard from Amanda that is what's going to win. Just doing the basics what I was talking about before, it's almost a why bother. So use the AI to get your ideas and then put it in social media with your authenticity.

We are agreeing. Amanda's nodding. And then if you want to work with Amanda, tell us how people can work with you and where they can find you.

Amanda Casinha: So where you can find me is at grind, like coffee grinds at www.grindsocialmedia.com. So that'll be the best place. 

You can also listen to my podcast, which is called Marketing Sucks. They are quick segments just like Megan's, and they're just giving you in real time what's going on in the world of social media and what you can be doing.

And in terms of working with us, there are three ways. So we have our group program, which is basically teaching you how to do all of the things from social media to email marketing. It's a really step-by-step hands-on program. And then we have consulting and strategy. So you get me. We go through, it's a deep dive. It's a one day, and then we actually provide you with everything that you need to do for the next three months. And then there is our agency side, which is done for you.

So we basically take over your social media. We ask that you manage your direct messages because you are the human. But other than that, we are creating the content, we are posting it, and we're keeping you accountable to sending us videos so that we can edit it. Those are the three ways. And Megan has the links and all of that good stuff to book in.

Megan Walker: I'll put all of that below where you're watching this video or listening to the podcast. Amanda, thank you so much. Are there any final words that you would like to share before we say goodbye?

Amanda Casinha: I think honestly it can feel scary, it can feel daunting. It can feel like you have no time.

But if you're super passionate about what you do and what you want to put out in the world, find the time. You'd be surprised what comes out at the end of it. It can be a lot of fun. We just need to reframe it.

Megan Walker: And when we are looking at Facebook ad investment to get six figure launches, if we're looking at that investment being between $20,000 and $100,000 per launch, and you can do it through organic, there's our ROI right there. Yeah. And as well as the authenticity and building up that tribe and following. So, absolutely well worth it. Thank you, Amanda.

Thank you for looking after my social media accounts. and getting me out of stress during a super busy patch, which I really appreciate. And yeah, reach out to Amanda, her contact details are below.

Amanda Casinha: Awesome, thank you. Bye.

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