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younger, employed, and educated group.4 Surprisingly, however, sites such as the social media giant Facebook have seen significant growth in users older than age 55, up 922.7% from 2009 to 2011. Clearly, it is important for plastic surgeons to connect with the increasingly Internet-savvy patient population by becoming educated about and involved in social networking. Social media have already been embraced by professional plastic surgery organizations, including the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) and the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS), both of which have incorporated Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube (as well as iPhone) applications into their national meetings and their websites.4 In addition, ASAPS and ASPS have developed separate websites devoted to patient interactivity, such as Project Beauty (www.projectbeauty. com) and Beauty for Life (www.beautyforlife.com). Project Beauty and Realself, with their “ask-a-surgeon” features, are social media outlets that seek to inform the public about cosmetic surgery while allowing users to solicit answers to their plastic surgery questions in real time. This type of interactivity is valuable in helping patients feel “connected” with their surgeons or other medical experts. The Marriage of Plastic Surgery and Social Media: A Relationship to Last a Lifetime Steven M. Camp, MD; and Daniel C. Mills II, MD Dr. Camp is a plastic surgeon in private practice in Fort Worth, Texas. Dr. Mills is a plastic surgeon in private practice in Laguna Beach, California, and the Technology Editor for Aesthetic Surgery Journal. Corresponding Author: Dr. Steven M. Camp, 800 12th Avenue, Suite 100, Fort Worth, TX 76104, USA. E-mail: stevencamp13@gmail.com Downloaded from https://academic.oup.com/asj/article/32/3/349/217257 by guest on 18 August 2022 350 Aesthetic Surgery Journal 32(3) Impact of Online Tools In Plastic Surgery Practices The Positives The potentially positive impact of social media outlets on practice marketing is obvious. Social networking can help your practice to become part of mainstream conversation. Tools like a “wall post” on Facebook (a post to the user’s profile space that includes the date and time the message was written) or messaging on Twitter have facilitated open communication and personal sharing of experiences. Many people choose to share their plastic surgery experience through simple photo and video uploads via smartphones, tablets, and other accessible handheld devices that can instantly post a message on Twitter or load content onto their Facebook pages for others to view. This is a unique opportunity to have your practice name “tagged” and expand your reach through social media “friend” connections. In our own practice, a recent patient posted her excitement about a new treatment received in our office. This post generated 10 to 12 new posts about the treatment and created a “buzz” for this service in our practice. After these posts, we noted an increase in bookings for this service over the next three weeks. The Negatives The ability to stimulate interest in new procedures and treatments through favorable postings or reviews is obvious, but what about the impact of negative comments? Sites that allow for free posting of positive comments— including Facebook, Twitter, and “ask-a-surgeon” forums on Project Beauty and Realself—also provide users with the ability to post negative comments about a particular treatment or practice.5 For the plastic surgeon, handling these negative reviews in a constructive manner is essential. For example, consider the patient who posts a comment about her displeasure with resultant scarring at only 10 days postoperatively. An appropriate online response from the physician would attempt to educate this patient on the expected time for the scar to improve and mature to its final state. Such a response enables the physician to demonstrate his or her knowledge, attention to patientcentered issues, and compassion. Although this activity requires time and effort, it can turn a negative statement into a positive reflection of your practice. Additionally, sites such as Yelp allow patients to provide positive or negative reviews but without the opportunity for online response. Unfortunately, the negative reviews may draw significant Internet traffic (no matter how few they may be in relation to positive comments). The only option is to discuss with the Web content owners the policy for time limitations on such postings. Threats of litigation or other harsh communications seldom produce the desired result and usually do more harm than good. Not Necessarily for Everyone Social media are still evolving, and it is certain that many changes lie ahead. As mentioned earlier, the ability to reach patients in a meaningful way through social media has been demonstrated. However, it remains unclear whether participation in social networking has yet become an absolute necessity for every plastic surgeon seeking to grow his or her practice.6,7 Traditionally, many people choosing plastic surgery have valued the utmost in discretion, and practice growth has relied heavily on word-of-mouth. This challenges the emerging notion that one must actively engage in online activities and social media to attract patients. Many surgeons with practices primarily devoted to facial
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