How can email be used as a health intervention?
Many are enthusiastic about the possibility of social media being used as a behavior change intervention. For some, the verdict is still out. While we continue to advance the science behind social, don’t forget about email (and search for that matter). For today, let’s look at email.
Email at Work
Oncologists who receive email reminders are more likely to ask terminally ill patients about their end-of-life wishes, according to a recent study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. Before the implementation of email reminders, fewer than 15% of patients had their final wishes recorded. After one year of the intervention, one-third of the patients had their final wishes recorded.
This study isn’t alone. Email reminders have helped influence emergency physician behavior. Another email intervention led to improved diet and exercise. This systematic review looked at 13 specific interventions that incorporated email prompts. And the list. doesn’t. stop. there.
Triggers and Behavior Change
I’ve been reading up on text messaging for health promotion efforts for a client-related project. A number of text-messaging vendors include email alerts and updates as a part of their offering. Why? Because emails–just like texts–can serve as triggers for behavior change or as a “gentle nudge” as KevinMD.com discussed back in 2011.
Triggers can be powerful partners in behavior change as demonstrated in the Fogg Behavior Model. We want to put hot triggers in front of motivated people. Email alerts and reminders can be a step in a chain of desired behaviors, helping to create what I refer to as, your behavior change funnel. Small steps can lead to larger outcomes.
Think about it. Why do you think non-profits put such an emphasis on email marketing as part of fundraising? Email triggers action.
Email Is Not Dead
This isn’t “new” news to a number of people in the field. But it’s a great reminder. In August 2011, Pew Research shared that “search and email still top the list of most popular online activities.” Yet a number of conversations start with social and don’t fully open the door to considering email and search (let alone move to a mobile-first discussion).
How are you using email to support your health promotion and behavior change efforts?
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With Dr. Mark Drapeau’s ReadWriteWeb Goverati article yesterday, it seems that the beast is awakening and out of this slumber is arising more Twitter accounts, and thus more friends to meet and conversations to maintain.
As a new Twitter member, one may be wondering a series of questions that I hope this post offers a “quick guide” to successful Twitter use and community, with the key ingredient reiterated at the end.
“What is Twitter?”
Twitter is a micro-blogging social media tool that asks the question, “What are you doing?” Individuals, who have logged in and registered for the free service, answer the question within 140 characters or within multiple updates and then ‘update’ their status. Twitter works by individuals agreeing to ‘follow’ a certain Twitter account. Once following this account, the person then gets the account’s updates. It is a great medium that lends itself to both one-to-one communications, as well as one-to-many communications. In the past six months, Twitter has gone from 600k accounts, to 2.9 million accounts.
“How can I/We use Twitter?”
The list below outlines 13 different functions that both individuals and organizations can use Twitter’s platform to accomplish:
1. Inquiry Response
2. Reputation Management
3. Promotion
4. Event Planning
5. Brand Equity
6. Marketing
7. Fundraising
8. Reminders
9. Emergency and Disaster Response
10. Provide information, news and tips
11. Research
12. Conversation Tracking through Hashtags (i.e. #WAD08, #healthcomm)
13. Social Networking
“Now what?”
- Find YOUR Voice. We all have different perspectives and a variety of experiences, and as I @cdorobek reiterate, we make each other better. Whether your Twitter handle is your real name or a nickname, it doesn’t matter, what matters…is getting started and getting involved.
- Add Value. Twitter’s capabilities are great. But for them to stick and for you to get the most out of it, you must find value not just in the technology, but in the conversations and those you connect with. Thus, respond, connect and engage.
- Create Meaning. This one stretches beyond Twitter, but into social media strategy in general. So, you create a blog, a wiki, a thingy-maggig, people aren’t going to use it unless it adds meaning to their lives.
“How do I connect?”
- For Government folks, check out GovTwit. And, have you signed up for Government 2.0 Camp yet? Are registered on Govloop?
- For Health folks, check out this top 100 health Twitter-ers list. (Also, be sure to check out next week’s DC Social Media Club event about Health 2.0 or there’s DC HealthCamp in late February, the Health 2.0 Conference).
- For others, check out Twitter packs, Twitter Search and the JustTweetIt directory.
“Where can I learn more?”
- Ogilvy’s Twitter Blog Posts Series
- Twit Tip Blog by Problogger, (@problogger)
- Government Micro-Blogging Information
- Twitter Support
- Twitter Wiki
In sum, just add meaning. This may seem easier said than done, so I want to help. What are your other Twitter questions? I can already think of a few (tools, metrics, etc.) Feel free to comment, and I will offer more in the comments. Finally, I too am on Twitter: @socialbttrfly. Feel free to follow, and I look forward to creating meaning together.
]]>“There are about 24,000 U.S. Government Web sites now online.”
“Only a minority of government agencies have developed strong Web policies and management controls. Some have hundreds of “legacy” Web sites with outdated or irrelevant content.”
“We have too much content to categorize, search, and manage effectively, and there is no comprehensive system for removing or archiving old or underused content.”
“Agencies should be required and funded to regular content reviews, to ensure their online content is accurate. relevant, mission-related, and written in plain language. They should have a process for archiving content that is no longer in frequent use and no longer required on the Web site.”
According to my twitter search RSS feed, the term “Government 2.0” is increasing in frequency and popularity. More bloggers and more blog posts continue to emerge on what and how government should improve its online Web presence, leveraging social media. Thus, I was enthused to read last week’s report from the experts themselves: government, to accomplish just this.
Last week, the Federal Web Managers Council, comprised of Cabinet agency Web Directors released its study titled, “Putting Citizens First: Transforming Online Government.” Its purpose is to “recommend specific strategies for revolutionizing how the U.S. Government delivers online services to the American people.
One of the most exciting pieces of the report (in my opinion) is what I understand as the government’s endorsement for more social media:
“The Government should use social media, not just to create transparency, but also to help people accomplish core tasks…To do this, the government must ensure that federal employees who need access to social media tools have them, and that these new ways of delivering content are available to all, including people with disabilities.”
Within this document, the Federal Web Managers Council also reveal their shared vision for the government’s presence online. This vision is for the public to:
- Easily find relevant, accurate, and up-to-date information
- Understand information the first time they read it
- Complete common tasks efficiently
- Get the same answer whether they use the Web, phone, email, live chat, read a brochure, or visit in-person.
- Provide feedback and ideas and hear what the government will do with them
- Access critical information if they have a disability or aren’t proficient in English.
The list of recommendations is not limited to but includes:
- Establish Web Communications as a core government business function
- Help the public complete common government tasks efficiently
- Clean up clutter so people can find what they need online
- Engage the public in a dialogue to improve our customer service
- Ensure under-served populations can access critical information online.
For more information or to read the report in its entirety, the full report is available here.
Your Turn: What do think of the recommendations, how would you prioritize and what else might you include?
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and/or connect with me on Twitter – @socialbttrfly.