In today’s world—where not a day goes by without using social media—many organizations, including medical institutions, are launching Instagram and Twitter accounts for the very first time. Yet when it comes to actually managing these channels, it’s often unclear how to proceed:
- Does a large follower count equal success?
- Are lots of “likes” the ultimate goal?
- Is merely reaching many viewers enough?
Here, we’ll explore the true essence of social-media marketing.
A Surge in Social-Media Violations of Medical Advertising Guidelines
First, let’s review the Medical Advertising Guidelines. Under recent revisions to Japan’s Medical Care Act, regulations now extend beyond newspapers, magazines, and station signage to cover medical institutions’ websites and social-media channels. For example, promoting patient visits on SNS using a third party’s name—rather than the hospital’s or physician’s name—violates these guidelines and breaches the Medical Care Act. Today, with the rise of social-media marketing agencies, even if a clinic or doctor claims, “I didn’t know, I had no intention,” an objective evaluation can deem that intent was there—and thus a violation has occurred.
As healthcare professionals, accurate medical communication is paramount. Unknowingly running afoul of the Advertising Guidelines or the Medical Care Act may boost short-term traffic, but it inevitably undermines the quality and trustworthiness of your practice. At Setolabo, we prioritize compliance with these guidelines and practice SNS marketing that stays true to medicine’s core values—elevating the genuine worth of our partner institutions.
Curation by Clinically Trained Staff
When entrusted with your reputation, mere legal compliance isn’t enough—to earn your patients’ trust, we must also deliver evidence-based information. Many Instagram marketing firms rely on staff or contractors who lack any medical background. Because simply posting on Instagram can be outsourced through freelance platforms for as little as ¥10,000–20,000 per month, it’s all too common for unqualified freelancers to handle your account. This approach carries significant, hidden risks.
At Setolabo, nearly every post is authored by someone with medical expertise, and every item is reviewed by a medically trained professional before publication. This ensures that all information we share is both accurate and responsible.
Emphasizing Substance Over Gimmicks
So what should your objectives be for social media? Do you want to increase return visits or cross-sell other services? Attract entirely new patients? Build your brand as a healthcare provider? Setolabo begins by clarifying your specific goals and then selects the most appropriate platforms—Instagram, Twitter, LINE, TikTok, Facebook, etc.—to achieve them.
In SNS management, it’s not about quick tricks; it’s about focusing on substance. For instance, on Instagram, one common tactic is to follow thousands of accounts and then unfollow those who don’t follow back—artificially inflating your follower count. You’ll often see accounts that nearly balance 3,000 both followed and following. But does that really produce meaningful results?
To illustrate the effective approach, let us introduce you to the Instagram account we manage for Setolabo—where genuine engagement and expert-driven content take precedence over empty metrics.
Setolabo Sanitation Laboratory Instagram
This account was created to drive up PCR test usage by sharing the information travelers need—especially those bound for South Korea. You might think “an Instagram account about PCR tests” would have zero demand, yet with only six posts and a handful of Stories—and without following a single user—it rapidly amassed a large following. What’s even more striking is the impact on our testing centers’ foot traffic: unbeknownst to the public, people who saw these Instagram updates and then used Setolabo for their Korea trip grew tenfold. In purely economic terms, this effort generated over ¥30 million in PCR‐testing revenue for overseas travel. That success came precisely because we provided timely, trustworthy updates about Korea and global travel—simply meeting users’ demand for reliable, firsthand information.
This, in our view, captures the true essence of social‐media marketing. Rather than bluntly advertising “Get your PCR test here!” to boost visitor numbers, we “share actionable travel info about Korea and beyond,” which naturally attracts travelers—and leads them to book their pre‐departure PCR tests with us.
Social‐Media Marketing Goes Beyond Posting Alone
At times, clients ask us to “just handle our posts.” At Setolabo, we usually decline. Why? Because posting alone rarely shows clear results—and delivers poor returns on both time and cost. True SNS marketing begins with a holistic understanding of the entire organization—company or clinic—and defining the role social media should play within that context.
To launch an SNS marketing strategy, we first confirm:
- Key stakeholders’ objectives (e.g., via executive interviews)
- Whether the director is a permanent hire or an external contractor
- Alignment of the clinic’s mission and values among staff
- The clinic’s current operational status and challenges
- The decision‐maker’s specific goals
- A roadmap for achieving those goals
You simply cannot succeed at SNS marketing without first knowing your client. At Setolabo, we pinpoint your most pressing issues, then craft a social‐media strategy that directly addresses them—ensuring measurable improvement.
Moreover, SNS marketing doesn’t end with a campaign. Insights and opportunities uncovered through social media must be leveraged to develop new services or refine existing ones. In other words, social media can spark real innovation.
“SNS Doctor”: Delivering Accurate Medical Information
To safeguard public trust, Setolabo launched SNS Doctor, a pro bono initiative led by doctors, nurses, pharmacists, clinical‐lab technologists, and registered dietitians. SNS Doctor offers:
- Free audits of medical institutions’ social‐media posts for guideline compliance and accuracy
- Full operation of healthcare SNS accounts
Our mission is to instill in as many people as possible the responsibility and importance of sharing medically sound information online. By guiding institutions on best practices, we ensure Setolabo’s core philosophy—evidence‐based medical communication—reaches patients through trusted providers.
When we support an institution’s SNS through SNS Doctor, we treat each account as if it were our own—nurturing it with the same care you’d give your child. Our goal isn’t to chase follower counts, but to elevate each account’s value and help medical institutions deliver evidence‐based insights directly to patients.
Complimentary SNS Account Audit for Medical Institutions
At Setolabo’s “SNS Doctor” service, we now offer a free review to ensure that your medical institution’s social-media accounts are being managed appropriately. We believe that successful SNS marketing can only begin once we truly understand your organization’s unique challenges. At Setolabo, we first identify the issues you face and then design an SNS strategy that addresses how to improve and resolve them.
Eligible Institutions
- Independent administrative agencies, medical corporations, and physician- or dentist-run hospitals (including individual clinics and dental practices)
- We also welcome requests from individual healthcare professionals, such as physicians
What’s Included—Free of Charge
- Audit of your active SNS account(s)
- Thorough review of post content
- One-hour online consultation for needs assessment and strategic recommendations (up to 60 minutes)
• Multiple accounts may be audited.
• If demand exceeds our capacity, we may need to decline some requests to maintain quality. Thank you for your understanding.
Is It Really Free?
Yes. If your team can implement our recommendations independently, there is no cost—ever. Should you later wish for our SNS Doctor team to co-manage your social media, you are welcome to engage us at that time. Let’s work together to deliver accurate, trustworthy information to your patients!
●Inquiries and applications regarding SNS Doctor
Cost of social media marketing
If you search for “SNS management agency” on Google, you will find many articles, but the cost varies from tens of thousands of yen to hundreds of thousands of yen per month.
| Approximately 10,000 to 50,000 yen per month | Freelancers | Just posting. Not only is it pointless, it’s risky. |
| ~ 150,000 yen/month | The company produces and acts on behalf of the posts, but most of the work is outsourced. | many cheap companies |
| Approximately 150,000 to 500,000 yen per month | We create and manage posts, as well as handle daily operations. We also outsource. | Average price range |
| 500,000 to 1,000,000 yen per month | In addition to creating and managing posts and daily operations, we also provide advertising and analysis reports. | For those who value support. |
For example, if you post one post a day on Instagram or Twitter, it takes one hour to create it. 1 hour x 30 days x 1,500 yen per hour = 45,000 yen. If you have worked on it, you will understand that it takes twice as long to create illustrations, etc. In this way, the above is as expected from the hourly wage.
Setolabo offers a wide range of prices to suit your needs. For more information, please contact us using the form below.