First impressions can be daunting primarily because they can have a long-lasting influence on a relationship, but what does it mean to make a 1st impression online?
Some of medtech’s biggest companies have made themselves Twitter regulators, but each had to start somewhere. Here are some of the industry’s 1st tweets:
Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) CEO Omar Ishrak began his tenure at the medtech titan with a tweet on June 13, 2011:
Thrilled to be leading an amazing company with such a powerful mission. Engaging with our customers and global team. A great start!
— Omar Ishrak (@MedtronicCEO) June 13, 2011
Ishrak has accumulated 5,685 followers and has published 555 tweets to date, including regular updates on his travels and talks with various medtech stakeholders.
Medtronic’s corporate account has been around for years longer than the CEO twitter feed, sending its first tweet about its Melody device:
FDA panel to meet in July and review #Medtronic Melody transcatheter heart valve designed to eliminate need for open heart valve surgery.
— Medtronic News (@Medtronic) July 8, 2009
Boston Scientific (NYSE:BSX) took a little longer to get to Twitter, issuing its 1st tweet just about 2 years ago with a proper introduction:
Introducing $BSX on Twitter! We’re kicking off with featured data @ HRS 2012 http://t.co/iWGaYTRn. Pls visit us @ booth 1033 #HRS2012
— Boston Scientific (@bostonsci) May 10, 2012
The company has less than 200 tweets but more than 3,300 followers so far.
Intuitive Surgical (NSDQ:ISRG) got into the game a little after Boston Scientific, stepping into the Twitter universe with a nod to a local video profile of the company:
Intuitive Surgical, made in the Bay Area –@MikeCassidy San Jose Mercury News http://t.co/KE8orq3M
— Intuitive Surgical (@IntuSurgNews) August 30, 2012
The company has a limited presence on the social media site, with 67 tweets sent and 483 followers.
Healthcare giant GE Healthcare (NYSE:GE) is a prolific tweeter, having more than 9,000 published tweets since joining the site in 2008. The original tweet is embedded so far back that we had to grab a screenshot:
The company’s already tweeted nearly a dozen updates just today to its more than 40,000 followers.
ResMed (NYSE:RMD) CEO Mick Farrel joined the site just under 1 year ago, but has 250 followers. He launched his Twitter account with a nod to an article comparing drug therapy to sleep apnea treatment:
New study shows link between #sleepapnea and behavioural problems like #ADHD. Should clinicians use Ritalin or CPAP? http://t.co/qhTEMtGu8n
— Mick Farrell (@ResMedMick) April 15, 2013
The ResMed corporate account has only 17 tweets but 369 followers. The company’s 1st tweet came with handy advice:
Healthy sleep 101 … great tips from the National Sleep Foundation on getting better #sleep http://t.co/RgSlV2Qk
— ResMed (@ResMed) January 22, 2013
Healthcare industry titan Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) is another super-user, with more than 5,000 tweets and more than 27,000 followers. The company’s 1st tweet gives a shout-out to some teenagers doing charity work:
The company has sent 15 tweets today, some of which highlight Johnson & Johnson’s "Donate a Photo" campaign, through which the company donates $1 for each photo "donated" via its mobile app.
Medtech industry group AdvaMed isn’t one to be left out of the social media sensation, having joined Twitter in 2009 and amassed more than 5,500 followers so far. The group’s 1st tweet gets straight to the point with a note on that year’s FDA budget.
budget leg for FY09 contains $2.04 billion for FDA-a $325 million increase over FY08 of which $43 million is 4 med device activities
— AdvaMed (@AdvaMedUpdate) March 11, 2009
The group has sent nearly 2,700 tweets total.
Even the FDA’s medtech arm is in on the action, joining Twitter back in 2010 with an introduction of its own:
The agency has more than 39,600 followers and has sent 1,950 tweets since its 1st day on the social media site.
As for MassDevice, we made our way onto Twitter with a nod to one of our earliest stories about Orthofix International (NSDQ:OFIX):
We’ve sent more than 13,700 tweets and have 7,680 followers. Keep up with our Twitter feed here.
