%20TRANSPARENT%20horizontal.webp){kind=spacer}
A recent study showed 78% of local Google searches resulted in an offline visit and purchase.
In other words, having good healthcare SEO means more searches equals more patients.
SEO for doctors is absolutely required in today’s digital marketplace and you have to be at the top.
The process of positioning your website at the top of the search engines is called “Search Engine Optimization,” or SEO. Considering you spent the time and investment on a beautiful medical website design, you want it to rank.
Now to set proper expectations, achieving good SEO for medical practices takes time. Rome wasn’t built in a day! Here’s how we approach medical SEO to help you rank over time and get in front of new patients.
When beginning your medical SEO campaign, the first step is to “get in the head” of your patient. What keywords are they searching for on Google (also consider Yahoo and Bing).
For example, if you are a plastic surgeon in Philadelphia, you may want to consider keywords like “plastic surgeon philadelphia,” “cosmetic surgeon philadelphia,” and “aesthetic surgery philadelphia.” Notice we are employing local SEO for doctors with location keywords such as, “Philadelphia.”
Not sure which keywords to choose? Our medical SEO specialists conduct keyword research for you based on your medical specialty, location and competitors. We’ll compile a list for your website, blog content and Google ads, leaving you to focus on what you do best – treating patients.
Using the keywords on your site
If Google cannot find the keywords on your website, then it will not consider your site relevant to those keyword searches…and you won’t show up in Google search (ouch)!
That said, it’s important the keywords are added to your site in a natural and strategic manner. Medical practice SEO cannot include “keyword stuffing,” or simply entering a bunch of keywords; it should be natural and authentic.
Our medical website design services ensure this is done correctly, whether on your existing website or a new site we build for you.
Backlinking
In addition to healthcare SEO, a major factor for Google’s algorithm is backlinks to your website. A backlink is when another website links to yours, hence “backlink.” And both the quality and quantity of those backlinks, count.
1 quality backlink is worth much more than 10,000 low quality backlinks. In other words, be careful who you trust to build backlinks for you! Too many low quality backlinks will be a red flag to Google and can potentially lead to your site being blacklisted.
Blogging
Consistent content to your website is essential. It shows Google your site is "active" and providing value to your audience. We recommend posting 1-3 blog articles per month to remain active and relevant.
Be sure to do keyword research to understand what your audience is searching for online, and mirror your blog content to those search topics. It's also important to employ proper "on-page" SEO, it's a combination of writing naturally and writing so Google ranks your blog articles.
Social Media
Social media marketing is a great way to build up quality backlinks. Additionally, the major social media sites such as Facebook and Instagram are considered “authority” backlinks, essentially they carry more weight.
On your social media accounts, you need to be posting high quality and consistent content. There is very little impact when posting sporadically or not part of a larger medical SEO campaign; the two should always be aligned. Our social media experts can help you with this too!
Medical SEO is an area of focus that must be done if you want your website to rank on Google. A variety of factors go into ranking your site and local SEO for doctors should be outsourced to a proven agency if you want the job done properly. If we can help, please reach out!
