Paid advertisements can be an effective way to bring you patients from search engines, but organic search engine optimization tends to be more favorable for healthcare providers. It’s a more cost-effective solution while also boosting your authenticity and sense of trust with potential and current patients.
The goal of organic SEO is to rank high on Google search engine results pages, or SERPs, for targeted keywords. The algorithm takes a variety of factors into consideration when ranking, including the relevancy, quality and backlinks. It also looks at the user experience of your site and the value that you’re providing to the user with your content.
Read on to learn about the strategies that can help you climb the rankings as a healthcare provider to get the visibility, engagement and conversions that can help you increase your patient load.
Keyword research for healthcare providers
There are thousands of healthcare-related keywords that a potential patient could be typing into the Google search bar. Approximately 7% of daily Google searches are related to healthcare. By learning about the exact keywords that are being searched for by your target demographic, especially your local community, you can use those keywords in your content, and across your site, to showcase your relevancy.
Start off by identifying keywords that have a high search volume, meaning that they are high-traffic keywords. When possible, try to focus on long-tail keywords which are three or more words, such as “treating back pain from playing sports.” Then, use these keywords to create targeted content that addresses the users’ needs and concerns.
It’s important to consider your keyword intent, meaning that you’re thinking about what the patient hopes to gain from their search, whether that be education, at-home treatment options or alleviating anxiety about an issue.
On-page SEO strategies
How your site appeals to potential patients, and how well they interact with it, can impact your SEO performance. The algorithm considers on-page factors to determine how your site reflects your practice’s quality. It also takes a look at your site’s user experience, meaning how easily it can be used by potential patients.
Here are a few on-page SEO strategies to consider:
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Create compelling meta titles and descriptions
Your content, including blog posts, social media and infographics can help you target relevant keywords. By crafting attention-grabbing meta titles and descriptions for your content, you’re increasing the likelihood of click-throughs while also appealing to the algorithm.
When your meta titles and descriptions bring traffic to your site, the content can be seen as engaging and have a positive impact on your rankings. You can also use specific keywords in the titles and descriptions to showcase relevancy.
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Utilizing schema markup for SEO
A website is built using a variety of codes, and each one plays a different role. When it comes to SEO, you shouldn’t underestimate the importance of schema markup. It refers to the code added to your website’s URL as a way to help search engine algorithms gain a thorough understanding of your content’s value and intent.
Schema markup is structured data that shows the context of your site for accurate snippets that appear on SERPs.
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Optimal heading structure
Having proper formatting of your content can increase user experience, engagement and conversions. When a piece of content has an easy-to-read and accessible structure, it can boost user experience. That’s why having an effective heading structure is important to keep in mind.
Your headings should be set up in a hierarchical sizing to break up the main topics from the subtopics. It helps both the reader and the algorithm understand the information.
Content creation practices
Content creation is often a pillar of many SEO strategies because it allows you to connect keyword-centered information to your treatments as a way to boost traffic, engagement and conversions. You can use different content marketing strategies to help rank higher on Google.
Here are a couple of the best practices for content creation that you should consider:
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Developing authoritative and informative content
As a healthcare provider, creating content gives you the opportunity to educate people about potential concerns that they should be aware of. Your content should inform people about the targeted keyword and how you can help them. It can increase patient acquisition while also establishing you as an authority on the subject.
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Regular updates
Relevancy is a major contributor to SEO because the algorithm wants to make sure that your content is providing value in the right way and at the right time that the user needs it. That’s why you should regularly check on the performance of past content and see if they can be further optimized for SEO. This can include anything from updating the links to adjusting the angle for current concerns.
Want to attract new patients to your website? BURG+CO. can help you rank higher on Google
Every healthcare provider wants to be the first practice listed on a Google SERP. If you’re trying to climb the rankings, BURG+CO.’s SEO and content marketing services are here to help.
Our team has years of experience in helping healthcare brands improve their digital presence to attract new patients and retain existing ones. If you’re looking to perform better in search engine results and attract more potential patients to your site, we’re ready to talk to you to see how we can help.
Contact our team today for more information about digital marketing or to schedule a complimentary consultation.
