Three easy ways to boost your medical practice’s search rankings

As a physician, you know that a large part of your successfully marketing your practice is dependent on how easily new patients can find you when searching online for the best local doctors in your specialty. If your practice’s website does not rank in the top three results on search engines like Google, you are missing out on valuable leads and new patients.

Below are the three most important 2021 SEO tactics that you can implement on your website today to improve your patient acquisition rates.

1. Optimize for Your Practice’s Specific Location

Most new patients search by the city when looking for healthcare providers in their area. Therefore, develop a location specific SEO strategy that optimizes your websites content to include geographical location by geotagging office photos. For example, make sure your city is mentioned at least one time in all your blog posts, page titles, and URLs. You may also want to make sure your practice location and contact information is registered and up-to-date on Google Maps and other local directory websites, which will improve your visibility in local searches.

2. Research SEO Keywords for the Healthcare Industry at Least Every 3 Months

The most successful practices revisit and update their SEO strategies at least every three months. The healthcare industry is constantly changing—especially during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic—which means updating your website content is essential for staying relevant and attracting new patients.

Tailor and update your practice's website content as needed based on the latest healthcare related keywords and your competition's keywords as well. For example, many people are now researching at-home telemedicine appointments for common, straightforward requests or illnesses which eliminates visits to your practice. To capitalize on this specific trend, write blog posts about the risks of telemedicine treatments and the benefits of in-office professional treatment. This ensures you capture traffic from both search variations about telemedicine appointments.

3. Focus on Low-Competition Keywords with High Search Volumes for your Practice's Specialty

This is one of the best ways to stay on top of SEO trends and rank above your competitors. Low-competition keywords are those that are not yet widely used on other doctors’ websites. Focusing on low-competition keywords that are just starting to gain traction can put your healthcare practice at the top of the search results and boost your reputation as one of the leading industry experts for that specific trend.

Next, write and publish content featuring those keywords or topics before the competition has a chance to jump on them. Using low-competition keywords also results in a higher number of original, organic content on your website that is generally favored by Google’s algorithm.

A sound SEO strategy has been proven to significantly grow your online presence with increased organic traffic which in turn will grow your new patient appointments. With so many other medical practices vying for a spot on the first page of Google, it’s important to continually refine your SEO strategy. We know it can be difficult to rank in the top 3 spots on Google for certain keywords, but by implementing the three tactics outlined in this article (such as optimizing your website by including key words and phrases) you will see your page rise above your competition over time. Many physicians across all specialties use these same expert tips and achieve their goal of seeing new patients come through their door.

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How to Optimize Your Small Business Website for Voice Search

If you want to ensure new customers are able to find your business, then you need to know how to optimize your business for voice search, which is becoming one of the most popular ways of searching.


Voice search isn’t quite taking over the search world yet—but it’s getting closer. Last year, more than half (58%) of consumers used voice search to find local business information, according to BrightLocal’s Voice Search for Local Business Study 2018. Almost half (46%) of voice search users searched for a local business daily; 28% used voice search to search for a local business about once a week.

Here’s what you need to know about voice search trends, uses and actions, and how to boost your business in voice search results.

Who uses voice search?

People of all ages use voice search, although younger consumers are more likely to use voice search to find information on local businesses than older consumers.

• 76% of consumers ages 18 to 34 had used voice search to find information for a local business in the last 12 months; 15% had not used voice search but said they would consider using it in the future.
• 64% of consumers ages 35 to 54 had used voice search to find information for a local business in the last 12 months; 24% had not used voice search but said they would consider using it in the future.
• 37% of consumers ages 55 and older had used voice search to find information for a local business in the last 12 months; 33% had not used voice search but said they would consider using it in the future.
• How do consumers do a voice search?

According to BrightLocal, smartphones are the most popular tool for voice searches for local businesses, and smart speakers are the least commonly used. That’s probably because almost everyone owns a smartphone and not everyone owns a smart speaker. However, people who own smart speakers use voice search more frequently—maybe because announcing your search to a smart speaker in the privacy of your home is easier than saying it on a crowded subway.

• 74% of smartphone voice search users search for local businesses at least once per week.
• 76% of smart speaker voice search users search for local businesses at least weekly; of those, 53% search every day.

What do consumers use voice search for?

Consumers are most likely to voice search for food-related businesses. The most common voice search industries are:

• Restaurants/cafés (51% of consumers)
• Grocery stores (41%)
• Food delivery (35%)
• Clothing stores (32%)
• Hotels/bed and breakfasts (30%)

If you’re in one of these industries, you really need to optimize your website for voice search.

Consumers use voice search for several purposes, including checking inventory, checking business hours, making restaurant reservations and even making a purchase.

• 54% make a restaurant reservation
• 46% find out prices of a local business’s products/services
• 40% ask which products are in stock
• 32% buy directly from a business

What do consumers do after making a voice search?

Voice searches drive actions for local businesses. After making a voice search:
28% of consumers call the business

• 27% visit the business’s website
• 19% visit the business in person

How to optimize a website for voice search

Now that you know how important optimizing for voice search is, here’s how to do it:

1. Get local. If you’re a local business, like a hair salon or insurance agency, be sure your site is listed on Google My Business and other local search directories, and that your listing is updated, complete, and accurate. Also make sure your location, hours, and phone number are correct and visible on your website. Put location-related keywords in your website content, tags, and image tags.
2. Use multiple-word keywords. Called long-tail keywords, these have four words or more. You can use Google Keyword Planner to find them (Neil Patel has a good explanation of how to find long-tail keywords). People using voice search speak in sentences so their queries have more words than the average search. Your website content should incorporate long-tail keywords that sound like a question customers would ask. For example, a fitness studio could use long-tail keywords like “best health club for men” to capture voice searchers asking, “Where’s the best health club for men around here?”
3. Use natural language. If your website content is written in a conversational tone, it’s more likely to pop up in voice search results. Keep your website at an easy reading level such as eighth grade. Use short sentences and concise writing; voice search results typically look for quick answers. You can use the Hemingway app to check for readability and make sure your content is easy for everyone to understand.
4. Add questions and answers on your business’s website. People using voice search ask questions like, “What pizza place has vegan pizza?” as opposed to typing in keywords such as “vegan pizza 90210.” Creating a FAQ page is a good way to start developing question and answer content. However, you can also create product or service descriptions, blog posts, and other content that answers questions.
5. Optimize your website for mobile use. Mobile voice searches often take place when the user is out and about. Your site needs to load fast on a mobile device or the user will move on to the next local business recommendation. Google has a free mobile-friendly website test.

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SEM Means Business

When you need a product or service, do you head online to search for information or deals? Most people do, including your potential customers. In fact, four out of five consumers rely on search engines to find local info and prefer localized ads, according to a 2014 Google study. And they act fast—50 percent of mobile phone users and 34 percent of people searching on tablets or computers make a purchase within 24 hours of conducting a local search.

What does this mean for your business? Not putting time, effort and part of your marketing budget aside for online advertising means countless lost opportunities. And search engine marketing (SEM), which uses tools to precisely deliver paid ads within specific search results, should be high on your list of tactics.

SEM can be complicated, but drilled down it's about effectively targeting the right customer. And ad copy is vital—your words are what drives high click through rates (CTR) and low cost per click (CPC).

Effective ad copy should include:

• Clear messaging with no ambiguity or surprises.
• Correct contact information.
• Relevant keywords.
• Active language and strong call to action.

A controlled SEM approach can provide speedy results and helpful tracking benefits, but needs fine-tuning and finessing to be successful and cost-effective. Don't jump in without a clear strategy.

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New Google AdWords is Coming: What to Expect

 

 

“The only thing Google has failed to do, so far, is fail.” — John Battelle

Google is notorious for changing things up. Every year the company leaves SEOs, PPC advertisers, and business professionals biting their nails, anxious of what’s to come. This year has held plenty of new surprises, with a recent Google quote warning us that AdWords is about to get a shake-up. What’s coming? “. . . The biggest changes to our text ads since AdWords launched 15 years ago.”
Should business owners fret and worry? Start clamoring to make significant changes to their ad buying behaviors? Neither. While the changes are dramatic, all signs point to a celebration. This is not an upheaval you should stress about.

At this year’s Google Performance Summit, which took place on May 24, the company unveiled several changes to AdWords which play in to Google’s weighty mobile-first push. As the company stated in its blog covering these changes, “The shift to mobile is no longer a change on the horizon. It’s here.”

So what, exactly, are these adjustments to come? Let’s take a look.

Increased Ad Text

When Google removed the right side ads from SERPs, everyone just about lost their minds. The tech giant is now making up for that by expanding the number of characters utilized in its text ads.
For starters, advertisers used to be able to list a single headline to their ads consisting of 25 characters. The new, revised ads will allow AdWords users to flaunt not one, but two 30-character headlines on a single ad. Google explained that the longer headlines will be more beneficial to advertisers because it will drive higher quality leads.

That isn’t all that Google had in store with its text based overhaul. In addition to the headline expansion, the company has decided to boost its description headline as well. As it currently stands, ad descriptions are structured into two 35-character lines. In the revised version, ads will display a single 80-character line for an increase of 10 characters.

According to Google, this new layout comes with significant results. As the company stated: “Based on early testing, some advertisers have reported increases in click-through rates of up to 20 percent compared to current text ads.”

This alteration by Google is yet another step in transforming its SERPs to accommodate mobile devices and their smaller screens. Yet, despite the mobile-first initiative, these changes will be implemented on both desktop and mobile.

Responsive Display Ads

Alongside the reformed text ads, Google disclosed its new Responsive Display Ads. The new responsive ads will only require advertisers to provide Google with the URL, image, and headline; Google will take care of the rest. This means that the adverts will essentially be created and served on the spot depending upon the mobile user’s screen, leaving Google to figure out the best format for the ad.

Enhanced In-Store Conversion Measurements

AdWords creations have direct parallels to in-store conversions. Yet, deciphering these factual statistics has remained challenging for business owners up to this point. Soon, however, in-store conversion metrics will become more widely available to a variety of business.

This is fantastic news because Google has conveyed that AdWords ads have resulted in more than one billion store visits that have been measured over the past two years. The company even stated that, “AdWords is the largest online-to-offline ad measurement solution in the world.” Google is able to track these conversions by looking at a user’s location history to establish if an individual clicked a retailer’s ad and then visited the store. While this isn’t necessarily new, the additional information is a welcomed addition.

Ads in Maps

In addition to all of these fancy new features, Google has also decided to incorporate Search Ads inside Google Maps for what it calls the “next generation” in local search ads. The company is referring to these ads as “promoted pins.” The pins will help brands sway consumers into visiting their store as opposed to a competitor’s as they can offer things such as dollars off coupons.

On top of the new “promoted pins,” Google will be incorporating logos as map markers instead of the currently existing red icons. This was displayed at the summit as Best Buy’s logo was displayed on the map at their location.

This is massive news for advertisers. Google disclosed that location-based searches account for approximately one-third of all mobile queries and have grown 50 percent faster than any other type of mobile search in the past year.

The company also revealed changes to its bidding model in which adjustments can be made independently for mobile, desktop and tablet. Local business pages are also getting a makeover as promoters can display in-store promotions, while consumers can search local inventory.

This Google announcement is one for the history books as the company brings AdWords to an entirely new level on mobile, desktop, and tablet alike. This should come as fantastic news for all users of AdWords and other Google services after the rocky road of the past few months. These changes are expected to roll out officially later this year, but it is best to start preparing for them now — your competition is likely doing the same. If you want to see the Google Performance Summit keynote in its entirety, you can do so right here.

Which one of these additions/revamps are you most excited for? Which do you think will be most beneficial to your business?

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3 SEO Cheats to Push You Higher in the SERPs

  

“There was a brief time in SEO history where you could build thousands of spam links and watch your site climb to the top of the first page 2. Those days are long gone. SEOs that do well today dedicate serious resources (time, money, and skilled labor) towards their link building campaigns.” – Brian Dean, CEO of Backlinko

Nearly every SEO tactic today falls into one of three categories; white hat, black hat, or the nebulous gray. White hat tactics are those recommended by Google and other search engines which take a straightforward approach to reaching the top of the SERPs. Black hat tricks, on the other hand, are methods that are considered unethical in the world of SEO. Yet no matter how you slice it, there are plenty of strategies that fall into the gray.

The SEO cheats presented here are neither black nor white; they just are. Some may consider them to fall on the black hat side of things, but that’s only a misconception. Keep reading and you’ll see.
If you are seeking genuine SEO tactics to give you a rise in the SERPs, look no further. Here are three SEO “cheats” that will deliver impressive results.

1. Targeted Outreach with Google Keyword Planner

Most leverage the Google Keyword Planner simply for AdWords purposes and keyword research. This tool, however, is far more powerful than its implied uses. The Keyword Planner is a stellar tool for identifying outreach opportunities for your site to benefit from.

When conducting an outreach campaign, it is vital to focus your efforts on those who are already discussing similar products or services. Anything broader and you are likely to waste massive amounts of time getting turned down. To find the most relevant sources, focus on those who are already incorporating your long-tail keywords into their mix. You can locate these bloggers by simply loading your keywords into the Keyword Planner and filtering the results for low search volume keywords. Once you have your list, export it.

From here, begin plugging your long-tail words into Google individually while actively searching for blogs or articles that cater to these topics. With this list in hand, you can begin reaching out; you will likely have far more success with your campaign as these folks are already engaging in your industry’s conversation and will be far more apt to respond.

2. Building Links through Building Connections

This method involves persistence and patience, but it will pay off if you remain steadfast in your efforts.

The typical route for many SEOs is to employ tools that will automate and scale their efforts for maximum efficiency and effectiveness. The rationale here is fairly solid, granted that the right elements are scaled. For this approach, however, we are going to take a seemingly counterintuitive path and refrain from scaling.

Much of the online world revolves around relationships, and this is exactly what you are aiming to build. This is the sweet spot on how you will earn your links. When reaching out to potential partners, you may have to contact them a half dozen times before making your pitch. Cold pitches are rarely received well so playing the long game is essential for this to work.

Additionally, with this tactic you have to be willing to go the extra mile and do something that 95 percent of SEOs won’t do; pick up the phone and call people.

It may sound absurd calling someone to ask for a link, but the power of human-to-human connection is something that should not be underestimated. Next time you find yourself inspired by someone’s post, locate their contact information and give them a call to thank them for the information and share your feedback with them. As this is an uncommon practice, you are going to stick out in their memory. And in many cases, that will pay off big.

By connecting to various voices, authorities and influencers in your niche in this manner, sharing and interacting with their materials will feel natural and they are more likely to take notice. This amps up the possibility of them linking to you exponentially because they know who you are.

3. Comment on Blogs – A Lot

Commenting on blogs is one of many tactics that is perceived to be black hat. This is simply not true. Google’s Matt Cutts has been a proponent of this strategy for a long time and has even gone on record stating that he does this as well. In reality, blog commenting is a fantastic way to acquire more traffic, gain visibility and even drive revenue. Since very few people leverage this strategy, it becomes all the more powerful.

The key to gaining the benefits of blog comments lies in ensuring your statements feel natural; automating this process will ultimately backfire. Your comments need to be organic and useful to the overall conversation.

Approach this by compiling a list of reputable, high-quality blogs within your industry. Then narrow things down by entering the URLs into the Moz Domain Authority tool; only keep sites that have a comparable domain authority to your own. Once you have your list, start engaging and driving people to your site. Just bear in mind that most sites have an approval filter for comments. To ensure that yours passes, make sure that it looks natural and adds to the conversation in a valuable way. If it doesn’t achieve these two aspects, you are just spamming someone else’s blog. While this strategy is no quick fix, it is quite effective.

If you are trying to reach the top of the SERPs, you can’t just follow the same practices and tactics that everyone else is. You have to think outside the box and employ strategies that others won’t. By breaking away from the herd and forging your own path to SEO prosperity, you gain a much more solid foundation to your ranking status.

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