Increase Patient Volume With Effective Medical SEO

Your medical website is a powerful tool to help you build your brand and further promote your practice. A well-designed and optimized website is one of the reasons some local practices attract patients even outside their area. Your website has potential, and if you want to tap into that power, you need medical SEO.

Medical SEO is your key to staying ahead of all the top practices, clinics, or hospitals in your local area. With a well-defined SEO strategy, you can increase traffic to your website, which translates to an increase in patient volume.

Let us dive into the details of medical SEO and the latest SEO trends guaranteed to promote your business.

Watch this video to learn more about the Digital Authority Partners approach to Medical SEO!

It’s All About Your Rankings

"The winner takes it all." Yes, the website at the top of Google's search engine results takes most traffic. Also, people are more likely to click on the websites that appear at the top of the search engine results pages (SERPs).

Most users hardly ever move past the first page, especially with medical or health-related topics. Thus, ensuring that your website reaches and stays on the first page is crucial.

Search engine optimization (SEO) is a collection of strategies that can help you gain more control over your market. With SEO, you can:

• Improve overall website functions
• Create an updated and valuable medical website
• Showcase your brand and your services
• Promote your business further
• Direct more traffic to your local clinic
• Increase revenue

Top Medical SEO Strategies To Improve Patient Volume

SEO strategies vary year after year. Customer trends and many other factors influence SEO, but the following top medical SEO strategies can improve patient volume online and for your local practice.

     1. Boosting Local Traffic With Google My Business

One of the most important yet underestimated parts of local SEO is Google My Business (GMB.) This is your business' unique Google profile linked to your Google Maps. It contains all your business information and the many ways your clients and patients can reach you.

Because of GMB’s primary position on Google, you should optimize your profile to attract more clients. It all starts with claiming your Google My Business listing.

     How To Claim Your GMB

By claiming your GMB profile, you're unlocking many features to help your medical business or practice grow. Search for your business on Google and click "Own this business?"

Google will send a postcard via snail mail to your business location. This postcard contains a unique code that you will use to claim and manage your profile. Once you've verified your business, you're ready to manage your business information.

    How To Optimize Your GMB

Start updating your address, business name, email address, business hours, and photos. Google also allows you to create a free 750-character description of your business. You can optimize it by adding your keywords for an interesting result.

Your GMB is also where your clients can leave a review. Indeed, businesses find negative reviews disheartening, but don’t let this affect you. Consider negative reviews helpful because they allow you to focus on aspects of your business that need improvement.

Upload current photos of your business. This will further optimize your business and help your customers decide if they want to consider your services.

Finally, update your listing with holiday hours, updates about your business, and answer any customer questions. The more you update and interact with your customers, the more Google recognizes the value of your business.

     2. Crafting Meaningful Content

Google ranks businesses according to their value. The more your audience finds value on your site, the more they are likely to click, stay, return, and share. One way to add value to your business is by producing meaningful content.

Your online content is more than just text content. It's everything you'll find on your website as well as your blogs, video channels, social media, and other channels.

Below are a few strategies to come up with high-value content:

• Publish helpful content according to your practice. Good pieces are tips, how-tos, and listicles.
• Consider adding images, videos, and infographics to your content.
• Use medical tools to add value to your content. Tools such as calculators, planners, quizzes, tests, and surveys can help you profile your clients and patients.
• Use engaging titles and descriptions. Use your keywords to describe your videos, infographics, or tables.
• Find value in podcasts and newsletters.
• Add a call-to-action at the end of your content. Doing so can help trigger your customers to take action on their health or medical condition.

     3. Be On Top Online Medical Directories

Google My Business gives your business a lot of exposure, but adding your practice to top medical directory sites can multiply your chances of getting more traffic.

There are many national and local directories you can join, but to get the best results, we recommend being part of top directory sites such as WebMD, Doctor Finder, Vitals, and RateMDs.

Ensure that your business information is correct and updated on all directories and online platforms. You can add your business to as many online directories as possible, but these top sites should be your priority.

     4. Get More Attention With Social Media

Your social media account can also help you increase your patient volume. Social media will help you reach out to your customers, post relevant information, and assist patients who need immediate assistance. Optimizing your social media platform can effectively boost your popularity.

Posting helpful content regularly and diligently answering comments and questions are ways to optimize your platform. Use your keywords in creating post headlines and descriptions. And to lead your audience to your website, add social media buttons or links.

Final Words

Medical SEO can help you expand your practice online and ultimately lead your customers to your clinic. Use SEO strategies to boost your online popularity to rank your website higher. The results may not be immediate, but SEO can bring you excellent long-term benefits once set.