Although the realm of healthcare and medical websites can be improved using techniques that are standard in the SEO world, there are several industry-specifc SEO tactics and strategies that can significantly boost your online presence and cater to the needs of seeking users for healthcare and other medical queries.. Here are some effective approaches:
Local Directory Link Building: Building links from local directories is crucial for healthcare and medical websites. Ensure your website is listed in relevant local directories such as healthcare providers’ directories, medical associations, and regional health forums. These local backlinks not only enhance your site’s authority but also help potential patients find your services more easily. This is especially helpful in the dentistry world as there are often multiple dental offices in any given city/town. Local directories can be anything from the Yellow Pages, Yelp, Manta, and even the local Chamber of Commerce page. A company can handle this internally by reaching out the webmasters of a specific website or you can outsource the solution to this issue by hiring an SEO outfit and have them handle it. Typically, it will be easier to establish links with other relevant or local websites when your website has awesome content, which leads us to our next point…
Content-Rich Blog Section: Maintaining a dedicated ‘Blog’ section on your website is a super powerful tool for SEO. This can be done on your own; however, it is extremely time consuming and will require taking your efforts away from patient-related issues. It is recommended your SEO team regularly updates your website with informative, well-researched articles on healthcare and medical topics. By addressing common questions and concerns that your patients may have, you not only provide valuable information but also improve your site’s search engine ranking. Make sure to optimize these blog posts with relevant keywords as Google or any other search engine will notice when crawling for results, thus taking us to the next SEO practice that will help tremendously.
Keyword Research: Conducting thorough keyword research is essential in identifying the most relevant and frequently searched healthcare and medical terms that are also within reach of your website (which may or may not be struggling to rank). Incorporate these keywords strategically into your website’s content, including the blog posts, meta tags, and headings. This will help search engines understand the focus of your site and rank it higher for relevant queries. Tools that are super helpful in establishing what keywords your website can rank for are ahrefs.com, the Keyword Planner within Google Ads (free), and SEMrush. Particularly in the medical world, incorporating specific prescriptions, brands, procedures, and symptoms of injuries has been helpful for clients in the past as users like to explore what they might be potentially dealing with before getting checked on.
Mobile Optimization: Given the prevalence of mobile users in today’s world (and especially the healthcare industry), ensure that your website is fully responsive and optimized for mobile devices. Mobile-friendly sites are favored by search engines, leading to better rankings.
User Experience (UX) and Page Speed: Improve the overall user experience of your website. A fast-loading site with intuitive navigation and user-friendly design not only keeps visitors engaged but also positively impacts SEO rankings.
In summary, remember that SEO is an ongoing process, and staying up-to-date with industry trends, medicines, practices, and search engine algorithms is crucial for long-term success in the healthcare and medical field. Experimentation and adaptation to changing circumstances are key to maintaining a strong online presence in this industry. Although it is typically easier to let an SEO professional handle the job, you can use these tips to individually improve your websites rankings too.