Medical SEO
Increasing Search Engine Rankings for Healthcare Providers
What is Medical SEO?
Medical SEO (or Healthcare SEO) stands for Medical Search Engine Optimization and is the practice of increasing the rankings specifically for doctor or healthcare related websites in search result pages.
Improving the Odds that Patients Choose You
A well designed SEO strategy puts your business in front of patients searching for your services. SEO involves fine-tuning various elements of your website, both on-page and off-page, to inform search engines what your website is about, and that you are an authoritative result for their search query in your industry and as a local provider. Search engines such as Google and Bing are changing their algorithms constantly, so it is important to treat your website SEO as an ongoing and long term project.
Because nobody wants a beautiful website hidden on the second page.
What Services Does a Medical SEO Agency Provide?
| Category | Associated Services |
| On-Page | Content, meta-data optimization |
| Technical | Schema, site speed, information architecture, crawl budget, indexibility |
| Off-Page | Link building and management, backlink analysis |
| Local | GBP Management, citations, Map Pack optimization |
| Research | Keyword research, competitor research, testing |
| Analytics | Google Analytics, Looker Studio |
| Reporting | Holistic overview of stats and audits |
The Three C’s of SEO for Healthcare
The CTO of Glacial Multimedia Inc., Onur Birsen, has coined the phrase “The 3 C’s of Medical SEO: Code, Content and Connectivity“. These three pillars help to conceptualize the a holistic SEO philosophy for medical practices.
Code: The Website Structure Matters
Did you know that mobile friendliness has been a Google ranking factor since 2015? This and countless other code-related factors play into the search engine optimization rankings of each and every website. Responsive website design is the preferred mobile configuration of Google’s search engine, meaning that it is important to create a website design that is functional on all screen sizes.
Our SEO specialists also focus on the coding ‘behind-the-scenes’ of your website. We deploy specific markups that help search engines read your website and its content smoothly and effectively.
Other coding factors include the load speed of your website (the faster the better!), creating appropriate tags throughout the website and on its images, and the implementation of an overall ‘user-friendly’ design.
Content: It’s Not What You Say, It’s How You Say It!
The content on your website has a lot of responsibilities. A well-optimized website depends on excellent content to help capture users and keep them captivated, and it’s all about balance.
Beyond that, Google and other search engines have moved beyond simple keyword based results, and are now semantic search engines. Essentially, Google can now understand the context of what is written on your website, and using machine learning algorithms, create an overall conceptualization of what your website is about.
The goal is to be conversational and authoritative, writing trustworthy and useful geared towards helping and educating patients, not search engines. If a potential patient has a question, they will trust the medical website that seems to best address their needs and queries. This is why it is so important to cultivate unique, well-written content.
Regular content updates are also important for a thorough SEO strategy, and blogging is an excellent way to accomplish this goal and build topical authority into your website and brand.
Our team of SEO specialists excel at optimizing content for rankings, ensuring each page has appropriate structure and semantic relevance to topics your audience may be seeking. Alongside our team of SEO experts is Glacial’s team of copywriters, all extremely knowledgeable in the medical field and trained to create captivating, SEO-optimized content.
So, if the idea of writing great content for an entire website (or even one blog article) is daunting, Glacial Multimedia can help with our medical copywriting services.
Connectivity: Building a Network to Build Authority
The internet isn’t called the ‘World Wide Web’ for nothing! Imagine your website as one small piece of an enormous spider-web, with tiny strings building millions of connections from website to website.
Every search engine uses bots, also known as crawlers. When your site gets ‘crawled’, these bots are following links from other websites to yours, and from yours to other websites. This is where connectivity comes into play – websites that have built excellent online authority have links coming to them from high-value websites and send bots to sites that are also authoritative and reputable. In crawling websites, bots assess connections and how valuable they are.
A linking strategy can be built from local SEO, building links from third-party citation websites that list your business information. It can also be built by having users share your information on other websites and linking to yours from content and blogs. News articles and PR web releases are another way to build up this network and increase connectivity.
There are good ways to build connectivity, and there are bad ways. Glacial Multimedia is experienced in what we call white-hat SEO techniques – we build connections that are healthy, and avoid those that may have a short-term positive impact but can be volatile in the long run. We can help your practice build a linking strategy that enhances your connectivity and SEO, giving you an edge over your competition.
How Do I Rank Higher in Search Engines?
Answers to Your Most Common Medical SEO Questions
- 72% of consumers who did a local search visited a store within five miles. (WordStream)
- The average first-page result on Google contains 1,890 words. (Backlinko)
- 61% of marketers say improving SEO and growing their organic presence is their top inbound marketing priority. (HubSpot)
Techniques for Medical SEO
SEO is a crucial element of any website design, and a critical marketing strategy for medical practices. Search engines such as Google, Yahoo and Bing have become powerhouses capable of delivering business right to the doors of medical practices. If you can rank in a favorable position on these search engines, you will definitely see an increase in your overall web traffic and patient volume.
Our SEO strategies go beyond ranking results – we want to optimize your website for users, too. At Glacial Multimedia, our team of experienced SEO specialists is trained in creating and optimizing websites to guide users through the ‘patient journey’. Our goal is to help users access relevant information during their research phase and guide them to inquiries, consultations, and appointment requests.
Partnering With A Healthcare SEO Agency
At Glacial Multimedia, we have combined stunning medical website design with functionality and marketing savvy since the year 2001. Our success stems from an adaptable approach to an ever-changing web. By specializing in the industries that have made us who we are today, we can confidently and intelligently help medical practices succeed.
Contact Glacial Multimedia today for more information on our medical SEO services, and how we can help your practice achieve its goals. With experience, strategy, and a customized approach to each medical website we design and optimize, we are confident that we can be the right SEO company for your practice.
Keep Learning About Medical SEO
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Blogs: Your Secret Weapon to SEO Success
How SEO Companies Mess Up Great Ophthalmology and LASIK Website Designs
Why A Strong SEO Strategy is Highly Effective for LASIK Practices
How SEO Companies Mess Up Great Ophthalmology and LASIK Website Designs
