Use SEO to Help Your Dental Practice Grow

by Todd Boak | Aug 9, 2022 | Dental Marketing, Google

Use SEO to Help Your Dental Practice Grow

If you’ve heard of any of the hottest marketing trends in recent years, you’ve undoubtedly heard of SEO, which has quickly become one of the most popular marketing tools in the world.

At least, so we’re told. Even today, 70% of businesses still have no SEO strategy.

For your practice, that’s great news. It means there’s less competition standing in your way, especially at the local level. Let’s talk about the importance of SEO for dentists and how to use it for your dental practice!

What Is SEO?

Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of optimizing your website’s content for Google and other search engines, allowing you to rank higher for various searches. The higher you rank, the more traffic you’ll receive!

SEO is an attempt to rank higher in the organic results, which users tend to trust more than search ads. In many cases, this can lead to greater trust and higher conversion rates.

Also, the SEO process is completely different from paid ads. Instead of buying space at the top, you simply attempt to prove to Google’s algorithm that you have the most comprehensive, engaging, relevant, and user-friendly content for users.

How Does SEO Work?

Google and other search engines use software known as crawlers that index and rank hundreds of billions of pages on the web. They do this using a sophisticated algorithm that attempts to match the best content with users based on keywords and search intent.

This is why when you search for “dry cleaners” on Google while you’re in Maine, you don’t get results for dry cleaners in Virginia. Google understands that your search intent was likely to find dry cleaners near you, so it used your location as a factor in your search results.

Because of this, organizations and websites are constantly trying to compete with one another to rank ahead on various keywords and searches. To do this, they need to optimize their websites, content, and even off-page ranking factors. These are the three “pillars” of an SEO strategy.

Google wants to match the best content with users, but they need to understand a site’s credibility and usability before promoting its content. For this reason, Google uses over 200 ranking factors to determine the quality of a website. Most importantly, you should focus on page loading times, mobile-friendliness, and UX design.

To establish a site’s authority (credibility) on a topic, they rely on other websites to “vote” in their favor by linking to their content. These are called backlinks, and the more you have, the easier it will be to rank ahead of the competition in your given niche. From there, strong content that’s engaging and informative for users is all you need for SEO success!

How to Use Local SEO for Dental Practice

Now that you know how SEO works, you can see why it’s become such a popular dental marketing strategy. It’s great for driving organic traffic, but only if you know how to use it! Let’s talk about how to use local SEO for dentists.

Keyword Research

When we discussed matching keywords for searches, what was the first one that came to mind for your industry? Was it “dentist” or “dentist near me”? These are two of the most likely searches users would use if they are looking for a dentist in their area.

However, it’s best to diversify your keyword strategy. If your entire competition is trying to rank for these short-tail keywords, then it may be challenging to rank ahead of them, especially in the short term. For that reason, try adding long-tail keywords into your strategy for more immediate results!

Keywords like “dental practices in Boston, MA” or “root canal near me” are going to have less search volume than “dentist.” However, the people who search for these keywords are more relevant to your niche and more likely to convert into paying patients. Therefore, you should use a healthy mix of these keywords in your strategy.

Using your favorite online keyword research tool, find related keywords to your industry. You can also analyze your competitor sites on these tools to see which keywords they’re ranking for. This can help you diversify, generate new topic ideas, and more.

Don’t just go with the obvious ones. Use as many as possible that have decent search volume (use Google Trends to compare) and low competition. Once they’re on your website, there’s no limit to how much they can offer!

Update Your Website

It would reflect poorly on Google’s service if they were constantly promoting low-quality sites to their users, so their crawlers are constantly testing usability. Most importantly, they look for:

• Page loading times
• Mobile-friendly design
• Clean navigation system
• Proper page structure
• Internal and external linking structure
• Image optimization
• Metadata

The list goes on, but optimizing these site wide will go a long way toward improving your SEO campaigns. Without a strong website, you’re building a house on a broken foundation.

There are SEO tools available online to test these, and you should compare yours to your competitors to see what needs improvement. However, a lot of these tools will lead you down rabbit holes that are entirely unnecessary, so proceed with caution. If you want expert insights, always choose a professional SEO audit for the best results.

Build a Content Marketing Strategy

Dental marketing doesn’t have to be too tricky. You already have the industry knowledge that you need, allowing you to create or outline content, which can save you plenty of money by taking on some of the work yourself.

The easiest way to get started with content marketing is to start a blog. You can answer regular questions that your patients have and position your services as the solution. For example, you could have topics like:

• “Why do my teeth hurt? Common causes of tooth pain.”
• “Does a root canal hurt? The procedure explained.”
• “Dental implant vs bridge: What’s the difference?”

The list goes on. These are great ways to draw relevant traffic to your website. From there, you can answer their questions and let them know at the end about your services and how you can help with their problems.

Always end your posts with strong calls to action (CTAs), encouraging users to contact you or seek out your services. Just remember that you’re writing for potential patients, not search engines. Keep your content engaging and informative, and always try to eliminate fluff or filler content.

It’s good to have long-form, comprehensive posts that engage readers, but only if the content is clear and concise. Try breaking up walls of text, reducing wordy sentences, and always having something to say!

Off-Page SEO

Building backlinks isn’t too important for a local dental practice, but you do still need to worry about your off-page ranking factors. If you have local affiliates that can offer backlinks, they could give you an edge over the competition, but don’t stress too much about them. Instead, focus more on what’s in your control.

First, you should claim and optimize your listing on Google My Business. This could be the first thing users see when searching for dentists in your area. Answer all of the prompts on your profile and try to engage with users whenever possible.

Next, get listed on other local business listings or dentistry-specific listings, and keep all of your information consistent. Remember to update all of them if anything changes. All of this will help confirm to Google that you are who you say you are, but only if the information is accurate and consistent.

Also, because you have an official office, don’t forget to list your dental practice on Google Maps and other popular GPS systems. This can help in similar ways to Google My Business, but it will also help draw new users looking for dentists near them on the map. Google Maps may also show up as the first result when users search “dentists near me,”so make sure your practice is seen!

Start Ranking Your Practice Today

Now that you know how to use SEO for your dental practice, put these tips to use and get the most out of your strategy today. SEO takes time to come to fruition, so the sooner you start building your strategy, the sooner you’ll see long-lasting results.

Stay up to date with our latest digital marketing news for your practice and feel free to contact us with any questions or for help with your SEO strategy!

Dental PPC Guide to New Patients

by Todd Boak | Aug 5, 2022 | Dental Marketing, Google

Dental PPC Guide to New Patients

Do you have the right digital marketing plan in place? A system that drives new patient phone calls and increased search volume. Every dental practice needs the right tailored plan. Let’s explore dental ppc advertising.

PPC advertising differs from SEO in that it is much quicker to see results from. While SEO can take several months to show any measurable results, PPC can be set up almost immediately to bring visitors to a site.

This guide is for you if you’re looking to learn about PPC for Dentists and how to get started on a successful campaign. We’ll introduce you to the basics of PPC and its benefits, so you can make the most of this marketing tool.

Google Ads for Dentists

Dental PPC advertising is an affordable solution that could bring you more attention online. You’re only charged for the advertisement when someone clicks on it, so it’s uniquely affordable.

PPC ads can help your dental office market your services by reaching more prospective patients online. Here are the top 6 reasons PPC advertising can help:

1. Increased visibility – PPC advertising is the quickest way to appear at the top of search engine results pages. Paid ads will place your website at the top of the results almost immediately, rather than waiting weeks for organic ranking.
2. Beat the competition – Reaching the top of the search engine results can be difficult, especially if your website is new. Paying for top placement with PPC ads can give you exposure above your competitors.
3. Targeted website traffic – Studies show that only 5% of searchers click paid advertisements, but that 5% is also much more motivated to enlist services than the average Internet user. If you’re running ads for a term searched at least 400 times per month, this highly interested 5% could equate to at least 20 new patients each month.
4. Control over spending – When running PPC ads, you set your maximum daily budget, so you never spend more than you want. You can also stop the ads immediately if you determine they aren’t as lucrative as you hoped.
5. Keyword management – When creating an advertising campaign, you can select which keywords you want to target. This makes onsite optimization easier and allows you to control which terms you want to be known for.
6. Trackable success – PPC ads have a clear ROI, unlike traditional SEO. With SEO, you have to wait for search engines to index your site, and even then tracking results can be difficult. With PPC, your entire campaign is tracked, so you can see exactly how it impacts your web traffic and marketing efforts.

Dental PPC Pros & Cons

There are pros and cons to every method. Before you make any decisions you should know them.

PROS

Immediate Visibility – PPC ads offer immediate visibility when you choose your keywords well. They appear on the top and next to organic results, on the first page of search results, so your audience can see them without having to scroll down. Organic SEO can take up to months to generate traffic to your site, while PPC ads can offer fast results for timely offers.

Qualified Target Audience – PPC ads give you the ability to target specific individuals who are interested in finding a dentist or getting a dental procedure within a certain location. With PPC, you can geo-target your ad based on a certain radius, which is important if you’re pulling in patients from several towns. It is very hard to optimize your website for a town other than the one your practice is located in, so PPC is a great solution to capitalize on business from surrounding towns.

Budget Conscious –PPC ads allow you to target potential customers interested in dental services near you. Geo-targeting lets you show ads to people within a certain radius of your practice, making it easier to attract patients from several nearby towns.

CONS

PPC ads can be expensive if you don’t know what you’re doing. Smart Insights recently did a study that found PPC conversion rates averaged around 3%. If you pay for 100 clicks at $50 per click, you could end up spending $5000 with only a 3% conversion rate.

Campaign Management – It’s not enough to just make a PPC ad and hope for the best – someone needs to manage them effectively in order to see results. This means testing keywords, messaging and target preferences, and being able to quickly analyze and adjust the ads for maximum impact.

Lack of Conversions – Ad clicks don’t necessarily mean conversions. Someone clicking your ad may not necessarily result in a call to your practice. Having great ad copy that drives searchers to a landing page on your website is extremely important. Qualified internet marketing companies will review and create landing pages when developing your PPC marketing strategy, which is a key factor in making a successful PPC campaign.

Internet users have become accustomed to seeing ads in various forms, such as banner ads, remarketing messages, and PPC placement in search results. Therefore, it is important to carefully select keywords, messaging, and testing in order to grab your audience’s attention. Each internet marketing channel works in conjunction with the others, so it can be difficult to find the right combination of channels and messages if you are busy running your own practice.

Interested in learning more? Harris & Ward is a leading dental ppc agency. Let’s talk!