Successful Tips For Healthcare SEO

On its own, SEO has a lot to do with your skill, as well as factors such as the content you write, the CMS on which the site is built, and more.

That being said, by far the most important dependency is the industry you are in. In the healthcare niche, SEO is remarkably difficult, as well as a highly important task.

Anyone can make a website and you simply cannot afford to be outranked in authority by websites pushing pseudo-science and untrustworthy treatments.

At Vital Surge, our experience has taught us that your SEO strategy is driven by your audience. Imagine a woman in labor, or a person experiencing appendicitis pain. It’s in this moment of crucial need that they turn towards the healthcare professional, or institution they trust.

As a healthcare provider in the digital age, this is the sole reason it is so important for you to have a fool-proof SEO strategy.

These expert-recommended tips will help you perform better than ever before!

Optimize for Mobile

If you’re like most of the healthcare sector clients at Vital Surge, we can tell you that more than 60% of your web traffic comes through mobile phones. To put it simply, every 6 out of 10 patients visiting your website are doing so with their mobile phone.

This is why it is so important for you to make sure your site is optimized for use on mobile phones.

Despite what most ‘experts’ would have you believe, optimizing for mobile means more than just ensuring the site loads quickly on smartphones. It means making the process as seamless and enjoyable as it is on a computer.

Not only does this involve making sure everything fits on the tiny (or huge) phone screen, but also that everything important, such as all menus, action buttons, CTAs, and the search bar are right on top. As a healthcare provider it’s important you make the mobile experience as easy as possible.

Keep it Multilingual

It doesn’t matter what nationality or region your patients belong to – everyone needs medical attention some time or the other. This is why it’s important to make as much of your site available in different languages, as possible.

This serves an important dual function. First and foremost, your traffic gets the answers they need in their language. After all, they’re there because they have a worrying health-related question, such as what to do if you step on a nail, or your blood pressure drops.

Secondly, this helps bring in traffic who might not be searching in English. Not only does this help rank your site, but makes it one of the few that are available in different languages, making you available to a much larger audience. Not to forget, this also establishes your authority as a trusted site.

To find out which languages you should optimize for, use your site analytics. Observe the demographics of your audience and decide on the top 3 (at least) languages you need on site.

Optimize for Local

Google is by far the most popular search engine used by people to look up the nearest hospital or clinic. In fact, most people search for their closest hospital right after looking up their symptoms online.

As a healthcare provider, it is your moral obligation to be there when patients need you. In the virtual world, it means showing up when they search ‘hospital near me’.

The best SEO trick for this is to update and optimize your Google My Business, and no, we don’t mean just updating your visiting hours.

It includes providing all sorts of information about you, such as the services you offer, the facilities you have available, and what kind of patients you can cater to.

Additionally, you can Google Posts to let users know about anything special happening at the clinic or health notices such as seasonal flu warnings or the importance of wearing face masks and good hand hygiene.

Remember to ensure that all the content you put out there is useful, valuable, and easy to understand language. Not only will this help future patients and the community take better care, but it will also improve your rankings and authority.

At the end of the day, just remember your values and keep true to them in all your online activities. It’s just another way of speaking to your patients after all.

Too busy saving lives improving your SEO? We have your back!

At Virtual Surge, we are the experts in healthcare SEO, Analytics, and Paid Search, and are always happy to help out. Reach out today!