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5 Ways to Improve Your Dental Practice's Online Rankings Posted by Tyson Downs on 3/30/15 9:07 AM Years ago, the most common way for people to find a dentist was to look in the phone book. Of course we all know that the internet has completely turned that upside down, and people are now finding new dentists online every day. But how exactly are they finding them online? The most common method is though an internet search. And most people are only looking at the first page.
Listen to this blog post:
So, therefore, it makes sense that you gotta be on page 1, right? Getting your dental practice ranked high on Google – the biggest and most influential search engine – is important to capturing as many of these new patient leads as possible. If your practice is ranked in the number one spot for your keywords, you can build the size and profitability of your practice very quickly. But if you aren't focusing on your online presence, and allowing others to win the race, then you probably aren’t going to get very many new patients from Google. Here, then, are five steps you can follow that will improve your dental practice’s rankings on Google and other popular search engines:
Step 1 – Identify Your Best Keywords You probably already know what Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is, but for those that don't, it is simply optimizing your website and online presence so that it is more readable, and seen as more relevant in the eyes of the search engines. One aspect of SEO is keyword research. Generally, these will be the type of business + the geographic location: “Salt Lake City Dentists” “dental practices in South Salt Lake City, UT” “dentists in Salt Lake County, UT” The first term would be the most competitive term, and while most likely yielding the most traffic should you get to #1 on page 1, it would take the longest. The other keywords as you can see are more specific, and as a result, less competitive. Your goal is to find those that people looking for your services in your area type into Google most frequently, especially those that have a low competition rate. You'll also want to locate keywords that are money makers for you (providing people search for those terms).
To do this, you will need to use a keyword tool. Both of these factors are critical to successfully setting up your local SEO campaign. If you choose great keywords but a lot of other dental practices are also using them, the competition may be too strong and the results may be too slow. And if you choose keywords with very little competition but that aren’t used frequently by people searching net, they probably won’t bring you a lot of new clients. The best approach generally is to use a mix of high search volume (and high competitive), along with some of those more specific keywords that are longer (we call them 'long tail keywords'). That’s where competition is lowest and the chance to rank high are best. It’s also where users are most likely to convert by making an appointment with your dental practice right away. Here's an example of how you can research competition and search volume using Google Adwords:
Location Keywords and On-Page SEO Now that you know your localized keywords to target – such as “dentists in north Salt Lake" – the next step is to integrate it into your website content. It should be included in your title tags, on the meta descriptions for your major pages, and your contact page and in your website footer (assuming your have a location in this city). Your location is one of the most important factors clients use when deciding to use your practice. So making sure your location is an obvious keyword in your site’s content is important when it comes to on page optimization. You'll want to make sure you read this post as well: Exactly how you can make your dental website more visible .
Step 2 – Get Local The next step is to get your dental practice listed on the most important search engine local directories. A few of the the most important local directories are: It's important that you use your official business name for your listings. It's important that your information be consistent across these websites (and others); not only your name, but your address and phone number too. Google recommends that for best results for your local listing you follow the following guidelines: Make sure your business is consistently represented on the web the same way that it is with signage, stationery and other branding tools Make sure the address listed is accurate and current Limit the number of categories to the fewest possible that describe our overall core business
What Is NAP? The name, address and phone information (NAP) should always be the same on all major local directories. If it isn’t, then it can be a HUGE challenge to get them consistent across the board. If you have inconsistent NAP, choose the best version (or perhaps the one that is currently most consistent-but each situation can be different) and change the NAP information on all sites so that it is the same. This helps Google’s search engine algorithm verify that it is talking about the same business al the time, which can help boost your dental practice’s ranking on local listings.
Claim Your Listings If you discover that your business is listed somewhere that you didn’t place yourself, you need to claim it. Even though this process may be timeconsuming, it’s necessary so that your NAP is consistent throughout the Internet. This will help improve your local results ranking.
Step 3 – Add Your Listings to Local Directories Once you have gotten your dental practice listed with consistent NAP information on the major listings, the next step is targeting other local directories. Set a goal for yourself, such as five new listings per month. Don’t forget to keep your NAP information exactly the same every time so the search engines can identify it as your business consistently. Do you need some local listings to set up? You're in luck. Here you go:
Step 4 – Add Multi Media Photos, graphics, slideshare presentations, and other images and even videos add value to your website and can increase your click-through rate. Internet users are more likely to visit a website that has appealing images on it than they are sites that have poor or no images. When you increase your click-through rate, it can improve your Google ranking as well.
As an example here's a slideshare presentation that I created on reviews, and how they impact your business.
Step 5 – Invite Your Patients to Help Ask your patients to write reviews of your dental practice on influential social media sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, Yelp and others. Positive reviews are a great way of attracting new patients and they also can increase your search engine rankings.
By following these five easy steps, you can increase your ranking on the major search engines. Landing on the top half of the front page – or better yet, in the number one spot –will mean more appointments, more clients and more profits for your dental practice.
Topics: Local SEO