Do Dental Practice Need an SEO Strategy?

If you are a dentist, you probably think more about teeth than anything else!

It is understandable that search engine optimisation (SEO), or search engine rankings for your dental practice website, rank low, if at all, on your priority list!

Ironically enough, the dental world has historically been known for its innovative use of technology yet has not capitalised on the benefit online opportunities hold for business growth.

If your practice does not have an SEO strategy in place yet, find out more!

You might miss hundreds or thousands of potential new patients every month. In this article, the dental SEO experts will show you how on-page SEO will bring more traffic to your dental clinic.

We are here to brighten your dental practice’s day while you whiten those teeth away!

Why is SEO Important for a Dental Practice?

Since 2019, dental websites and Google Business Profiles have become a vital part of dental marketing strategies for dental practices.

A dental practice website for your local business will increase online visibility and attract prospective patients in today’s fast-paced world of dentistry.

Dentist in Demand: Keyword Research as an SEO Strategy

Keyword research is the key to your success! We look at how keyword research as an SEO strategy can benefit your business, and particularly your dental practice.

Keyword Research

Search engine optimisation (SEO) helps people find your website by ensuring it shows up high in organic search results. SEO can help you get more visibility, conversions, rankings, brand awareness and customer loyalty.

Keyword research has proven its uber success as part of a search engine optimisation strategy.

When someone types keywords into Google’s search bar to find something relevant to their query, Google search engine results look at the words used and rate each website based on how relevant it is for those words.

This process is known as ranking or indexing and is a great way to monitor user activities on search engines and is integral to a successful SEO strategy.

The higher your SEO ranking for your chosen relevant keywords/phrases (known as long tail keywords), the better chance you have of being seen by potential customers who are looking for specific information about what your business offers.

Keyword research benefits

Keyword research as an SEO strategy is likely one of the most effective ways for dentists to reach potential patients. 

When searching for a dentist, the options to type into the search engine are limited, and the likelihood of a patient using the word ‘dentist’ when seeking a dentist, are highly probable.

To illustrate, the phrase “Dentist UK” renders 80 700 search results on Google.

But, take another industry, for example, like general practitioners or doctors. When searching for a doctor, the seach results could include physicians, specialists, natural medicine, homeopathic physicians etc.

This means that “doctor” is a high traffic keyword that is difficult to rank for.

To prove this, the phrase “Doctor UK” renders 1 880 000 000 results.

By comparison, it is obvious that dentists have the ability to be visible online and gain traction with potential customers when their dental practices are identified with the use of the correct keywords. 

Mobile and voice search optimisation 

• Around 70% of all searches are now performed on mobile devices.
• This means that using dental SEO services for your dental practice’s website will increase the online search results for your practice, directing customers that go online to search for professional teeth whitening to your door.
• Google has made its mobile-friendly algorithm a ranking factor and will soon be making it a requirement for sites that want to rank well in search results.
• If you still need to prioritise mobile optimisation, start today! Here are examples to get you started:

• Googl*e’s Mobile Playbook: A step-by-step guide on optimising your site for mobile users (and Voice Search).​
• Google Developers: Learn about many ways that developers can optimise websites.

Social media optimisation

• When building an online presence, your focus is to increase web traffic to your dental website.
• One of the best ways to generate traffic to your site is by getting reviews. A helpful review will help build trust with potential patients and increase their confidence in your practice.
• Reviews are also a wonderful way of increasing your visibility on social media, so it is important that you encourage people to leave reviews for you if they have had a positive experience at the practice. 
• You can do this by asking for feedback during consultations and sending out post-treatment surveys that ask questions about their visit experiences as well as what could be improved upon in future visits or treatments.

SEO Strategies Success for Your Dental Practice

There are various SEO strategies that your dental practice could benefit from. Keyword research optimises your visibility for mobile and voice searches, social media and web searches in general.

The best practice is to always keep up with your competition by conducting competitive analysis and staying abreast of the latest developments in SEO or partnering with a Dental SEO company.

The good news is that many tools are available to help you do this efficiently. You can use these tools to monitor your competitors’ keywords rankings, content strategy, and link-building activities.

This will allow you to stay on top of any thechanges y make while also allowing you to adapt yours accordingly – allowing both practices’ websites (yours included) a better chance of seeing improved ranking over time.

Conclusion

As we have seen, the dental industry is an increasingly digital field, with patients searching online for local businesses and booking appointments on their phones.

SEO is an ongoing process that needs to be constantly monitored and adjusted for what’s working, what is not and how the market is evolving.

As SEO becomes more competitive, it will become harder to rank in Google’s top search engine results. The good news is that by making sure you apply the best SEO practices for your business, you will be at the forefront of the dental game!