What is Dental SEO Marketing?

So, what the heck is SEO? If you’ve been researching marketing for dentists, you’ve likely come across this acronym. SEO stands for search engine optimization. But even knowing that may not help you much if you aren’t familiar with how websites and search engines work. So, we’re going to do the leg work for you and explain.

SEO or search engine optimization is the process of improving the quantity and quality of traffic to your website. You don’t pay search engines to receive the traffic from SEO, and it’s not direct search—meaning people aren’t typing in your website URL. Search engine optimization seeks “organic” traffic. Here are some examples:

1. Someone is experiencing chronic facial pain. They head over to Google and type “why does my jaw hurt” into the search bar. Google brings up results to answer the question.
2. Someone is looking for a smile makeover. They type “cosmetic dentists near me” into Google. Google brings up cosmetic dentists near the location the person searched from. 
3. Someone was just prescribed CPAP but can’t sleep. They ask Google, “what can I use instead of CPAP?” Google shows websites that talk about CPAP alternatives.

These are all examples of organic traffic. So how do you make sure your website comes up when someone makes searches like those? You practice dental SEO marketing. 

Summary

• SEO stands for search engine optimization.
• Search engine optimization is the process of attracting more relevant website traffic.
• SEO goes after organic traffic (unpaid, non-direct).

Your Website With and Without SEO Marketing

We know that search engine optimization can be confusing. But SEO is important for every website. Let’s say you’re a neuromuscular dentist, and you’d like to treat more people with TMJ disorder. To attract people who need TMD treatment to your website, you’ll practice SEO.

With SEO marketing, your website will show up high on search engine results pages. It’ll be easy for patients to find you. 

Without SEO marketing, your website won’t show up in a desirable spot on search engine results pages. It’ll be hard for patients to find you, and therefore, they’ll pick someone they can find more easily that sits at the top of page one. 

How To

Now that you know what dental SEO marketing is and why it matters, you’re wondering how to do it. Let’s understand one important thing: search engines like Google want to give their users the best experience possible. So Google wants to show websites that clearly and quickly answer user questions and are easy to use. 

That means you’ll need to do three things

1. Write great dental content
2. Use keywords
3. Provide the best dental website experience

How to Leverage Website Content and Keywords

First, let’s talk about the written content on your website. This applies to website pages and blogs.

When you’re starting out, instead of thinking, “which one of my services should I explain?” think, “what do people want to know about this service?” Then go ahead and type that service into Google. You’ll get lots of results, but check out the “People also ask” section. From there, you can get a good idea of what people want to know about that service. 

The search below is for TMJ disorder, and you can see that people have many questions. Write to answer some of those questions. This way, you can be sure you’re writing content that satisfies what patients want to know.

And here’s a bonus tip, write very clearly and completely explain. You want the person reading your website to leave feeling like they accomplished their search. And just so you know, Google takes that into consideration too. If people are regularly reading your website and then going to another one that answers the same question, Google will know that you don’t have complete information. 

Now for the keyword bit. Keywords are certain words or phrases that are significant to your topic. They help Google and other search engines find your website. For example, in this post, we are targeting the keyword “dental SEO marketing” because we want to attract people looking for information on SEO for dentists. Perhaps you’re a sleep dentist, and you want to attract patients who could benefit from Oral Appliance Therapy. In that case, you might use keywords like “CPAP alternative,” “how to treat sleep apnea,” or “morning headaches.”

Summary

• Write what patients want to know about.
• Write clearly and thoroughly.
• User keywords to help search engines find your stuff.

Behind-the-Scenes “Website Stuff” Matters To Dental SEO

Another key area in dental SEO marketing is providing a great website experience. In many cases, your website is the first impression patients get of you and your practice. Make it a great one with a website that is easy to use on a computer, tablet, or phone. Search engines have algorithms that can detect the type of website experience you provide. When you have a confusing menu, links and buttons that don’t work, or a website that is clunky on a mobile phone, that search engine will show a different website that is easier to use. 

There is a lot that goes into this, and you may need your dental SEO company’s help. If you’re worried your website isn’t up to par in providing a great experience, ask yourself these three things:

1. Do all the buttons and links on my website go to a working page?
2. Can I see all the text, image, and video content on my phone without scrolling to the side?
3. Do the elements on my website take a long time to load?

If those things are a problem, contact us to set up a free strategy call. We can help you get those three things and so much more in check so you can get more new patients. Our all-inclusive marketing package may be the thing for you. 

Summary

• Your website needs to be easy to use on all devices.
• Your website needs to be fast.
• All buttons and links should work.
• You may need assistance working with the backend of your website. 

Things You Can Do Now to Improve Your SEO

If you’ve made it this far, your head is probably spinning with all the new information! We’ll help you out. Here are 5 things you can do now to improve your dental SEO marketing. 

1. Write a blog post based on what patients want to know about a service you offer.
2. Evaluate one of your website pages for relevant keywords and add them only where it makes sense. (No keyword stuffing!)
3. Evaluate your homepage for broken links and buttons. Get those fixed. 
4. Visit your website from your phone. Are you happy with the experience?
5. Get the help of a dental SEO company like Pro Impressions Marketing.

How To Get The Best Dental SEO

Pro Impressions Marketing has been working with dentists for over a decade to help them get more visibility on search engines. Our comprehensive digital marketing package includes ongoing search engine optimization so you can worry about dentistry while we send you more new patients. Call (970) 672-1212 or book a free strategy call online.