In 2021, your digital marketing strategy is more important than ever. The competition for online attention continues to be grueling, and it’s no longer enough to just have a flashy website. Without rock solid chiropractor SEO practices, prospective patients won’t be able to hear your voice in the chorus. Here are 15 chiropractor SEO marketing strategies to help your clinic stand out.
Why is chiropractor SEO marketing so important?
SEO (search engine optimization) is a (nearly) free tool that typically drives 51% or more of all traffic to your website. Simply put, digital marketing for chiropractors:
- Helps you create a website that is easy to use
- Gives visitors useful, engaging information
- Encourages search engines to rank your website
Search engine optimization is made up of a variety of strategies that include high-quality keywords, ongoing review management, local discovery, up-to-date content, and other elements that get your website on the first page of search results.
Why does SEO matter?
- Links on the first page of search results gets 95% of clicks
- Nearly 90% of people read online reviews as part of their search for a chiropractor
- That same almost 90% of people look for your business on Google Maps
- Google’s ever-changing algorithms for search require up-to-date local search SEO
Good chiropractor SEO relies on the combination of appealing chiropractic website content that is optimized for search plus a coordinated strategy to share that website with potential patients.
If you’re not on the first page of Google’s search results for your area, your practice may suffer. Chiropractor SEO is crucial to get eyes on your site and patients in your door.
Start here: 15 chiropractor SEO tips
If you are just getting starting with digital marketing for chiropractors, here are 15 tips to help you on your way.
1. Make sure your Google business profile is complete
Optimize your Google Business profile by verifying your listing and giving Google all the updated info it asks for. Be as specific and detailed as possible. Include:
- Address
- Contact information
- Hours
- Specialties
- A description with relevant keywords
- Optimized image(s)
- A Google map to your location
Once you’ve done this, consider using Google My Business to post about upcoming events, promotions, and announcements. New patient specials and promotions announced in a Google My Business post have a very high open rate.
2. Start local
Chances are good your patients live right around the corner. In fact, 46% of the three and a half billion daily Google searches are local. “Near me” searches are increasing exponentially, too. If you want to be your community’s go-to chiropractor, optimize with popular local search terms for your area.
But that’s not all. There are more ways to make your page stand out in the search results (and wind up in the top three). They include:
- Creating a page for every service you offer
- Listing all locations on separate pages
- Optimizing your images (especially local pictures)
- Placing a Google map on your contact page
Another key factor in local SEO is making sure that the NAP data—name, address, and phone number—on every page matches your Google My Business listing exactly. If it’s off even just a little that sends up red flags. Keep NAP data consistent and post it on the footer of each page as part of the structure of your website.
3. Make sure your website is up to snuff
In the expansive world of the internet, you have two seconds to make a good impression on your website. That’s the amount of time a potential patient will give your slow-loading website before clicking away.
Capture their attention with an excellent webhost and a well-designed website. Your website should include:
- Clinic information
- Contact and location information
- Specialties
- Physician bios and office staff
- Procedures and services you perform
Consider adding a chatbot for quick questions, and definitely link your site to your social media accounts.
4. Promote telehealth options
The world of telehealth has been cracked wide open. More than just a stopgap treatment measure, for some patients, telehealth allows them to access care that they could not reach in the past.
Make it easy for patients to sign up by adding links on your website and in all of your email correspondence. You could even add a video explaining how it works and which services you can offer via telehealth. Make it easy for them to utilize this service.
5. Open up your patient portals
Patient portals make it easier for patients to order prescriptions and book appointments, but did you know that they also help patients stick to their treatment plan?
While not technically a part of chiropractor SEO, the added convenience of this service helps you streamline bookkeeping and makes it easier for patients to come see you when they need care. Win-win!
6. Update meta data
You’ve got a good-looking website and updated your Google business listing. But how’s your meta data?
Meta data is the information that Google bots use to decide whether or not your site is worth ranking in an organic search. It includes titles, keywords, and descriptions. If you are a chiropractor who offers telehealth in St. Louis, for example, make sure those keywords are prominent in your meta data.
7. Don’t forget mobile users
How could you forget them? Especially when 87% of people use their smartphones to search at least once a day.
Make sure your website is set up first for mobile. It’s not an option anymore; it’s a priority when it comes to ranking online. It’s so important that Google even sends notices now when your website content struggles with mobile content. Make sure your website loads quickly on mobile phones and has all important information on screen.
8. Don’t neglect keyword research
So maybe digital marketing is changing, but one thing isn’t: keywords.
You cannot cram a blog full of them, and they may be longer than you’re used to, but they are still the way that people search. Do some research on what works best for chiropractor SEO marketing in your area, and use keywords appropriately throughout your website content.
9. Get social
It’s pretty obvious that humans are social creatures, and nothing connects us more these days than social media.
Nearly two billion people are on Facebook alone, and half of them check their feeds daily. Instagram, that repository of food photos, reports nearly half a billion daily users. Capture some of that connection with a captivating social media presence of your own.
And don’t forget reviews. Being social means asking for reviews and responding to them (positive AND negative). These things may have an indirect impact on your organic rankings, but they do make it more likely that potential visitors actually click through to your site (see more on reviews below!).
10. Make it easy for doctors to refer to you
Speaking of social, it’s not just about the ‘gram. Community building and social presence includes one of the best chiropractor SEO marketing secrets: referrals from other doctors.
Building a good relationship with primary care physicians means they are more likely to refer patients to you. In the best case, this could lead to things like guest posts on their medical practice blog, a direct link on their site, mentions on their social media—you get the picture.
11. Be the expert
Content is still king online. Consider adding blog posts to your website to keep patients informed of changes to your practice, innovations, the latest research, and new team members.
Every bit of thoughtful content generated adds to your relationship with existing and potential patients. In fact, useful, engaging content on your site is one of the best ways to improve your organic search ranking. It can be challenging to create chiropractic website content regularly, though, when you’re running a busy practice.
Some ways to generate content include:
- Hiring a content creator
- Hosting guest blogs from physicians and other healthcare adjacent professionals in your area
- Posting regular videos (these can be short but very effective!)
- Creating content based on local news, which can be great for local search
The more (optimized) content you post on your website, the more search engines highlight you as the authority in your area.
12. Post patient reviews on your site
There are some rules to what you can and cannot post on your website, and reviews are among the most regulated pieces of content online. While it is not always legal to post the full text of a patient review, you may be able to post snippets with a link to the full review.
At the very least, post a link to review sites where your practice is featured. Reviews play heavily into Google’s search algorithms, so create a page just for reviews. Remember: 85% of consumers trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations.
13. Don’t ignore voice search
As of 2020, 48% of consumers use voice search for getting quick facts (68%), asking for directions (65%), and searching for a business (47%). Somewhere between 58 and 65 million people own smart speakers in the U.S., and they are using them when their phone isn’t close by.
Optimize your website for the more casual tone of voice search to capitalize on this growing trend, especially when it comes to local searches.
14. Coordinate your digital marketing efforts
Chiropractic SEO is done best when all of your digital marketing efforts are pointed in the same direction, driving traffic to your site and converting the merely curious into life-long patients.
Combining pay-per-click (PPC) ads and email marketing with a vibrant social media presence, an up-to-date Google Business listing, and a killer website provides more ROI than just one strategy alone.
15. Follow the numbers
Finally, if you don’t regularly look at your Google webmaster tools and analytics, how do you know if you are reaching your audience? Google has made it easy to see which parts of your chiropractor SEO marketing is working—and which parts are falling flat.
Google Analytics can tell you things like:
- How many visitors come to your site
- Where they are coming from (search engine? email marketing?)
- How long they are on your site
- Which pages they go to (and which ones make them leave!)
- Bounce rate (how many people leave after viewing just one page)
Tracking these stats can help you fine tune your website content and overall strategy. Take the time to check in with monthly digital marketing reports to maximize your ROI. Data driven lead generation is the best kind!
Find your new patients online
With so much of the world going digital, that’s where you need to meet your patients. At Boost Medical, we understand that chiropractor SEO may be last on your list of things to do, though.
We can help.
Our services include everything from SEO optimization of your website to creating new content and helping you interpret your website’s analytics. We also offer a host of digital marketing tools, from social media and email marketing to pay-per-click advertising. Our goal is to give you more time with your patients. Whether you need set up and monthly monitoring of your chiropractic website SEO, a one-off email marketing campaign, or webhosting, Boost Medical is here to help.
Get in touch today to see how we can help with your chiropractor SEO!