google analytics for doctors

When did you last read your SEO report?

There is something about SEO reports. Most doctors I know never read them. Do you? And if you do, do you still experience mixed feelings, as if you are supposed to understand what they say but you don’t? Let’s unpack that and look at a better way to do this.

google analytics for doctors

When did you last read your SEO report?

The problem with SEO reports

seo reports for doctors

Let’s face it. You are a smart person. The fact that you look into content for doctors in private practice tells me that you managed to become a doctor, specialise, do a fellowship, get a theatre list, start a private practice and run a business. Come on, let’s establish that you should be the type of person who receives documents, understands them and acts upon them.

What is it with SEO reports?

They tend to throw around a few technical terms and numbers, and leave most doctors in private practice behind with a scattered or limited understanding, let alone a feeling of control over their lead generation.

Allow me to guide you through this painful reality with a few visual elements about Google Analytics for doctors.

The metrics you can check at home

seo secret for doctors

Working with a team of medical marketing experts here in Australia and in the Netherlands, we help surgeons and specialists optimise their online presence on a daily basis. And yet, there are some useful things you can do yourself. The ultimate SEO secret for doctors is that you can do a quick self-diagnosis and learn from it. If you want to gain a deeper understanding of local SEO and Google Analytics for doctors, check out our other content marketing articles in the “Grow!” magazine.

These DIY metrics should be at the centre of any digital marketing campaign that you run, pay for or manage, as a doctor, a practice manager or a business development manager in healthcare.

Key income earners: Get clear on the top 3 or top 5 income-earning services, procedures, or treatments that keep your private practice spinning. Don’t shake off the exercise with a simple ‘anything to do with the knee’ and make it specific.
Use common sense: Think about all the topics your receptionist discusses, the symptoms, the way patients refer to the conditions you treat, the different names they use for procedures or injuries.
Spend time on Google: Google about 50 to 100 of the terms you listed above for each of the top services you offer. Count how often a page on your website is represented in the search results, with a link to that specific page. For this exercise, we only look at page 1 of Google’s search results.

If you listed 50 terms and you are on Page 1 about 25 to 30 times, give yourself a pat on the shoulder. You are either multi-talented and have done great SEO yourself, or you have hired the right people to give you visibility.

You can probably limit it to one pat. There is always room for improvement, and if you haven’t particularly been patting yourself or anyone on the shoulder when it comes to patient numbers, keep reading. And remember, this was a quick self-diagnosis and just like your own profession, an in-depth assessment of your Google setup is always useful. You can get an audit for free here if you want, right now!

The elephant in the room when it’s about SEO

more conversions for doctors

Traffic is the starting point. It’s the front end of your funnel. If nobody finds you when they desperately need an orthopaedic surgeon, it could be seen as naive to hope for a waiting room full of new patients.

But then I often come across a situation where a doctor gets traffic through word-of-mouth or referrals, but no conversions.

To get more conversions needs a holistic vision.

What happens here is that your initial offering is not compelling. It doesn’t say anything about the way you deliver your service, because your initial offering is a digital experience.

That initial first impression is defined by:

Site health and speed: How fast does your website load on a standard computer, a laptop, a tablet or a smartphone? Is it working correctly or does the patient land on an error page?
Responsiveness: Is your content really optimised for all these new screen sizes? Or is it hard to read, difficult to navigate and just not a pleasant experience?
Story: As much as you would think that story is the last thing a doctor needs…it’s essential. Within 7 seconds, patients understand whether you are a doctor with a clear purpose and mission. Or just someone with an impressive resume.
Personality: Patients are often shopping around by clicking around. Do they feel welcome? Do they feel your caring nature? Do they get clear crisp images or distorted grainy photos that don’t do justice to your level of service?
Clarity: Is the copy just an amalgamated mix of Wikipedia and Medical School documents? Or is it really addressing the patient and conveying empathy for their health concern and situation?

That’s some extra marketing power juice beyond SEO there, isn’t it?

This is the area of brand positioning and brand experience and here at Digital Practice we love taking care of this for our customers, so their online presence attracts and converts.

Time for a new medical marketing approach!

best medical marketing

The best medical marketing approach is one that creates lasting value. Gone are the days when you would hire an outsourced IT person to quickly do a few things on your DIY website.

The best medical marketing ROI is generated when you think mid-long-term. Google Analytics for doctors should not just focus on traffic, ideally, it’s about your business as a whole.

Where do you see your practice in 2 years’ time? What are the income drivers? How big is your team? Do you delegate work to other team members?

Market research, content production optimised for the patient and Google, and top-notch medical website development all need to go hand in hand, in order to create those results. Because most local markets are dense and competitive and you deserve an online profile that makes you stand out.

Is your marketing agency on long-service leave?

medical marketing agencies

Not a day goes by without stories about marketing agencies that disappear. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t believe that these agencies are going out of business. What typically happens is a sales process that is transactional, not about the relationship.

If you have the feeling that your marketing person is on long-service leave, let’s take a look at what is going on.

The low-hanging fruit in a medical practice is the patient who starts googling today. If your system is not designed to engage with these thousands of local patients, then you are losing money.

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Get a quick assessment

medical website assessments

You can order a medical website audit here, or you can book a free strategy session if you have general questions about Google Analytics for doctors or the performance of your current online profile.

Our focus is always to uncover the most effective path towards growth, a strong market position and value creation. With this approach, your private practice becomes an asset that grows more resilient through effective patient lead generation.