This blog was originally published in July 2020 and has since been updated with new information.

The Plain-English Guide to the Best SEO for Dentists

We hear a few common questions about SEO for dental practices. “Is SEO good for dentists?” “Does it really work?” “How do dentists choose an SEO company?” This blog post walks you through exactly how SEO works and what a great SEO strategy can do for your dental practice.

Dental SEO (search engine optimization) focuses on optimizing a dental website for increased visibility on search engines such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo! The best SEO companies for dentists are companies that set the dental practice apart from competitors in the area and maximize website visits.

The good news is, dental professionals can follow several guidelines to gain an advantage over their local competition. Check out these elements of a dental website that are essential for great SEO. Use this SEO guide for dentists to start showing up on Google results.

Dental Website Optimization

When it comes to finding a new dentist or orthodontist, almost every new patient is looking for a local practice that is close and convenient to get to. If your website is not targeting your specific geographic area, you are missing out on patients looking for a new dentist.

Ensure that the name of your town and nearby towns and cities are incorporated into your website copy. This same concept applies to patients looking for specific When it comes to health and medicine, people look for local service providers. You’re missing these prime prospects if your SEO plan doesn’t target specific geographic areas.

The easiest way to improve your results is by adding the name of your town and nearby towns to your website copy. However, don’t forget about other areas of your site—don’t only improve your copywriting. You should also add locations to your page titles and URLs.

Ensure you’ve registered your business on Google Maps and local directory sites, which will help improve your visibility in local searches even further.

High-Speed Website

Why is an ultra-fast dental website so important? Well to start, of people abandon a website that takes more than 3 seconds to load. Not only that, but your website speed is the first impression many patients are getting from your practice.

If your dental website loads quickly, your practice is considered professional, reliable, and efficient.

Your patients will equate their experience on your website to their trust and confidence in you as a medical professional. It’s simple psychology.

In today’s world, patients are looking to get answers fast. As soon as your patient is confused or frustrated they are sure to abandon your website, and few things frustrate online users like slow loading times.

“Google will reduce the number of crawlers it sends to your site if your server is slower than two seconds.” – Google My Business Page. This suggests that Google, and other search engines, are not as likely to detect your blog posts, website updates, and keyword matches.

Blog Posts (With Keywords!)

The best dental SEO companies make sure to focus on their client’s blog content. As dental blog content has evolved, it has become more important than ever for practices. When the blog content on your site is useful and interesting, your potential patients view you and your practice as a trusted source.

The content on your dental website allows Google to recognize and connect your site with relevant searches. Adding keywords to the content that you publish (i.e. your blog) shows Google that your website is active and connected. Keywords are simply words and phrases that patients use when searching for a dentist online.

Check out Google Keyword Planner Tool, this is a great tool to help you get an awesome spot in Google’s algorithm. It’s smart to also include keywords that are specific to the dental treatments you offer in your practice. Here are a few dental SEO keywords to get you started:

• Dentists in [your area]
• [Your area] dentists
• Best dentists in [your area]
• Dentists near [your area]
• Teeth whitening dentist
• Dental implants near [your area]

Including frequently used searched keywords in your blog boosts your SEO by positioning your website a website that answers relevant questions. Dental SEO is a tedious process that takes months of focused effort to pay off. My Social Practice will take SEO off of your plate.

Your dental blog content shows website visitors that your practice cares more about providing valuable advice and guidance than you do about merely selling your services. Another useful tip is to publish your dental reviews from Google, Facebook, and Healthgrades on your website. Reviews build credibility for your practice!

In the video below, My Social Practice’s Vice President, Adrian Lefler talks about how Google My Business helps dental practices be easily searchable. Check it out below!

Dental Social Media

Did you know? Your dental practice’s social media platforms are included in your Google SEO position. That’s right, they dental SEO and dental social media marketing work in tandem. Staying active on your social media pages presents yet another opportunity to secure your Google ranking. When a future patient searches for a new dentist in your area, there will be many pages that show up to engage with you.

Your dental website will most likely show up first on search but following your website will be your Facebook and Instagram accounts— if you keep them consistent and relevant! You want to show up in as many places as possible, and outshine your competition with awesome dental social media. HINT: My Social Practice has everything you need and more to rock on social media.

Local Listings

The most useful SEO strategies for dentists include local listing clean up. Local search engine optimization is a piece of your overall SEO strategy that concentrates on getting your dental website found in local searches done on sites such as Yelp, Yellowbook, and Google.

New patients are most likely looking for the easiest way to find information about your practice like location, phone number, and online reviews. When it comes to finding your practice and making an appointment, your dental SEO strategy can assist in making you as accessible as possible for prospective patients.

If dental SEO sounds overwhelming, don’t worry, you are not alone. Most dental professionals have a lot of questions about the best SEO for dentists, the best SEO companies for dentists, and how to know what is right for their practice. My Social Practice has served dentists and orthodontists for over ten years. Our team of experts has helped hundreds of dentists boost their search engine ranking through dental-specific SEO services.

If you are ready to drive more people to your website and attract new patients but don’t have the time or staff to get going, we’re here to help. Fill out a form to get a personalized no-obligation dental SEO summary and quote. Your SEO strategy can be one of the best marketing investments you’ll make for your dental practice. We can’t wait to get you started.

The post SEO for Dentists: How To Appear #1 On Google Search appeared first on My Social Practice – Social Media Marketing for Dental & Dental Specialty Practices.