It is pretty clear that your web site is critical to getting new business. If you are tracking your marketing properly, you are probably in the vast majority that know your web site is one of the main deciding factors for prospects checking you out. So, in broad terms, this is what your web site should be like:
Template sites say you don’t care.
If your site looks like everyone else’s web site, then you are not making a very good first impression. This is likely to be costing you leads and business right now. It is important to have a look, feel and content that is unique to your practice.
Calls to action that are traceable.
Your site should allow people to reach you in which every way they feel comfortable. For some, that means that filling out a form, for some that means email you and for some that means calling. Our in-house data shows that our clients get about 7.5-8 calls for every email contact that comes in from the web site. They know this by using tracking phone numbers on their web sites. When you trace how people react, you can make sure your site is more intuitive for how the majority wants to reach out to you. This is how you use tracking information to sharpen the sword. The same way you can track site visits and inbound emails, you should be tracking calls to understand exactly what is going on.
Feature the doctor.
You are your best selling tool. I always ask clients that if all things were equal, would a prospective patient choose you simply on merit. Of course they would... but things are not equal. Your competitors are trying to put their best foot forward on the web and you should, too. That means featuring the doctor as much as possible. This is best done with a video drop of the doctor speaking. It conveys credibility, establishes a feel for the doctor and begins laying the groundwork for trust.
Quit hiding.
There are so many reasons why small businesses fail at climbing search engine rankings. The top two reason are 1) Ego and 2) Impatience. Believe it or not, small businesses can succeed at SEO but you have to be practical about it. First of all, choose effective keywords. It is easy to get sucked into attractive keywords that result in no chance of getting placed. This is where ego comes in. You start thinking that because of what you do and who you are and how long you have done it that you SHOULD be listed highly on the best terms. These factors have no bearing on the situation. We recommend choosing terms that will be best for getting you traffic. They may not be the sexy terms everyone wants but they are effective in driving traffic and will have fewer competitors. These terms are found through research, not guesswork. This doesn’t mean that you can’t be optimized on the bigger and more prominent words, it just means you are putting your efforts into terms with which you can succeed more quickly.
And, wanting to succeed more quickly leads to impatience. Climbing in search rankings can be a lengthy process. So, if your goal is to have traffic now, then Pay Per Click should be part of your program. We recommend a balance of Pay Per Click and optimization of efficient keywords. Everything else (and there is a lot of techno-mumbo-jumbo to confuse you on this) is not measurable and can seem unfocused. If SEO is the cost of doing business on the Internet (and it is) then we think it is best focused in areas where you can see progress. If not, people tend to throw up their hands in frustration and walk away from SEO or, worse, spend way to much re-inventing their problems.
So, in basic terms, this is what your web site should be like. If you do not see your site in this image of a successful site, then this is where you should be making changes right now. If you need help in any of these areas, Dog Star Media is ready to help. Just contact me at donald@dogstarmedia.com or 214-545-5992 for help.
