What You Should Know About Healthcare SEO Services
What you need to know about Healthcare SEO services — and what has been true for some time now — is that it’s a rapidly changing space.
In the past, when I would hear someone say, “We need help with our SEO,” it typically meant, “We want our search rankings to improve.”
But now, particularly with the increasing popularity of AI search, the meaning of “We need help with our SEO” now also includes concerns about being cited by ChatGPT and other generative search tools.
According to some, AI-powered search has already fundamentally changed the way consumers use the internet. Others believe that relying too heavily on GEO strategies is a distraction.
And the thing is? Both are kinda true.
The reality is that AI search is changing the way people find information.
Google still owns the vast majority of search traffic — 78%, according to the latest research.
And overall website traffic from AI platforms represents only about .43–.7% of that pie.
But the difference is that AI platforms aren’t necessarily designed for clicks to websites. They’re designed to give you a summary within their own platform.
Search gives you links for you to visit and evaluate. AI evaluates sites and gives you a summary. Totally different experiences.
Given that, what does a healthcare business like yours do? Rewrite everything for AI search? Create duplicate content for both AI and SEO worlds?
No need to panic. This is precisely why Formada offers healthcare SEO services — to help you comfortably adapt to the ever-changing world of marketing.
At this time, we’d still recommend following SEO best practices in order to be competitive in both traditional and AI search, and that boils down to the quality, structure, and usefulness of your content.
Quality Content Is More Than Keywords — It’s Context
Keyword usage has long been a foundational part of building strong SEO for your business.
They pave the way for publishing content that is relevant and useful to your audience. But keywords are just a catalyst to build something deeper for your brand.
Keyword stuffing won’t help you rank on Google. Context is everything.
- Are you clearly answering questions searchers are asking online?
- Are you offering a unique perspective on this topic?
- Are you able to showcase your authority with proprietary data?
- Are you giving readers something that is useful?
People are seeking high-quality information when they search. And that includes images and video!
They want answers, but they also want to be able to connect with what they’re reading. Connection equals action. Avoid jargon. Write with the intent of how you want people to feel.
And here’s the other thing: Great SEO-minded content is also good for AI search. They’re not precisely the same, but AI search is scouring the internet for high-quality content that it can use to cite and summarize.
High-quality content — the kind that often ranks well in traditional search — is often the same content that gets cited or summarized in AI search, especially if your business has a positive online reputation.
- Focus on the highly specific questions people are searching for related to your business
- Answer the question as quickly and concisely as possible
- Provide evidence, like proprietary data, customer reviews, or outbound links
- Frequently add or update your site’s content to maintain search engine relevance
But that’s just the writing part of good healthcare SEO. There’s also the backend technical side.
The (Basic) Technical Side of Healthcare SEO Services
I’m not a technical expert when it comes to the back end specifics of SEO, but I know enough to understand the importance of how a strong technical foundation can support your business’s SEO health.
In general terms, this means having a site that is secure, mobile-friendly, and well-organized for users.
Organization matters because it makes it:
- Easier for visitors to navigate through your website and find what they’re looking for, and
- Helps search engines evaluate, index, and rank your pages.
You want people and search engines to know what your content is about, how to easily find things on the site, and to easily take action (e.g., fill out a form, book an appointment, or make a purchase.)
The internal links — the links that connect one page to another in your site — also influence the user experience and search engine evaluation. Using a clear sitemap helps Google understand the importance of certain pages on your site and how to evaluate them.
And don’t forget to keep your plugins up to date! Slow loading times can create poor experiences, high bounce rates, and affect your site’s ranking.
Of course, there are many deeper technical aspects of SEO, but these are important, fundamental ideas that must be incorporated into your site for it to function as a growth driver for your business.
Let’s grow your healthcare business.
At Formada, our healthcare SEO services are a part of a larger strategy to grow your brand, attract more customers, and grow your business. Contact us today to learn more.