Have you done a Google search for keywords you think your website should rank for and you didn’t show up? Even if you aren’t on the first page for that specific search, it doesn’t mean your potential patients aren’t finding you through other related search terms. As an alternative medicine practice, you have the ability to rank for many different terms.
Here are a few things you need to know about keywords.
Key Takeaways:
- Including keywords in your content is crucial for your target audience
- Using the Google Search Console is an essential part of keyword research
- Create content around different keywords to rank higher with Google
- Target local cities within your content
What Are Keywords?
Keywords and keyphrases are specific words that relate to your content or services. They should represent your idea or service and relate to your target audience. For example, if you offer “hormone therapy” or “nutrition counseling,” you can include those in your content.
You can target keywords to attract more traffic to your website and reach more clients.
Using keyword research tools is the best way to find relevant options and rank higher with Google. You can include them within your service pages, blog posts, and meta descriptions.
Keyword Variations
Every variation of a keyword phrase can bring up different results. Maybe you’re not showing up for a functional medicine doctor in the name of your city, but you are showing up for a functional medicine practice in your city. Or maybe you’re showing up for functional medicine near me.
As part of our keyword research, we look at the main keyword our practitioners want to rank for and then we find alternative keywords that meet these criteria:
High Search Volume
Ad Value
Easy to Rank For
User Intent
Accurate Description
These related variations usually have an extra word or two added onto the main keyword. For example, if you are a chiropractor, another variation could be “chiropractic office near me” or “chiropractic doctor”. Either of these words would be relevant for a chiropractor’s office.
Reaching Your Target Audience
Using keywords can help you understand the needs of potential patients. When people are searching for an alternative medicine clinic or functional medicine practice, they search for the services they want. Including keywords can help you appear at the top of their search.
Keywords can improve the search engine experience for potential patients. It gives them a glimpse into your practice, the services you offer, and how you can meet their healthcare needs. It can also help you build authority as a functional medicine practice.
Customized Google Results
Another thing to consider is that Google tailors search results to the person that’s searching. When you do a keyword search versus someone else, your results are going to vary. That’s why we hook all of our practitioners into what’s called the Google Search Console. This gives us a look at the average position of what terms each page of your site ranks for. It gives us accurate data that we use to help with our SEO strategy.
Google has the ability to tailor search results based on your past search history. When you do a Google search for a keyword, you should go into an incognito browser to search. This will give you less biased results, because the incognito browser will cloak your search history.
Every Page On Your Site Has The Ability to Show Up in Searches
There are only so many keywords your home page can rank for. That’s why it is important to have a service page for everything you offer. Also, it’s important to add other content to your website that will allow you to target specific keywords.
Since every page on your site has the ability to show up in search results, you don’t want to designate the same main keyword for each page. Instead, you want to create content around the different keyword variations and target them on different pages. This method will also help you extend the reach for your target audience.
One of the ways we do this for our clients is to write what we call areas served pages or city pages. We will create a page of content for the specific term, plus the city the practitioner serves. If they are a functional medicine doctor in Dallas, we will write a page of content about functional medicine and the city of Dallas. Every variation of functional medicine will get its own page.
Contact us Today For SEO Services
If you are an alternative medicine practice, get in touch with us today. The team here at Functional Medicine SEO is ready to help you. Fill out our strategy session form and we’ll get back to you in 24-48 hours. We look forward to hearing from you!
