Why Blogs Are Important

How Blogs Help SEO

In today's digital age, a strong online presence is crucial for the success of any medical practice, including physiotherapy clinics. A few years ago, we recognized the importance of being easily found on the web to attract new clients and when we did a search our clinic ranked high, being easily found if someone searched "physical therapy". However, with the search word "physiotherapy" we showed up on the fourth page.

Given that, we had to make some changes and one tool that has boosted our search engine optimization (SEO) or ability to be found on the web is by posting blogs using keywords such as "physiotherapy". The general experience from us and others that we have talked to is that the more information (i.e. blogs, reviews, website updates) you put on the web, the more Google likes you and ranks you higher in searches. Let's face it, no one will scroll to the fourth page, and probably not even the second page, to find you. Ideally you need to be on the first page. With that in mind let's delve into five simple steps that can help you create blogs to maximize your SEO and optimize your clinic's ability to be found on the web.

Step #1: Needs Analysis

Before crafting a blog post, it's essential to identify topics that resonate with your target audience. Consider their pain points or common questions. For instance, if you specialize in vestibular therapy, a blog post on "BPPV How to Treat" could address a specific concern.

Not only are your customers good resources as to topics that resonate with them, but your front desk team is another great resource. They are answering customers questions all day and should be able to come up with a list of commonly asked questions that become starting points for your blogs. This customer-centric approach ensures that your content is not only relevant but also valuable, fostering engagement.

Step #2: Determining Titles for the Blogs

Crafting a compelling blog title is key to improving SEO. To do this we utilize online tools like Answer the Public. From the questions that come up on Answer the Public we use them as our blog and header titles. Sometimes we also conduct a web search related to our chosen topic, seeing what comes up in the "People also ask" section. From there we have an idea of top-performing titles to use. Keep in mind that the chosen title might differ slightly from traditional grammatical norms. This is because the title aligns with what users commonly type in for search queries.

For this blog we got the title and first heading directly from Answer the Public. 

Step #3: Blog Content Creation

Create content that not only adds value and is relevant to your audience, but is easy to read. To ensure this, we simply develop a rough draft, focusing on our main points, then use ChatGPT to create the post. While artificial intelligence like ChatGPT can generate content, we always review and refine the information to ensure accuracy, relevance as well as to add references. It is also important to not just let artificial intelligence create content, you must and we emphasize must personalize it with your own experiences, stories, thoughts and opinions. If we do not personalize our blogs they will sound like everyone else's who are using artificial intelligence for content creation.

After we create the content we then transfer the post to our WordPress platform (other platforms include GoDaddy, Wix, etc), which offers further readability suggestions to enhance the user experience.

Step #4: SEO Optimization

To maximize SEO not only do we need a strong title, but we need to strategically incorporate keywords throughout the post. Keywords are terms added to online content in order to improve search engine rankings for those terms. Designate a primary keyword and ensure it appears in the title, opening paragraph, and meta description. For us we focused on using the term "physiotherapy" instead of "physical therapy". You should also avoid overusing the keyword between blogs, but consider related words associated with your services.

For SEO optimization, it is also beneficial to integrate links to external sources (other sources) and other pages on your own website. Lastly, we optimize the images we use for SEO by adding descriptive titles with keywords.

Step #5: Posting Tips for Blogs

Consistency is key to improving search rankings. Post regularly to maintain an active online presence. Personally, we find it easier to batch blog post creation during dedicated time slots. The focused time with limited interruptions helps boost our creativity. It also feels rewarding knowing that you have blogs to release over the next few weeks, instead of making them on the fly. In addition to this, consider leveraging social media by repurposing blog content and sharing links to the blog. 

Conclusion:

By following these five steps, you can elevate your clinic's online visibility, attracting a wider audience and improving your SEO. Regularly posting valuable content not only enhances online search rankings, but adds value to your community and establishes your clinic as a go-to resource in your field.

Of note, blogs are just one strategy to boost your SEO and in upcoming blogs we plan to outline some other strategies.

For more general insights on marketing and growing your practice, check out our other blog posts.

• 3 Essential Components to Start & Grow a Vestibular Therapy Practice.
• Our Secret Sauce For Getting More Than 100 New Vestibular Referrals a Month.
• Vestibular Therapy Marketing Strategies - Part 1.
• Vestibular Therapy Marketing Strategies Part 2 - educating our customers.
• Vestibular Therapy Marketing Strategies - part 3.