8 Medical SEO Myths Healthcare Providers Should Know About

Online marketing for healthcare professionals is changing rapidly. There are many misconceptions about medical SEO and using the wrong techniques can harm a medical practice. It is therefore important to have clear idea about legitimate SEO tactics and myths.

Here are some common SEO myths to ignore:

1. Social media marketing does not impact SEO: If you think that social media has nothing to do with SEO as social traffic is not a ranking factor for SERPs, you are wrong. Content sharing and link building via social media helps in building authority on many different platforms, which helps search engines with discovery and indexation. However, though social media presence can improve a healthcare website’s visibility, but there is no guarantee that this can help your SEO. Strategies to rank websites keep changing.
2. Using the right keywords is all that is needed: Physicians who are new to SEO may think that keyword-rich, search engine optimized content is a good practice. However, while keywords are essential element in SEO, high quality, relevant content with the right keywords is what matters.
3. Having many web pages boosts ranking: Having too many webpages alone will not add value to your medical website. Quality content is more important for better online visibility. If the content is repetitive or includes irrelevant topics, it can damage your SEO.
4. Image optimization is unnecessary: Image optimization is important when creating new content. As the search engines cannot “see” the images, it is important to provide the correct description to make them visible. Use of unique photos with correct fields of title, alt text and description improve the chances of images being seen online.
5. Mobile optimization is overrated: Never underestimate the power of mobile optimization. Mobile search has increased dramatically and Google is pushing for mobile. Mobile optimization is necessary – whether it’s page design, responsiveness, number of clicks, page speed and even the screen size.
6. Link building is no longer relevant: Link building is an outdated tactic, but it still around. Experts recommend that the most effective method of link building for promotion or link building is based in content.
7. Local SEO is not for everyone: The importance of local SEO is increasing by the day. It is not necessary to have a local business in order to gain from local SEO. Here are some strategies to enhance your local visibility:
   • Your business should be listed in Google business
   • Pay attention to reviews
   • Check your customer service
   • Provide the right information about your online presence
   • Focus on mobile customers
8. Optimized content is more important: It is believed that quality content can beat SEO optimization, but that is not true. Success with SEO is impossible without high quality, optimized content.

An experienced healthcare digital marketing agency can provide reliable medical SEO services to help physicians succeed online. The right provider will assess your unique requirements and use relevant SEO techniques to help your website get the visibility it deserves with higher click-through traffic which will get you new patients.