You’re a professional in your industry — dentistry. You know every which way to extract an impacted wisdom tooth, prepare for a dental implant, restore teeth to perfect whiteness, and treat a cavity. However, when it comes to getting traffic from search engines, you have not a clue. That’s why we’re here to help you.

If you are managing the success of your own website, first you should heavily consider contacting us for a free consultation. We’ll go over every facet of your presence online and inform you the best way to approach the issue of SEO.

However, if you’re just starting out online and want to test the waters first, we understand. These are three very, very, very basic factors that can benefit your presence on the search engines. Remember, there’s no benefit to a fancy and flashy website if nobody can find it!

1. Keep People on Your Website

The Problem:
This is called the ‘drop-off’. It’s when users don’t stay long on your site, and they either close the window or click the back button. This is because the site didn’t appeal to them, they couldn’t find the information they needed, they were put off by the usability or user experience of the site, etc. There could be a hundred reasons why someone chooses to leave a website. But understand, this is entirely preventable by understanding what information your users want.

The Solution:
We are a huge supporter of the 5-second rule. If someone cannot find the information they are looking for in 5 seconds, they may give up. That’s not a lot of time, and usually people don’t even bother scrolling down your page. Always put the most important information at the top of the website so that people can easily see it within that 5 seconds. It’s also important for your visitor to understand what you do. So, for example, if you perform skills in a very specialized field of dentistry, that is information the visitor needs to see first.

2. Become a Social Butterfly

The Problem:
There’s absolutely no trace of activity on the internet for your dental practice. When people Google your name, they’ll see your website and possibly a mere handful of reviews. There’s no conversation. There’s no community. There’s no sense of excitement. It’s quite bland. When this happen, you miss out on a bunch of search engine love.

The Solution:
Engage the community. Reach out on Facebook — and if you don’t have one, create a Facebook page for your practice! Ask questions, give general advice, respond to comments on your feed, etc. It might even help to learn how to use Twitter. (You MUST read our next post!) These bits of social activity help boost the social credibility of your practice and your website. It’s going to be something you develop a good habit of doing several times per week to see the maximum benefit.

3. Knowing What Searchers Want

The Problem:
Someone visits your website and spends time looking through it, but they decide to go to someone else for their dental services. This happens all the time in many industries. The user does not connect with your website. They feel that you don’t have what they need.

The Solution:
Learn what the user is searching for. Put yourself in their shoes. If you were looking for dental services in your own town, what would you search for online? Try it. For example, if you live in Denver, what would you search? (There are many tools to give you invaluable information, and we’ll provide you even more specialized tools when you work with us.) Take a step further. Visit your competitors’ websites. Ask yourself, “Is this site educating its visitors and giving them what they are looking for better than my website?” By doing this you put yourself in a place to provide content that people are searching for.

Conclusion

Don’t be mistaken into thinking there are only 3 factors that boost your rankings. In fact, there are hundreds. We go over many of them in our eBook devoted to Dental Marketing. We’d like you to position yourself to be the authority in your industry. This process largely involves your website and how people see your business. Don’t hesitate to call us. 855-366-4652 if you have any questions at all.