When it comes to content, trust matters. Whether it’s a new blog post or a page about your services, people and search engines must have confidence that everything on your website is current and accurate.
You establish relationships with prospective patients through the content you publish. Meanwhile, you establish trust with Google by delivering valuable content to its users.
Learn below about the importance of website content and how it could be the reason your site is or isn’t producing new patients.
45 percent of a brand's image can be attributed to what it says and how it says it.
SEO and Dental Website Content
It is widely believed that engagement is a significant factor in SEO. Years ago, how people interacted with a website didn’t matter (at least, from a search engine’s perspective). Which means, the quality of a website’s content didn’t matter either.
Google no longer trusts websites that don’t engage an audience. Meanwhile, visitors are less likely to trust content that doesn’t rank well on Google. In effect, trust is how you build your audience.
Google can measure trust in a number of ways. The majority of SEO used to consist of link building (convincing other websites to link to you). While link building is still a ranking factor, Google has seemingly become more reliant on engagement.
Google’s algorithm can measure engagement on several factors (which can be found in your Google Analytics account). Here are a few of the top engagement metrics:
- Time on site: The amount of time someone spends on your site indicates their level of engagement.
- Pages per visit: If visitors are viewing multiple pages, they likely carry interest in your practice.
- Bounce rate: The percentage of people who visit your site and only view the page they landed on. A high bounce rate means visitors are not engaged.
Can Visitors Trust You?
Rankings, keywords, and website traffic aren’t the be-all and end-all. Attracting a prospective patient to your site doesn’t automatically make them a reception room patient. SEO is only one part of the equation.
You could get 200 visitors to your website and not convert a single one. If so, what’s the benefit of “ranking at the top of Google?” Little more than bragging rights. That’s why equally important to SEO is the quality of your content.
Typos and grammar issues are some of the more obvious mistakes that can turn off prospective patients. Inaccurate information can leave people asking, “Are you a dentist I can trust?”
While it certainly should be avoided, most readers would excuse a small typo in your latest blog post. But a sloppy description of your services? This could raise questions. Readers may call professionalism into question when they notice something that doesn’t seem right. In fact, some will take poor or inaccurate content as a reflection on your clinical skills.
This can occur when dentists rush their writing or use a copy-and-paste tactic to quickly get words on a page.
Remember, the back button is only one click away.
38 percent of people will stop engaging with a website if they feel they can’t trust the content
How to Make Your Content Stand Out
Equally important to accuracy is the message you are looking to convey. Your website isn’t for you. It’s for prospective patients looking for a dentist in your area. So your content should be written with the patient in mind.
Ultimately, your content should answer one question: “Are you the right dentist for me?”
More and more dentists are using the Internet as a patient-generation tool. That’s why generic, cookie-cutter content no longer converts. There’s too much competition.
Offering a brief description of root canals doesn’t tell prospective patients why they should choose you. Sure, you have to describe your services. But your goal isn’t to compete with WebMD.
Think about the anxious patient who is terrified of the dentist. What would better persuade them to schedule an appointment?
- Describing what a root canal is and explaining why they might need one; or
- Assuring them that they can feel comfortable receiving dental care from you
Here are a few questions to ask yourself when crafting your content:
- Are you giving visitors a reason to spend not seconds, but several minutes, navigating your site?
- Are you going beyond the typical brochure-type content that offers the same pitch as hundreds of other dental websites?
- Are you providing a unique and compelling message that your competitors can’t deliver?
Content is king. Get it right, and you have a firm foundation to drive all your digital marketing activities.