It is estimated that around 90% of internet users use search engines to find information about a service that they need, so it is only logical to use Search Engine Marketing (SEM) to promote your physical therapy practice. Let's take a look at some of the key reasons why SEM is so important to the success of your practice.
First things first! What is Search Engine Marketing (or SEM for short)? In the simplest of terms, SEM is a type of internet marketing which primarily focuses on increasing your website's visibility in search engine results pages. This is achieved mainly using paid search listings to increase traffic as opposed to SEO (Search Engine Optimization) which uses primarily free listings.
If you have added a new service to those already being offered by your practice such as sports rehabilitation, massage therapy or performance training for athletes, then running a SEM campaign to promote that can be highly effective in getting the word out about your new services. These are very specific services that could potential generate a large amount of income for your practice so it is important to get as much exposure as possible. Since they are so specific, people in need of those services will be using specific keywords to locate services in their area. That means that you need to spend some time researching what those keywords and search terms are likely to be and start crafting specific web pages and blog posts about your new services that include those terms in order to add search engine visibility.
If your physical therapy clinic happens to be located in a big city then you are likely to have a great deal of competition from other physical therapists in your area. If you have noticed a substantial drop in appointment bookings via your clinic's website then it could be an indication that someone else in the area is running a SEM campaign, and that you need to follow suit! The easiest way to test this is to google 'Physical Therapy [Your Town]' to see what comes up in the paid listings. If a nearby competitor is showing then you may want to consider investing in a SEM campaign for your own practice as well. However, do keep in mind that in bigger cities with many physical therapists it could get expensive so choose wisely when the best times to do this are and be sure to combine it with renewed effort in other marketing areas such as social media, email marketing and of course SEO.
SEM can also be useful when the time comes for you to expand your physical therapy practice and open an additional clinic in another location. It is possible to utilize SEO techniques to promote multiple locations, but in order to get that initial boost of traffic for a new location it can be worthwhile to run an SEM campaign designed to drive traffic to the page on your website relating to your new location. Be sure to include any differences in services and or treatments that the new location can offer which makes it different from the main clinic.
Using Search Engine Marketing to promote your physical therapy clinic requires financial investment and some considerable time and effort. If you would like to discuss some alternative ways to promote your clinic on a tight budget then get in touch with us to see how PatientSites.com could help.