Updating Your Website During COVID

7 Strategies to improve your website and results

During the COVID shutdown, I spoke to several Internet marketing agencies who saw a lot of surgeons and cosmetic practices use this time to either design a brand-new website, or at least, make significant needed updates to their existing website.

Many of these same practices are now saying they are busier now than ever. So what changes did they make that you can also benefit from?

These are just some of the strategies that we suggest you consider when updating or re-designing your website.

1- Use Google Analytics User Data

Not only is it important to know how many visitors come to your websites, but what they do when they get there. How long do they stay? How many get to key destinations? Do they engage and stay on key optimization-driven pages?  Mobile engagement? Most important, how many visitors convert into valuable leads and ultimately new patients? What conversion strategies and calls-to-action can increase these numbers, particularly telephone calls? Google Analytics should not just be used to gauge your results and justify your ongoing investment, but to stimulate ideas and uncover new opportunities.

2- Incorporate More Custom Photos and Videos

We all recognize the influence social media has played in marketing cosmetic services.  Your website needs to adapt as well. First, cosmetic patients still make decisions on elective surgery/services emotionally; they just justify it with logic. Second, people choose to work with people and practices they feel like they know, like and trust. Incorporating more custom images and videos is essential to quickly developing immediate rapport with visitors, and a sense of “likeability” and connection.

3- Update Mobile

In many cases, websites even from three years ago do not incorporate the latest mobile usability strategies.  Most cosmetic practice websites now have more mobile traffic than desktop. Making sure your content, design, engagement, and conversion elements are designed for maximum mobile usability is critical. This includes:

  1. Layouts utilizing every pixel in smaller screens,
  2. Navigation emphasizing scrolling more than clicking,
  3. Galleries enabling visitors to see more high-quality cases,
  4. Content written in more readable mobile view,
  5. Calls-to-action built for mobile conversions, and
  6. Programming and structure that accelerates site speed and shortens page load times.

4- New and Updated Content

If you can’t remember when you wrote your primary pages, or added useful support pages and content, then chances are you need to read and update your content. In many cases, rewriting existing primary pages that already have traffic and equity can enhance conversions and SEO results. Industry experts also indicate that consolidating or removing dead-weight content can also enhance your website’s performance. And new content that addresses current user interests, needs, and search queries can also help both.

5- Multi-channel Integration

Today’s websites need to integrate all your other online resources and marketing efforts.  Effective online marketing is not done through independent marketing silos and your website is the hub of all your online efforts. This includes integrating social media platforms, patient reviews, business listings, authority organizations/associations, media exposure, driving audiences through links, sharing content, and promoting key results.  The emphasis needs to be on building synergy where the “whole is greater than the sum of its parts.”

6- Update Onsite SEO Optimization

As part of updating and optimizing your content, incorporating more updated optimization elements can also help improve your organic Google visibility.  This could include updating headings, title tags, page urls, schema markup, internal links, outbound links, adding on-page engagement elements, image/video optimization, and more.  These may be more technical than the other strategies, so get with your webmaster or someone that can help you address them.

7- Offer Something Different

Chances are, your website has the same calls-to-action as every other competitors’ website, mainly “Schedule a Free Consultation” or similar. If you want better results, come up with better “next step” offers. For example, early in the COVID-19 shutdown period, some progressive practices that were the first to offer online consultations saw a big boost in conversions. In fact, consumer searches for online consultations have significantly increased. Other strategies can include calls-to-action that address questions on price, offering unique guides, loyalty programs, special offers, etc.

If you are considering updating your website or SEO, contact us for a free assessment and suggestions.