4 Steps to Powerful SEO (No Expertise Required!)
SEO, or search engine optimization, is an often beguiled, seriously misunderstood (Wait, am I still talking about SEO here or Ben Affleck?) foundation of digital marketing.
On top of SEO feeling technical and out of reach, many small business owners have been shaken down by an “SEO expert” or two, promised sky-high site visits from new customers, and ended up a few hundred (and hopefully not thousands) dollars lighter with no results.
We feel you, Ben.
But there is another way.
No, you do not have to learn how to code, download a new site plugin, or pay for a service.
You do not have to procure a computer-shaped Voodoo doll, perform a ritualistic dance, or sacrifice your firstborn.
All you have to do is follow these four steps.
SEO for Non-Experts Step #1: Publish content
The easiest way to publish content on your website is via a blog.
You: “I hate blogging.”
Me: “Then publish content hubs.”
You: “Is this a trick?”
Me: “Yes.”
No, you don’t have to blog. But you do have to publish words on your site, as many words as possible, that portray you as a trusted expert with lots of experience and authority.
Those words aren’t highlighted for no reason—they’re how Google, the most used search engine on Earth, describes the content it pushes to the top of search results.
E-E-A-T: Expert, experienced, authoritative, trustworthy content is what gets you found by potential patients.
And the more, the better.
So, no, blogging isn’t a must, but some form of consistently published content is. Content hubs (learn more about them here and here) are another fantastic way to get words on your site.
Ever wonder why you see the same few sites at the top of your subject-specific searches? For instance, most wellness searches result in articles from Healthline, LiveStrong, Mayo Clinic, WebMD, and Verywell Health.
That’s not a coincidence. Those sites have worked hard to publish as much content as possible (thousands upon thousands of articles written by teams of writers), and Google rewards them for their quantitative efforts. It’s not all about quantity, though. Which brings us to step number two.
SEO for Non-Experts Step #2: Use words your patients are using
Hashimoto’s? Pathophysiology? Systemic lupus erythematosus?
No, no, and no.
Your potential patients have no idea what you’re talking about.
They’re searching Google for:
- “Why am I cold all the time”
- “Why is my skin so dry”
- “Can’t wake up in the morning”
- “Face rash that won’t go away”
- “Low fever for multiple days”
The pathophysiology of systemic lupus erythematosus means nothing to them.
So don’t write about that on your website. If you do, not only will it be over your patients’ heads, but they won’t be able to find you when they search on Google.
See how that fits together?
Your patients are looking for answers to their questions and solutions to their problems. Unless they’re doctors or super science nerds like you, they won’t be searching for medical terminology. So, if you’re using medical terminology, your site won’t appear in their Google results.
This is SEO 101: Create content that is useful (and findable) to the searcher. To do that, you have to use the words they use and understand.
Before you write your blog, put yourself in their shoes. What are they searching for online that corresponds to the blog you want to write?
If you’re writing about hormones and weight gain, you won’t title your blog “The Pathophysiological Connection Between Female Endocrine Imbalances and Obesity”
You won’t even title it “Your Hormones Are Causing You To Gain Weight”
Ideally, you’d use a title like “Weight Gain Around Your Midsection? 5 Ways to Solve Weight Gain After 40”
Why is the third title the best? It incorporates words this person uses in their Google search, such as “weight gain, midsection, 40.” And it gives them practical solutions they’ll be excited to learn instead of relying on heady hormone explanations that won’t do them much good (unless they’re a medical student).
SEO for Non-Experts Step #3: Choose a niche
I know what you’re thinking: But Victoria, I want to work with lots of different patients! Not just people with autoimmunity (or heart disease or diabetes…).
The good news is you can see lots of different patients!
But if you want your marketing to be effective, especially in the realm of SEO, you have to market to one specific patient.
Let’s break that down so it’s clear:
- You can work with people dealing with everything from erectile dysfunction to traction alopecia.
- You can’t market to all those people and expect to create a successful online presence.
Why?
Marketing, and SEO specifically, demands that you niche. That means you choose one primary avatar, or dream client, to market to. (Read this blog to understand why.)
In the world of SEO, niching fulfills Google’s primary ranking demand: E-E-A-T.
How can you be a trusted, experienced expert with tons of authority on…every health topic?
News flash: You can’t.
Without tons of content on one topic, Google sees you as another vague website with content that’s so random it’s not valuable to anyone…the opposite of what you want for a well-optimized website that shows up first in search results.
Niching is scary as hell for most clinicians because they think of it clinically—it will constrict their client base. But niching is a marketing term, not a clinical one.
Limited marketing grows your practice. Expanded marketing limits your practice. And it severely limits your ability to be found via a Google search, the goal of SEO.
SEO for Non-Experts Step #4: Collaborate
If you’re a hardcore, competitive business owner like I was when I practiced nutrition (apologies to everyone I interacted with from 2011-2018), you might want to rethink that.
Competition not only leads to burnout and self-doubt but also tanks your SEO efforts.
How so?
One of the best ways to get found on Google is via links from other people’s websites to your website, technically called a backlink.
Say, for example, I collaborate with another medical marketing agency and write a guest blog for their website on the best ways to use social media as an SEO tool.
They publish the blog with a short bio and hyperlink from my title, “wellness marketing expert,” back to my website.
That’s a backlink.
There are infinite numbers of ways to get backlinks, such as guest blogs, podcast appearances, showing up in resource guides, speaking at conferences, and, yes, directly asking if another business owner will share your work (why?) because it’s highly valuable to that business’ audience.
And that’s the key: The more valuable content you create, the more likely someone is to share it, be excited about collaborating, and boost your SEO efforts via backlinks.
See how it all ties together?
SEO isn’t scary: It’s just one part of marketing
At the end of the day, remember that SEO is just one part of a robust marketing plan. Email marketing, social media, content creation, affiliate marketing, and paid ads can round out your efforts.
SEO doesn’t have to be crazy technical, unreachable, or overwhelming. You can follow these four simple steps and, with time and lots of interesting, useful content, reach page one of Google and potential patients.
Want more on SEO? Register for our free upcoming SEO masterclass!
