Keywords, Marketing, and Your Brain

Identifying the right keywords for your website can require quite a bit of research. It’s not a one-time thing, either. We keep a spreadsheet for each of our clients, so we can track the keywords we’re working on and add new ones regularly.

You can help your web firm get the best results for you by using your brain to support their efforts.

Share your knowledge.

You might think that you know the best keywords for your website. You may not be right. For example, if you think your potential patients are looking for your pediatric practice with “board-certified pediatric physician,” you are mistaken.

But you have valuable insights into the kinds of questions people ask you and the concerns they express. Share those with your web team.

For medical keywords in particular, the terms you use and the terms your patients (and potential patients) use to find information may not be the same. But letting your team know the words you use with your patients can be super helpful.

Use your keywords.

Once you have a set of keywords identified, make an effort to use them yourself.

Here’s what happens when you use your keywords all the time:

• It becomes natural. In SEO, we are always striving for That Natural Look. If, instead of trying to stuff a certain percentage of keyword phrases into your text, you just get into the habit of using them, they’ll come to your mind very naturally, and any social media or site changes you make will include them in completely natural ways. If you need evidence of this, think about all the people you know who have the habit of saying “like,” or “you know” or the latest movie catchphrase. It’s easy to get into the habit of using particular words when you speak or write — it’s a little service your brain performs for you. Just take advantage of the fact.
• You train your customers. You can’t entirely foresee what people will type in at the search engines when they need your products or services. Data from our software tools can give you the most probable choices, but there will be surprises. I wasn’t expecting that person who came here after searching for “rotten haden.” (I’m trying not to take it personally.) But you want your clients to find you very easily. By using your keywords not just on your website but on your print documents and in your patient conversations, you encourage the people you contact in the real world to use the search terms that are most likely to find you — not your competitors. A little service their brains can perform for you.
• You test those keywords. Things change. Maybe your initial keywords are no longer the best choices for your business. Maybe they never were. If you find that you can’t use your keywords easily and naturally in your work environment, then they probably aren’t really the right ones for you. It’s time to do some new keyword development. When you make the effort to use your keywords in your daily work, you’ll have warning signs when they become outdated or inaccurate. Another of your brain’s services.

Let your brain help you out with choosing and using your keywords — and pass the information on to your web team.