A question we get often from new clients is “Do I really need to have a  blog?” To which our answer is always a resounding “Yes!” So, today we want to address – should you keep your website content static forever? Or does posting blogs regularly help SEO?

Think of it this way, Google’s job is to match a user with the most relevant results to align with the user’s search query. The Google web crawlers explore webpages, following the internal and external links on those pages, browsing through content and searching for keywords, then relaying that data back to the Google server in order to indicate just how relevant your site is to the user’s search.

If you haven’t updated your website in a while, Google is going to think that your website has outdated information—and that’s not what it wants to display to its users. 

Say a prospective patient in your area searches for “Invisalign teen orthodontist.” Your website doesn’t mention Invisalign for teens specifically; you have one page dedicated to Invisalign that discusses the benefits of treatment and it was published a few years ago. 

A competing orthodontic practice down the road has an Invisalign Teen service page on their site and numerous blog posts about Invisalign for teens and orthodontics for teens, with the most recent one published only two weeks ago. 

Which website do you think Google prefers? The site that has the most recently updated content, optimized for a user’s search, will always win. 

So does blogging help SEO? Yes it does, for a number of reasons.

Posting blogs to your site regularly tells search engines that your website has fresh, up-to-date content.

Google wants to display websites that have recent, accurate information. Not only is this more ideal for matching a user’s search query, but it triggers the Google web crawlers to index your website everytime you update content or add new content. 

This keeps your website visible to the crawlers, and it helps indicate to your readers that the information on your site is recent and can be trusted. The information needs to be accurate too, of course, but ideally, posting regularly requires constant research on new advancements and technologies in orthodontics, and fresh keyword searches to explore the topics patients are searching in real-time.

Posting blogs to your website encourages returning visitors. 

When your current patients or prospective patients see that you’re providing fresh, compelling content on a consistent basis, they’ll start returning to your site to check for more content. As you continue answering your readers’ questions and providing valuable information, they’ll see you as an authority on patient education and orthodontic care.

Visitors will return to your site and drive more organic traffic to your site. The more traffic your site receives, the more authority Google gives to your website, and the higher Google ranks your website.

Posting blogs to social channels drives more traffic to your website.

Your Facebook page and Google My Business listing(s) are your allies in website traffic and search engine ranking. Once you publish a blog, it’s a great idea to share that blog on your social media pages. This way, your Facebook page and Google listing stay up-to-date with fresh content, and your blogs reach a wider audience. 

By posting blogs to your social media accounts, your patients or prospective patients may feel compelled to react to your posts, comment on your posts, or better yet—share your posts with their friends.

Especially with mobile-optimized websites and mobile-friendly blog formats, navigating from a social post to your website is a quick, intuitive journey for users. Once users navigate to your site, if your blog is optimized properly, they’ll be encouraged to visit other pages on your site through internal links.

This helps to decrease your bounce rate (the rate of users bouncing off of your site after visiting a page—the lower the bounce rate, the better) and increase overall website traffic.

How to improve blogs and SEO

Blogs are the most convenient tool for adding fresh content to your website regularly, driving users from one platform to your website, and encouraging users to stay on your site in order to visit other pages. 

To properly optimize your blogs for search engines, it’s important that you conduct thorough keyword research to understand what your readers want to hear. If you write blogs about topics that aren’t relevant to your audience, or you use your own personal discretion when determining what your audience wants to hear, you’re not giving your patients and prospective patients what they want. 

Blogging for SEO means creating content that meets your readers’ needs. Google favors content and websites that answer users’ search queries, so pinpointing these queries and adjusting your approach consistently is essential to effective blogging.

It’s important to take any chance you get to link to other pages on your site. If your content mentions ‘Invisalign’ (which it certainly should if you’re performing keyword research), link to the Invisalign treatment page on your site. Whenever you mention the doctors at your practice, link to their ‘About’ pages. Link to location pages and the ‘book your free exam’ page. Link to patient reviews and your before-and-after patient photos page when you can. 

Linking to other pages on your site helps to decrease your bounce rate, which is another factor Google uses to determine the health of your site and identify the ranking it deserves. 

Include local SEO keyword phrases too, like “orthodontist in Chicago” or “braces near me”, to help your local prospective patients find your practice website. This helps to drive more traffic to your site and gets you more viable leads from your site. While it’s great if a person from Kansas finds your practice website, they’re not likely to book an exam with you if you’re located 700 miles away. 

The Bottom Line

Blogging for SEO is a crucial part of your digital marketing strategy. Nowadays, most of your new patients are finding you online. Whether they drove past your practice recently and wanted to learn more about you before starting treatment, or they took to Google to find an “orthodontist near me”, 97% of users search online to find a local business (Safari Digital). Your online presence is directly related to your success.

We know it can be overwhelming! As an orthodontist, a treatment coordinator or a practice manager, you’ve got enough on your plate. Committing to regular blog postings, ensuring that your keyword research is sufficient and your content is formatted ideally for mobile, requires time that your team may not have.

That’s why we’re here to help! We’re an orthodontic marketing agency based in Tampa, with team members located around the country. We have the perspective, skill and experience your practice needs to transform its online presence and attract new patients via your website.

Request your complimentary discovery session or drop us a line today to find out what we can achieve when we partner together.