SEO for Physical Therapists: Bring More Patients to Your Business

Search engine optimization. It\'s all the rage. Well, it\'s been all the rage for quite a while now, but if you are a physical therapist and are wondering how to bring more patients to your business, then this article is for you.

Define Your Ideal Client

You want to tailor all of your SEO efforts towards your ideal client. You can start with demographics and then narrow it down from there. Maybe you want to work with children or seniors. Then, you can further narrow down to specific needs that you feel are your strengths and define some of the key demands of that clientele. For example, children will have certain conditions at a much higher rate than seniors. You want to ensure those conditions are represented in your profile because, later on, you will target keywords around them to provide relevant and meaningful content. You should keep this client profile handy. Get as specific as you can as you will refer to it as you continue to build out other parts of your SEO strategy.

Tips For Building an SEO-Friendly Website**

Search engine optimization for physical therapists is the craft of getting your content seen and ranked higher in web search results. It makes sense that it all starts with your website. You need to start with that strong foundation and then build your content around it. Here are a few tips for making sure you have a good foundation in place with your website.

1. Have clear navigation. Make it easy for your visitors to find the information they need.

2. Make sure you have a mobile-friendly design. Almost 60% of users come from mobile devices, so it\'s important to ensure your visitors get their information even on the smallest screens.

3. Check your load speeds. Part of Google\'s page rank algorithm incorporates the mobile load speed of your page. You can check this at [Google PageSpeed Insights]{.underline} and ensure you score in the green and don\'t have any performance issues to give Google\'s algorithms the best chance to rank you.

4. Create a blog. The best way to use SEO to drive traffic to your site is to have a blog. A blog allows you to continue to create relevant, engaging content for your target audience. It has the bonus of allowing you to create content targeted at different client demographics you have identified in your ideal client creation. For example, if you are reading this, you are probably a physical therapist interested in SEO. That is one of our target demographics, and we created this post to help you learn more about that point.

5. Have clear calls to action. Once a visitor has read that beautiful piece of content you created, make sure they know where to go next. Give them a clear \"Book Now\" button so they can get on your calendar.

Keyword Research

Unfortunately, you can\'t just write any old piece of content and have people show up on your site. It just doesn\'t work that way. You will want to attack this head-on by finding keywords relevant to your client base.

Local Keywords

You should focus on local keywords as a base for your website. As a physical therapist, you need a keyword structure that goes something like [Name of Business]---Physical Therapist---[City, State]. Most of your customers are going to be searching for something along the lines of \"Physical Therapist Near Me\" or \"Physical Therapist [Location].\" You want to target these in the primary so that potential clients will reach you.

Keywords of your ideal client

Next, you will want to target keywords related to your ideal client. This will require some research and digging, but there are some very good tools out there to help you find the right keywords.

As an example, let\'s say you are targeting kids, and one of the ailments you see often is idiopathic toe walking. Idiopathic toe walking could be an excellent subject for a blog post! But what keywords would you target? Do people search more for \"physical therapy for idiopathic toe walking\" or \"occupational therapy for idiopathic toe walking\"? While the differences may be minor, targeting the right keywords (those that get a high search volume with lower competition) makes a huge difference in the effectiveness of your strategy.

To do this research properly, you need a keyword research tool. Two of the most popular are [Ahrefs]{.underline} and [Semrush]{.underline}. I have used both of these, and they are very good. However, they are also costly.

You can use the [Google Keyword Planner]{.underline} if you want a free tool. Google\'s planner doesn\'t give you as many associated keywords and doesn\'t have as many useful features, but you can still find search volumes and trends, and in a pinch, you can get away with just using that.

At Woodmont Interactive, we use a third tool called [keysearch.co.]{.underline} It is not free but far cheaper than Semrush or Ahrefs and has more features than the Google Keyword Planner. We have no affiliation with them, so if you sign up, we don\'t get any kickback, but it is just a tool we like and recommend.

Building Backlinks

This is the hardest part of SEO. Google uses backlinks as a \"vote\" for your website and content. The more backlinks you have, the more Google thinks your site is trustworthy and should be shown to users searching the web. These can\'t just be any old links, though; they need to be relevant to the content on your site.

Start With Business Directories

These are a great way to start getting links back to your site. We have a [giant list of business directories]{.underline} here. Some are specific to the wedding business niche, but many are general business directories that would be good for a physical therapy website. Look specifically under the \"Local Business Directories\" and \"General Business Directories\" headings for some significant directories to list.

Another excellent option for physical therapists is specific directories such as [choosept.com]{.underline} and [doctor.com]{.underline}.

Reach Out Regarding Specific Content

If you create content that is synergistic with another provider, such as a chiropractor or personal trainer, you can also reach out to them, try to get them quoted on your website, and maybe link to each other. These kinds of symbiotic links can do wonders for your SEO efforts.

Conclusion

Search Engine Optimization can be tricky at first, but with the right tools and a good foundation in the form of your ideal client profile and website, you can start bringing in clients this way before you know it. It is just a matter of patience and perseverance. If you feel stuck or want some help, we are here for you! Contact us, and we can start helping you bring more clients your way.