The Internet may connect us globally, but consumers primarily search for businesses right in their own backyard. Recent studies have shown that 90% of consumers use search engines when looking for local products or services.

1. GPS //
Guide to Practice Success
SEO STRATEGIES
To Help Patients
Find Your Practice Online
A Sesame Guide to Practice Success

2. GPS //
Guide to Practice Success
The Internet may connect us globally, but consumers primarily search for
businesses right in their own backyard. Recent studies have shown that 90% of
consumers use search engines when looking for local products
or services.
That said, consumers don’t dig too deeply into search results - 87% of all clicks
from organic search-engine traffic go to the first five results. To capture the
attention - and the clicks - of potential patients, your practice’s website must
capture these top spots in relevant searches.
87%
Sesame Guides to Practice Success
As a leader in education and research in the
dental industry, Sesame Communications has
created the Guides to Practice Success (GPS),
a series of educational resources with bitesized, actionable tips you can start using to
grow your practice today!
of all clicks from organic search
engine traffic go to the first five
results.
Copyright 2013 Sesame Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. The Sesame logo is a trademark of Sesame Communications.

3. GPS //
Guide to Practice Success
Maximize the Value of Your Online Presence with SEO
Search engine optimization (SEO) is an Internet marketing strategy designed to
improve the visibility of your practice’s website for relevant search results1. While
some SEO tactics require advanced web development knowledge to execute,
many are rather straightforward. The right SEO efforts can boost your practice’s
exposure to prospective patients.
Here are a few simple SEO steps your practice can take to help bring more
prospective patients to your website through online searches.
Copyright 2013 Sesame Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. The Sesame logo is a trademark of Sesame Communications.
Sesame Guides to Practice Success
As a leader in education and research in the
dental industry, Sesame Communications has
created the Guides to Practice Success (GPS),
a series of educational resources with bitesized, actionable tips you can start using to
grow your practice today!

4. GPS //
Guide to Practice Success
1
Keep Your Website Updated with
Fresh Content
Google, Bing and other search engines generally deem
webpages with updated content more relevant.
Make sure to update your site weekly if possible, monthly at
minimum. Keep in mind not all fresh content is created equal.
Updating a link or two in your navigation bar won’t win you
many SEO points; adding a new post to your blog or new site
content on relevant topics and wording will.
Copyright 2013 Sesame Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. The Sesame logo is a trademark of Sesame Communications.

5. GPS //
Guide to Practice Success
2
Use the Right Keywords
When searching online for the services you provide, your
prospective patients are likely to use certain words and phrases.
Including the right keywords in your website copy where
appropriate will help your site show up higher in relevant
searches.
For example, if you’re a dentist based in Farmington Hills, MI,
search engine users looking for a new dentist in your area will
likely use search terms like “Farmington Hills dentist,” “teeth
cleaning Farmington Hills,” or “dental checkup Metro Detroit.”
Be sure your website makes numerous mentions of every service
you offer and your location, including nearby cities and any
metro areas.
Copyright 2013 Sesame Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. The Sesame logo is a trademark of Sesame Communications.

6. GPS //
Guide to Practice Success
3
Get A Website with Responsive Design
First, let’s define responsive web design: It’s a process that
creates a single website for your practice that will look great and
function effectively across multiple devices and screen sizes,
from mobile phones and tablets to laptops and desktops.
Responsive web design and search optimization go hand in
hand. By providing one website with the same content for all
devices, responsive design makes it is easier for search engines
to index a website and improve its ability to be found in search
results. Given this fact, it’s no surprise, then, that Google
recommends responsive design!
Copyright 2013 Sesame Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. The Sesame logo is a trademark of Sesame Communications.

7. GPS //
Guide to Practice Success
4
Feature Video Content
Prominently displayed videos on your site engage visitors and
increase the chance that they’ll stay engaged. Video content
is also great for SEO. Search engines place an importance on
content that keeps visitors on the website.
Not sure where to start with video? Consider a 60-second
“About Our Practice” video, or a “Virtual Tour” video that shows
viewers around your practice and introduces your doctor and
staff. Your practice can produce plenty of fun, compelling videos
with relatively little time, effort, and budget.
Compelling video that highlights the unique characteristics of
your practice can be created without substantial time, effort or
financial commitment.
Copyright 2013 Sesame Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. The Sesame logo is a trademark of Sesame Communications.

8. GPS //
Guide to Practice Success
5
“Claim” Your Online Business Listings
Online business sites such as Yelp and Google+ are highly
popular starting points for consumers searching for products
and services. “Claiming”, filling out, and verifying your profiles
on these sites will help your practice get found by more
prospective patients.
It’ll also net you even more SEO benefits. Verified listings on
Google properties (e.g. Google + Local) get better exposure
in Google’s search engines. Additionally, once you have
standardized listings for all of your local site profiles, search
engines will recognize that these profiles refer to the same
business and group them together in search results, increasing
your search-engine visibility.
Copyright 2013 Sesame Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. The Sesame logo is a trademark of Sesame Communications.

9. GPS //
Guide to Practice Success
6
Track, Report, and Analyze
How will you know if your SEO efforts are leading to increased
site traffic and new business? Website analytics programs like
Google Analytics let you track site visitors by source, meaning
you can identify exactly how many visitors arrive at your site via
search engines over a given time period. This in turn allows you
to link upticks in search-engine traffic to specific SEO activities.
Additionally, tracking referral sources for every new patient
will help you connect the dots between SEO and new patient
acquisition. Make sure every new patient answers the question
“How did you hear about us?” and capture this information.
Identifying all patients acquired through search engines will
allow you to calculate the ROI of your SEO activities.
Copyright 2013 Sesame Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. The Sesame logo is a trademark of Sesame Communications.

10. GPS //
Guide to Practice Success
Final Thoughts
Many, if not most, of your prospective patients use online search
as a starting point when seeking out the services you offer.
Without an ongoing SEO effort, your practice will miss out on
opportunities to attract new patients. SEO helps your website
get found by more prospective patients. A sound website with
the right SEO strategy in place can become your best source for
new patient acquisition.
About Sesame Communications
Sesame Communications helps dental and orthodontic practices
harness the power of the Internet to accelerate new patient
acquisition, build patient loyalty and transform the patient
experience. The Sesame Solution Suite helps practices grow
and thrive in the digital age by offering solutions in the areas
of Responsive Design, SEO, SEM, Social Media, Online Patient
Login, and more.
References
1.
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/nearly-all-consumers-97-now-use-online-media-to-shop-locally-according-to-biakelsey-and-constat-87221242.html
Copyright 2013 Sesame Communications, Inc. All rights reserved. The Sesame logo is a trademark of Sesame Communications.