The Benefits Of A Comprehensive Treatments Section On Your Website

Don’t skimp on content – it won’t do you any favours in Google search

I recently watched a video of a business coach discussing dental practice websites with his web designer, where layout and content were discussed in some depth.

There were some really useful suggestions about the style of content which is essential to grab a user’s attention, but also some less-good advice regarding the depth of content required.

A dental website is the critical foundation for gaining new patients from the web and the platform that you guide users to, to encourage them to make contact. So it must be optimal in all aspects; whether that is how well it works for users, or how well it works in Google searches. So all elements of the design need to be considered equally and implemented in the most professional way possible.

Let’s start with the good ideas that were put forward, in particular how a “personalised” website works better than a generic, traditional version which simply presents facts and data.

Personalisation

Many dental websites follow the same kind of formula which has worked quite well for several years. So a straightforward layout presenting details about the practice, the team, treatments and a contact page. There may also be a small section detailing patient testimonials but little else. These types of sites still work reasonably well, but with increasing competition and the ease of publishing now available to help get a basic site on line, they don’t stand out nearly as well as websites designed with more flair and interest-grabbing features.

Currently you will hear a lot of discussion about “personalising” websites and these features were detailed between the coach and his designer as I mentioned above. In a nutshell, here we are talking about taking the emphasis of the website away from the provider of the service (the dentist and his team) and moving this firmly towards the patient. So making sure the focus is on *them* and solving *their* dental issues rather than an in-depth statement about the principal dentist and his/her vast array of qualifications and attributes. Of course the latter information needs to be present, and in detail, but as a back-up rather than the main thrust.

By answering a patient’s concerns quickly and succinctly, you stand a much better chance of gaining their business when compared to a dry explanation of the dentist’s qualifications. That said, it is still extremely important to demonstrate authority and expertise to your users and Google, so those qualifications and expertise still need to be included on your website.

We also use “story telling” to show potential new patients how existing patients have received life-changing treatments at the practice, all backed-up by testimonials, reviews, case studies and videos. All of this, the dental coach got bang on.

However, there was also worrying “advice” in that it was also recommended to “skimp” on treatment detail as patients are generally less-interested about that. My take is somewhat different in that I still believe a comprehensive treatment section is very important on your website, not just for those patients who want to dig in a little further, but also, critically, for Google too!

A clearly structured, comprehensive treatments section – still important!

So why are we still advocating clear treatment information on your site, with the main treatments having their own separate web page? Well, this is for two important reasons. Whilst many users who come to your website simply want a new dentist and won’t worry too much about drilling into the detail, some still will. For those who are investing in more complex treatments such as dental implants or orthodontics, expect them to want to research in more depth.

Secondly, and equally important, is that Google like to see clear information on websites. So a clearly differentiated section for each treatment type will work better in search results when compared to information which is bundled together or skimped. So the advice which implied de-prioritising the treatment content was somewhat wide of the mark unfortunately.

It is easy enough to combine the personalisation aspects which work so well, with comprehensive treatment information, keeping both the user and Google happy!

Summary

There is a lot of advice bandied around regarding how to structure a website, some of if good but some of it less so. Suggestions that you can go minimalist with treatment content on a dental website are wide-of-the-mark when it comes to forming a good foundation for Google, and hence should be discounted. Websites need to be structured to work well for users *and* for Google so take care and please speak to an experienced website specialist to get an optimal result.

If you’d like assistance with the planning and building of a website for your practice, please get in touch with Dental Media on 01332 672548 and we’ll be delighted to help.