When you set out to create an effective medical SEO strategy, keywords are probably at the top of your list. Keywords allow your website’s content to rank higher in search engine results and give it a better chance of being discovered by online users. Adding concise, relevant keywords in blog posts, articles, and pages is great for increasing search engine optimization for doctors. However, it is possible to overdo it by repeating the same keywords in separate content, creating a negative effect called keyword cannibalization.
Impacts of keyword cannibalization on SEO
Keyword cannibalization occurs when your website focuses on identical keywords in different posts or pages. As a result, Google and other search engines may rank the pages out of the order that you would prefer. Google can still identify what the content is about and bring it up for an online user’s search. However, an outdated post may appear ahead of a new one, or a post that converts poorly may rank higher than a post that gets your site multiple conversions (such as users scheduling appointments or reaching out with a message). Worst of all, cannibalization can decrease the search rankings for all pages sharing the same keyword, which is something you want to avoid at all costs.
Solutions for keyword cannibalization
A large part of SEO ranking in healthcare is making sure you have the right keywords in the right places. You do not want to sabotage your chances of showing up on someone’s search results because you have used a keyword across too much of your website. Here is how to identify keyword cannibalization and what to do to fix it.
Identify copied keywords
First, sift through your website’s content to discover if you have any identical keywords. If you discover two pages or posts with the same keywords, consider what question each post is answering, and use that to guide changes in the keywords. You may have two pages that address very similar issues; you can fix that by combining them into a single post. This brings all visitors straight to the content you want them to see, avoiding any confusion between the two.
Research top posts
If you discover that one post performs exceptionally well but it has the same keywords as another post, you want to prioritize it over the other. Use Google analytics or other tools to discover which pages get the greatest traffic or lead to the most conversions. Then check the keywords, changing any if necessary, so that the popular posts have the chance to rank highest.
Make a content strategy
All this research is a lot of work, so it would be foolish not to incorporate it into your latest marketing plan. Develop a strategy that creates individual categories, unique keywords, and relevant but distinct topics for patients to find.
Learn how to optimize keyword use
Doctor Genius can help you develop and implement a plan that prevents keyword cannibalization and increases your site’s odds at making it to the top of search engine results. Contact us to find out how we can help your practice thrive online.
Doctor Genius, located at 16800 Aston Street, Suite 270, Irvine, CA 92606, provides a range of services for practice success. We seek to meet our clients’ needs by providing a variety of marketing, SEO, practice optimization tools, and coaching to transform the healthcare experience. Though we work to provide the most accurate information, the content found on this website is solely intended for entertainment purposes. Therefore, we cannot guarantee that the information provided is entirely correct. You may not use the information on this site to cure, prevent, or diagnose a perceived medical issue. If you have healthcare-related needs, please speak directly to a healthcare professional. Never self-perform medical treatments discussed on this website. All images displayed are also for entertainment purposes only, and personal experiences may differ. Please note that the business tactics mentioned on this site might not be applicable to your industry or practice.
