What Private Practice Therapists Need To Know About SEO in 2021
GUEST POST BY KRISTIE PLANTINGA, FROM THERAPIESEO
Maybe you’ve heard other therapists or private practice coaches talk about SEO and why it’s important, or maybe you’re not even sure what SEO stands for. I’m here to explain what exactly SEO is, why you should care about it, and how you can start implementing SEO today!
How does SEO work?
Simply put, SEO is the process of optimizing your website to rank for keywords on Google. Doing SEO involves a few things: content, backlinks, and website performance.
Content
In my opinion, content is the most important part of SEO. Why? Essentially, Google is a giant index of content. Google added other products and services along the way, but Google was originally created for sharing content.
Unlike other marketing channels, with SEO, what we write about depends on keywords.
Keywords are a word or collection of words that people use to search for things on Google (or other search engines, like Pinterest or Bing). You can use tools to help you find keywords that your ideal clients use, which is something I teach as a private practice consultant.
When you write content targeting a keyword, you can gauge the quality of your content by asking does this satisfy my ideal client’s search intent?
Here’s an example.
Let’s say the keyword is “am I a perfectionist.” Although you may be tempted to jump into attachment styles and CBT, don’t. The person searching “am I perfectionist” wants to know one thing: do I qualify as a perfectionist? To satisfy the user’s search intent, you would instead create a perfectionist quiz or write out a list of perfectionistic tendencies.
Since that’s what the user wants to see, that’s what Google wants to see.
Backlinks
Google has an ethical and professional responsibility to deliver high-quality content from reputable sources (I’m looking at you, fake news). That’s why Google’s algorithm is founded on what SEO professionals refer to as EAT: Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness.
The Google algorithm is comprised of hundreds (perhaps thousands) of factors that assess the expertise, authority, and trustworthiness of a website. When we do SEO, we have to prove the EAT of our website. Content plays a huge factor in establishing EAT, but you can quickly build EAT through backlinks.
Backlinks are links from other websites to yours. For example, if you got a backlink from your Alma Mater, you’re telling Google “yes, I have a graduate degree in counseling from this university.” Off the bat, this establishes EAT.
You can get links from millions of websites if you wanted to, but you should aim to get fewer links from websites that establish EAT. A link from a podcast about therapy or a niche directory is WAY better than a link from, for example, Yellow Pages (anyone can get a link on Yellow Pages, so lots of spammy websites do).
When building links, just remember quality > quantity.
Website performance
Consider this: if you enter a NASCAR race with a 2001 Toyota Camry, you can’t compete with the other race cars. The same goes for your website: if your website is slow, broken, unoptimized, or Google can’t access your content, your SEO will be negatively impacted and you won’t be able to compete on the internet.
That’s why you need to prioritize SEO when you build a website. Keep the following things in mind.
Does my website have broken pages (404s)?
Is my website slowed down by huge images and fancy animations?
Did my website designer (or myself) accidentally mess with settings that blocked Google from accessing my website?
Do I have title tags and meta descriptions optimized on key pages?
Is my website on a good platform like WordPress or Squarespace?
You can check your website’s technical performance with a few different tools. Just search “free website audit tool.”
Why should you do SEO?
What if I told you that you could be on page one of Psychology Today? That every time someone searched for a therapist in your niche, your profile would be right at the top? You wouldn’t have to compete with the thousands of other therapists on the famous directory, pay Psychology Today $30 per month, and spend time every week marketing your practice.
That’s where SEO can get you.
With SEO, we invest heavily upfront (with time, money, or both). We do the work, and after a year or so, we reap the benefits for years to come with minimal upkeep. There’s no need to show up on Instagram stories every day (unless you like that), spend thousands of dollars in ads for leads, or set up an elaborate email marketing strategy. Although I recommend never relying on one form of marketing for all your leads, SEO can essentially replace all of your marketing channels.
“With SEO, we invest heavily upfront (with time, money, or both). We do the work, and after a year or so, we reap the benefits for years to come with minimal upkeep.”
How you can start doing SEO today
Like I mentioned before, doing SEO boils down to content, links, technical performance, and your Google My Business listing.
Given that, here are a few things you can do to boost your SEO today:
Start blogging. Google loves a freshly updated website with high-quality, topical content.
Work with a website designer who understands and prioritizes SEO (like Monica!). If a website designer doesn’t get or care about SEO, your website could pay the price.
Ask a colleague if you can be on their podcast or post on their blog. Work your current connections! Getting featured in a podcast and writing a guest blog post can get you a decent backlink.
Get reviews on your Google My Business listing. Reviews are one of the top ranking factors for Google’s local algorithm. Ask a colleague for a character review to boost your local rankings!
If you’re ready to work with an SEO professional—*shameless plug*—I am currently accepting clients. I’m also launching some incredible courses and on-demand support options this spring. You can stay up-to-date on all the things I’m doing (and get first access and discounts!) by signing up for my email list.
Recent updates in SEO
Although SEO tactics have remained largely the same for the last ten years, standards are rising. Your content can’t be a wall of rambling text. Your content needs images, formatting, and ideally some video content.
Your site can’t be pretty fast. Your site has to be super fast, especially on mobile.
Your backlinks can’t be the same, weak links that everyone else has. Your links need to be unique and full of EAT potential.
SEO is worth the investment
Remember that your website is your most important marketing asset. Every time you invest in your website, you are investing directly back into yourself and your practice. Money is never wasted on content and digital PR opportunities (with a backlink!) if you invest in the right sources.
About Kristie
Kristie Plantinga is the founder of TherapieSEO, an SEO agency that helps therapists, coaches, and content creators reach more of their ideal clients on Google. When she's not helping her clients rank on Google, Kristie can be found cuddling her terrier Winston or watching true crime.
