Here's how to implement schema in order to increase conversions for your hospital, clinic, or practice.
In the previous post on schema markup, I discussed the general ins and outs of markup language and how it can be used to improve search engine optimization (SEO). Here in Part II, I’ll elaborate on the specific types of schema markup that hospitals, clinics, or independent practitioners can use on their websites to support their marketing goals. Read on for a breakdown of the most common types of markup and how they can help your organization:
Organization schema markup tells Google to attach certain information, links, or images to your medical brand. You can specify identifiers like your logo, social profiles, and corporate contact information, which will populate into Google’s Knowledge Graph entry at the top of the search results page. With organization schema, users can quickly identify the services you offer without having to scroll through multiple pages.
You may already have a search bar implemented on your website, but with the right markup, you can generate a search bar within the search result entry itself. For example, hospitals that implement website schema could allow patients to search for a specific doctor without having to click into the site. When you offer a search bar in your results, you give patients an immediate opportunity to interact with your site and increase the chances that they will choose you.
Site navigation schema gives users immediate access to the different pages on your website, including “Find a Doctor,” “About,” or “Contact Us” pages. This makes the structure of your website more apparent to potential patients and allows them to quickly find what they’re looking for.
Video content is one of your most valuable assets when it comes to attracting new patients. Video markup embeds a video from your website within the search entry’s rich snippet. Though this feature is most commonly used to display YouTube video results, hospitals and clinics can take advantage of it as well. Use video markup to highlight content such as doctor profiles and patient testimonials, which can draw users into a page.
Show off the content on your site with article markup. This feature increases the chances that your articles will show up in Google News or in-depth article searches, and gives you a great opportunity to convert users looking for medical information. Use the NewsArticle or BlogPosting schemas, depending on your needs, and make sure to indicate the article’s headline, cover image, and publish date.
Local business markup adds valuable information such as addresses or business hours to your Knowledge Graph entry, making it easy for local patients to determine whether your practice is a good fit for them. Take a look at the LocalBusiness markup page to learn more about implementing this feature.
The digital era has allowed patients to become more empowered, providing them access to an abundance of information in order to make informed decisions about their health. In fact, 83% of patients visit a hospital’s website before making an appointment, and 43% of those website visits start with a search engine.
As search technology continuously evolves, healthcare will become even more patient-centric by giving them the tools to conduct informative and meaningful searches. Using schema markup will not only bolster the relevancy of medical organizations in search results, it will also increase their credibility among consumers, building trust and a better overall experience.