By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    physical health
    5 Ways Playing Games Can Improve Neural and Physical Health
    September 9, 2022
    Reasons For Hair Loss and Its Treatment
    Reasons For Hair Loss and Its Treatment
    February 16, 2022
    healthcare organization
    5 Actionable Strategies For Healthcare Organizations
    August 15, 2022
    Latest News
    7 Most Common Healthcare Accreditation Programs: Which Should You Use?
    August 20, 2025
    Hospital Pest Control and the Fight Against Superbugs
    August 20, 2025
    Hygiene Beyond The Clinic: Attention To Overlooked Non-Clinical Spaces
    August 13, 2025
    5 Steps to a Promising Career as a Healthcare Administrator
    August 3, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    4 Reasons Chris Cornell’s Death Raises Medical Ethics Questions
    December 19, 2018
    What If You Could Sell Your Vote?
    August 24, 2017
    The Sleepy American
    September 12, 2017
    Latest News
    How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
    August 22, 2025
    How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
    August 22, 2025
    How One Fall Can Lead to a Long Road of Medical Complications
    August 22, 2025
    How IT and Marketing Teams Can Collaborate to Protect Patient Trust
    July 17, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: The Effectiveness of SEO vs. PPC in Physician Marketing Plans
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > Business > Finance > The Effectiveness of SEO vs. PPC in Physician Marketing Plans
BusinessFinance

The Effectiveness of SEO vs. PPC in Physician Marketing Plans

Jonathan Catley
Jonathan Catley
Share
4 Min Read
SEO versus PPC, Online Medical Marketing
SHARE

It’s bad enough that healthcare professionals have to learn medical and pharmaceutical terminology, deal with insurance system overhauls, and cost-efficiently manage a practice. Now they are also expected to become adept at implementing online physician marketing plans to attract patients.

It’s bad enough that healthcare professionals have to learn medical and pharmaceutical terminology, deal with insurance system overhauls, and cost-efficiently manage a practice. Now they are also expected to become adept at implementing online physician marketing plans to attract patients. Although it may be necessary to be online to reach today’s medical consumers, it is difficult to discern which methodologies are most effective.SEO versus PPC, Online Medical Marketing

Two of the most widely discussed online marketing strategies are SEO and PPC. SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is a long-term marketing strategy which relies on keywords, content strategy, internal linking, and other methods to organically increase practice rankings in search results. When prospective patients search for information, the goal is to have the practice show up at the top of the list. It can take a long time to achieve a top-level ranking, and often requires frequent monitoring to maintain a higher position once it is attained.

Pay-Per-Click (PPC), or paid search marketing, is a more immediate approach which takes advantage of the search engines’ ability to identify online consumers who are already searching for information on a particular topic. PPC places highly-effective, keyword driven ads in front of these potential patients in an effort to motivate them to click through for more information. PPC management enables practices to manage cost-effectiveness and present these opportunities to higher qualified prospects on a more consistent basis.

More Read

The Typical Physician Misses Hundreds of Opportunities to Engage, Empower and Excite Patients Every Day
A New Form of Insurance Denial of Coverage
Digital Health Summit: Should it be Advancing or Aligning Innovation?
Marketing Shared Appointments: Paradigm Shift in Healthcare [Podcast]
Henry Ford Health System Stakes Its Future on Health Innovation

Is one of these strategies more effective than the other? In a revealing case study, MD Connect conducted an empirical analysis to answer just that question. The results showed a heavy bias in favor of PPC – SEO/organic rankings drove only 21% of visitors (vs. 79% for PPC) and only 29% of referrals (vs. 71% for PPC). The analysis concluded that overly focusing marketing strategies on SEO efforts alone will often yield less actual patient inquiries than a blended campaign which also includes PPC.

SEO and PPC as Part of a Comprehensive Online Marketing Strategy

Even with a highly effective SEO and PPC marketing strategy, the practice could still fail to thrive unless other components of the physician’s online marketing plan are equally as strong. A lackluster website can quickly counter all the positive feelings which brought a visitor to it in the first place. One major improvement can be the addition of a business profile video. Video is an important channel for engaging with potential prospects and converting that initial interest into an action.

Once patients are on board, they are looking for improved communications with their healthcare partners. The 2014 “What’s Reasonable?” study, conducted by Catalyst Healthcare Research, revealed that 93% of the adults surveyed wanted to receive email communications from their doctor, even if there was a $25 fee involved.

Medical practices that take advantage of digital marketing opportunities can realize many competitive advantages. Incorporating a well-planned SEO and PPC campaign into a comprehensive physician marketing plan is the first step to becoming more patient-focused.

Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

travel nurse in north carolina
Balancing Speed and Scope: Choosing the Nursing Degree That Fits Your Goals
Nursing
September 1, 2025
intimacy
How to Keep Intimacy Comfortable as You Age
Relationship and Lifestyle Senior Care
September 1, 2025
engineer fitting prosthetic arm
How Social Security Disability Shapes Access to Care and Everyday Health
Health care
August 20, 2025
a woman explaining the document
How a DUI Lawyer Can Help When Your Future Health Feels Uncertain
Public Health
August 20, 2025

You Might also Like

listen now podcast interview
Business

Doctor, My Time is Just as Valuable as Your Time

January 6, 2016

How SlideShare Can Increase Your Hospital’s Credibility

June 27, 2014

Changing Behavior to Conquer Obesity

September 23, 2012

The Anti-Aging Empire: Infographic

April 9, 2012
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?