The medical sector is a highly competitive space, considering each month millions of searches are conducted looking for physicians. In our digital age, to attract new patients doctors must consider essential components such as healthcare website design and marketing. In 2024, having exceptional website design and website maintenance are integral for healthcare clinics to flourish. In this article, physicians and marketing experts discuss 12 things a great doctor’s website should have.

Serving Your Clients With A Good Internet Experience, Good Reviews, Keywords Across Your Landing Pages

“I help our doctors at AICA Orthopedic with their website, and we believe the best things to add to a site have to serve two different purposes. The first purpose is serving your customers with a good internet experience. This means putting mobile page speed first, allowing them to schedule online, and outlying clearly what you specialize in. In 2024 you also have to have good reviews. People care about that.

The second purpose is serving Google. You want to put keywords across your landing pages so you can rank for it. So if you’re a nutritionist versus a car accident doctor, you have to have different languages and keywords across your webpage for Google to read it.

Isaiah Ram, Digital Marketer, AICA Orthopedics

Testimonials Are Critical, Make The Most Relevant Information Easily Available, And Your Website Must Be Mobile-Friendly

“The things a great doctor’s website should have will ultimately result in achieving the desired goals of increasing new patients and retaining existing patients. In over 20 years of digital marketing and working on websites, here are the top 3 things I find most important for doctor’s sites:

Reviews or testimonials are critical to helping new patients learn more about a doctor before making their first appointment. Earning reviews on 3rd party sites such as Google is a great way to build credibility. 

Make the most relevant information easily available. If needed, do a quick usability study and ask a few people to complete a task on the website and share their experience. Can they easily find what they are looking for? Is the site navigation clear and easy to use for the target audience?

With over 50% of internet users now using mobile devices, your website must

be mobile-friendly, and easy to navigate and complete tasks using a mobile device.”

Allison Chaney, Chief Digital Training Officer, Boot Camp Digital

ADA Compliance And HIPAA Compliance Are Mandated By Federal Law

“ADA (Americans With Disabilities Act) compliance and HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) compliance are mandated by Federal law and carry heavy fines for violations; therefore, we place these two components at the top of our list for physician websites.

ADA compliance is achieved through the design of a website to make it accessible to persons with disabilities. The web content accessibility guidelines by W3C includes a

wide range of recommendations for websites to make them accessible. To check for ADA compliance, a physician can use a browser extension like WAVE Evaluation Tool and Siteimprove Accessibility Checker which will evaluate the website. Though the extensions are not perfect, they will give the physician information that should be addressed with the website design firm. Also, there should be an Accessibility statement on the website, in addition to a Privacy Policy and the Terms of Service. And for safety, businesses may include website software such as UserWay that helps with ADA compliance; however, the software alone does not result in a compliant site. 

HIPAA compliance for a website is best achieved by not putting anything on the site that is related in any fashion to a patient. Furthermore, nothing patient-related should be on the website server, even if it is not on the website. Therefore, email should be hosted and stored by a HIPAA compliant service such as Google ‘s G Suite, after the physician has executed a HIPAA Business Associate Amendment (HIPAA BAA).”

Allan McNabb, VP and COO, Image Building Media

Contact Information, Post Pleasant Pictures With Satisfied Patients And Detailed Biological Diagrams, And An Online Provision Of Filling Out Forms

“We live in a world where having websites are very important for any sector, especially if you are a doctor and have a clinic. There are a few things that are essential for any medical website. First of all, there should be contact information. This should include important information such as an address, phone number, and opening hours. Apart from that, you should include your address in Google Maps. Visitors can easily plug the address into Google Maps or share the email with a friend. Secondly, try not to post the photos of people in miserable conditions and terrible-looking medical ailments. Try to post pleasant pictures with satisfied patients and detailed biological diagrams. Lastly and most importantly, there should be an online provision of filling out forms. If you work with a web developer or a marketing team, do try to be compliant with HIPAA rules and regulations.”

Jennifer Willy Editor, Etia.Com

SEO Has Always Been A Key Defining Factor As To The Success Of Medical Professional Websites

“One of the most important features to have on doctor’s websites in the current economic climate is a smooth, integrated telehealth system by which patients can schedule video calls with their doctor. At our firm, we design the majority of doctor websites using WordPress, and now more than ever, there are a slew of valuable plugins that can be easily integrated into the platform to get the most mileage out of patient scheduling.

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic shifted marketing for doctors, SEO has always been a key defining factor as to the success of medical professional websites. There are a number of SEO strategies that firms and marketers tout, but the most impactful methods usually involve the hardest work. 

As part of an on-going effort to transition our clients to a fully digital climate, we’ve begun rolling out highly detailed resource centers as it pertains to each unique medical field. By implementing this advanced strategy, the goal is to overtake large entities like MayoClinic and WebMD in online rankings for highly competitive keywords. So far the implementation has been highly beneficial to the practices we represent as the searches for problems that arise due to staying at home have increased. By anticipating patient pain points we’ve been able to predict and intercept valuable user traffic.”

Jared Cohen, SEO2Sales Engineer, Iffel International

The medical industry is an extremely competitive space. In 2024, now more than ever possessing a stellar online presence is key for the success of healthcare organizations and medical clinics. In addition to professional website design, medical professionals should understand that things like SEO services are also integral to attracting, engaging, and converting new patients in our digital age.

Sarah Bauder

Sarah Bauder is a senior content specialist at Little Dragon Media. Sarah has a degree in journalism and has a decade of experience writing content at numerous renowned publications. She enjoys writing about digital marketing, business, entrepreneurship and more.