SEO for Physical Therapists: 3 Steps to Get Found, Get Clicks, and Get Patients | Ep. 128

Physical therapists are in a competitive industry which means their SEO (search engine optimization) must be up to par to compete online. SEO is a crucial element of your digital marketing campaign and an effective way to get patients through your doors. 

So, how do you find new patients? Or, should we say: How do new patients find you? 

Getting your website in front of your target audience is the answer. This is done through a strategic search engine optimization (SEO) campaign. Whether you’re a physical therapist new to SEO or have been utilizing it for years, this post will give you invaluable insight into creating a stellar SEO campaign that makes your visitors, Google, and ROI happy.

 🎉Grab your FREE Physical Therapy SEO Quickstart Guide

We’re going over:

• What SEO is
• Why SEO is crucial to your success
• The three pivotal SEO steps every physical therapist needs to take
• What to know about your Google Business Profile 
• And more

Episode website and blog post: https://propelyourcompany.com/seo-for-physical-therapists/

Send in your questions. ❤ We'd love to hear from you!

NEW Webinar: How to dominate Google Search, Google Maps, AI-driven search results, and get more new patients.

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In this 1-Hour SEO Planning Session, you’ll learn what it takes to thrive online and convert online traffic into foot traffic.

Plus, Get a Free Patient-Centered SEO Action Plan to Kickstart Your Strategy!

🎉 NEW Webinar: How to dominate Google Search, Google Maps, AI-driven search results, and get more new patients without spending a dime on ads

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📞Book a discovery call - Book a discovery call with Propel to see how smart SEO and website design can help your clinic get found online.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 0 (00:00):
Hey, there, it's Darcy Sullivan from Propel
Marketing and Design and you'retuned in to the clinic marketing
podcast.
Bite-sized strategies that helpbusy clinic owners grow
visibility and book morepatients online.
Today we're zeroing in onphysical therapists.
If you've ever wondered how doI outrank the practice down the

(00:23):
street, stick with me for thisepisode.
You'll learn the three SEOmoves that put you on page one
of Google in the Google Mapspack, help you show up in
AI-driven search results and,ultimately, on your ideal
patient's calendar.
And, by the way, if you want tofollow along with a simple
step-by-step checklist, grab myfree physical therapy SEO quick

(00:46):
start guide atpropellyourcompanycom slash
pt-seo-quickstart-guide.
It's got everything fromtoday's episode laid out in an
easy to follow format, plus aGoogle business profile cheat
sheet and a blog post outlineyou can start using today.
Let's start with the basics.

(01:06):
Search is still king.
There are 8.5 billion Googlesearches every single day and
67% of clicks go to the firstfive organic results.
Physical therapy is hyper-local.
Patients rarely scroll pastpage one or travel far.
That means if you have no SEO,you're practically invisible.

(01:28):
But if you have good SEO,you'll see a steady flow of
qualified nearby prospects.
So what does that look like?
Let's walk through the big threeSEO steps for physical
therapists.
First, identify your place inthe market.
Define your ideal patientwhat's their age, activity level

(01:49):
, goals and pain points.
Figure out where they spendtheir time online by checking
Google Analytics, socialplatform insights and even
competitor blogs.
Then listen to the words theyuse.
Pull keywords from Google'sautocomplete answer, the public,
or free tools like Moz Explorer.
A quick win here is to draft amaster list of 25 keyword

(02:12):
phrases that combine a conditionplus physical therapist, plus
your city-like rotator cuffrehab Philadelphia.
If this feels like a data swamp, reach out one consult session
and you'll walk away with acrystal clear keyword map.
Next, focus on on-page SEO thestuff on your website that

(02:33):
delights both Google and humanvisitors.
Your site should be mobile,responsive, load in under two
seconds and have cleannavigation with no more than 5
to 7 main menu items.
Make sure there's a prominentcontrasting Book Now button on
every page.
On the content side, have adedicated page for each therapy

(02:56):
and condition you treat, with atleast 500 or more words per
page, written inpatient-friendly language.
Use real photos or short demovideos instead of generic stop
shots.
Technically, every page needs aunique title tag under 60
characters and a metadescription under 160 characters

(03:18):
.
Add internal links from blogposts to service pages and from
service pages to your contactpage.
Give every image alt text thatuses your keywords.
So instead of image 123, it'sdry-needling-shoulder-painjpg.
Here's a quick win.

(03:39):
Run your site through Google'sPageSpeed Insights and compress
any image over 150 KB, and ifyour site needs more than a
tweak, we can redesign, migrateyour content and launch it for
you.
Finally, let's talk aboutoff-page SEO and your Google
Business profile.

(03:59):
This is non-negotiable, isnon-negotiable.
Claim and verify your profileand fill in every single field
your address, phone hours,services, insurance, accepted
photos and logo.
Collect and respond to reviewsno-transcript.

(04:20):
Make sure your name, addressand phone number are identical
across directories like Yelp,healthgrades, apple Maps, bing
and others.
Another quick win addFrequently Asked Questions to
your Google Business profile.
It signals relevance andanswers a top patient question,
and if you're stuck below themap pack, we can run a Google

(04:42):
Business profile audit.
If you want to put this intoaction, here's a simple 30-day
plan.
In week one, build or refineyour keyword list.
In week two, optimize orrewrite your top three service
pages with better speed, titlesand calls to action.
In week three, claim, completeand add plenty of photos to your

(05:04):
Google business profile and inweek four, publish one 800-word
blog post targeting a high-valuekeyword from week one, then
share it as a post on yourprofile.
Track your results in GoogleAnalytics and adjust as needed.
Of course, there are times whenit makes sense to get help-like
when you don't have the time ordesire to write, optimize or

(05:28):
post, or when you run intotechnical errors and don't have
a tech team, or when you'restuck on page two after doing
the basics and just need thatfinal push from link building or
content expansion.
Head to propellyourcompanycomand hit book a discovery call.
10 minutes, zero pressure, willtell you straight if DIY tweaks

(05:50):
are enough or if a done for youcampaign makes more sense.
Seo isn't magic.
It's a repeatable process.
Nail your audience and keywords, create a site that delights
visitors and own your GoogleBusiness profile.
Do that and you'll watchbookings climb and remember your
free physical therapy SEO quickstart guide is waiting for you

(06:14):
at propellyourcompanycom slashpt-seo-quickstart-guide to help
you get started right away.
Thanks for listening to theClinic Marketing Podcast.
If you found value in thisepisode, share it with a fellow
PT and leave a quick rating onApple Podcasts.
It helps more clinic ownersdiscover actionable tips like

(06:38):
these.