Should You Really DIY Your Clinic’s SEO? | Ep.133

SEO is one of the most powerful ways to attract new patients to your clinic—but here’s the big question: should you handle it yourself or hire experts to do it for you?

In this episode, we dive deep into the debate between DIY SEO vs. working with professionals, breaking down the pros, cons, and even a middle-ground option that gives you expert guidance without the overwhelm.

You’ll learn:

• Why SEO is essential for clinics that want to be found on Google, Google Maps, and even AI-driven searches
• The biggest advantages (and hidden pitfalls) of going the DIY SEO route
• When it makes sense to call in SEO experts to save you time, stress, and costly mistakes
• How hybrid options—like toolkits and “done with you” programs—help you stay hands-on with the right roadmap
• A clear decision framework to figure out which path is best for your clinic’s time, budget, and goals

If you’ve ever wondered whether you’re better off rolling up your sleeves or passing the SEO work to someone else, this episode will give you the clarity you need to make the smartest choice for your clinic.

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Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
Welcome to this episode of the Clinic Marketing

(00:03):
Podcast.
I'm your host, Darcy Sullivanfrom Propel Marketing and
Design.
And this is your go-to show forlocal SEO and digital marketing
tips to help you grow yourclinic.
Today we're tackling a questionI hear all the time.
Should you DIY your SEO plan?

(00:24):
Or is it better to work withexperts like our team at Propel?
If you're wondering how to getyour clinic to the top of Google
without wasting time or money,this episode is for you.
We'll break down the pros andcons of DIY SEO, when it makes
sense to go it alone, and whenyou might want to partner with a

(00:48):
company like Propel, especiallyif you don't have a team to
help.
Let's get started.
Before we get into DIY versusgoing with an expert for SEO,
let's talk about why SEOmatters.
SEO, search engine optimization,is your ticket to getting found

(01:12):
by patients searching for termslike chiropractor in your city
or acupuncturist for migraines.
I mean, did you know that 68% ofonline experiences start with a
search engine and Googleprocesses over 8.5 billion

(01:32):
searches a day?
Listen, your patients are outthere looking for you.
But if your website isn'tranking, if you can't be found
on AI searches or in GoogleMaps, you're simply invisible.
SEO drives long-term organictraffic, meaning patients find

(01:55):
you without you paying for everysingle click like you would do
with ads.
In fact, studies show SEOdelivers 5.66 times better ROI
than paid strategies.

But here's the catch (02:10):
SEO can feel overwhelming, especially if
you're a busy clinic ownerwearing a million hats.
So should you roll up yoursleeves and do it yourself or
hand it off to the experts?
Let's break it down.
Let's start with a DIY SEO.

(02:30):
This is when you or someone onyour team takes charge of
everything completely in orderto optimize your website to rank
higher in Google.
Here are the biggest pros andcons of going this route.
Pro, cost saving.
You're not paying agency fees,which can be important,
especially if you're justgetting started or if you have

(02:52):
zero budget.
Control, you have the final sayover everything.
Learning opportunity.
Yeah, you could master a newskill, or your team member could
master a new skill, which couldhelp them later in life.
You've got flexibility, you cango at your own pace, tweak
things as you go.
But there are a bunch of cons aswell.

(03:16):
There's a time commitment.
SEO isn't a one-and-done task.
It takes time to do theresearch, create the content,
and track your progress.
There's a learning curve.
Without proper direction, SEOcan seem complex, but it doesn't
have to.
With consistent algorithmchanges, you need direction in

(03:39):
order to figure out what actionsyou should take.
And with a million people outthere trying to give you
direction online, sometimes youcan feel like you're drinking
water from a fire hydrant.
You risk mistakes.
I've seen this all the time whenclinics dive in where they put

(04:00):
somebody in charge of SEO, andthat person goes and watches a
couple random YouTube videos andthey take action.
They spend time taking actionand it's the wrong action.
There's nothing sadder thantaking the wrong action.
You also might have resourceconstraints.
Maybe you don't have a team ortime to juggle.

(04:23):
DIY can work if you're techsavvy, if you have time to
learn, and can commit toconsistency.
This leads us to other options.
You have options like workingwith a local SEO expert like
Propel.
Working with a team like ours isideal if you have a lack of

(04:45):
time, team, or expertise totackle SEO yourself.
And here's why partnering withexperts makes sense.
You get their expertise.
They're on top of knowing allthe latest changes with Google,
like AI-driven algorithms, soyou don't have to.
You save time because you'rehanding things off.

(05:08):
You can customize the strategyto make sure it works for your
clinic, and you know that you'regoing to get proven results.
The cons come in when youconsider the cost, because yes,
there is a cost to working withprofessionals.
And sometimes you lose a littlebit of control because they're

(05:31):
putting all of the actions intoplace.
But if you're overwhelmed, ifyou don't have a team, or if you
want faster results, workingwith a local SEO company like
Propel is a no-brainer.
We take the guesswork out ofSEO, delivering a strategy that
gets your clinic found by theright new patients.

But here's the thing (05:51):
we talked about two options.
There's also a third option,which is the middle ground.
These are done with you servicesand accessing our DIY SEO
program called Ready Set Rank.
That's right.
There's a middle ground.

(06:12):
If you want to DIY, but you needa roadmap, our Ready Set Rank
Complete SEO toolkit for clinicsis designed for you.
It's a step-by-step program thatgives you the tools to optimize
your website without theoverwhelm.
Now, I'm not going into a bigsales pitch on this because you

(06:34):
can visit our website.
You can check out the Ready SetRing program.
You can check out our done withyou services, our done for you
services, and again, our readyset ring program, which is a
toolkit that is perfect for youor your team if you or your team
have time to put into SEO andjust want the right direction so

(06:59):
that you're not just goingonline Googling or God forbid,
going to Chat GPT and asking itto do it for you.
So how do you decide what'sright for you?
Well, if you want to go it allon your own, then DIY it.

(07:19):
If you want DIY with specificdirections, then I would check
out Ready Set Rank.
If you're too busy, have a lackof team, or just want faster
hands-off results, visitpropellyourcompany.com and book
a discovery call.

(07:41):
Well, I hope you're ready totake action.
And if you're leaning towardsDIY, start small.
Give it a try on your own.
And if you feel like you need asystem, then be sure to check
out Ready Set Rank.
If DIY feels overwhelming,again, you can reach out to us
and book a discovery call, andwe can talk to you about all the

(08:03):
options we offer and create acustom plan that not only fits
you, but fits your budget.
All right.
That's it for today's episode ofthe Clinic Marketing Podcast.