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Hey again — it's Steve with Healthcare Marketing Vitals!

Search has changed dramatically over the past year, with AI transforming and video platforms significantly altering how patients find healthcare information online.

What used to be primarily Google's territory is now a complex ecosystem spanning multiple platforms (with Google still heavily dominant), each with their own search algorithms and audience behavior patterns.

This week, we're diving into the continuing evolution of healthcare SEO the age of AI and with different methods of search.

Understanding these shifts is crucial for maintaining your practice's visibility where patients are actually looking and, dare I say it—getting ahead of the curve.

In This Week’s Email:

• [1 min] Thoughts for the Week: An expensive hobby

• [5 min] Beyond Google: Healthcare SEO in the Age of AI, Voice, and Video Search

• [30 sec] By the Numbers: Healthcare search and video marketing statistics

• [30 sec] In the Know: AI search features, YouTube's health verification, short form video

THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK

An Expensive Hobby

Anytime you start a new hobby it’s expensive.

Last year, when my wife and I started rock climbing we spent hundreds on equipment.

Unless/until we stop climbing our memberships are now a monthly expense.

And despite all of my charm and mesmerizing dance moves, we had to pay for everything with cold hard cash that we could have spent on hot dates and expensive cars instead.

Even though we knew getting into climbing wouldn’t be free, we ended up spending more on this new hobby than we’d expected.

That’s actually one of my fears every time I seek healthcare.

And I’m not alone: 38% of people say they or a family member have put off or foregone treatment because of the cost.

Of those, 27% said the condition or illness they delayed treatment on was serious or somewhat serious.

Healthcare consumers in the US never truly know how much treatment will eventually cost them versus putting it off.

But you can still reach this audience and they can still be valuable to you as you improve their lives.

If you think you’ve maxed out your market, eg:

• You’re ranking high in searches like “pt near me” or “brownsville orthopedic surgeon”

• Your “bottom of the funnel” PPC ads (i.e. for terms like “dentist near me” or “therapist in south haven” are performing well

• Your conversion rates are in line with or above healthcare marketing benchmarks

Then it’s time to reach out to the patient population who have fears and obstacles in their way: those who need you but have perceived or real barriers.

For us, climbing is ultimately an investment in our health and well-being. We’re okay with the tradeoff because it augments our lives more than fancy dates and hot cars.

But for many, healthcare—unless absolutely necessary—is perceived as an expensive luxury.

You have to change that perception.

Answer to the riddle: No. Because you can’t put a tree in an MRI scanner.

A MESSAGE FROM OURS PRIVACY

Serious About Marketing & HIPAA Compliance?

Ours Privacy is too.

That’s why they developed their HIPAA-Compliant CDP to act as a buffer between you and non-compliant third parties so you can target your ad campaigns successfully without violating privacy.

Even with pixel tracking technologies (I’m looking at you, Meta) that are otherwise non-compliant.

Get more revenue. Stay in compliance.

SPOTLIGHT

Beyond Google: Healthcare SEO in the Age of AI and Video Search

5 min. read

Remember when healthcare SEO was straightforward?

Optimize your Google Business Profile and your website, build some backlinks, create quality content, and you'll eventually climb the Google rankings?

Those days are decidedly over.

Healthcare search has been dramatically reshaped by two powerful forces:

1. Artificial intelligence

2. The rise of video-first search behavior

Search Fragmentation: Where Patients Look Now

While Google remains the dominant search engine, patient search behavior has fragmented across multiple platforms, each serving different search intents:

• Google: Still primary for symptoms, conditions, and provider location searches, with 77% of patients starting their healthcare journey with a search engine

• YouTube: Increasingly the go-to for visual explanations, with healthcare platforms seeing a significant surge in content from physician-led sessions to patient testimonials

• TikTok: Emerging as a preferred platform for quick health tips, with 1 in 5 Americans consulting TikTok for health advice before contacting a physician

• Instagram: Visual discovery of providers, with an engagement rate of approximately 1.60% for healthcare-related posts

• Voice Search: 90% of people say they find voice search easier than traditional search via typing and 50% use voice search daily

This fragmentation means healthcare providers must now maintain visibility across multiple platforms with different optimization requirements.

Rise of The Machines: The AI Revolution in Search

AI has fundamentally changed how search engines understand and rank content.

Google's search AI now prioritizes content that demonstrates:

1. Experience: Content created by clinicians with direct experience (Google E-E-A-T guidelines)

2. Expertise: Content that shows deep knowledge of the topic

3. Authoritativeness: Content from sources with recognized credentials

4. Trustworthiness: Content that's accurate, transparent and helpful

For healthcare providers, this AI-driven approach favors organizations that can demonstrate real clinical expertise.

This is a huge opportunity for new practices or clinicians and veterans alike.

No one is stopping you from creating helpful content in your specialty!

According to a recent study by Glacial Multimedia, healthcare websites with content authored by credentialed medical professionals see significantly higher visibility in search results following recent AI-focused updates.

Video Search: YouTube as Healthcare's Second Search Engine

YouTube has emerged as the second largest search engine globally, with over 2 billion logged-in monthly users and healthcare being one of its fastest-growing categories.

This represents both a challenge and opportunity for healthcare marketers.

The opportunity lies in less competition.

While your written website content competes with WebMD, Mayo Clinic, and thousands of health blogs, YouTube is less saturated—especially for local providers.

Platforms like YouTube have seen a significant surge in healthcare content—from physician-led information sessions to patient testimonials.

The challenge is creating a different type of content.

Video optimization has a higher barrier to entry than blog posts, for example.

It requires:

• Engaging thumbnails that stand out

• Keywords in titles, descriptions, and tags

• Strong openings and hooks

• Closed captions and transcripts for accessibility and SEO

• Consistent posting to build channel authority

AI-Powered Search Features Changing the Game

Google and other search platforms are rapidly introducing AI features that change how patients find healthcare information:

• Google "What People Suggest": A new feature announced by Google that uses AI to organize different perspectives from online discussions into easy-to-understand themes for healthcare topics

• AI Overviews: Summarizes information at the top of search results, with 45% of medical keywords triggering these features

• AI Search Prompts: Suggests follow-up questions based on initial searches, with healthcare queries being among the most common

• Multi-search: Allows patients to search with both images and text

Healthcare websites we’ve studied or worked with have seen significant opportunities from these enhanced features when properly optimized.

Practical Strategies for Healthcare SEO

1. Create Provider-Led Video Content Have physicians create short videos addressing common patient questions for YouTube and your website. Studies show that 80% of online visitors will watch a video, while only 20% will thoroughly read written content.

2. Optimize for "Near Me" Searches Local search continues to be crucial for healthcare. Ensure your Google Business Profile is fully optimized with updated hours, services, and regular posts. Create location-specific video content highlighting your facilities and team.

3. Develop Multi-Platform Content Strategies Rather than creating platform-specific content from scratch, develop a "hub and spoke" approach. Repurpose content across platforms.

4. Leverage Structured Data Help search AI understand your content by implementing healthcare-specific schema markup on your website. This helps search engines categorize your content and may lead to enhanced search features like rich snippets. There are over 30 healthcare-specific schema types available for implementation.

5. Monitor Platform-Specific Analytics Each platform has its own analytics. Monitor search terms that led to your content, audience retention rates, and engagement metrics. Google Search Console now provides AI-specific search insights that can help refine your strategy.

The Future of Healthcare Search

Several trends are shaping healthcare search:

• Multimodal Search: Patients will increasingly search using combinations of text, voice, and images

• Voice-First Search: Voice searches will continue growing, favoring conversational content

• AI-Generated Content: Search engines will get better at identifying and potentially devaluing AI-generated content without expert input

Approach SEO not as a technical exercise, but as an extension of your patient education mission.

In a time when patients have more search options than ever, the winning strategy is about being genuinely helpful wherever patients are looking for answers.

BY THE NUMBERS

Healthcare Search and Video Marketing Statistics

1. Search Behavior Shift: 77% of patients now use search engines as their first step when seeking healthcare information, highlighting the critical importance of search visibility.

2. Video Content Engagement: 80% of online visitors will watch a healthcare video in its entirety, while only 20% will read written content completely - making video an essential medium for patient education.

3. TikTok Healthcare Influence: 1 in 5 Americans consult TikTok for health advice before contacting a physician, with anxiety, depression, and weight loss being the most common topics searched.

4. Video Email Performance: Healthcare marketing emails that include video content see click-through rates increase by up to 300% compared to text-only communications.

5. AI Search Transformation: 93% of healthcare organizations are planning to increase AI investments in 2025, with search optimization and content personalization being primary focus areas.

IN THE KNOW

Key Articles this Week

1. Google Announces "What People Suggest" Feature for Healthcare Search: Google's new AI-powered feature helps patients find perspectives from others with similar health conditions from online discussions. Read more

2. YouTube Health Launches Verified Provider Program: YouTube's verification program for healthcare professionals aims to combat misinformation by highlighting content from credentialed providers, offering an opportunity for healthcare providers. Read more

3. Short-Form Video Delivers Some of The Highest ROI in Marketing: According to new research, short-form video is delivering the highest return on investment compared to other marketing formats, with organizations seeing significant engagement from videos under 60 seconds. Read more

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That’s All for Now

Have a great week—and don't forget to expand your SEO strategy beyond traditional search engines.

See You Next Week,

Steve