Content First: 9 Signs It’s Time To Redo Your Healthcare Website
Yes, it’s probably time.
The fact that you’re even reading this blog post indicates that you’ve at least clicked around your healthcare organization’s website and either rolled your eyes, or just let out a long tired sigh.
Revamping your healthcare organization’s website is a huge undertaking: the content strategy, the content creation, the design, the UX. Then, after all that’s done, who’s going to keep the thing updated?
Or maybe you’re not sure. Sometimes, it can be hard to tell if your organization’s website needs a makeover. And I’m not talking about just changing the layout and color scheme. I’m talking about redoing the content on the site, too.
So, how do you know if your healthcare website is in for a redo? Here are 9 signs it’s time to do it—and put the content first.
First, there are the obvious signs:
1. The Content Is Out Of Date.
If no one is keeping tabs on when new content is published—or whether the published content is even still useful or relevant—then it’s probably time for a refresh.
2. The Site Is Difficult To Navigate.
If visitors can’t find what they’re looking for right away—like within a few seconds, at most—chances are they’re leaving. And that’s not a good thing. Hint: If people are spending a longer time on your homepage compared to pages about your services, then it’s possible that they’re not finding the right path to the information they need.
3. The Site Isn’t Responsive.
I really shouldn’t even have to say this, but here it goes. More than two thirds of all health-related searches are done on mobile devices, not computers, according to an August 2016 Search Engine Land report. If your healthcare website isn’t responsive, then … just … I can’t.
4. The Site Looks Outdated.
If people are looking for some Internet nostalgia, they’ll turn to BuzzFeed posts like “6 Websites You’ll Remember If You Grew Up In The ‘90s.” But if your healthcare organization’s site looks like it belongs in one of those posts, it’s time to redo it.
While these are all obvious signs that your healthcare website is due for an update, there are more subtle signs that many people overlook simply because they just might not recognize them:
5. You Called A Web Design Or Development Firm First.
If the last time you worked on your website, you called a web design or development firm first, you probably need to redo your site.
That’s because digital marketing is all about content.
If you did not take a content-first approach to your website and instead relied on a developer or design firm, it probably means you took your old content and placed it into a shiny, new shell.
But that content might not be performing the way you want it. Even if you redesigned your website as recently as two years ago, if you didn’t take a content-first approach, it’s probably time to take another stab at it already.
6. No One Is Tracking Your Analytics.
If you cannot point to the one person or team in your healthcare organization who can tell you how your content is performing, where traffic is coming from, how long visitors are staying on your site, and what content those visitors like best, it’s probably time to for a redo.
I say this from experience. When talking to clients or prospective clients who don’t have a dedicated analytics team or partner, the organization usually has some really outdated features or stale content on their website.
And the reason it’s become outdated is because no one is telling the organization that the content is not performing well. Analytics is all about how the content is performing.
7. Even Your Care Providers Complain About The Website.
It’s probably time to redo your healthcare website if your organization’s care providers say they want the website to be a much more robust resource for their patients.
A bad website makes providers’ jobs harder because they don’t have a centralized place they can point patients toward to get answers to those repeat questions.
If your doctors are complaining about what they think should be on the site, listen to them. What they’re really saying is, “We need to invest in our site in order to make it something that helps us help our patients.”
8. There Are No Interactive Elements On The Site.
If your site has no videos, graphics, or other elements that make it visual and interactive, it’s not going to rank well in search.
Plus, nobody wants to look at a big wall of text. Graphic elements break up dense text and keep people engaged. If your healthcare website doesn’t have visuals, it’s probably time to redo your site.
9. Your Healthcare Website Is Not Ranking In Search.
Ranking in search is so important because that is how people are finding their healthcare providers.
For instance, a September 2012 study conducted by Google found that 44% of patients who looked up information about hospitals on a mobile device ended up scheduling an appointment. That study also found that search brings almost 3 times as many people to hospital websites, compared to the number of visitors who arrive there without searching.
It’s not so much that your site’s landing pages need to rank. Rather, the pages for individual doctors—especially those rockstar doctors who have patients traveling long distances to see them—should show up on the side of a Google results page, along with a picture, quote, and updated office hours and locations.
Google is trying to compile as much information as possible to help people find answers instantly. If a person is looking for an answer or a service that your healthcare organization can provide, Google should know that.
So, if your web content is not ranking well in search, it’s time to redo it.
If you want to cut down on the headache and the hassle of a website redo, contact us today to talk more about how we can help you put content first in your next redesign process.
