Last year, Google rolled out its latest and completely new search algorithm called “Hummingbird.” The focus was clear – changing the way search engines process user queries. Hummingbird impacted nearly 90 percent of all queries; the algorithm basically tries to understand the context of a question. How far this will prove to be successful is to be seen.

All Google updates tend to have a sweeping effect largely because the search engine giant dominates the search engine market share. So does this spell damage control for SEO strategy or will Hummingbird change the landscape for SEO strategies completely? For now its a wait and watch game; however, there are a few tweaks which might be necessary in response to this update. Here is what medical practices need to incorporate into their day-to-day SEO routine if they want to keep up with the Hummingbird update.

Move beyond keyword research – look at the market

Google is evolving and one of the things that is clearly on its way out is traditional keyword research. The search engine giant is shifting its focus on whether or not your content addresses search user queries as opposed to how optimized each individual page on your medical or dental practice website is to a specific keyword. This simply means that healthcare practices will now have to start identifying questions that patients are asking; the next step is obvious –  start populating your website content with answers to these questions. This is one way to keep those search engine spiders busy on your site thereby ensuring a high ranking for your medical or dental practice website while also providing extra value to your visitors.

Include Questions in your Content

You don’t need to rewrite every page unless your content suffers from poor quality. If your content is performing well, you simply need to add extra content if necessary at all. Include multiple questions in a way that makes sense to search engines and ensure that the questions are answered completely for site visitors. The goal here is actually very simple – pack your pages with enough substance so as to keep your visitors occupied and satisfied enough to keep coming back for more.

New and more content is better

One of the most important SEO mantras has been to post new content to your site on a regular basis. However, this mantra will take on new meaning in light of the Hummingbird update. Medical and dental practices will need to ensure that their websites are populated with fresh and highly relevant content – the more the better! Again, the more questions your practice website answers, higher is the chance of it being featured in contextual search results. So include “how to” posts, tutorials, and FAQs, among other items.

In conclusion, medical and dental practices will have to continue with the SEO best practices laid out post the Panda and Penguin updates. Creating high quality content with relevant and natural backlinks is essential. Furthermore, it is necessary that your website features a responsive design so your readers can quickly and easily find the information they want from anywhere.