How to start a chiropractic blog for your practice

A whopping 97% of people go online to learn more about local companies, which means your practice's internet presence is key to new patient acquisition. You can strengthen this presence by adding a chiropractic blog to your website. With a blog, you can engage potential new patients, stay connected with existing patients and even establish yourself as a local expert. The numbers are clear: According to HubSpot's 2020 State of Marketing Report, 60% of people say they read blogs more than once a week, and businesses that blog get 55% more website visitors than those that don't.

Here's how you can create your own blog for your practice and start leveraging these advantages.

Getting started with your blog

Although the benefits of blogging are easy to comprehend, starting one from scratch can feel intimidating. Fortunately, you don't need special technical skills. If you already have a website, you can ask your web developer to add a blog. If you don't yet have a website, you can get a free blog by using WordPress or Wix, both of which feature drag-and-drop elements that make it easy to create your own site in minutes.

Keep in mind that you don't need to be an accomplished writer. You're a professional with valuable information. Share what you know by writing as if you're having a conversation with a patient. People will come to your website to find answers, not to seek out award-winning prose.

Adopt E-A-T

To be effective, your chiropractic blog should adopt a digital marketing tactic called E-A-T, which stands for expertise, authoritativeness and trustworthiness. E-A-T is part of Google's search quality rater guidelines, which the search engine uses to evaluate a webpage's quality.

• Expertise means the writer should have a deep understanding of the topic. As a chiropractor, you're qualified to write about health topics of interest to your patients. You can further demonstrate your expertise by sharing a bio that includes your credentials, degrees and any other accolades.
• Authoritativeness means your website has a good reputation. You can help achieve this by encouraging reviews on your website and comments on your blog posts. You can also cite authoritative sources in your articles and link back to research from accredited sites. You can boost your authoritativeness as well if your practice's name is mentioned on other high-quality sites.
• Trustworthiness means your blog provides accurate, original information. Routinely review your posts and make any updates to information as necessary. Your website should be transparent about its ownership, including contact information and an About Us page. You can also build trust through web design, adding a Terms of Service page and using HTTPS, a secure protocol to protect pages that transfer data.

Plan your posts

Carefully plan your content, schedule and design. Consistency is important with a chiropractic blog, so you may want to create a schedule as a reminder to post content weekly or biweekly. By posting regularly, you can help boost your trustworthiness rating.

Start by brainstorming topics that are relevant to your target market. It helps to think about the questions your patients often ask, like "Why is there a popping sound when a joint is adjusted?" Consider lifestyle questions as well, such as "What are the best shoes to wear if my job requires me to be on my feet all day?" Then write a post that covers the answers you'd give to your patients.

In addition to E-A-T, keywords are important for improving local search engine optimization, or SEO. Google offers free research tools that help you find the best keywords for your target audience and industry. But beware of keyword stuffing, a practice that puts as many of the keywords and key phrases into a post as possible to take advantage of the search terminology. Instead, find ways to implement them naturally into your posts. Remember that people reading your posts are looking for practical information, not keyword-stuffed nonsense.

Imagery is a good idea as well to better engage with readers and prospective patients. Posts with pictures are more eye-catching than those that are simply blocks of text. You can find plenty of free high-quality stock photos on sites like Unsplash and Pixabay. If you love photography, feel free to add your own shots.

Wrap up each post with a call to action, which encourages the reader to do something. For example, you can invite them to sign up for your newsletter, call for an appointment or leave a comment.

Get inspired

It's also a good idea to look at other sites to get some ideas and inspiration. Take time to review other chiropractic blogs, including those of your local competitors. You'll notice that many of the top sites follow the E-A-T format and share engaging posts on a regular basis.

Once you get into a regular routine, you'll realize the benefits of blogging and get better at personalizing your content for site visitors. Not only will you help drive traffic to your site, but you'll also establish yourself as a healthcare expert in your city. A chiropractic blog can help you build your practice one post at a time.