It is safe to say that the internet has completely revolutionized how people today communicate for business and leisure alike. Most Americans have access to the internet at all times of the day, and many also own smartphones that allow them to access the Web anywhere they go. Many industries are working hard to harness the power of the internet for marketing and advertising purposes, and a lot of research is done every year to determine the newest and best ways to generate SEO and PPC value on websites. Not only that, but many businesses are now based on digital marketing and website design, and these fields of work did not even exist 40 years ago. Among the many industries that can make use of internet technologies is the healthcare industry. How? Many Americans look up computer articles for how to treat simple health problems, and many urgent centers/walk-in clinics can have their own Web presence as well. The applications for the Web are many, and a website with informative computer articles, appealing visual design, and SEO value may go quite far.
All About Digital Marketing
The medical industry is aggressively making use of computer articles and websites of all kinds for the benefit of Americans who need healthcare, from urgent care centers to hospitals and more. This may even include childcare, tips on how to navigate pregnancy, and more, such as mental health. But it all starts with the underlying technology of the internet.
The internet is famously broad, being home to millions of websites, and around half of the entire global population accesses it. But the internet is not a field of chaos; rather, search engines allow users to quickly find what they are looking for. Ever since the 1990s, popular search engines have allowed internet users to enter keywords relevant to their interests or needs, and find web pages and sites that have relevant information. In this way, relevant computer articles and even social media accounts are never far away, and the digital entrepreneur of today knows how to harness that power. Many firms big and small boast employees who can design websites to optimize human traffic and these websites can also host a great deal of online advertising. The internet is the newest iteration of newspaper or billboard advertising space, and though young, this field is huge and still growing. As far as we can tell, there is no going back.
What is SEO? This stands for “search engine optimization,” and it is one of the most critical aspects of digital marketing and website design today. With enough SEO value, computer articles on any topic can be easier to find when human users enter phrases or names into search engines. After all, a search may yield millions of results, but the web user will probably not look beyond the top 20 to 30 of them, or perhaps not even past the first five or six. In short, it’s a funnel, and SEO value is how websites can climb higher up on the results page and settle into a position where web users are likely to click on them.
Computer articles on any topic, from the news to pop culture to health care for children, will contain keywords relevant to the topic. SEO writers, who may work at a firm or work freelance, will create keyword-dense material that allows the search engine to give the host site a higher priority. Well-made SEO content has a lot of keywords for the search engine to grab onto, but it will also be perfectly readable and appealing for human guests, rather than tedious or technical-looking language. Keywords may appear in the body of text, as well as in article headings and subheadings, and even in photo or video titles and captions. On top of that, the website should regularly add new content (often cycling out old content) to keep the site fresh and up to date. Neglected or very old websites tend to settle far down in a results page, where they are less likely to be seen at all.
Don’t forget the technical and visual aspects of these computer articles. Marketing strategies for urgent care centers, hospitals, and other businesses need a website that is pleasant to the eye and easy to navigate. This is the job of graphic designers and web designers, rather than SEO writers. A website should have a layout that has photos, pleasant colors, and creative but readable fonts. Also, the use of tabs, a good layout, and an internal search engine can make the website easier for guests to navigate. If the website is difficult to navigate, a guest may grow frustrated and simply leave. The same is true if the images or videos on the site take too long to load. Often, website guests will wait no longer than 10 seconds or so for an item to load, so web designers must take that into account.
Don’t forget PPCs either, or “pay per click.” Advertisers can generate a lot of exposure and therefore revenue when their ads appear on popular websites, but they must pay for that privilege. Often, PPC dictates that exchange, where the advertiser will pay the website’s owner every time a human internet user clicks on a search engine link to that site. Thus, a digital marketing agency has a great incentive to make their website easy to find and make the link appealing to web users to see it. The more people click on these links, the more advertiser revenue the website’s owner will get, and as a side effect, the advertiser will get the exposure that they want. Both parties have a vested interest in maximizing human traffic to the website in question, and appealing content such as informative computer articles with interesting titles, videos, and more can bring in those guests.
Is there enough traffic to support all of this? Studies and surveys say yes, and human digital traffic is continuing to grow from the 2000s to the 2010s, and probably well into the 2020s and beyond. Around 80% of all American households have at least two computers in them, meaning multiple internet users at the same time, and smartphones can boost that number even more. Today, around 76.5% of all Americans are regular users of computers and the internet, and eMarketer once estimated that 250 million Americans would be online regularly by the year 2014. By now, that number is probably even higher. In fact, estimates say that 38% of all computers sold around the world are sold in the United States alone, due both to that nation’s large population and its high levels of technology.
Finally, on an individual basis, the numbers show that the average American is using the internet 30 hours every week, similar hours to a part-time job. And if you combine computers, smartphones, and TV, a typical person today is using electronic screens a whopping eight hours per day. Some of that screen exposure is for entertainment or personal communication, and the rest is used for business purposes. Many office workers in the developed world today reusing computers for hours per day at work in all sorts of ways.
The Internet and Healthcare
It is now abundantly clear that the internet is an extremely powerful tool for businesses, advertisers, and everyday consumers alike, and it can generate incredible amounts of revenue while also enabling personal communication and research worldwide. One particular industry that makes use of this power is the healthcare industry, from large hospitals to urgent care centers and pediatricians all the way to mental health clinics and professionals. Health is a universal concern, and even Americans who are in good health overall may want to find new ways to maintain that health and modify their diet, exercise levels, sleep habits, and more. Countless computer articles on the topic of health are out there, but not all are from completely legitimate sources. Web users are urged to visit web sites belonging to hospitals, doctor’s offices, dentists, mental health institutions, and the like while being a bit more wary of “amateur” computer articles about health topics. A blogger (for example) may love the topic of health, but unless they cite good sources, their information might be faulty.
What are Americans looking up when they need computer articles and videos about their health? Some of the more common topics in these4 computer articles and videos may be pregnancy management tips, dental care, child care, mental health, weight loss, and acid reflux management. And those are just some of the common issues; Americans may look up just about anything for health purposes, such as for home remedies for problems or finding a hospital or an urgent care center.
Now consider the other side of this equation: these healthcare providers, and their need to advertise and have strong SEO value so web users can find their content. A hospital or urgent care clinic advertises itself not only from signs on the premises and newspaper ad space but digital marketing space. Its staff can take out ads on other websites, but it can also create a website and even a social media profile as well. The client hospital or urgent care center can turn to SEO firms and web design firms to create and maintain a website and/or social media page that will provide quality computer articles and draw in guests at any time of day. This means that any qualified individual, from SEO writers with good research skills to actual health experts, can create computer articles about health and put it on the website, or provide links to all this in the social media profile. And as mentioned earlier, this means adding enough keywords to boost the content’s SEO value.
Suppose someone looked up “acid reflux solutions” into a search engine, possibly refining that search with “for men” or “for women” or “for the elderly.” A health website’s computer articles about acid reflux should have terms ranging from “acid reflux” to “GERDS” to “solutions” to “health” all over its content. This can be complemented with even more specific terms unique to that topic (acid reflux-friendly diets, postures, etc). Something similar can be done for any other topic, from pregnancy management and advice to how to use a low-carb diet to lose weight or how to get cardio exercise done without visiting a fitness center. Most often, this content will be “everyman” advice that is meant for minor medical cases that don’t require serious attention.
Even highly informative computer articles about health can’t truly replace a doctor, and the material should reflect that. Most often, digital health advice and articles explain the basics of a condition or health regimen and inform the reader how to adjust their lifestyle accordingly (or know what symptoms to look out for). Such computer articles may minimize content that encourages self-diagnoses; rather, a health topic may say something such as “if the symptoms get worse, see your doctor” or “ask your doctor if this is right for you.” The informative nature of the internet should not be confused with a proper doctor’s office.
What about mental health? For the most part, online computer articles and videos about mental health issues are similar in nature to those about physical health. Such information can explain the basics of mental health issues or conditions and how to manage them to an extent while urging readers to visit a medical professional for more serious needs. Mental topics can range from stress to OCD to depression or even autism or anxiety. Great strides have been made in the last few decades to formally recognize and provide services for mental health, where mental health issues were once often misunderstood or dismissed. A person may use these computer articles and videos to get a basic grasp on a mental health issue that they or a loved one may have and know what to tell a mental health expert when they visit. Here again, even the best computer articles can’t truly replace a real doctor. They are just a starting point.
It could also be said that the stigma of mental health is going down as well, especially for stressful times such as job hunting, going through a divorce or child custody legal battles, the death of a loved one, and so on. Someone enduring the strain of child custody issues during a divorce may suffer anxiety and even depression, and online articles and forums can show them that they are not alone and that they are not weak or needy for having those issues. Rather, someone enduring anxiety or stress or depression can find homemade solutions to improve their mental health and visit a mental health expert in many cases. Combined, all of this can go a long way toward addressing mental issues of all sorts.