A long-term marketing strategy for medical offices should include both SEO and pay-per-click advertising, or PPC. However, while you’re waiting for SEO to really kick your website’s exposure into high gear, PPC ads will give you that boost in the short term to reach prospective patients where they’re looking for you — in search engines like Google.

At the end of the day, it’s important to remember one key detail — your end user, or, in this case, the person looking for a doctors. You need to always have this person in mind, wherever they are. Remember that they are looking for the answers that your practice has to offer, which means they need some sort of education. Sometimes, they aren’t even aware that a doctors can treat their ailment.

Many digital marketers miss this basic concept, that their targets are often wholly unaware of what you can even offer them. As such, your PPC ads need to be tailored for them.

With this in mind, it’s time to start thinking about the ways that PPC trends in 2020 will evolve. Here are 5 things to watch for this year.

1. You need consistency across all social media platforms and landing pages.

Ad copy is likely going to need to be tweaked based on the platform, the nature of your special offer, and a few other things. However, overall consistency of brand and tone are essential for success.

All of these platforms connect in some way, whether it’s Google’s tracking on your website, Facebook’s pixel, and all of the conversion events that go along with your Google Ads campaigns all connect. Users will often jump from one platform to another and will use what they see as evidence of credibility.

So make sure that your branding and messaging are consistent. Make sure that you’re using the same language on your ads and landing pages, and that all of it is written with a user in mind who is looking for answers. Don’t assume they already know what you do.

2. Apply a more strategic approach, as opposed to chasing tactics.

Tactics are the end ways that you carry out a strategy. For instance, the types of PPC ads you choose are all tactical. The strategy is what fuels the decisions to use those tactics.

The key here is that tactics will always change, and fairly quickly. Google Ads might release a new product that allows you to achieve your strategic goals more effectively. Tactics will always change. Strategy should evolve over time, but shouldn’t have any major difference.

For instance, the transition from advertising in The Yellow Pages to Google Ads employed the same strategy — where is my target audience going to find help? The tactics might have changed, but that overall strategy is still very much so in place.

Whenever you’re looking at your PPC advertising strategy, this is an essential component. Know who your target audience is, as much about them as possible. With this, you will get a sense of where they’re congregating, and then you can go there with your effective ad tactics to win them over to your practice.

Tactics will continue to evolve, so make sure you’re thinking about how your core strategy can be employed at each turn on every platform to achieve your goals.

3. Expect more PPC automation for doctors in 2020.

This part can be a blessing and a curse, depending on how it’s used. Many people read “more automation” and start thinking that a little bit of effort will deliver results.

The truth, rather, is that PPC automation is itself a tool. It still needs to be wielded by someone who knows what they’re doing. And, whereas more automation is likely to come this year, it still isn’t really here yet.

Your ads are like a garden. If you leave it alone too long, weeds will grow, and destroy any forward progress you might have built. You still have to do the basic things involved in setting up and managing your PPC ad budget, as well as culling bad search terms and keeping an eye on what’s working and what isn’t.

Automation is like growth in your garden. If it isn’t properly tended to, the weeds will automatically grow, too. And this doesn’t help anyone.

4. Expect higher ad budgets as space becomes less available.

This is never the news a business likes to hear. But it’s the reality of the future.

Professional firms have been optimizing their Google Ads strategies for years, now. They have the talent and budgets to rank higher on the first page of ad results. With more and more companies becoming more and more competitive, this means that you have to be that good on day one to even appear.

Unfortunately, there is only so much you can optimize your ads before budget becomes the determining factor in your ads’ success. So, the question comes down to what you’re willing to spend.

It’s also important to remember that your top competition is likely spending top dollar on their budgets. This doesn’t mean that you have to go for broke, but it does mean that you have to consider what your competition is spending.

Don’t let this intimidate you too much, though. A modest budget in PPC medical advertising can still deliver results, but it will be a much slower climb to the top.

5. Consider alternative platforms where your audience might also congregate.

This comes back to really knowing your audience. Where are they?

There’s an old saying, “if everything is important, nothing is.” Everyone might be on Facebook, but that also means that your competition is, too. But not just your medical competition. Rather, there’s so much more.

So, you might consider some less traditional spaces for advertising. This could be something like Pinterest for targeting mothers with certain values, or who are health conscious. This could mean platforms like Reddit or other channels where people discuss a whole host of topics.

The only limit here is on your creativity.

Do not make the mistake of trying to be on every platform just to be there. This is ultimately a self-defeating strategy. Instead, make sure that enough of your target audience is there before you decide to commit. And it is entirely possible that those smaller platforms aren’t really effective for you.

The truth is, as platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Google become more and more saturated, you will have to think more creatively in order to reach people than you did before. So make sure that no stone is unturned in your research as you move forward in 2020.

Getting Help With PPC medical Advertising

Most businesses try to do things in-house first, and for good reason. You often have fixed costs in salaries, and it can seem to make sense to add your advertising plan to someone’s existing job. The problem here is that PPC ads require a lot of expertise to do right.

If you are having trouble with finding a consistent source of new patients, and would like to discuss your options in any aspect of marketing and advertising for your practice, we should talk. Just fill out the form below and we’ll be in touch within a business day!