According to a new study released by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project, 77% of online health seekers start their information seeking journey with search engines. The aforementioned stat is so noteworthy it is worth repeating.....77% of online health seekers start their information seeking journey with search engines.
BlinkJar Media was formulated to guide clients through the unchartered waters of search and social media. Over the past year, our partnerships with medical practices have grown dramatically. The growing interest in search engine optimization, social media marketing, and inbound marketing services by the healthcare industry can be attributed to the fact that a large portion of online health seekers begin their information gathering with search engines.
While this statistic is certainly an attention grabber, it should be embraced with caution. As we have all witnessed over the past few years, there has been a common trend for online health seekers to utilize search engines such as Google or Bing for "self-diagnosis". This self-diagnosis culture is developing where searchers are looking for various symptoms and conditions on-line in an effort to find answers to their health issues. In a Searchengineland.com article, Microsoft refers to Cyberchondria as the condition where heightened Anxiety was discovered in thirty percent of the respondents as a result of self-diagnosis searches. With these conditions becoming more prevalent in society, physicians tend to have a skeptical view of any topic associated with health related web searches.
Despite these findings, one cannot ignore the fact that 77% of health seekers start with search engines. In a world, where marketing has always been taboo, the medical sector finally has a medium that fits concisely with the sophistication of the healthcare profession. This medium is called Search Engine Optimization. The medical sector is an ideal category for the search world. In particular, it is perfect for the medical firm that embraces content creation opportunities such as blogging and video marketing. Medical practices that share thought leadership content through the various delivery methods of the web will position themselves nicely for the future. So the institutions and firms that embrace these new concepts will be the firms that win the search battle.
At BlinkJar Media, we are excited about these types of marketing trends formulating within the medical sector. It supports the fact that we have chosen the right path as an Inbound Marketing Agency in the medical sector.
Now, it is your turn. What do you think? We want to hear your opinion.