As an agency that works in the healthcare industry, we know firsthand how important it is to have effective ad copy for search engine marketing (SEM) campaigns. With so much competition in the healthcare space, it’s crucial to craft ad copy that grabs attention and resonates with your target audience.
In this post, we’ll be sharing some best practices for wordsmithing better ad copy for healthcare SEM campaigns that you can put into action today.
Before we dive into the best practices, let’s start with the basics. What is healthcare SEM?
Simply put, it’s a form of digital marketing that uses paid ads on search engines to reach potential patients or customers. Think of it as a large sign you put in front of your store and display your services on it. That way, anyone who passes by would know what your business is about and can easily find you when they need your services.
In this case, your paid social media ads are the ‘signboards’ you put in front of your shop. These ads are triggered by specific keywords or phrases and appear at the top of search engine results pages (SERPs) when someone searches for those keywords.
The goal of healthcare SEM is to drive targeted traffic to your website or landing page, where you can convert those visitors into patients or customers.
Now that we’ve covered the basics of healthcare SEM, let’s get into the best practices for crafting compelling ad copy.
Focus on Benefits, Not Features
One of the most common mistakes we see in healthcare ad copy is a focus on features rather than benefits. For example, a hospital might advertise that they have the latest technology or state-of-the-art facilities.
While these are certainly essential features, they don’t speak directly about the better health outcomes of what patients really want.
Instead of focusing solely on features, highlight your healthcare services’ benefits. For example, you might emphasize how your hospital’s cutting-edge technology can lead to faster diagnoses and better treatment options, resulting in improved health outcomes for patients.
Rather than talking about all the exotic and complex vitamins and minerals in your supplement, talk about how your supplement fights infections, heals wounds quickly and makes the bones stronger.
By focusing on benefits, you’re more likely to grab the attention of potential patients and stand out from the competition.
Use Emotionally Charged Language
Emotionally charged languages are words or phrases that evoke strong emotional responses from the target audience.
The goal of using emotionally charged language in SEM is to create a powerful connection between the audience and the brand or product being promoted. Healthcare is an emotionally charged topic, and your ad copy should reflect that.
Using emotional language can make you tap into your target audience’s fears, hopes, and desires. By appealing to the audience’s emotions, you can encourage them to take action, such as making a purchase, subscribing to a service, or sharing the content with others.
Instead of simply saying that your hospital provides excellent care, you might say something like, “Trust us to provide the compassionate care you deserve.”
Another way to use emotionally charged language is to focus on the outcomes that patients will experience. You might say something like, “Experience a better quality of life with our innovative treatment options.” By using language that speaks directly to patients’ desires and aspirations, you can make a stronger connection with your target audience.
However, it’s important to use emotionally charged language ethically and responsibly. You should, by all means, avoid using manipulative tactics or making false promises to elicit an emotional response.
Instead, focus on using language that accurately represents the product or service being promoted and resonates with your audience in an authentic way.
Make Your Value Proposition Clear
Your value proposition is the unique benefit that your healthcare services offer to patients. It’s what sets you apart from the competition and why patients should choose your services over others.
When crafting ad copy for healthcare SEM campaigns, clarifying your value proposition is important.
One way to do this is to focus on the specific problems your healthcare services solve.
For example, if you offer a weight loss program, you might focus on how your program can help patients achieve their weight loss goals and improve their overall health.
This shouldn’t be confused with the first point we discussed; focusing on benefits over features. It is true that both concepts refer to positive outcomes for your customers. But the main difference is that value proposition is the ultimate value of your company. In other words, it combines all the various benefits that your products and services bring your customers.
By clarifying your value proposition, you’re more likely to attract the right patients to your services.
Use Compelling Calls-to-Action (CTAs)
A call-to-action (CTA) is a statement that encourages someone to take a specific action, such as “schedule an appointment” or “contact us today.” In healthcare SEM ad copy, a compelling CTA can make all the difference in converting potential patients into actual patients.
When crafting CTAs for healthcare ad copy, it’s important to use language that is both clear and compelling, and for several reasons.
Firstly, a clear and specific CTA helps to guide the user toward the desired action, such as making a purchase or filling out a form. Without a clear CTA, the user may not know what action to take next and may simply leave the website.
Secondly, a compelling CTA can help to persuade the user to take the desired action. By using strong and persuasive language, such as “Buy Now” or “Sign Up Today,” the user may be more likely to follow through with the desired action.
Lastly, a specific CTA can help to improve the overall performance of the SEM campaign. By tracking the number of clicks on the CTA and the conversion rate, it becomes possible to optimize the campaign over time and increase its effectiveness.
You might use something specific like “Get the Care You Need Today” or “Take Control of Your Health.”
It’s also a good idea to use urgent language to create a sense of immediacy. For example, you might use phrases like “Don’t Wait” or “Act Now” to encourage potential patients to take action right away.
Use Ad Extensions
Ad extensions are additional pieces of information that can be added to your search engine marketing (SEM) ads. These extensions provide more value to your ad and can help increase your click-through rate (CTR) and ad relevance.
(Source: Cardinal Digital marketing)
In healthcare SEM, ad extensions can be used to provide your customers or patients with more information about your healthcare services or products. Here are a few use-case scenarios:
Call Extensions: These extensions display your phone number with the ad, allowing users to call your healthcare facility directly. This is particularly useful for healthcare services where patients may need to make appointments or schedule consultations.
Location Extensions: If you have multiple healthcare facilities or offices, location extensions can be used to display your address and a map with your ad. This can be useful for clients searching for healthcare services in a specific location.
Sitelink Extensions: These extensions allow you to add additional links to your ad that can direct users to specific pages on your website. For example, you can use site links to direct users to pages with information about your healthcare services or products.
Structured Snippets: Structured snippets allow you to highlight specific features or benefits of your healthcare services or products. For example, you could use structured snippets to highlight the types of medical procedures your facility offers or the qualifications of your healthcare providers.
By using ad extensions in healthcare SEM, you can provide users with more information about your healthcare services or products, which can help increase your ad relevance and click-through rate.
Elevate Your Healthcare SEM Strategy with Powerful Ad Copy
Crafting effective ad copy for healthcare SEM campaigns requires a focus on benefits, emotionally charged language, clear value propositions, compelling CTAs, and the use of ad extensions.
By implementing these best practices, you can create ad copy that not only stands out from the competition but also resonates with your target audience. Remember to continually test and refine your ad copy to ensure it drives the desired results.
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