Search Engine Optimization for Counselors: 3 Lesser Known Facts

There are many important aspects of search engine optimization for counselors that get a lot of love because of their importance or prevalence. But, there are so many helpful facts about search engine optimization for counselors that many people actually don’t know about. That’s why today we are going over 3 lesser-known facts that can help improve your SEO efforts.

Fact 1: Finding Your Focus is Important to SEO

In our current day & age, counselors offer a variety of services to support their clients. In fact, having so many options can make it difficult at times to find exactly what you’re looking for. This is why focusing on creating a “niche” can make a difference in your SEO strategy.

Honing in on a specific focus can provide a variety of benefits from a business standpoint. One of the most notable things is how competitive it can help you be among the competition around you. Creating high-quality content centered around your focus specialty can help establish yourself as an authority on the topic. You can also achieve this by linking to and from sites that have a direct relation to your specialty. As a result of doing this, your site is seen as more trustworthy and knowledgeable about the topic. Thus, it will be more likely to rank higher in the search results.

How “niching down” is an Effective Approach

Alternatively, not having a specific focus, or “niche” isn’t impossible. But, it can make it harder to stay competitive. This is due in large part to the difficulty and popularity of some search terms over others. Popular counseling keywords that are more general, such as “depression therapy”, are often much harder to rank for. This is because of the vast number of people looking up the common term. But, often, this isn’t the most important term. Those are reserved for the terms that relate to the niche services your practice offers.

In truth, fewer people will be likely to search for a more specific phrase. For example, let’s use “depression therapy for tweens.” Deciding to focus only on an adolescent demographic can offer many benefits. Potential clients may be limited to that age range, but there is also less competition as a result!

By doing this, you don’t have to worry about ranking for a very competitive term like “depression therapy.” Instead, you can focus on a term like “depression therapy for tweens’.’ These more specific terms often have less competition. Optimizing for these more specific keywords will help your site to rank well. It will also allow you to better reach the audience you want to assist in the process! This is a clear example of how important keywords are to SEO.

Fact 2: Location and Local SEO are Vital

You may already have a presence on the internet. Thus, making your practice more familiar with Google. Or, you may be a newly established practice, working your way up the rankings. Regardless, the fact that having at least one location of focus in keyword research can help you establish or improve rankings. Choosing to focus your keyword efforts on one location is an approach that can help improve SEO. You first establish a strong local presence in one area. Once established, it becomes easier for your practice to expand by using the existing credibility of your centralized, established presence. By focusing on one area at a time, you can have an easier time expanding to nearby areas that are easier to rank for. Thus, helping you grow in the process.

This approach can be very helpful for practices that have many locations across a state. Or, practices that wish to provide online services in different cities, states, or countries.

Location and Why Local Search Engine Optimization for Counselors is Important

While mentioning locations, it’s also important to state the importance of local SEO. It deserves its own blog post. But, in short, local SEO involves the collective strategies carried out to improve the visibility of your site on the search engine. This is important because the more people in your area seeing your site will result in a better chance of reaching the clients that can benefit from your services. Yet, it can also be more difficult to rank for keywords that are important to your practice in more populated cities. Still, understanding the importance of local SEO will help you to remain competitive.

Fact 3: There is More to Mobile

With all the focus on understanding the Google algorithm and other aspects of SEO, it can be easy to overlook how important mobile platforms are. Year after year, more people use their smartphones to access the internet. As a result, it becomes more important to ensure your site operates well on a variety of platforms. Creating a unique site that only works on a computer won’t benefit your practice if no one can see it!

Knowing Your Platform

Even though you have put hours of work into your website designed for a traditional computer setup, there is almost always a chance this may not translate well to another format. That’s why it is very important to be familiar with the website editor/builder you are using. Learn how you can view a preview of what your site will look like on a computer, tablet, and smartphone. Then, make improvements if needed so potential clients won’t run into any issues while on your site. Some platforms give you more control over these layouts than others. So, it is important to be aware of the options you have at your disposal. We even have a helpful guide covering which platform is best for SEO!

Closing Thoughts on Search Engine Optimization for Counselors

These are only a few of the topics that may not receive as much coverage as they deserve. But, understanding how these facts can improve your SEO efforts is very much worth the time it takes. By focusing on your efforts and learning new strategies, you can help your practice thrive!

Search Engine Optimization for Counselors at Simplified SEO

At Simplified SEO Consulting, our caring team of SEO specialists is trained to support you in climbing the ranks of Google. For support through our Done for You or Alumni services, we would be happy to help you along your SEO journey. To start working with Simplified SEO consulting, follow these three steps:

Schedule an appointment for a free 30-minute consultation
Learn more about our team
Start rising the ranks, and reaching your ideal client!

Other Services Offered at Simplified SEO Consulting

Simplified SEO Consulting offers a variety of services to support search engine optimization for counselors. We offer a la carte and Done for You services, as well as alumni support. We also offer training workshops, and an SEO strategy package to help therapists find the right clients. For more helpful info, please visit our blog!

About the Author

Sterling Humburg-Cage graduated from the University of Missouri with a BA in Psychology in 2020. He integrates what he learned in school into his work as an SEO Specialist with Simplified SEO Consulting. Sterling prides himself on helping current clients & alumni problems solve difficult SEO issues. He’s great at giving clients multiple options about how to approach a situation and responding quickly to client concerns. Since he started, Sterling has met frequently with our alumni and provided them extra problem-solving support, often going the extra mile to do outside research and make sure private practice owners have everything they need to rank well on search engines long term for the keywords their ideal clients are using!