I was driving home at 1 AM. November Rain playing. Then a dentist in Dubai messaged: “Getting clicks. But the patients who show up? Wrong ones.”
I hear this almost every week. Dental clinics in London. Med spas in New York. Dermatology centers in Bangalore. They're all “doing digital marketing.” But the phone isn't ringing with the right patients.
What most medical practices get wrong
A website and some ads isn't a strategy. It's a starting line.
Most clinics have the same four issues:
1. The website talks about itself — not what the patient is searching for
Someone types "best skin doctor near me for acne treatment" and lands on "We provide world-class dermatological solutions."
That's not an answer. That's a brochure.
2. Invisible in local searches
Google Maps. Google Business Profile. "Doctor near me." If your clinic isn't optimized for your city — that patient goes to the one that is.
3. Ads burning money
No negative keywords. No location targeting. The same ad running for hair transplant and Botox. No wonder the wrong people click.
4. Google's AI can't find their answers
When someone asks "what's the recovery time for dental implants" — do you show up? That's AEO. Answer Engine Optimization. In healthcare, that's where the game is going.
Healthcare is different
Patients don't shop like they shop for shoes.
They're scared. They're researching. They read everything before they call.
Your website has one job: make them feel like they're in the right place before they ever pick up the phone.
Not sold to. Reassured.
The searches your clinic needs to own
What actually works
- Local SEO — show up on Google Maps for "best [specialist] near me" in your city, with correct categories, services and service areas.
- Service pages that answer real patient questions — recovery times, costs, risks, what happens at the first visit — not just a list of treatments.
- Google Ads with structure — separate ad groups per treatment, negative keywords, proper location targeting, landing pages that match the ad.
- AEO content — FAQ blocks and schema markup so Google pulls YOUR practice as the featured answer.
- A fast, mobile-friendly site where booking feels easy — not like filling out tax forms.
Last month I helped a clinic restructure their Google Ads. Same budget. Cost per appointment dropped 40%.
Not magic. Just structure.
Three questions for anyone running a clinic
Are you showing up when patients near you search for what you treat?
Is your website converting — or just existing?
Are your ads making you money — or making Google richer?
Real patients. Real appointments. No fake hype. That's the whole job.
Questions this raises
Why are my Google Ads bringing the wrong patients?
Usually because one campaign covers many treatments with no negative keywords or location targeting. Separate ad groups per treatment, tight geography and matching landing pages filter clicks down to genuine local patients.
How does a clinic show up in near me searches?
Through local SEO: a fully completed Google Business Profile with correct categories and services, consistent name-address-phone data, local landing pages, reviews and MedicalClinic schema on the website.
What is AEO for healthcare practices?
Answer Engine Optimization structures patient questions and answers — costs, recovery times, procedures — so Google AI Overviews and AI assistants quote your clinic as the answer instead of a competitor or a generic portal.
Want me to look at your website with this lens?
Send the site through the free audit first. If the business is serious and the opportunity is real, Manas can review what is helping, what is missing and what should be fixed first.