Why dental practices need to know about zero click searches

By Sean Hamel

A Zero click search is a search completed on search engines like Google, Bing, or Yahoo! that do not send you to another website to get results. The “results” or relevant answers and information appear at the top or inline on the Search Engine Results Page (SERP). The abbreviated results are ideal for individuals looking for quick answers to simple, straightforward questions and can be important for dental practices.

What is the purpose? Zero click searches improve the user experience by saving time and providing a more satisfying experience. Instead of surfing through a tide of information, you have swift access to what you are looking for. The top result provides enough information to immediately satisfy your inquisition, without ever having to click on additional links. This eliminates the need for additional clicks to retrieve desired information. In addition, it keeps them on Google’s page longer as opposed to sending them to third-party websites.

These snippets of information fall under a few major categories and are as straightforward as their categories suggest.

Quick answers

Definitions

Maps

Knowledge Panel

Feature Snippets

In order for you to get the most out of zero click searches and make your business stand out, you must start with an optimized Google My Business listing. This enhances your dental practice’s visibility by providing quick access to relevant information, such as your business name, address, phone number, Google reviews, and map location. This is a free tool that places your business information conveniently before the user. We will discuss ways to optimize your Google My Business listing in our next article.

In 2020, 64.82% of all Google searches ended without clicking on any more web searches. Some estimates suggest zero click searches account for as much as two-thirds of all internet searches. With these statistics, some question if we should be concerned about Search Engine Optimization, and you may wonder why Google would want to implement a feature that potentially reduces traffic to business websites.

While it seems Google is intent on limiting search traffic, dental businesses must be laser-focused on their digital marketing strategy. This includes maximizing your visibility with SERP components such as feature snippets, and linking keywords to your website to maximize SEO. Google remains the primary search engine for a tidal wave of web traffic and we will continue to navigate the current and ride the wave.

Want to weaponize your Google My Business profile for local search dominance? Get our free e-book today by clicking here.

NEXT READ: Infection control as a part of your marketing efforts

Note: “google” by FindYourSearch is licensed with CC BY-SA 2.0. To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/

Kevin Henry

Kevin Henry

With more than 20 years in the dental publishing industry, Kevin Henry is the former group editorial director for Dental Products Report, managing editor for Dental Economics, and editor-in-chief for DrBicuspid.com. He now serves as the co-founder for IgniteDA, a community designed to empower, enlighten, and educate dental assistants, and as director of marketing for Fortune Management. He has spoken to dental assistants throughout the world, in person and through the Dental Assistant Nation podcast series, reminding them of the important role they play every day in their practice. He is also certified as a DiSC trainer, helping dental practices learn how to understand each other better through personality assessments and training.