Fix the service pages first
A blog post can't do the job of a service page, and a weak service page drags every post down with it. If someone reads a good post, clicks through and lands on "Discover your confidence", the post has done its work for nothing.
So start with the pages people book from: the treatment pages, branch pages and prices. Our Google search guide and treatment page guide cover those. Come back here when someone can get from Google to a booked consultation without ringing you.
Mine reception's questions
The questions people ask on the phone are the questions they type into Google first. Ask reception to note every question for two weeks, then look for the ones that come up again and don't belong on a service page.
Example · Alder's two-week tally, Bristol
- "Is laser better than waxing in the long run?" (11 times)
- "When should I start laser if I want smooth legs by summer?" (9)
- "Can I have laser if I've got a tan?" (7)
- "Will laser work on my fair hair?" (6)
- "Can I shave between sessions?" (5)
Each one became a post, and the top one also got a one-line answer on the laser page, linking to it. "How much is it?" and "Does it hurt?" didn't, because the laser page already answers them.
For a head start, PatientPulse's Patient Word Gap Index shows the words patients use for seven common concerns, and how often clinics leave them off their menus.
Good post questions fall into a few types: comparisons, timing, what to expect, what happens if, and why it works the way it does. Prices, booking and branch details belong on your main pages, where people act on them.
Turn a practitioner's two-minute answer into a post
The easiest way to write something nobody else has is to record your practitioner answering the question out loud. Ask the question, let them talk for two minutes, then write it up in their words.
Example · Priya on timing
Priya's answer to "When should I start laser for summer?" was: "Start in autumn. Sessions are four to six weeks apart and most people need six, so that's six months. If you start in May, you'll be halfway through in August."
That became the first paragraph of the post, under her name, with her photo and a link to her bio.
Have the practitioner read the finished post before it goes up. Anything about suitability, risks or results is theirs to check, not the marketer's.
What makes a post worth publishing
A post earns its place when it answers one question fully, in the first paragraph, better than anything else someone could find. Then it adds the detail only your clinic can give.
- The answer first: "Start in autumn" in the first line, not after three paragraphs about summer.
- Real detail: your session gaps, your practitioner, what your clinic actually does.
- A name on it: the practitioner who answered, with their role.
- A date: so readers know how current it is, and you know when to check it.
- One link to act on: the service page, with the price and the booking button.
A post counts as advertising too, so the rules on prescription-only treatments, such as anti-wrinkle injections, apply here as well. Our advertising guide shows what you can write instead.
One good post a month beats one a week
Write as many posts as your practitioners have real answers for, and no more. For most clinics that's about one a month. Twelve posts that each answer a real question will bring in more enquiries than fifty-two that don't.
First draft · don't publish: "Five skincare tips for winter: stay hydrated, wear SPF, moisturise, exfoliate gently and get enough sleep."
Our edit: "Can I have laser hair removal if I've got a tan? Priya's answer: wait until the tan has faded, tell us about any fake tan, and we'll check your skin at the patch test. Here's why."
Why: the draft could be on any website in the country. The edit answers a question people ask this clinic, in this clinic's voice.
Once a year, read through your old posts. Update anything out of date, merge two posts that answer the same question, and delete the ones that answer nothing.
Link every post to where people act
Every post should lead to one page where someone can take the next step. For Alder's laser posts, that's the Bristol laser page, linked in the answer and again at the end.
Link the other way too. Under the laser page's questions, a line such as "When should I start for summer? Priya explains" sends curious readers to the post and back again.
Keep the button text calm: "See laser prices and book a consultation" beats "Book now!" at the end of a post about timing.
Know if it's working
Judge each post by whether people find it and then go on to the page that books. In Google Search Console, filter the Performance report by the post's address to see how often it appears and gets clicked.
When someone mentions a post, reception notes it on the enquiry beside its source label, as our enquiry tracking guide sets out. One person saying "I read your bit about starting in autumn" tells you more than a page-view count.
If a post gets no clicks after three months, rewrite the title as the question people actually ask, or merge it into another post.
Alder's finished blog plan
Write the plan down so the web editor, the practitioners and reception agree on it.
Alder's finished blog plan · first six months
- Source: reception's two-week question tally, repeated each quarter
- October: "When should I start laser for summer?" (Priya)
- November: "Is laser better than waxing in the long run?" (Priya)
- December: "Can I have laser if I've got a tan?" (Priya)
- January: "Will laser work on fair or grey hair?" (Priya)
- February: "Can I shave between laser sessions?" (Priya)
- March: the top question from the next tally
- Each post: the answer first, Priya's name and bio link, dated, one link to the Bristol laser page
- Owner: clinic manager; the web editor writes up, Priya checks every post
Do this today
Ask reception for the five questions they answered most this week that your service pages don't cover.
Done when: the five questions are on the blog plan sheet, each with the page it should link to.
Questions owners ask
Can we use AI to write the posts?
Use it to tidy a draft, not to write one. The practitioner's answer is the only part nobody else has, and a generic post is easy for people and search engines to spot.
Do we need to post on a schedule?
No. Post when you have a real answer to share. A steady rhythm helps you keep going, but nobody is waiting for your Tuesday post.
Should posts go on Instagram as well?
Yes, cut down to the answer and a link. The post on your website is the version Google can find; the Instagram version reminds people you know the answer.
Alder is an example clinic. Its posts, questions and people are illustrative.
