People visiting a practice website are often busy, worried or both. They want quick answers, not a wall of text. Most of the questions your front desk hears every day can be answered on the site, which helps patients and frees up your staff.
What you treat
Patients want to know if you can help with their specific problem. Clear pages for your main services, written in plain words, help them decide quickly and help search engines understand what your practice offers.
Insurance and new patient steps
Whether you take their insurance is one of the first things many patients look for. A simple page listing accepted plans, plus what new patients should bring and expect, saves a lot of phone calls. Keep it current, because outdated insurance info causes frustration on both sides.
An easy way to request an appointment
Make it obvious how to get an appointment, whether that is calling, requesting online or using a scheduling tool. Put your phone number one tap away on every page for patients who would rather call.
Handle private information with care
A general contact or appointment request form should ask only for basic contact details, not symptoms or medical history. Health information may be covered by privacy laws such as HIPAA, so it should only go into tools your practice has approved for it.
Make it accessible
Your patients include people with low vision, people who use screen readers and people who navigate with a keyboard. Readable text, strong contrast, clear headings and buttons that work without a mouse make your site usable for everyone.
- Text that is large enough to read comfortably
- Strong contrast between text and background
- Images with descriptions for screen readers
- Forms and menus that work with a keyboard
Introduce your providers
Patients like to know who they will see. Short, real profiles of your doctors, dentists and staff help people feel comfortable before they walk in.
Keep hours and locations current
Few things frustrate a patient more than showing up when you are closed. Keep hours, holiday closures and locations up to date on your website and your Google Business Profile, and make sure they match. If you have more than one location, give each one its own clear section or page.
Write for patients, not other doctors
Clinical terms are precise, but patients search in everyday words. Explain services the way a patient would describe the problem, and add the medical term where it helps. Short paragraphs and clear headings make pages easier to scan for someone who is not feeling well.
Think twice before adding online forms
Online intake and medical history forms can save time, but they handle sensitive information. Only use form and storage tools your practice has approved for patient information. For a basic website form, a simple rule works well: if you would not want it in an ordinary email, do not ask for it there.
Common practice website mistakes
- Insurance info that is out of date. It leads to frustrated calls and surprise bills.
- Phone numbers that are hard to tap. Many patients will call instead of filling out a form.
- Forms that ask for symptoms or history. Keep basic forms to contact details only.
- Hard to read text. Small, light gray text is a problem for many patients.
Where to start
Ask your front desk for the five questions they answer most often. If those answers are not easy to find on your website, that is your starting list. Our medical and dental practice page explains how we approach these sites.
Want help planning your practice site?Tell us about your practice. A real person will read it and follow up.
Start a projectQuick questions
Can patients request appointments on our website?
Yes. A simple request form that collects contact details only can send requests to your front desk, or you can link to a scheduling tool your practice has approved.
Does our website need to follow HIPAA?
Health information may be covered by privacy laws like HIPAA. Talk with your compliance advisor about which tools can handle patient information, and keep basic website forms to contact details only.
Should we list the insurance plans we accept?
It helps. It is one of the first things many patients look for. Just make sure the list stays current.