Welcome everyone to Episode #60 of the Chiropractic Marketing Podcast.
I’m your host, Dr. Patrick MacNamara, and today we’re going to pull back the curtain on technical local SEO for your website. Now, I know the word “technical” might make some of you nervous, but I promise you, by the end of this episode, you’re going to understand exactly what these elements are, why they matter for your local rankings, and most importantly, what you can actually do about them.
Last week, we talked about creating condition-specific and location-specific pages on your website to capture those higher-intent searches. But here’s the thing, you can have the best content in the world, but if the technical foundation of your website isn’t solid, search engines are going to struggle to understand, trust, and rank your site. It’s like having a beautiful house built on a cracked foundation. Eventually, there are going to be problems.
Today, we’re focusing on three critical technical elements that directly impact your local search visibility. Schema markup, page speed optimization, and mobile responsiveness. I’m going to break each one down in plain English and give you actionable steps you can take right now.
Let’s start with schema markup, because this is probably the most mysterious of the three to most chiropractors. Schema markup is essentially a code that you add to your website that helps search engines understand what your content means, not just what it says. Think of it as giving search engines a detailed roadmap of your website and your business.
Here’s why this matters for your chiropractic practice. When you add local business schema to your website, you’re telling Google exactly what type of business you are, where you’re located, what services you offer, your hours of operation, and how patients can contact you. This makes it much easier for Google to display your practice in local search results and even in those AI-powered overviews that are becoming more prominent.
There are several types of schema that are particularly important for chiropractors. First, you’ve got your LocalBusiness schema, which is your basic business information. Then there’s MedicalBusiness schema, which is more specific to healthcare providers and tells search engines you’re in the medical field. You should also be using Service schema for each of your treatment offerings, and Review schema to help search engines understand and display your patient reviews.
Now, here’s the good news. You don’t necessarily have to be a coding expert to implement schema markup. If you’re using WordPress, there are plugins that can help you add this code to your site. But here’s the critical part, it needs to be done correctly. Improperly implemented schema can actually hurt your rankings rather than help them. This is one area where working with professionals who understand local SEO for chiropractors really pays off.
If you want to check whether your website currently has schema markup and if it’s implemented correctly, you can use Google’s Rich Results Test. Just go to Google, search for “Rich Results Test,” and you can enter your website URL to see what schema Google is finding on your site. It’s a free tool that gives you valuable insights into whether you’re leveraging this technology effectively.
Let’s move on to page speed, because this is something that affects every single visitor to your website, whether they’re coming from Google, social media, or anywhere else. Page speed is exactly what it sounds like. How quickly does your website load when someone clicks on it? And here’s why this matters so much for local search. Google has been crystal clear that page speed is a ranking factor. But more importantly, it’s a user experience factor.
Think about the last time you were searching for something on your phone and you clicked on a website that took forever to load. What did you do? You probably hit the back button and went to the next result, right? That’s exactly what’s happening with potential patients searching for chiropractors. If your website takes more than three seconds to load, you’re losing patients before they even see your content.
Here’s the reality. Most chiropractic websites I audit are way too slow. They’re loaded down with giant images that haven’t been optimized, they’re running outdated themes and plugins, and they don’t have proper caching set up. These are all fixable issues, but they require attention and expertise.
So what can you do right now to check your page speed? Head over to Google PageSpeed Insights. Again, just search for it in Google, it’s a free tool. Enter your website URL and Google will give you a score from zero to one hundred for both mobile and desktop, along with specific recommendations for improvement.
Pay special attention to your mobile score because most of your local searches are coming from mobile devices. If you’re scoring below 50 on mobile, you’ve got serious issues that need immediate attention. If you’re between 50 and 80, there’s definitely room for improvement. And if you’re above 80, you’re in pretty good shape, though there’s always optimization that can be done.
Some quick wins for improving page speed include compressing your images before uploading them to your website, enabling browser caching so returning visitors load your site faster, minimizing CSS and JavaScript files, and considering a content delivery network if you’re serving patients across a wide geographic area. But again, many of these technical optimizations are best handled by professionals who do this every day and know exactly what they’re doing.
Now let’s talk about mobile responsiveness, which is absolutely non-negotiable in today’s local search environment. Mobile responsiveness means your website automatically adapts to whatever device someone is using to view it, whether that’s a desktop computer, a tablet, or a smartphone.
Here’s a statistic that should get your attention. Over 60 percent of local searches happen on mobile devices. Think about that. More than half of the people searching for a chiropractor in your area are doing it from their phone, probably while they’re sitting in pain, looking for immediate help. If your website doesn’t work well on mobile, you’re essentially turning away the majority of your potential patients.
Google has been using mobile-first indexing for years now, which means they primarily use the mobile version of your website for ranking and indexing. If your mobile site is broken, confusing, or hard to navigate, it doesn’t matter how good your desktop site looks. You’re going to struggle in search results.
Testing your mobile responsiveness is actually pretty easy. The simplest way is to just pull up your website on your phone right now and actually try to use it like a patient would. Can you easily find your phone number to call? Is the text readable without zooming in? Are the buttons big enough to tap without accidentally hitting the wrong thing? Can you navigate to different pages without frustration? If you’re struggling with any of these things, your patients definitely are too.
You can also use Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test, which is another free tool. Just search for it, enter your URL, and Google will tell you if your site passes their mobile-friendly test. But honestly, your own experience using your site on your phone is probably the best indicator. If it frustrates you, it’s frustrating your patients.
Now, here’s something important to understand about all three of these technical elements. Schema markup, page speed, and mobile responsiveness. They all work together as part of your overall technical foundation. You can’t just fix one and ignore the others. Google is looking at the complete picture of your website’s technical health when determining how and where to rank you in local search results.
I also want to be really honest with you about something. While I’m giving you these tools and tests so you can understand where your website stands, actually fixing these technical issues typically requires professional expertise. This isn’t like posting to your Google Business Profile where you can easily do it yourself. We’re talking about website code, server configurations, and technical optimizations that can break your site if not done correctly.
This is exactly why we built the technical optimization services at DCRank. We handle all of these behind-the-scenes elements so you can focus on what you do best, which is taking care of patients. We implement proper schema markup, optimize your page speed, ensure mobile responsiveness, and continuously monitor your site’s technical health. And we do it in a way that’s specifically tailored to chiropractic SEO, not generic website optimization.
If you want to learn more about how we can handle the technical side of your website while you focus on growing your practice, visit DCRank.com. We’ll do a complete technical audit of your site and show you exactly what needs to be fixed and how it’s impacting your local search visibility.
Here’s your action plan coming out of this episode. First, run those three tests I mentioned. Google’s Rich Results Test to check your schema, PageSpeed Insights to check your load times, and the Mobile-Friendly Test to check your mobile experience. Second, actually use your website on your phone like a patient would. Note everything that frustrates or confuses you. Third, if you find issues, which you probably will, decide whether you want to tackle these technical fixes yourself or bring in professionals who do this every day.
Remember, every week that your website has technical issues is another week you’re losing patients to competitors who have their technical foundation dialed in. This stuff matters, and it matters more than ever in today’s competitive local search environment.
Next week, we’re continuing our Tier 2 journey by talking about building local authority through strategic content. I’m going to show you how to create content that not only helps you rank better but actually positions you as the go-to expert in your community. We’re talking about the kind of content that gets shared, linked to, and most importantly, brings patients through your door.
Alright, that wraps things up for today’s episode.
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