In today’s digital landscape, healthcare consumers don’t search the way they used to—and that means healthcare marketers can’t rely on the same SEO playbook they’ve used for the past decade. Patients are no longer scrolling to the bottom of a search results page or clicking through ten different links. Instead, they’re scanning featured snippets, knowledge panels, and “People Also Ask” boxes—getting the information they need without ever visiting a website.
For health systems and hospitals, that shift has major implications. Ranking first in Google search results is no longer enough. If your content isn’t structured for zero-click search, featured answers, or AI-powered platforms, you’re missing visibility and potentially missing patients.
When prospective patients search for a symptom, condition, or treatment option, their journey often starts (and sometimes ends) on Google. That means your ability to earn those top-of-page placements—especially in the new rank #0 zone—is critical to your growth strategy. But here's the catch: traditional SEO tactics like keyword stuffing and backlink chasing won't get you there.
Search engines (and large language models like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google’s Gemini) prioritize content that directly answers questions, uses structured data, and reflects the real language patients use when searching. Whether someone is asking “What are the symptoms of AFib?” or “Best pediatric urgent care near me,” your content needs to be semantic, conversational, and structured for both bots and humans.
This isn’t just a web or content issue—it’s a brand and strategy imperative.
Over 60% of Google searches now end without a click. That stat should be a wake-up call for every healthcare marketer trying to measure impact through traditional click-based funnels.
In his Hot Take video, Digital Production Specialist Nathaniel Hutchison breaks down:
Why #1 rankings don’t guarantee visibility
What featured snippets and Google properties are stealing your traffic
How to structure content for search engines and generative AI
The real cost of unstructured, fluff-filled content
Practical steps to future-proof your SEO strategy
Great SEO today isn’t about chasing keywords—it’s about understanding search intent. That means rethinking how your health system educates and engages patients online. By answering questions clearly, structuring content for snippets, and embracing schema markup, you build authority with search engines and trust with consumers.
Whether you’re optimizing for local search through Geographic SEO to drive appointments or building brand visibility in AI-powered experiences, the rules have changed—and getting it right now means leading the digital front door tomorrow.
Watch our Hot Take to hear Nathaniel's take on what’s changing—and how smart healthcare marketers can get ahead. And, when you're ready to optimize SEO for your site, contact our team.
00:07 – Why SEO Isn’t About Ranking #1 Anymore
Hi, my name is Nathaniel Hutchison, and I'm the Digital Production Specialist here at Ten Adams. Today, my Hot Take is about SEO and specifically why SEO isn't about ranking number one on Google anymore—it's about ranking number zero. Well, really it comes down to the fact that most users are getting all their content from featured snippets, knowledge panels, and "people also ask" boxes on Google.
They now dominate search. People aren't clicking through to websites. You're not really seeing the organic click-through rates that you're used to because people are getting served all that information directly on the search engine results page (SERP). In fact, users often get their answers without ever clicking. A recent study by SparkToro found that over 60% of users end their searches without a click. That goes completely against the traditional model of SEO, where we were optimizing the funnel to get users to click through and convert on our website. Today, we need to focus on serving the user and fulfilling search intent.
01:04 – Traditional Tactics Are No Longer Enough
So many traditional SEOs still focus way too much on trying to get that position one ranking—which is totally natural. That’s what SEO has been about for years. Whether it’s buying backlinks, keyword stuffing, or any number of old tricks, SEOs have tried it—and some of it used to work. But the game is changing.
Many SEO tools and metrics still track rankings the old way, without accounting for featured snippets and knowledge panels that now steal all the eyeballs. They only measure the clicks and rankings after the fact. But over 30% of all clicks now stay within Google platforms—whether that’s Maps, Google My Business, or other properties. This makes it very difficult to track true SEO impact, even if you’re ranked number one.
01:56 – What You’re Missing Without Snippet Strategy
So what is this doing to us? What is it costing us? If we're not optimizing to answer questions and fulfill user intent quickly, we're missing out on valuable visibility. We're seeing lower engagement when our content isn’t structured for those quick-answer formats.
Long gone are the days of needing a long-form article when it’s not warranted. You can’t get away with writing a recipe blog and opening with three paragraphs about your vacation in Paris where you learned the dish. People want answers fast, and they want them now. And we need to start delivering that.
02:35 – What to Do Instead: Structure for Snippets
So what can we do to adapt? Start by structuring your content to answer the core question within the first one to two paragraphs. That’s the ideal snippet length Google wants to serve. If you become a trusted authority on a topic, Google will display your content as the answer.
It’s also still important to use schema markup to help Google understand the context of your content—that’s still a best practice. But even more importantly, you have to focus on what people are actually searching for. Use conversational keywords that reflect how real people ask questions. Don’t make users dig deep or force-fit keywords into every sentence. Just answer the question clearly and quickly.