GMB Appointment Links: Everything Your Hospital Needs to Know
One-Click Appointments from Google Search Results
As the leading veterinary services company in the industry, it is our duty to keep hospitals like yours in the loop regarding the best tips and tricks to maximize your clientele. Today, we are going to discuss Google Appointment Links.
Google is more than just a search engine with a revolving, trending logo that people rely on to find random facts about their favorite movies—when used properly, it can be a veterinarian’s best friend. But first things first, before you can use any of the free tools Google has to offer, you have to claim your hospital’s Google My Business (GMB) listing.
If you already have done this, please read on to learn about Google appointment links. If you haven’t claimed your GMB listing yet, please start here.
What Are Google My Business Appointment Links?
In this digital, smartphone-driven age of easily accessible information and constant distractions from notifications, it is as important as ever to provide ease of use and quick, satisfactory results. Enter Google Appointment Links, which can be used to help clients quickly schedule appointments with veterinary hospitals.
Google Appointment Links are exactly what they sound like—they provide a link for a client to directly access your hospital’s appointment request page, all with one click or tap of a finger—these links reside on the Google Knowledge Panel.
When set up correctly, this feature is quick, easy and well worth it—if a current or prospective client comes across your practice’s Knowledge Panel on a Google search, all they have to do to make an appointment is follow this link and they are taken directly to your practice’s online appointment service.
The advantage here lies in ease of use. Instead of Googling your hospital, going to the website, looking for the appointment link tab and then scheduling a visit, the appointment link cuts these aforementioned steps in half. Remember, distractions from digital notifications are aplenty nowadays, and it’s all about quick and easy access.
Why You Should Be Using this Tool
While there may be an overabundance of marketing tactics to keep track of to help your business succeed, the Google Appointment Link is a tool that is well worth pursuing, for several reasons.
First off, it’s simple to add (see more on that below). The time it takes to place an appointment link is minimal, and once it’s done, it’s done—you don’t have to maintain it.
Next, there’s concrete evidence that adding an appointment link does in fact increase online traffic, which leads to more client interaction.
At iVET360, we conducted an experiment where we found that over a 90-day period, the appointment link drove 15 percent of the clicks on a business listing.
Meaning, for the small amount of time it takes to set this service up, it could potentially lead to a 15 percent increase in traffic from clients. Think about it like this—if someone is going to your hospital’s main website, they could be looking for a number of things, such as more information about your practice, checking your hours, etc. But if a client is specifically clicking a link about booking an appointment, it’s likely that they are actually going to schedule a visit.
Either way, the Google Appointment Link is a minimal task that, once completed, provides a convenience not only to you, but to your clients, too.
How Do You Set Up a Google Appointment Link?
Unfortunately, less than 15 percent of veterinary hospitals are taking advantage of this feature, and according to Google, 68 percent of consumers are contacting businesses through their smartphones—which means that now, more than ever, your hospital needs to be optimized according to these trends.
Setting up a Google appointment link takes about 5 to 10 minutes, and can be completed with these steps:
Step 1: Copy your hospital’s appointment link URL, or if you don’t have one, copy your hospital’s Contact Us page.
Step 2: Make sure you are logged into your GMB account.
Step 3: Select the My Business listing that you would like to edit.
Step 4: Click on the URLs section, which should show you fields for relevant links that you wish to add.
Step 5: Paste your hospital’s appointment link URL or Contact Us page.
Once these steps are completed, within a couple of minutes you will see your URL posted on your hospital’s Google Knowledge Panel. Now, all clients have to do to make an appointment is find your GMB listing, click on the appointment link and then follow the easy steps to secure their visit.
Your practice has now made scheduling an appointment easier for everyone, including your clients and your staff. All parties involved save time, and in the veterinary industry, time is especially of the utmost importance.
About iVET360
At iVET360, our specialists work closely with Google to maximize the online presence of animal hospitals while also staying on top of things like the Google Knowledge Panel, Google appointment links and much more.
As a veterinary services company that operates on a no-contract basis, our experts can help your practice with not only marketing, but analytics and HR and training, too. For additional information and more details about our suite of services, contact us today.
