Google Ads has become one of the most effective digital marketing tools for doctors looking to attract new patients and grow their practice. Whether you’re a private GP in London, a physiotherapist in Melbourne, or a dental specialist in Toronto, a well-executed Google Ads campaign can put your clinic in front of people actively searching for your services. But success with Google Ads requires more than just setting up a campaign — it demands structure, planning, and continuous optimisation.
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This step-by-step campaign checklist is designed to help medical professionals make the most of their Google Ads investment by covering everything from keyword targeting to ad copy, landing pages, and compliance.
Define Your Campaign Objectives
Before you touch a single setting in your Google Ads account, clearly define what you want to achieve. Your goals should inform your budget, targeting, and campaign structure.
Common objectives for medical practices include:
- Increasing new patient bookings
- Promoting a specific service (e.g. skin checks, orthodontics, health screenings)
- Building brand visibility in your local area
- Driving traffic to a new clinic location
- Attracting private insurance or high-value patients
Having clear goals will help you measure success and ensure your ads are aligned with business outcomes.
Conduct Targeted Keyword Research
Effective Google Ads campaigns rely on strong keyword targeting. Begin by researching what your ideal patients are searching for when they need your services. Use tools such as Google Keyword Planner, Ubersuggest, or SEMrush to find relevant terms with moderate competition and solid intent.
Start with terms related to your services, such as:
- “Private GP near me”
- “Dermatologist in Manchester”
- “Knee pain specialist Edinburgh”
- “Emergency dentist open now London”
Also include long-tail keywords and variations related to symptoms, locations, and common queries. Negative keywords are just as important—exclude irrelevant terms like “free”, “training”, or “jobs” to avoid wasted spend.
Structure Campaigns by Speciality or Service
If your practice offers multiple services, structure your campaigns around each one. For example, a clinic might have separate campaigns for physiotherapy, general practice, and sports medicine.
Within each campaign, create ad groups based on more specific themes:
Campaign: Physiotherapy
Ad group 1: Back pain treatment
Ad group 2: Sports injuries
Ad group 3: Post-surgery rehab
This structure allows you to write more targeted ads and drive users to highly relevant landing pages, which improves Quality Score and reduces cost per click.
Write Compelling, Patient-Focused Ad Copy
Ad copy needs to be concise, trustworthy, and action-oriented. Focus on what matters to patients: availability, location, services, experience, and convenience.
Key elements to include:
- Mention your location (e.g. “Now accepting new patients in Leeds”)
- Highlight unique selling points (e.g. “Same-day appointments”, “20+ years’ experience”)
- Include a strong call to action (e.g. “Book your consultation today”)
- Make use of ad extensions (location, call, sitelinks, callouts)
Ensure your ad copy is compliant with healthcare advertising standards in your country. Avoid exaggerated claims, and do not reference conditions or outcomes that could be considered misleading.
Create Optimised Landing Pages
Sending Google Ads traffic to your homepage is a common mistake. Instead, create dedicated landing pages for each service or campaign. These pages should be fast, mobile-friendly, and designed to convert.
Include the following elements:
- A clear headline that matches the ad copy
- Brief, benefit-driven service description
- Practitioner credentials and clinic trust signals (e.g. reviews, affiliations)
- Strong call-to-action (CTA) such as “Book now” or “Call us today”
- Online booking form or clickable phone number
Google rewards relevancy, so your landing page content should closely match the keywords and ad text to improve Quality Score and reduce your cost per click.
Set Your Budget and Bidding Strategy
Your budget will depend on your objectives, competition in your location, and the average cost-per-click (CPC) for your chosen keywords.
For doctors and clinics in competitive areas like central London, Sydney or Vancouver, expect higher CPCs — sometimes £3–£10 per click for certain medical queries. Start with a manageable daily budget and adjust based on performance.
Select an appropriate bidding strategy:
- Maximise conversions if you have strong conversion tracking
- Manual CPC if you want tighter control
- Target CPA (Cost Per Acquisition) once you have conversion data
Remember to monitor spend closely, especially in the first few weeks, to ensure your ads are profitable.
Set Up Conversion Tracking
To understand whether your Google Ads campaigns are working, set up conversion tracking. This allows you to measure actions such as:
- Online bookings
- Phone calls
- Contact form submissions
- Clicks on email addresses or directions
Use Google Tag Manager or your website builder to install conversion tags. You can also use call tracking software if many patients prefer to call the clinic.
Track and analyse conversions weekly so you can optimise your campaigns and calculate return on ad spend (ROAS).
Use Location Targeting Wisely
For most doctors and clinics, local targeting is crucial. Use Google Ads’ location settings to ensure your ads are only shown to users within a practical travel distance.
Options include:
- Radius targeting (e.g. 10 miles around your practice)
- City-based targeting (e.g. Birmingham or Perth)
- Postcode targeting for hyper-local campaigns
Exclude locations where your services aren’t available to reduce wasted clicks. You can also adjust bids based on proximity — increasing bids for users closer to your clinic.
Monitor Performance Regularly
Google Ads isn’t a “set it and forget it” platform. Check your campaign performance at least once or twice a week. Key metrics to monitor include:
- Click-through rate (CTR)
- Cost per conversion
- Conversion rate
- Quality Score
- Search terms report
Use the data to pause underperforming ads or keywords, test new copy, adjust bids, and refine your targeting.
Stay Compliant with Medical Advertising Guidelines
Doctors must adhere to professional and legal advertising standards. In the UK, for example, the General Medical Council (GMC) and Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) regulate health-related advertising.
Avoid:
- Making unrealistic promises or guarantees
- Using testimonials inappropriately
- Failing to disclose clinic registration or qualifications
- Referencing specific patient outcomes without evidence
Check your local and national healthcare advertising regulations before launching your campaign.
Test and Optimise Continuously
The best Google Ads campaigns are built on constant testing. A/B test different headlines, descriptions, CTAs, and landing page formats to see what drives the best results.
Over time, refine your campaigns based on:
- Which keywords convert best
- What time of day or day of the week performs better
- Which devices (mobile vs desktop) drive more conversions
- Which ad formats (responsive vs text) deliver the most value
Even small improvements in CTR or conversion rate can lead to significant increases in ROI.
Final Thoughts
Running Google Ads for doctors can be one of the most effective ways to attract patients online — but only if done strategically. By following this campaign checklist, you’ll be well-equipped to plan, launch and manage a successful campaign that delivers results without overspending.
Whether you’re a single-practitioner clinic in Bristol or a multi-location group practice in Sydney, investing time in your Google Ads setup and ongoing optimisation will help you reach patients when they’re most in need of your care.
