Google just changed the game for healthcare marketers—again. With new Generative AI search updates, including ads in AI Overview results, your brand’s visibility and patient engagement strategy could either skyrocket or fall behind. If you’re not prepared to adapt, you risk missing out on critical opportunities to connect with patients at the exact moment they need your services. Here’s what you need to know and how WAX can help you stay ahead of the competition.
Key Changes to Google’s AI Search
Google’s updates include several important changes that will impact healthcare marketers:
- Embedded Links in AI Overview: Google now integrates direct links within AI-generated responses, helping users discover content more easily. For healthcare marketers, this means users may find health-related resources, articles, or provider information faster—but it also means organic search traffic could shift.
- Ads in AI Overview: Google is now displaying ads within AI-generated responses, especially when there’s clear commercial intent. For healthcare brands offering services like telemedicine, health insurance, or medical devices, this creates a new space for ad placements, helping your brand appear when potential patients or customers are actively seeking solutions.
- AI-Organized Search Results: Outside of AI Overviews, Google is also introducing AI-organized search results. This allows users to navigate complex topics, like treatment options or wellness advice, more easily by grouping content into subcategories. Healthcare organizations can leverage this update to get in front of audiences researching health-related information.
How This Affects Healthcare Marketing
As these AI-driven features roll out, healthcare marketers must adjust their strategies to maintain visibility and optimize their ad spend. Here’s how these changes could affect your current approach:
- More Competition for Ad Space: With AI Overviews now displaying ads, competition for prime ad spots will increase. It’s important to adjust your bidding strategies and keywords to ensure your healthcare brand appears in the right places, reaching patients and decision-makers when they’re searching for care solutions.
- Shifts in Organic Search Traffic: AI-generated responses may impact how much traffic your website receives from organic search results. With more users getting answers from the AI Overview, healthcare organizations relying on SEO for patient acquisition or resource promotion may need to adapt their content strategies to retain visibility.
- New Opportunities for Patient Engagement: AI-organized search results create an opportunity to connect with patients in more personalized ways. Whether they’re researching treatment options or looking for local care providers, these curated results help you appear in front of audiences based on their specific health needs.
How WAX Can Help
We’ve been at the forefront of leveraging AI to enhance healthcare marketing strategies since long before recent advancements. Through our proprietary M3D methodology and data science intelligence, we utilize advanced AI to craft empathetic connections by analyzing three critical dimensions—patient intent, sentiment, and urgency—throughout the care journey. This enables us to deliver precise, highly targeted campaigns that resonate with patients at every stage of their decision-making process. As Google’s AI continues to evolve, our expertise in AI-driven strategies ensures your healthcare brand stays competitive, consistently reaching and engaging patients when it matters most.
VIEW OUR AWARD-WINNING WORK
This Data-Driven Approach Brought 900+ New Patients in 9 Months
Game-Changing Technology Yielded 95% More Customers for Nestle
Disruptive Differentiation for Patient Acquisition and Employee Retention
Innovative Social Media Tactics Engage Audiences and Grow a Health Plan
Doubling DAISY Award Nominations with National Digital Marketing
