This post is part of our Building Better Healthcare Marketing series.

In healthcare marketing, the conversation often centers around branded versus non-branded search. Which drives more clicks? Which delivers a better return? The question you should be asking instead is, “What’s the intent behind the search?”

Because knowing why and what a patient is actually searching for tells you:

• Where to spend
• Where to save
• How to connect with patients in need of your services

Every search query represents a decision point. Some are gathering information or comparing options. Others are ready to book an appointment right now. By understanding the intent, you know where to invest your marketing dollars wisely.

So, what’s the difference?

Branded search: visibility and defense

Branded search happens when people already know who you are. They type in “Cleveland Clinic urgent care” or “Mayo Clinic cardiologist” because they’re familiar with your name. They know and trust it. Maybe they’ve been referred by a friend, had a past experience with your organization, or saw a recent campaign that stuck with them.

Branded search is valuable for visibility and brand defense. It helps keep competitors in check and ensure they aren’t bidding on your name. While it does help patients easily find you when they intend to find you, it’s not for discovery.

When you run branded search ads, you’re not necessarily trying to acquire new patients. You’re maintaining visibility and reinforcing trust.

Organic search: where intent lives

Now, contrast this with organic search. This is where high-intent users live. The people who are actively searching for care, right now. They type phrases like “best cardiologist near me” and “urgent care open now.”

These users don’t have your brand top of mind. They just need help. And in that moment, your presence, or absence, shapes whether they become your next patient or someone else’s.

And that is why organic visibility through SEO is so critical.

Strong organic presence helps your organization become part of a potential patient’s decision-making process when they are actively searching for care.

The bottom line

So, here’s the rule: use branded ads to stay visible with people who already know you. Invest in organic search to capture the patients who are ready to choose a provider today.

When you understand the intent, you stop chasing clicks and start connecting with patients who are ready to act and need your service in this moment.

Ready to start connecting with patients in need of your services? Learn more about Unlock Health’s full capabilities in healthcare marketing. Or simply contact us.

This article is part of Building Better Healthcare Marketing, our series of practical tips for performance marketers in healthcare. In it, we focus on strategies that move the needle in paid media, paid social, analytics, CRO, and campaign performance to help you connect with patients, strengthen engagement, and drive measurable growth.

Unlock Health is a full-service marketing communications agency that helps healthcare organizations make authentic connections with patients and communities.