When to Use Google Ads vs Facebook Ads in Healthcare
If you’re weighing google ads vs facebook ads for healthcare, here’s the quick answer. Google Ads is best for patients who already know what they want and need it soon (“urgent care near me,” “HBOT clinic today”).
Meta (Facebook/Instagram) is best when patients need education or trust before booking (aesthetics, wellness programs, therapy groups).
At our agency we’ve managed $700–$80,000/month in healthcare ad spend. Conversion rate stays healthy at every level, while more budget mainly adds volume. Many clinics assume Google will win every time, but we often see Meta catch up or win once we run a real creative strategy and give the algorithm time to learn.
Urgent vs elective services
- Urgent: Start with Google Search. Use call and location assets. Keep booking one tap away.
- Elective: Start with Meta. Teach first, ask second. Retarget, then capture name searches on Google.
Competitive metros vs smaller catchments
- Big cities: Raise ad quality: better creative on Meta; higher Ad Rank on Google (fast site, strong assets).
- Smaller towns: Demand is thin. On Google, protect brand and a few core non brand terms. On Meta, widen the radius and let broad targeting find pockets of interest.
Patient journey → channel fit
Awareness (Choose Meta)
Short explainers, before/after carousels, “what to expect” clips. If nobody will film, use graphics + captions, that works.
Research (Choose Both)
Case studies, FAQs, price/insurance pages. On Google, use sitelinks. On Meta, show testimonials and team intros.
Action (Choose Google Search)
Make it easy to call, book, or submit. Keep forms short (≤3 fields) unless you’re booking directly.
Costs & budgets without the hype
What changes from $700 → $80k/month
- $700–$2k/mo: One service. 1–2 ad groups (Google) or 2–3 creative angles (Meta). Stick to one conversion goal.
- $2k–$10k/mo: Add retargeting, rotate creative every ~2 weeks, protect brand on Google.
- $10k–$80k/mo: Full funnel: prospecting + retargeting (Meta), non-brand + brand (+ competitors if allowed) on Google; add YouTube if you can ship video.
From experience: message and intake speed move conversion rate more than budget size
Lead quality and intake speed (calls, forms, bookings)
Meta leads feel “cold” only if the front desk is slow. Under 5 minutes response time, quality perception jumps. On Google, run call assets during open hours and online booking after hours.
Targeting & creative that actually work in healthcare
Google: structure and assets that matter
- Tight theming: small sets of service + geo keywords; avoid keyword sprawl.
- Negatives: competitor names (unless conquesting), DIY (“at home,” “free”), career/education terms.
- Assets: location, call, lead form (only if you can respond fast), structured snippets.
- Geo & time: radius/ZIP clusters; bid up during staffed hours.
Meta: broad vs interest vs lookalike; reels vs graphics
We lean on broad targeting a lot, with strong creative it scales. Use interest stacks and 1–5% lookalikes as benchmarks.
Creative rules (kept technical on purpose):
- Reels/short video outperform when a clinician can deliver clear hooks and benefit led copy.
- Graphics/carousels win when on camera isn’t an option. Headlines must be outcome oriented, with crisp value props.
- Rotate angles (pain relief, cost/value, reassurance). Watch frequency; kill fatigue, don’t repaint the same ad.
From our books: “Given time and a real creative plan, Meta compounds. We’ve seen clinics outperform expectations once we let the algorithm learn.”
Compliance you can’t skip
HIPAA safe lead capture (forms, booking, CRM)
- Use HIPAA compliant forms/booking. Collect only what you need first.
- Meta Instant Forms: keep them high level, then pass details into a HIPAA compliant CRM after consent.
- On Google, make sure call recordings/chat tools follow privacy rules; show a clear privacy notice.
Messaging do’s & don’ts
- No guaranteed results. Stay educational and policy friendly.
- For sensitive lines (mental health, weight, addiction), keep targeting broader and tone supportive.
Tracking stack and hand offs
GA4 + CRM + call tracking
We always set up GA4 and connect to a first party CRM. Track the full path: ad → landing → call/form/booking → appointment → show/no-show → revenue. Use keyword level call tracking on Google and clean UTM tagging on Meta.
Make Every Lead Count: Call in 5 Minutes, Follow Up for 3 Days
- Respond in <5 minutes.
- Follow up for 3 days (call + SMS/email).
- Close the loop in CRM so we optimize for kept appointments, not just leads.
When Google outperforms Meta (and why)
- Clear, urgent intent.
- Control over queries with match types and negatives.
- Phone heavy services convert via call extensions + open hour bid rules.
When Meta outperforms Google (and why)
- Patients need education and reassurance.
- You can rotate creative and give the algorithm 1–3 weeks to learn.
- Social proof moves the needle more than text ads alone.
“We’ve had clinics win with graphics + captions only. Don’t wait for perfect video.”
Use both: a simple full funnel blueprint
Cold → Warm → Hot
- Cold (Meta): Explain what it is and who it’s for.
- Warm (Meta): Retarget with proof (before/afters, stories, staff intros).
- Hot (Google): Capture non brand + brand searches with call/booking assets.
Budget split scenarios (starting points)
- Wellness clinic: 60% Meta / 40% Google
- HBOT clinic: 50% Meta / 50% Google
- Therapy group: 70% Meta / 30% Google
- Aesthetics/medspa: 65% Meta / 35% Google
“At $700–$2k/mo, pick one hero service and keep it simple. At $10k+, run prospecting + retargeting + search capture in parallel.”
Decision tree: pick your starting channel in 60 seconds
- Urgent “near me” searches? → Start Google.
- Education first? → Start Meta.
- Comfortable filming? → Lean Meta.
- Front desk ready for calls now? → Push Google call ads in open hours.
- No filming? → Meta with graphics is fine.
- Need appointments this week? → Google first, add Meta in week 2–3.
Quick start checklists
Google launch (capture)
- 1–2 tightly themed ad groups
- Brand campaign + negatives in non brand
- Location + call + sitelinks + snippets
- Fast page, HIPAA aware lead flow, click-to-call
- Bid up during staffed hours; conversions = calls/bookings
Meta launch (create)
- 2–3 angles × 2 formats (reel + graphic)
- Broad + 1 interest stack + 1 lookalike
- Lead objective (HIPAA safe) or traffic to compliant booking
- Rotate creative weekly; strong hooks
- Retarget 30–60 days; exclude recent leads/patients
FAQs
Usually Google. If you can answer calls and take bookings immediately. Meta ramps in 1–3 weeks.
$700–$2k/month focused on one service. Expect quicker wins on Google, expect Meta to grow as creative and learning improve.
Yes. Use short forms and move details into a HIPAA compliant system after consent.
Google: days. Meta: give it 1–3 weeks and rotate creative.
Outcome focused graphics, simple carousels, patient quotes (policy friendly), and text over image explainers.
If you’re comparing google ads vs facebook ads for healthcare, the rule of thumb is simple: if patients need help now, start with Google Ads and make booking instant. If they need education and trust, start with Meta Ads and retarget. The top performers do both: teach on Meta, capture on Google, and close the loop with GA4 + CRM + fast intake. That’s how we’ve delivered results across $700 to $80k/month budgets.
