Google Business Profile for Dentists

When someone searches “dentist near me,” the first thing they usually see is a map with three practices on it. Those listings come from Google Business Profile, and for most general practices they produce more new-patient phone calls than the website, social media and ads put together. The profile is free. The difference between a practice that gets those calls and one that doesn’t is rarely money; it’s whether someone set the profile up carefully and keeps it current.

This guide walks through it in the order you should do it: make sure the practice owns its profile, get the basics exactly right, handle individual dentist listings, keep the profile active with photos and updates, build reviews, track results, and avoid the mistakes that get dental listings suspended.

Chapters

1. 01Claim, verify and own your profileMake sure the practice, not an agency or a former employee, owns the profile, and get it verified.
2. 02Name, categories, services and hoursThe fields that decide which searches you show up for, and the name rule that gets practices suspended.
3. 03Individual dentist listingsWhen each dentist should have their own profile, how solo practices should set up, and what to do when a dentist leaves.
4. 04Photos, updates and keeping the profile activeWhich photos help patients choose you, and how to keep the profile current without much time.
5. 05Reviews on your profileA simple system for earning reviews every week, and how to reply to good and bad reviews without breaking privacy law.
6. 06Tracking calls and resultsHow to tell how many calls and new patients the profile produces, and how to use a tracking number safely.
7. 07Mistakes and suspensionsThe mistakes that get dental listings suspended or buried, and what to do if yours is suspended.