Links and mentions from other local websites are part of what Google calls prominence. For a dental practice, the best ones come from things you already do or should be doing anyway: being part of the community, working with other local businesses and doing things worth writing about.
Start with what you already do
Make a list of every real connection the practice has. Most practices are surprised by how long it gets:
- Sponsorships: youth sports teams, school fundraisers, charity runs, community events.
- Community work: free care days, school dental screenings or visits, talks at senior centers.
- Memberships: the chamber of commerce, the local business association, service clubs.
- Education: a dentist who teaches at a dental or hygiene school, or presents at a study club.
Many of these organizations list their sponsors, members or volunteers on their websites. Often all it takes is asking whether they’d include the practice name with a link to your website. Some will mark the link as sponsored, which is how Google asks paid links to be labeled; that’s fine. The mention and the local connection are the point.
Suppliers, labs and referral partners
Businesses you work with often have “find a provider” pages or customer listings: the aligner or implant companies you are certified with, specialists you refer to and who refer to you, your local dental lab. Check whether your listing is there and correct. A link from a specialist down the street to your practice, and back, makes sense to patients; the same swap with fifty unrelated businesses does not.
Local press
Local news sites, neighborhood blogs and community newsletters need stories. Practices give them real ones: a new dentist joining, a free care day, a move to a bigger office, a team member’s volunteer work, a seasonal safety reminder from a dentist who is happy to be quoted. Send a short, plain email with the facts and a photo, and make it easy for them. Never share anything about a patient without written authorization.
What not to do
- Don’t buy links, including “guest posts” on sites that exist to sell them. Google’s spam policies treat buying or selling links to manipulate rankings as link spam.
- Don’t join link exchanges or networks that promise a set number of links a month.
- Don’t sponsor something only for the link. If you wouldn’t support it without the link, skip it.
Links take time. A few genuine local links a year, from organizations patients recognize, are worth more than any package. More on agency offers to avoid is in the tactics that backfire chapter.