A strong online presence is essential for any business — and dental practices are no exception. One of the most effective ways to ensure your practice stands out in local searches is by optimizing your Google Business Profile (GBP). If your GBP isn’t optimized, your practice may not show up in all-important local Google searches and you’ll miss out on new patients. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the importance of optimizing your GBP and provide you with practical steps to enhance your dental practice’s position in local search. Let’s dive in!
Why Optimize Your GBP?
If You Don’t, You Simply Won’t Show Up in Local Search
Your Google Business Profile is a critical component of your dental practice’s local SEO strategy. It helps Google understand your business and its relevance to potential clients in your area.
If your profile isn’t optimized:
- You may not appear in local searches: Google prioritizes well-optimized profiles, so if yours isn’t up to par, it won’t show up in search results.
- You could lose credibility: An incomplete or inaccurate profile can make your practice look unprofessional and out-of-date.
- You might miss out on valuable traffic: A well-optimized profile can drive more traffic to your website..
How to Optimize Your Practice’s Google Business Profile
Optimizing your GBP involves several steps. From start to finish, here’s what you need to do:
1. Build Out Your Profile
A comprehensive profile is the foundation of a strong local SEO strategy for dentists.
Here’s how to build out your GBP:
- Optimize Your Business Description: Ensure every section of your profile is filled out, including your business name, address, phone number, website, and operating hours. If you’re using call tracking for lead attribution (and you should), be sure to use your tracking number and include your actual phone number as an alternate.
- Add High-Quality Photos & Videos: Upload professional photos and videos of your practice, team, and services. Visual content attracts more views and engagement. This may also help potential patients to feel welcomed and know what to expect from your practice. Remember, potential patients care less about the specifics of treatment than they do about the people who will be treating them.
- Add Services: Include services offered at your practice to enhance visibility for potential patients. These should be accompanied by easy-to-understand images or icons.
- Consistently Post To Your GBP: Post to your GBP at least once a week to remain consistent in searches. Google rewards dental practices that consistently engage with GBPs. Linking to your practice blog posts and service pages in your GBP posts can help drive qualified traffic to your website.
IMPORTANT: Steer clear of posting content that’s too promotional, as this can come off as “pushy” to potential patients. In general, we recommend following the “90/10 rule”
2. Build Links to Your Profile
Building links to your GBP can improve its visibility and authority. Google uses links from external websites as a measure of your practice’s relevance.
Here are some effective strategies for securing links to your GBP:
- Add Your Profile Link to Your Website: Include a link to your GBP on your homepage, contact page, and footer.
- Use Online Press Releases: Regularly distribute new content with online press releases, and include the link to your GBP in the press release.
- Leverage Social Media: Share your GBP link on your social media profiles and posts to drive traffic and engagement.
- Post Your Practice in Local Listings: Ensure your practice is listed in local online directories with a link to your GBP.
- Participate in Local Community Events: Partner with local organizations and events to gain valuable backlinks from their websites.
3. Focus on Reviews
Reviews play a significant role in how Google ranks your profile. The more positive reviews you have, the higher your profile will appear in search results. And Google isn’t just interested in how many reviews you have and your average rating; they’re also looking at velocity, or the frequency and consistency with which you’re collecting new reviews.
Here are some components of an effective review acquisition and reputation management strategy:
- Ask for Reviews: Encourage satisfied patients to leave reviews on your GBP. You can ask in person, via email, or through follow-up texts. In general, an automated, text-based follow-up sequence is most effective.
- Respond to Reviews: Engage with reviewers by thanking them for positive feedback and addressing any concerns in negative reviews. This shows potential clients that you value patient feedback. Check out our complete guide to responding to reviews.
- Highlight Reviews on Your Website: Feature positive reviews on your website to build trust and encourage more reviews.
- Use a Review Management Tool: Consider using tools that help you monitor, manage, and request reviews effectively using SMS texts and automation. If this capability isn’t already included in your practice management software, Weave may be an affordable option.
Ready to take your GBP to the next level? Give us a call!
Optimizing your Google Business Profile is a vital step for improving your dental practice’s local SEO — and consistently acquiring more new patients from organic (“non-paid”) searches. By building out your profile, creating valuable links, and focusing on obtaining and managing reviews, you can enhance your online presence and attract more patients to your practice.
At DentalScapes, we specialize in helping dental practices like yours optimize their online profiles and improve their local SEO. Schedule a free consultation today and start driving more local traffic to your practice!