Your Google Business Profile is the listing that shows up in Google Maps and in the map results when someone nearby searches for a dentist. It's free, and patients can call you straight from it without opening your website. Most practices verify it once and leave it alone. Here's what to set up, in the order we'd do it.
Make sure you control it
Before changing anything, check who has access under the profile's people and access settings. The practice owner should be the primary owner and the office manager an owner or manager. Remove anyone who has left. Former employees, a previous agency or the dentist who sold you the practice may all still have access. If you can't get in at all, Google's Business Profile help center explains how to request ownership.
Choose the right categories
Your primary category tells Google what kind of practice you are and shapes which searches you appear for. Pick the one that describes most of your work. Google's list includes Dentist, Cosmetic dentist, Periodontist, Pediatric dentist and Emergency dental service, among others. A general practice that also does cosmetic work and sees emergencies might choose Dentist as primary, then add Cosmetic dentist and Emergency dental service as secondary categories.
Only choose categories that are true. Rules about who can present themselves as a specialist vary by state, so a general dentist should check with the state dental board before picking Periodontist or Orthodontist. The list changes, so search it in your profile editor.
List your services
Add each treatment you offer in the services section, with a short description written the way you'd explain it to a patient on the phone. Use the same treatment names as your website, where ideally each one has its own page (our local SEO guide explains why).
Set hours you can keep
List the hours someone answers the phone. If the dentist sees patients until six but the front desk leaves at five, a patient who calls at 5:30 gets voicemail and may try the next listing. Add holiday hours ahead of time so Google doesn't show you as open on a day nobody will pick up. If you take emergency calls after hours, say how in your description.
Add real photos
Upload a clear logo and cover photo, then the outside of the building so people can find the door, the parking, the front desk, a treatment room and the team. A modern phone in good light is fine, as long as the photos are recent and accurate. Skip stock images, because a model in a dental chair tells a patient nothing about your office.
Any photo that shows a patient, including before and after cases, needs that patient's written permission. Rules on before and after images vary by state, so check with your state dental board. Add new photos when something changes, like a renovation or a new hygienist.
Point the links somewhere useful
The profile has a website field and, for many categories, an appointment link. Point the website link at your homepage or new patient page. Point the appointment link at the place a patient can actually request a visit, either online booking or a short consultation form. A link to a page with no form or phone number wastes the tap.
Questions and answers have moved
Profiles used to have a questions and answers section where the practice could reply to anyone's question. Google has removed it from most profiles and has been testing answers it writes itself from your profile, website and reviews.
You can't reply directly anymore, so the answers need to be somewhere Google can find them. Collect the questions your front desk hears every week. Do you take my insurance? Do you see kids? Can I come in today with a broken tooth? Answer them in your profile description, your services and an FAQ on your website.
Use posts for real updates
Posts appear on your profile and show patients the practice is active. Post when something real happens, like a new dentist joining or a change to holiday hours. Keep each one short and factual, with a photo. If you post an offer, such as a new patient exam price, check with your state dental board first, since rules on advertising fees and discounts vary by state.
Reply to every review
Google encourages businesses to reply to reviews. Thank people for positive reviews in a sentence or two. For a negative one, stay calm, keep it short and give a way to reach the office manager so the conversation moves offline.
Be careful with patient privacy. A reply that confirms the reviewer is your patient, or mentions their treatment, can create a privacy problem even when the reviewer shared those details first. Many practices use a short, general thank-you that never mentions a visit or procedure. What a reply can say depends on HIPAA and state law, so check with counsel or your compliance advisor and write a short reply policy for the team. For getting more reviews, see our reviews guide.
Keep your name, address and phone the same everywhere
Your details also live on your website, insurance directories, Yelp, Healthgrades, Facebook, Apple Maps and Bing. When they disagree, patients call old numbers and drive to old addresses, and search engines get conflicting information. Pick one exact version and correct every listing to match.
Use the practice's real name as it appears on your sign. Adding keywords like "Best Implant Dentist" to the name breaks Google's guidelines and can get the profile suspended. If you use a call tracking number, enter it as the primary phone and your main office line as an additional phone, so you can count calls while Google still has your real number on file.
Track what the profile sends you
The profile's performance view shows calls, website clicks and direction requests. Look at it once a month.
Tag the website link with UTM parameters so your analytics can tell you more, for example:
yourpractice.com/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=gbp
Use a different campaign value, such as gbp-appointment, on the appointment link. In Google Analytics, profile visits then show up as their own campaign, separate from ordinary Google search, and if you track form submissions you can see which of those visits sent one.
Ask every new patient how they found you, note it in your practice management software and check monthly how many said Google. The profile counts clicks. Your records count patients.
Your next step
Block an hour this week. Sign in, clean up access, check categories and hours, add current photos and tag the website link. Then set a monthly reminder to post an update, reply to new reviews and look at the numbers. For where the profile fits among other lead sources, see how dental practices get new patient leads.
