For the vast majority of dentists (excluding some specialists), your target market is your immediate geography, meaning the 3-5 mile radius surrounding your practice. There are obviously exceptions, but we will use this figure for now. Let’s next discuss what a Google Places page is, why it is so valuable and how to set up an effective page.
What is a Google Places dentist page?
Google Places is a free tool Google offers where you can list your dental practice name, location and general information. When people search for local business that match the information you provided when setting up your Google Places Dentist Page, your information *may be presented to the searcher. With the emergence of local search, Google Places has played a prominent role in allowing searchers to find local businesses that meet their requirements. Dentists are no exception. A Google Places Dentist Page has the potential to help or harm your practice. Along with providing general information about a business (based on what the business owner posts) a Google Places Dentist Page also accumulates ratings of the dental practice and displays them for searchers to find. That means that if you’re getting poor reviews, you better improve your services or you might be losing a lot of business.
Why a Google Places dentist page is so valuable
Now that local search is becoming a standard way for people to find local businesses, many of the “traditional” search results are not that relevant anymore. Even if you invested thousands of dollars to be ranked highly in searches, you may be noticing a drop off in new patients. The Google Places search results are now often displayed as the top results. You may have noticed recently that if you search for a local business, you will see a large map with about seven map results displayed prominently next to it. What used to be a top search result is now pushed below the Google Places results and your previously #1 ranked page now has the appearance of #8. It is important to have these high organic results because they influence your Google Places dentist page rankings. So now you have another component to keep in mind in your online advertising (traditional organic SEO and Local Search Optimization)
How to set up an effective Google Places dentist page
First, go to Google Places and click on the “Get Started” button under “Get my business found on Google.” Then make sure you fill out your profile completely. This is what potential patients will see when they search for a local dentist, so answer their questions or someone else will. Make sure to include photos and a video if you have one. Also, remember to use your keywords where possible.
Hopefully, this post on creating your Google Places dentist page has been informative. Let us know if you’d like any help.