Yet most medical practices set up their profile once and never touch it again. This is a significant missed opportunity.
Why GBP Matters More in 2026
Google continues to expand the features and prominence of Business Profiles in search results. In 2026, your GBP can include:
- Business description and categories
- Photos and videos
- Posts and updates
- Products and services with descriptions
- Appointment booking links
- Q&A sections
- Review management
- Messaging
- Business attributes and health specific features
For medical practices, Google has added specific healthcare attributes including insurance acceptance, accessibility features, and appointment types. Using these features fully gives your profile a significant advantage over competitors who have not updated theirs.
Your Google Business Profile is your digital shopfront. Patients are making decisions based on what they see there before they ever visit your website.
The Complete Optimisation Checklist
Business Information
Name: Use your exact registered business name. Do not add keywords (e.g., “Smith Dental — Best Dentist Sydney” violates Google’s guidelines).
Categories: Choose your primary category carefully. Then add all relevant secondary categories. A dental practice might use:
- Primary: Dentist
- Secondary: Cosmetic Dentist, Dental Implants Provider, Orthodontist, Emergency Dental Service
Description: You have 750 characters. Use them strategically:
- Lead with your specialty and what makes you different
- Include your key service areas and locations
- Mention years of experience or unique qualifications
- Include a call to action
- Keep it natural and avoid keyword stuffing
Address and Phone: Ensure these match exactly across every online listing. Inconsistencies in your NAP (Name, Address, Phone) data confuse Google and reduce your local ranking potential.
Hours: Keep these accurate and update them for holidays. Nothing frustrates a patient more than arriving at a closed practice because Google said it was open.
Photos and Visual Content
Google data shows that businesses with photos receive 42% more requests for directions and 35% more website clicks than those without.
Recommended photos:
- Exterior of your practice (helps patients find you)
- Reception and waiting area
- Treatment rooms
- Your team (professional but approachable)
- Equipment and technology
- Before and after the treatment environment (not patient results, which have AHPRA restrictions)
Photo guidelines:
- Minimum 720px wide
- Well lit, professional quality
- Updated quarterly with fresh images
- Add descriptions with relevant keywords
Google Posts
Google Posts are mini blog entries that appear directly on your Business Profile. They expire after 7 days (except event posts), so regular posting is essential.
Post types that work for medical practices:
- What’s New: Practice updates, new services, team additions
- Events: Open days, community health events, webinars
- Offers: Limited time promotions (where AHPRA compliant)
- Educational content: Brief health tips relevant to your specialty
Post at least once per week. Include an image and a call to action with every post.
Review Management
Reviews are the single most influential factor in a patient’s decision to contact your practice. They also significantly impact your local search rankings.
Building a Review Strategy
The key to building reviews is making the process effortless for patients. For detailed guidance on this, our article on building an AHPRA compliant review strategy covers the approach in depth.
Key principles:
- Ask at the right moment (after a positive interaction)
- Make it easy (direct link to your review page)
- Be consistent (build it into your post appointment workflow)
- Respond to every review, positive and negative
Responding to Reviews
Positive reviews: Thank the patient, reference something specific about their visit (without revealing clinical details), and keep it warm and genuine.
Negative reviews: Respond promptly, professionally, and empathetically. Never argue or reveal patient information. Offer to discuss the matter privately.
Your review responses are branding opportunities. They show potential patients how you handle feedback.
Q&A Section
The Q&A feature on your GBP is often neglected. Anyone can ask a question, and anyone can answer it, including competitors, former employees, or random internet users.
Proactive Q&A Management
- Seed your own questions — ask and answer the most common questions patients have before anyone else does
- Monitor regularly — check for new questions weekly and answer them promptly
- Flag inappropriate content — report questions or answers that are spam, misleading, or irrelevant
Common questions to pre populate:
- Do you accept new patients?
- What insurance plans do you accept?
- Is parking available?
- Do you offer payment plans?
- What should I bring to my first appointment?
Service Area and Geographic Optimisation
For practices looking to rank in locations beyond their physical address, GBP service area settings are important.
Service Area Businesses vs Physical Location
If patients visit your practice, you are a physical location business. Use your actual address and add service areas for the broader region you serve.
If you provide services at the patient’s location (rare in medical practice, but applicable for some allied health providers), you can set up as a service area business without displaying an address.
Optimising for Multiple Suburbs
Add all the suburbs you genuinely serve as service areas. This tells Google you are relevant to searches in those areas. Combine this with multi suburb content on your website for maximum local visibility.
Tracking GBP Performance
Google provides insights directly within your Business Profile:
Key Metrics to Track
| Metric | What It Tells You |
|---|---|
| Search queries | What patients type before finding your profile |
| Profile views | How many people see your profile |
| Direction requests | How many people want to visit your practice |
| Phone calls | Direct calls from your profile |
| Website clicks | Traffic driven to your website |
| Photo views | Engagement with your visual content |
| Booking clicks | Appointments initiated through your profile |
Track these monthly and look for trends. Declining metrics may indicate that competitors are optimising their profiles or that your content needs refreshing.
Advanced GBP Tactics
Appointment Booking Integration
If your practice management software supports it, integrate direct booking through your GBP. This reduces friction for patients and gives Google another positive signal about your business.
Products and Services
Add detailed descriptions of every service you offer, including:
- Service name
- Description (200+ words)
- Price range (if appropriate)
- Link to the relevant page on your website
This helps Google understand the full scope of your services and can improve your visibility for specific service searches.
Messaging
Enable messaging if you have the capacity to respond promptly (within a few hours). Slow response times damage your profile’s quality signals. If you cannot commit to prompt responses, leave messaging disabled rather than responding late.
Maintaining Your Profile
GBP optimisation is not a one time task. Set a recurring schedule:
Weekly:
- Publish a new Google Post
- Check for and respond to new reviews
- Check Q&A for new questions
Monthly:
- Upload new photos
- Review performance insights
- Update any changed information
Quarterly:
- Audit your full profile for accuracy
- Update service descriptions
- Review and update business attributes
- Refresh your business description if needed
If you want help optimising your Google Business Profile for maximum local visibility, you are welcome to get in touch. It is one of the highest return on investment activities we do for our clients.
Insights for Medical Professionals