These are the questions dental practice owners ask most often before they hire marketing help. Each answer keeps to published rules from Google, the FTC, HHS and the ADA. None of them gives a price for custom work: that comes from the agency in its proposal. The questions are grouped by subject, from what this site is, through search, ads, websites, reviews and social media, to the rules that apply only to dental marketing. Where a longer answer exists, the reply links to the guide that holds it.
About this site
Is Marketing for Dental a marketing agency?
Marketing for Dental is an independent referral service, not a marketing agency. When you send the form, your details go to an independent marketing agency that prepares any proposal and does any work. Asking is free and you never have to hire anyone. More is on the about page.
Who contacts me after I send the form?
An independent marketing agency that works with dental practices, by phone or email. It can ask about the practice, look at your market and send a written proposal. This site does no marketing work itself, and the agency, not this site, prepares the proposal and does any work you choose to hire it for.
Does this site sell patient leads?
No. It passes your request to an agency that sells marketing services. It never sells patients, and never arranges any payment per patient.
Are there any prices on the site?
Only the two monthly SEO plans on the pricing page, sold by the independent agency at its own checkout. Anything else is priced in the agency’s proposal.
SEO and Google
Can an agency get my practice to the top of Google?
No one can promise that. Google says no one can promise a top ranking, that it costs nothing to appear in its results, and that it does not accept payment to rank a site higher. Read more in the dental SEO guide.
How does Google decide which dentists show on the map?
Google says local results are mainly based on relevance, distance and popularity, and that there is no way to pay for a better local ranking. A complete, accurate profile and genuine reviews are what a practice controls. See local SEO for dentists.
Can each dentist in the practice have a Google profile?
Yes, if they are public-facing and can be reached at the office during stated hours. Google names dentists as individual practitioners. The practice keeps its own profile too.
Should we remove our address and list only a service area?
No. Keep your real address: patients come to the office, and Google wants the name and address to match what is on the sign and the website. If the practice also travels to patients, for example to care homes, Google lets you enter both the address and a service area.
Ads
Does the highest bid always win on Google Ads?
No. Ad Rank uses several factors, including the competition, the context of the search and the quality of the ad at that moment. Quality Score looks at expected clickthrough rate, ad relevance and landing page experience, so a clear ad that leads to a useful page matters as much as the bid. The Google Ads for dentists guide explains the auction.
Are dental ads restricted on Google?
Ordinary dental practice ads are not on Google’s restricted healthcare list, but healthcare ads must follow the law and industry standards, and health-related ads face extra limits on audience targeting. See dental advertising.
Websites and forms
What should a dental contact form ask?
A name, a phone number, an email and the kind of appointment. It should never ask about symptoms, medications or medical history: the less a form collects, the less the practice has to protect. The dental website design guide covers the rest of the site.
Do tracking pixels on a dental website matter?
Tracking tools on a dental website raise HIPAA questions; the practice decides with its compliance advisor. The article on HIPAA and dental marketing has more.
Reviews and social
Can we offer a discount for a Google review?
No. Google’s Maps policy bans offering payment, discounts, free goods or services in exchange for a review, and bans asking only patients likely to leave a good one. Ask everyone, offer nothing. See dental reputation management.
How should we reply to a bad review?
Briefly and politely, without confirming the reviewer is a patient or mentioning their care, even if the review itself describes it. Invite the person to contact the office directly. The FTC’s review rule also bans threats meant to stop negative reviews, and Google bans discouraging negative reviews.
Do paid social posts need a disclosure?
Yes. The FTC says a connection that would affect how people weigh an endorsement should be disclosed clearly and conspicuously, and the ADA Code says influencers must disclose paid partnerships. See dental social media marketing.
Can we post patient photos?
Patient images and stories used in marketing bring in HIPAA’s authorization rule, because they use patient information to promote the practice. Plan any of them with your compliance advisor first, and keep the signed authorization on file.
Rules for dental marketing
Can someone pay for patient referrals?
The ADA Code says a dentist may pay for any advertising the Code permits, but is generally not permitted to make payments to another person or entity for the referral of a patient. Pay for marketing work, never per patient.
Can a dental ad promise results?
The ADA Code warns against statements likely to create an unjustified expectation about results, and against claims of superior quality that cannot be backed up. State dental boards set their own rules too.
Who may advertise a dental specialty?
Under the ADA Code, only a dentist who practices in a recognized specialty and meets its educational requirements, such as orthodontics and dentofacial orthopedics, periodontics or pediatric dentistry. Everyone else should leave specialty titles out.
Does HIPAA cover marketing?
Yes. HIPAA’s Privacy Rule defines marketing and says using patient information for it generally needs the patient’s written authorization, with narrow exceptions such as face-to-face communication. Plan marketing with your privacy officer or compliance advisor. This is general information, not legal advice; the article on HIPAA and dental marketing goes further.
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