Find out which half is broken
You need three numbers from the last 90 days:
- How many people see you. Go to your Business Profile on Google and click Performance. It shows views, clicks and other actions on Search and Maps.
- How many people visit your website. Your website reports will have this. If nobody can tell you, that's your first job.
- How many new patients call, and how many book. Ask your front desk and check your practice management system. If nobody tracks calls, start a tally by the phone today.
Then find your row:
| What you see | What it probably means | Start here |
|---|---|---|
| Few people see your profile or visit your site | People can't find you | The first half, in short |
| Plenty of visits, few calls or bookings | The site isn't answering their questions | The four people on your site |
| Plenty of new-patient calls, few booked | The site is fine and the phone is losing them | The phone is part of the website |
| Plenty booked, but the wrong patients | Your site isn't clear about who you're for | The four people on your site |
| Plenty booked, too many no-shows | They're nervous, or they don't know what to expect | The nervous one |
Don't worry about how you compare with other practices. Your own number this month is the one to beat.
If most of your patients come from referrals, this still applies. The American Dental Association reports that nearly two-thirds of new patients at general practices come through referrals from existing patients. Someone who gets your name from a friend usually looks you up next. They land on the same website as everyone else.
Be your own patient for 15 minutes
Pick up your phone, switch off Wi-Fi and search for your practice the way a stranger would. Then try these:
- It's 7pm and a molar has just cracked. How do you find out what to do?
- You have a plan you know you accept. Can you confirm that without calling?
- You have no insurance. Can you find out what a first visit costs?
- You want a Saturday or evening appointment. How many taps does it take to find out if you offer one?
- Fill in your own contact form. Time how long it takes someone to reply.
Now ask a friend to call during lunch and say: "Do you take my insurance, and how much is a first visit?" Ask them how it felt afterward. This is a test of the system, so nobody gets in trouble for what you find.
The four people on your site
Plenty of dental sites talk to one imaginary patient who wants "quality, compassionate care." Real visitors come in four moods. Each of them needs something different in the first few seconds.
Someone in pain
They want a phone number and a yes. Put the urgent route on the first screen on a phone. Make the number tappable and give it its own page. That page answers three questions: can you see me today, what will it cost to get looked at, and what do I do if you're closed?
Example wording, only if it's true for you:
In pain or broke a tooth? Call (555) 555-0100. We hold time for urgent visits Monday to Friday. An urgent exam is $X. If we're closed, our voicemail tells you what to do next.
Then make sure the voicemail really does. A contact form on this page is a cruel joke.
The new family
They've just moved or changed jobs, and the plans you take are often the first thing they check. "We accept most major insurance" doesn't answer their question, so name the plans:
- In network: list them by name.
- Out of network, but we'll file the claim for you: list those too.
- No insurance: say what the first visit costs, or what you offer instead.
- Not on this list? "Call us and we'll check while you're on the phone."
Then cover what a parent checks next: the ages you see, your evening and weekend hours, and where to park. If you take online bookings, add the link to your Google profile as well. On Google Search, select Booking, then Add link.
The nervous one
This person has been putting it off for years. They're worried about pain, and just as worried about being judged for the state of their teeth. Say something about that directly:
Been a while? That's fine. Nobody here will lecture you. We'll start by talking, and you can stop us at any point.
Next, walk through the first visit step by step, with roughly how long each part takes. Show real photos of your team, including the person who answers the phone. List what you actually offer for nerves. Skip the word "painless," because some states don't allow ads that promise a procedure won't hurt.
Short videos help here. One idea comes from an orthodontic office where a different assistant explained an appliance or a procedure on video each week. When patients called with a question, the front desk could answer by sending them the right clip.
The big decision
Someone looking at implants, aligners or veneers is spending real money and will compare you with other practices. Give that treatment its own page. It should cover:
- Who it suits and who it doesn't suit
- Who does the work, and their actual training
- How long it takes from first visit to finished
- What it costs, or at least how you work out a quote and how people can pay
- Real cases, with written permission from the patient
- What happens at the consultation and what it costs
That last point matters most, because a dental implant consultation is a much smaller thing to say yes to than the implant. Specialists have an extra job: orthodontist marketing often has to win over whoever pays as well as the teenager in the chair.
If you keep getting the wrong patients, say who you're for. "We see adults only" or "We focus on complex restorative work" will cost you a few calls. Your team may thank you for the ones you lose.
The phone is part of the website
A dental website usually ends in a phone call. So a good site with a bad phone experience still loses the patient. For two weeks, keep a tally by the phone. For every new-patient call, write down whether they booked. If they didn't, write down why: insurance, price, no times, just asking or something else. The reasons tell you exactly what's missing from your site.
Everyone who answers the phone needs a ready answer to three questions:
| They ask | Weak answer | Better answer |
|---|---|---|
| Do you take my insurance? | "Probably. You'd have to ask billing." | "Yes, we're in network with that plan. Would mornings or afternoons suit you better?" |
| How much is a first visit? | "It depends on your insurance." | "For most new patients it's $X to $Y. I can give you a closer number if you tell me your plan." |
| Can you see me soon? | "Our next new-patient opening is in March." | "Our next regular opening is in March. If something hurts, tell me and we'll look for a time this week." |
Then deal with the calls nobody answers. Decide who calls back after lunch, and how quickly. Some phone systems can text the caller automatically when a call is missed, which at least keeps the conversation going.
Web forms need the same care. Ask for a name, a phone number and the best time to call. Then reply the same day.
Reviews: ask for them, and be careful how you answer
Google lets you share a link or QR code that patients can use to leave a review. Send it after the visit. There are two ways to get this wrong.
Paying for them. Google bans offering free or discounted services in return for reviews. US rules also ban buying fake reviews, and rewarding people for a positive or negative one. So ask often, and give people nothing for it.
Replying like a normal business. Google suggests using the reviewer's name and responding to what they said. A dentist has less room. The American Dental Association warns that simply confirming someone is your patient can break privacy law. Replying to a negative review can do it, even when the patient posted the details first. A Dallas practice paid $10,000 to federal regulators to settle possible violations over sharing patient information on social media.
Keep a reply ready that confirms nothing, and have whoever handles your compliance approve it:
We take concerns like this seriously. Privacy rules stop us from discussing anyone's care here, so please call Maria, our office manager, at (555) 555-0100.
The advertising rules to know
The American Dental Association's legal guide to dental advertising is worth bookmarking. These are the parts that touch your website. State rules vary and change, so check with your own state board before you publish.
| You want to | Watch out for |
|---|---|
| Show a patient's photo or story | Images of patients can count as protected health information, even a shot of someone sitting in the waiting room. Get written permission first. Many states also regulate testimonials. |
| Say "best," "top" or "painless" | Many states require proof for claims that your care is better. Some ban those claims outright, and some ban promising that a procedure won't hurt. |
| Say you specialize | Most states regulate this. Tennessee and Michigan only allow it for dentists who meet board requirements. A Maine dentist was fined and suspended over ads touting specialties. |
| Advertise a price or a free exam | Many states restrict ads about fees. Florida, for one, requires a minimum-fee disclaimer. It also requires either a stated period for the price or at least 90 days at that fee. A "free" offer also can't be paid for by raising the price of something else. |
| Reward referrals or run a Groupon deal | Referral gifts and fee splitting are banned in many states. Federal anti-kickback law can also apply if you treat patients under a federal program. So check your state's rules before you offer a reward. |
| Add ad tracking to your site | Federal health regulators say trackers on logged-in pages such as patient portals can usually see protected information. A court threw out part of that guidance for public pages in 2024, but the rest stands. Ask your compliance adviser before an ad tracker goes near a portal or booking form. |
The first half, in short
You still have to be found. Here's what each channel is for:
| Channel | What it does | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|
| Google Business Profile | Puts you on the map when someone searches nearby | Free. Do this first. |
| Referrals | Brings in the patients who already trust you | Train the whole team to ask, and check your state's rules on gifts |
| Reviews | Helps you get picked once you're found | See above |
| Local SEO (showing up in Google for your area) | Brings more people from search over time | Expect about 3 to 6 months to see much |
| Google Ads | Buys visibility now | Best for urgent and high-value searches. Send each ad to the matching treatment page, and fix the site first. |
| Social media | Makes you familiar | Show your team more than your equipment. It's rarely where a new practice should start. |
| Email and recall | Brings existing patients back | These people already know you, so you aren't paying to reach them |
Once the leaks are fixed, dental patient acquisition becomes a question of which of these to add next. Don't forget the patients you already have, either, because customer retention strategies start with people who already know your name. The same gap between a click and a first visit shows up in gym marketing, so this isn't just a dentist problem.
If you hire an agency
Agencies can do a lot of this for you. Before you sign with one, ask these questions:
- Who owns everything if we part ways? That means the domain, the website, the Google profile, the ad accounts and the tracking phone numbers.
- How long is the contract? Some agencies want a one-year commitment.
- What will you report? You want new patients booked and money collected. Clicks and search positions only matter if they lead there.
- What does that result mean? One agency home page quotes "20X+" monthly return on ad spend, which sounds like $20 back for every $1 spent on ads. Ask which practice, over what period, and whether it counts sales or profit.
- Will you listen to our calls? If they won't, half of your problem stays invisible to them.
- Who checks our ads and pages against state rules and HIPAA? Get a name.
- What would you fix first? If the answer is always more visitors, keep shopping.
When the question comes at 9pm
Even a good site makes people dig for their own answer, and at 9pm your front desk has gone home. Helping with that moment is what we built Possible to do, so take this with the obvious pinch of salt. Possible is our own product. It's an AI built on real sales psychology that asks each visitor the right question at the right moment. It remembers what they say and guides them to a booking. It's free to start, and here's more on our AI sales assistant for clinics and local services.
If you try it, I'd start with the big-decision patient, the one comparing implants or aligners and full of questions. Someone in pain just needs your phone number. If your number doesn't tap and your insurance list is missing, fix those first. And whichever tool you try, ours included, ask your compliance adviser before it collects anything about someone's health.
Your first week
- Today: Be your own patient on your phone, and start the tally by the phone.
- Tomorrow: Pull your three numbers and find your row in the table.
- Day 3: Make the number tappable. Publish your insurance list and your hours.
- Day 4: Write the urgent care page and the first-visit walkthrough.
- Day 5: Give the front desk its three answers. Agree a review reply and a callback rule for missed calls.
- Days 6 and 7: Check your claims against your state's rules. Add your booking link to your Google profile and start asking for reviews.
After two weeks, read the tally. The most common reason people didn't book is your next page to write.
Questions about dental marketing
What does a dental marketer do?
They get more of the right people to book. That usually means running your Google profile, search, ads, reviews, website and call tracking. A good one also listens to calls and reports new patients, not just clicks. In many small practices, an office manager and an agency share the job.
How much does dental marketing cost?
One common rule of thumb is 3% to 5% of the money you collect. For a practice collecting $1.5 million, that's $45,000 to $75,000 a year. One agency lists its own bundled plans at $750 to $2,000 a month, and estimates a competitor at $3,000 to $12,000 or more. These numbers come from companies in this business, so treat them as a rough range, and ask whether ad spend is included. Most of the website half just costs staff time.
What is the 3-3-3 rule for dental?
It's a question patients ask, not a marketing rule, and it doesn't have one fixed meaning. Practice websites use it for brushing habits and for the way baby teeth come through. If patients ask you about it, answer it on your own site.
Is the dentist market oversaturated?
Nobody can answer that nationally for your street. Search "dentist near me" from your office and from a few miles away. Look at who shows up and how their reviews compare. If the map is crowded, being the general dentist with the nicest website won't set you apart. Being clearly the practice for nervous adults, or for families who need Saturdays, might.
How do you do dental marketing?
Start with what you already have. Fix the site and the phones, complete your Google profile, and ask for reviews and referrals. Only then pay for SEO or ads. Paying first just gets you more people leaving.
How long does dental marketing take to work?
Website and phone fixes work on the very next visitor. Ads can work within days. SEO and building your name take closer to 3 to 6 months.
Do I need a new website?
Usually not yet. You can do most of this list on the site you have, with whoever already edits it. Think about rebuilding if nobody can change it without a fee and a two-week wait, or if it's truly broken on a phone.
Should dentists put prices on their website?
Where your state's rules allow it, I'd publish at least the first-visit cost and a range for big treatments. A missing number gives people a reason to call someone else or not call at all. Your front desk has to answer the question anyway. Check your state's rules on advertising fees first, because some require specific wording.
Go deeper on conversion tactics.