How do new patients find a dentist now? Many still type "dentist near me" into Google and pick from the map. But a growing number ask AI assistants instead: "Which dentist near Parramatta is good with nervous patients and open on Saturdays?" Tools like Google's AI Overviews, ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot and Perplexity now answer those questions directly, often naming specific practices.
That changes what it takes to be found. This guide explains how patients search today, and the practical steps a dental practice can take to show up in Google, Google Maps and AI search, without breaking Ahpra's advertising rules.
Key takeaways
- Your Google Business Profile is still the most important local visibility tool. Keep it complete and accurate.
- AI assistants rely on information they can find and trust: your website, your business profiles, directories and reviews. Consistent, specific, factual information helps them describe you correctly.
- Write clear pages for each service and location, and answer the questions patients actually ask.
- Use structured data, such as Dentist schema, so search engines understand your practice.
- Handle reviews carefully. Ahpra's rules restrict how practices use testimonials in advertising.
- Measure where new patients come from, including AI assistants.
How patients search now
Traditional search and the map
For local searches like "dentist Bondi", Google shows a map with a handful of practices (the local pack), followed by websites. Rankings depend on relevance, distance and prominence: how well-known and well-reviewed the practice is.
AI answers
AI tools summarise information from many sources and give a direct answer, sometimes with links. Patients may ask more specific questions than they would type into a search box, such as about weekend hours, sedation options, parking, accessibility or languages spoken. If that information isn't clearly published somewhere, AI tools can't use it, or may get it wrong.
Voice assistants
Phone voice assistants usually answer "Find a dentist open now" from business listings, so listing accuracy matters.
Step 1: Perfect your Google Business Profile
- Name, address and phone exactly as they appear on your website
- Primary category "Dentist", with relevant secondary categories
- Opening hours, including special and public holiday hours
- Services listed in plain language
- Booking link to your online booking or phone line
- Attributes such as wheelchair access, parking and languages
- Photos of the practice, team and surroundings, updated regularly
- Questions and answers: add common questions and accurate answers
Also claim and check your listings on Bing Places and Apple Business Connect. Some AI assistants draw on Bing's index and listings, and many iPhone users search through Apple Maps.
Step 2: Build a website that answers questions
- A page for each main service, such as check-ups, children's dentistry, implants, emergency appointments and sedation, explaining what's involved, who it's for and how to book
- A page for each location, with real local detail: address, parking, transport, team and hours. Avoid thin, copied "suburb pages", which search engines treat as low quality
- Team pages with each dentist's name, qualifications and registration details, which help search engines and patients trust you
- Fees and health funds information, presented accurately
- FAQs written in plain language, answering one question each
- A blog with genuinely useful articles, like the guides on this site
Write clearly and specifically. "Open Saturdays 8am–1pm, free parking behind the building, wheelchair accessible" is far more useful to AI tools and patients than "convenient hours and location".
Step 3: Add structured data
Structured data is code on your website that tells search engines exactly what your business is. For dental practices, the Dentist type from schema.org can describe your name, address, phone, hours, services and geographic area. Articles can use BlogPosting, and FAQ content can be marked up too. Your web developer or website platform can add it, and Google's Rich Results Test can check it.
Step 4: Keep your information consistent everywhere
AI tools and search engines cross-check information across your website, business profiles, health directories and social media. Inconsistent phone numbers, old addresses or outdated hours reduce trust and can lead to wrong answers. Audit your listings at least twice a year.
Step 5: Handle reviews within Ahpra's rules
Reviews strongly influence local rankings and patient choices. But the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law bans testimonials in advertising for regulated health services. In general:
- Don't quote or republish clinical reviews on your website, social media or ads.
- Respond to reviews professionally, without confirming that the reviewer is a patient or discussing their care, to protect privacy.
- Be cautious about soliciting reviews, and never offer incentives. Check Ahpra's current guidance and your indemnity insurer's advice before running any review campaign.
See Ahpra advertising rules and AI chatbots for more.
Step 6: Make sure search engines and AI tools can read your site
- Fast, mobile-friendly pages
- A sitemap submitted in Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools
- A robots.txt that doesn't accidentally block search engines. Some AI companies have their own crawlers, so decide deliberately whether to allow them
- Readable text, not important information locked inside images or PDFs
Step 7: Measure what's working
- Google Search Console for search queries, impressions and clicks
- Google Business Profile insights for calls, direction requests and website visits
- Website analytics, including referral traffic from AI assistants
- Ask new patients how they found you, and record it in your practice software
Don't forget the phone
All this work leads to one moment: a patient calls or books. If that call goes to voicemail, the visibility is wasted. See the real cost of missed calls.
Frequently asked questions
Can I pay to appear in ChatGPT or AI Overviews?
You can't buy a place in organic AI answers. The best approach is accurate, specific, well-structured information across your website and listings.
Do location pages for nearby suburbs help?
Only if each page has genuinely useful, specific content. Copied pages with the suburb name swapped are treated as low quality.
How long does SEO take for a dental practice?
Google Business Profile improvements can show results within weeks. Website content and authority usually take months.
Next steps
Audit your Google Business Profile this week and ask an AI assistant about dentists in your suburb to see what it says about you. For more on modern practice technology, read our guide to AI in dentistry. And when patients find you, make sure every call is answered: see how IntelliDent works.