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The Google Business Profile Checklist for Orthodontic Practices

Your Business Profile feeds the map pack, AI Overviews, and AI Mode. This is the checklist we run on every practice we take on.

Beth Leach
Beth Leach
Co-Owner, Orthodontic Revolution · October 17, 2026 · 3 min read

If we could fix only one thing for a new orthodontic client, it would usually be their Google Business Profile. It's the listing that shows your practice on Google Maps and in the map pack at the top of local searches, and Google's AI features draw on it too. It's also the asset most practices set up once and forget.

How Google decides who shows up

Google is unusually direct about this. Its help page on local ranking names three factors:

  • Relevance: how well your profile matches what the person searched for
  • Distance: how far your office is from the searcher
  • Prominence: how well known your practice is, including reviews and links from other websites

You can't move your office. You can do a lot about relevance and prominence. Google also says outright that there's no way to pay for a better local ranking, so be wary of anyone who implies otherwise.

The checklist

Ownership and accuracy

  • The profile is verified, and the practice owns it, not a former employee or an old agency.
  • Practice name matches your signage and website exactly. No keywords stuffed into the name.
  • Address, phone number, and website link match what's on your website.
  • Regular hours are correct, and holiday hours get added before every holiday.

Categories

  • Primary category is Orthodontist.
  • Secondary categories only if they're true for your practice. More categories are not better.

Services and description

  • Services list covers each treatment you offer: braces, clear aligners, early treatment, adult orthodontics, and so on.
  • The description says who you treat, what you offer, and where, in plain language.
  • Attributes such as wheelchair accessibility, languages spoken, and online appointments are filled in where accurate.

Photos

  • Exterior photos that help a parent recognize the building and entrance.
  • Interior, team, and doctor photos that look like your actual office today.
  • New photos added a few times a year, not just at setup.

Reviews

  • A steady system for asking for reviews, not a once-a-year push.
  • Replies to reviews, positive and negative, within a few days. Google itself recommends replying.
  • No patient health details in replies. Thank people without confirming treatment specifics.

Ongoing activity

  • Someone owns the profile and checks it monthly.
  • Suggested edits from Google or the public get reviewed. Anyone can suggest a change to your listing.
  • Questions people post on the profile get answered.

Watch for this: Google can update your listing based on public suggestions. We've seen hours, phone numbers, and even practice names changed without the office knowing. A monthly check catches it.

Why this matters more now

Whitespark's 2026 guide to Google's AI Mode notes that it pulls basic facts, ratings, and other details from Business Profiles, alongside reviews and websites. When a parent asks Google a conversational question about orthodontists nearby, your profile is one of the first places the answer gets built from. An incomplete profile doesn't just cost you a map ranking. It costs you a sentence in the answer.

Questions orthodontists ask

How often should we update our Google Business Profile?

Check it monthly and update it whenever something changes: hours, holidays, services, team, or photos. A profile that shows recent activity looks current to both parents and Google.

Should our practice name include the word orthodontist or our city?

Only if it is part of your real business name as it appears on your signage. Adding keywords to the name breaks Google's guidelines and can get a listing suspended.

Can we have a separate profile for each doctor?

Google has specific rules for practitioners within a practice. For most single-location orthodontic offices, one strong practice profile is the right approach. Ask before creating additional listings.

How should we reply to a negative review?

Briefly, calmly, and without confirming that the person is a patient or mentioning any treatment details. Invite them to call the office to talk it through.

Find out where your practice stands.

Run a free AI Smile Score, or ask us for a free audit of your website, search, and AI visibility.

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