Google Business Profile for a medical practice: nine settings that bring in patients for free

When a patient searches “dentist near me” or “cardiologist Casablanca”, Google first shows a map and three practices. That is the Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business). It comes before your website, it is free, and for a neighbourhood practice it is often the most direct source of patients there is.

Google itself explains how it ranks these local results: by relevance (does your listing match the search?), distance (are you close to the patient?) and prominence (reviews, links, presence on the web). You can do nothing about distance. The other two can be worked on, starting with the nine settings below.

0. First: claim the listing

Many practices have a listing created automatically, or by a patient, that nobody manages. Look up your practice on Google Maps; if you see “Own this business?”, the listing is not yours. Claim it and complete Google’s verification. Nothing below is possible without that.

1. The exact name, nothing else

The listing name must be the practice’s real name, the one on the plaque. Adding keywords (“Dr X, best cardiologist Casablanca echography”) breaks Google’s rules and can get the listing suspended. For a doctor it is also a form of advertising.

2. The right primary category

This setting weighs most on relevance. Pick the most precise category: “Cardiologist” rather than “Doctor”, “Dentist” or “Orthodontist” depending on the main activity. Add secondary categories only when they truly describe what the practice does.

3. The address and the map pin

Check that the pin lands on the right entrance, not in the middle of the boulevard. For a practice in a building, add the floor to the address line. A patient who circles for twenty minutes looking for the door arrives stressed, or not at all.

4. True opening hours, exceptions included

I have seen a practice’s listing show “Open 24 hours” when it closes in the evening. The patient who finds a locked door does not come back, and sometimes says so in a review. Enter the real hours, then the special hours: public holidays, Ramadan, time off.

5. The link to your website

A dental centre I worked with was rated 5.0 on Google, with dozens of reviews, and no website on its listing: a patient won over by the rating had nowhere to click to learn more. Add the link to your site, ideally to the most useful page (home, or booking). It is also what ties the listing and the site together in Google’s eyes.

6. The appointment link

The listing accepts an appointment link, shown as a button. Point it at your online booking page. The patient goes from search to slot in two taps, without calling.

7. Real photos

The front (to recognise the entrance), the waiting room, the examination room, the team if they wish. Photos taken on site, not stock images. They answer the question every patient asks before a first visit: what is it like?

8. A factual description and services

Describe in a few sentences the specialty, the exams or treatments offered, the languages spoken, insurance. List the services one by one: those are the words patients type. Stay factual, with no superlatives and no promises: Google’s rules and medical ethics agree on that.

9. Reviews: reply, without ever breaching confidentiality

Reviews count towards prominence, and replying shows an attentive practice. But this is where a doctor can make a real mistake.

The rule: never confirm, in a public reply, that someone is or was your patient, and never mention a treatment, an exam or any detail of their care. Not even to defend yourself against an unfair review. Medical confidentiality applies on Google too.

A good reply stays general: thank them, restate the practice’s commitment, invite them to get in touch directly. A bad reply says “during your consultation on the 12th for your ultrasound…”.

And two rules for everyone: never buy reviews, and never offer anything in exchange for one. Google’s rules forbid it and the listing can be penalised.

The forgotten setting: consistency everywhere

Name, address and phone must be written exactly the same way on the listing, on your website, in medical directories and on your social accounts. An old number in a directory, an abbreviated address on the site: Google hesitates, and so does the patient. On the sites I build, those details are written once and reused everywhere, including in the structured data Google reads.

The listing does not replace the site

The listing brings the patient to you; the site answers them, reassures them and gets them to book. The two work together. What the site should contain is in this article on a doctor’s website.

Hamza BenjaabaI design and build websites that sell, and the Google SEO that brings them visitors, for brands, doctors and freelancers, in Morocco and France.