New patients find dentists the same way across The Woodlands, Spring, Conroe and Houston: they search “dentist near me” or a procedure like “dental implants The Woodlands,” check the map, read reviews and call. The practices that win make each of those steps easy. Here’s the playbook.
Make your Google Business Profile complete
- Choose the right primary category: Dentist, Cosmetic dentist, Pediatric dentist, Orthodontist or Emergency dental service.
- Create a profile for each location, and consider individual practitioner profiles for each dentist, which Google allows.
- List insurance and payment details and services like implants, Invisalign, crowns and same-day emergencies.
- Keep hours exact, including holiday hours. Patients searching for an emergency dentist on a Saturday need to see you’re open.
- Add real photos of your office, team and technology, and post monthly.
Build pages for the procedures that grow your practice
High-value treatments are searched by name: implants, Invisalign, veneers, sedation dentistry, emergency dentist. Give each one a page covering who it’s for, what to expect, cost ranges or financing, and before-and-after photos with consent. Add pages for the insurance plans you accept, since patients search for “dentist that takes Delta Dental near me.” Each page should name the communities you serve, such as The Woodlands, Spring, Magnolia, Conroe and Kingwood.
Earn reviews without HIPAA risk
Reviews decide where patients book. BrightLocal’s 2026 Local Consumer Review Survey found that 74% of consumers look for reviews from the past three months and 80% favor businesses that reply to every review.
Dental practices need one extra rule: never confirm someone is a patient or mention treatment in a reply. In 2019 the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services settled with a Dallas practice for $10,000 over patient information disclosed on social media (HHS settlement with a Dallas dental practice). Thank reviewers in general terms and move any details to a phone call.
Ask for reviews by text after appointments, and make it one tap to the review form.
Use Google Ads for high-value treatments
Dentists pay an average of $8.00 per click and $72.97 per lead on Google Ads, with a 10.67% conversion rate, according to WordStream/LocaliQ 2026 Google Ads benchmarks. That makes paid search profitable for implants, Invisalign and emergency visits, where a single patient can be worth thousands of dollars. Point each ad group at its procedure page, not your homepage, and run Local Services Ads too. Dentists are an eligible category.
Meta ads work well for new-patient offers and cosmetic treatments in a 10–15 mile radius. Check every offer against Texas State Board of Dental Examiners advertising rules before it runs.
Answer the phone and track it
Most new patients call. A missed call usually means a booked appointment somewhere else. Track calls by source, review the recordings, and measure how many calls your front desk answers and books. Many practices find that fixing missed calls adds more new patients than any new campaign. See call tracking: know which ads make the phone ring.
Frequently asked questions
How much should a dental practice spend on marketing?
Many practices budget 3–5% of collections for marketing, more when opening a new location or adding services like implants. Work backwards from the lifetime value of a new patient.
Can a dentist reply to Google reviews?
Yes, and they should, but replies must not confirm the reviewer is a patient or mention any treatment. Keep replies general and move details to a private conversation.
Do Google Ads work for dentists?
Yes, especially for high-value treatments. The 2026 national average cost per lead for dentists is $72.97, and a single implant or Invisalign patient is worth far more.