Latest / The Local Marketing Podcast with Fexingo: Small Business, Google Maps, and Local SEO / How a Dentist Uses Google Maps to Rank Number One
Transcript
- Lucas: You search Google Maps for 'emergency dentist' in Austin, Texas, and the top result isn't a chain or a big corporate dental group. It's a single-location practice called Austin Comfort Dental, run by a dentist named Dr. Sarah Chen. Luna: I've seen that listing. It shows up with a 4.9-star rating, and there's a little badge that says 'accepting new patients.' Lucas: Yeah, exactly. That badge is a specific attribute in Google Business Profile. And it's one of the reasons she ranks so well. Today we're going to walk through exactly how Dr. Chen did it — because this is a playbook that works for any local service business. Luna: Before we dive deep — I want to flag something. We're able to do these deep-dive episodes because we don't run ads. No sponsors, no affiliate links, no 'this episode brought to you by' interruptions. Lucas: Right. And we want to keep it that way. If these marketing conversations have sparked something you've actually used in your own business, and you want to support the show staying ad-free, the link is buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Luna: Yeah, it's a small way to keep this independent. Now back to Dr. Chen — how did she go from invisible to number one? Lucas: Let's start with the basics. When she opened in early 2025, her Google Business Profile was essentially blank. She had the name, address, phone number — the bare minimum. But she hadn't filled out any attributes. Luna: Attributes are those little checkboxes, right? Like 'wheelchair accessible,' 'free Wi-Fi,' 'accepts credit cards.' Lucas: Exactly. And Google has confirmed that attributes influence ranking. So Dr. Chen went through and selected every relevant attribute: 'wheelchair accessible,' 'gender-neutral restrooms,' 'accepts new patients,' 'online appointments,' 'language assistance.' Luna: Did she add any custom attributes? Lucas: Not at that point. Just the standard ones. But here's the key: she updated them weekly. Google's algorithm favors profiles that show regular activity. So every Monday morning, she'd log in and make one small change — maybe update the hours for a holiday, add a new service like 'teeth whitening,' or change the description slightly. Luna: That's a great habit. Most business owners set it and forget it. Lucas: Exactly. The second thing she did was Google Posts. She published one post per week, every week, without fail. Some were promotions — '10% off new patient exams.' Some were educational — 'Five signs you need a root canal.' And some were just community stuff — 'We're donating toothbrushes to Austin elementary schools.' Luna: Did she include images in those posts? Lucas: Always. Photos get significantly more engagement. She used her phone — nothing fancy — just a well-lit shot of the office or a close-up of a toothbrush with a caption. Google Posts stay live for seven days, so she was constantly refreshing that content. Luna: And the reviews — she has 4.9 stars. How did she get that many? Lucas: She asked every single patient. But she did it smartly — after the appointment, when they were still in the chair or at the front desk. She'd say, 'If you had a good experience, would you mind leaving a Google review? Here, let me pull it up on my phone.' She made it frictionless. Luna: She didn't send a follow-up email or text? Lucas: She did that too. But the in-person ask was more effective. She also responded to every single review — positive or negative — within 24 hours. For a negative review, she'd apologize publicly and offer to make it right offline. Google sees that responsiveness as a positive signal. Luna: And the Q&A section — I noticed she has questions like 'Do you take Medicaid?' answered right there. Lucas: That's the third piece. Dr. Chen pre-seeded the Q&A with questions she knew patients commonly asked. She'd log into a different Google account, ask the question, then answer it from her business account. That way, when someone actually searches 'dentist near me that accepts Delta Dental,' the answer is already there. Luna: That's clever. So you're capturing long-tail search intent through the Q&A. Lucas: Precisely. And Google regularly features Q&A answers in the local finder. Now, the most interesting part: she used Google Business Profile insights to see that 73% of her search traffic came from people searching 'dentist near me' or 'emergency dentist near me.' Luna: So she knew exactly what keyword to optimize for. Lucas: Right. So she added 'emergency dentist' to her business name in the profile — not the actual business name, but in the description and posts. She also created a custom attribute: 'emergency walk-ins welcome.' And she posted a Google Post every Saturday saying 'Open for emergency appointments this weekend.' Luna: Did she do anything with the 'services' section? Lucas: Yes. She listed every single service she offered, from 'fillings' to 'crowns' to 'root canals' to 'teeth whitening' to 'emergency extractions.' That's another ranking factor — the more relevant services you list, the better your chances of matching a search query. Luna: And the photos — I imagine she added photos of the office, the staff, maybe before and after shots? Lucas: All of that. She added at least 10 new photos every month. Google's algorithm rewards profiles with fresh visual content. Plus, she uploaded a 30-second video tour of the office — that's really rare for a local business, so it gave her an extra boost. Luna: I want to go back to the attributes for a second. You said she updated them weekly. Is that really necessary? Lucas: You don't have to do it every single week, but consistency matters. Google wants to see that your business is actively managed. If you haven't logged in for six months, your ranking can slip. Even just changing the primary category from 'dentist' to 'cosmetic dentist' for a week and then switching back — that activity signals to Google that you're alive. Luna: So it's about proving you're a real, operating business. Lucas: Exactly. And the results speak for themselves. Within six months, Dr. Chen went from page three to the number-one spot for 'emergency dentist Austin.' Her appointment bookings increased by 40 percent. And the best part is that this entire strategy cost her nothing except time. Luna: No paid ads, no SEO agency, no fancy tools. Lucas: Zero. Just consistent, thoughtful use of what Google gives you for free. So if you're a local business owner listening, here's your checklist: fill out every attribute, post weekly, respond to every review, pre-seed your Q&A, upload fresh photos, and use your insights to see what people are actually searching for. Luna: And if you want to go deeper, we've linked Dr. Chen's profile in the show notes so you can see what a fully optimized listing looks like. Lucas: Next week we'll look at how a bakery used Google Maps to turn one-star reviews into five-star loyalty. Until then, keep optimizing.