New patients check Google reviews before booking a dentist appointment. Here's how to build a 5-star reputation that fills your schedule.
71% of patients use online reviews as their first step in finding a new dentist. A practice with 4.8 stars and 100 reviews will consistently win new patients over a practice with the same quality care but no online presence. Your reviews are your practice's front door.
When and How to Ask Patients for Reviews
The best moment to ask is immediately after a successful appointment — at checkout, while the patient is still feeling the relief of a good visit. A warm, personal ask from a staff member combined with a QR code on the checkout counter is the most effective approach.
- After a routine cleaning — patients are relaxed and happy
- After cosmetic work — patients are excited about their results
- Post-emergency treatment — patients are grateful for the relief
- Via automated email or SMS 2 hours after each appointment
- On the after-visit summary or care instructions sheet
HIPAA Compliance and Review Requests
You cannot mention specific treatments or health information in review requests. Keep requests generic: "We'd love to hear about your experience at [Practice Name]. A quick Google review takes 60 seconds and helps other patients find quality dental care." Never reference a patient's specific condition in a public response.
Responding to Dental Practice Reviews
When responding to reviews (positive or negative), never acknowledge or confirm health information. Always respond to positive reviews with a warm thank-you. For negative reviews, acknowledge the experience and invite the patient to contact you privately — never discuss clinical details publicly.
Using Automation to Grow Reviews Consistently
A dental practice seeing 30 patients per day should be collecting at least 3–5 reviews per week. The only way to achieve this consistently is automation. Tools like PraiseGuard send review requests automatically after appointments are marked as complete, filtering satisfied patients toward Google and collecting private feedback from those who weren't.
Key Metric
Aim for a 10–15% review conversion rate (reviews per 100 patients). If you're seeing 500 patients per month, you should be collecting 50–75 new Google reviews monthly.
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