The Google review is the new first appointment
The majority of people evaluating a dentist say reviews are their first step — before ever calling to book. The profile is doing the work an in-person consultation used to do.
Published September 2, 2026
A first appointment used to be where trust got established — a chance to meet the provider, see the office, decide if it felt right. Increasingly, that evaluation happens earlier, on a phone screen, before an appointment is ever booked. For a practice like a dental office, the reviews on a Google Business Profile are doing work that used to require an in-person visit.
What practices themselves report
The American Dental Association's Health Policy Institute has found most dentists receive online reviews from patients — but a meaningful share of practices don't respond to them, and some specifically cite HIPAA concerns as the reason they hold back, even though a general, non-identifying response doesn't disclose protected information.
What actually moves a prospective patient
- Review volume and recency — an outdated set of reviews from years ago reads as an inactive or declining practice, regardless of quality of care.
- Specific, detailed reviews (about wait times, staff friendliness, how a procedure went) carry more weight than generic five-star ratings with no text.
- A response to every review, positive and negative — silence on negative reviews specifically reads as a practice with something to hide, even when that isn't the case.
This is the same underlying mechanism as ranking in the local map pack — reviews are both a ranking signal and the thing a patient reads with their own eyes, doing double duty for any practice that gets it right.
Frequently asked questions
Substantially — a majority of people evaluating a dentist report reviews as a primary factor, with many treating them as the first step in the decision before ever making contact with the practice.
It's mixed. The American Dental Association's Health Policy Institute has found most dentists receive online reviews, but a meaningful share don't respond to them — some citing compliance concerns (HIPAA) as the reason they hold back, even when a general response wouldn't disclose protected information.
Actively asking satisfied patients for reviews, responding to what comes in (a generic, non-identifying response is compliant even under HIPAA concerns), and keeping the Google Business Profile current — hours, photos, services offered.