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Local SEO for practices
Local SEO for dentists, vets, opticians and therapy practices
People now ask Google and AI assistants for the best practice near them, and the answer names only a handful. Local SEO decides whether yours is one of them. It comes down to your Google Business Profile, your reviews, your website, and whether your details match everywhere.
Last updated 3 November 2026. Written by Maratopia.
54%
of UK adults use AI tools such as ChatGPT, Copilot or Gemini
Ofcom, April 2026, UK
45%
of consumers use AI tools for local recommendations, up from 6% a year earlier
BrightLocal, 2026, US panel
41%
of consumers always read reviews, up from 29% a year earlier
BrightLocal, 2026, US panel
The BrightLocal figures come from a US panel and are not UK-specific. The direction is what matters.
How do people choose a practice now?
They search, and they ask. About 30% of UK searches now show a Google AI Overview (Ofcom, December 2025), and Google still carries around 91% of UK search (Statcounter, 2026). Bing takes roughly one in eight UK desktop searches and feeds Microsoft Copilot, so your listings need to be right in both.
Either way the person sees a short list, not ten blue links. If your practice is not on it, they never reach your website, and you will not see the lost enquiry in your analytics.
What decides which practice gets named?
- Your Google Business Profile. Accurate categories, opening hours, services, phone number and photos, and answers to the questions people post.
- Your reviews. A steady flow of genuine reviews, with a reply to every one, and detail about the service rather than stars alone.
- Your website. A page for each service and each location, with specific content and clear structured data that matches your profiles.
- Consistency. The same business name, address and phone number on your website, Google, Bing Places and the directories that matter in your sector.
- What the AI says about you. Assistants build a view from everything the web says about you. Ask them, and check that what they say is right.
Check your practice: ten points
Tick what is true today. Be honest: a half-true answer is a miss. This is a self-assessment, not a measurement, but it shows where to look first.
What matters most for your type of practice
The ten points apply to every practice. Each profession also has searches of its own.
Dentists
People search for a dentist near them, for emergency appointments, and by treatment such as implants or orthodontics. Give every treatment its own page, keep your opening hours and emergency arrangements exact on your profile, and give each dentist a clear profile page with qualifications.
Vets
Owners search for a vet near them, for out-of-hours and emergency care, and by service or species. Make your opening hours and out-of-hours arrangements unmistakable on your profile and your site, and give each service its own page.
Opticians
People search for an optician near them and for eye tests, contact lenses and frames. Give each service and each brand range its own page, and keep every branch’s profile accurate.
Chiropractors, physiotherapists and osteopaths
People search by symptom or condition first, then by treatment and location. Write plainly about what you treat, name your practitioners and their qualifications, and keep each location’s profile accurate.
If you have several sites, each needs its own profile and its own page with specific content, not the same text with the town name swapped. Each profession has its own advertising rules. We write the copy for you to approve and agree every page with you before it goes live.
Questions practice owners ask
Does my Google Business Profile matter more than my website?
Both matter, and they work together. Your profile is what most people see first for a search such as dentist near me. Your website is what Google and AI assistants read to confirm what you do and where you do it. If either is weak, you lose the recommendation to a practice whose details are clearer.
How do I get more reviews?
Ask every client, at a steady pace, and make it easy with a direct link to your review form. Reply to every review, good and bad. Do not offer incentives and do not choose who to ask, because Google’s policies prohibit both.
Can an AI assistant recommend my practice?
Yes. AI assistants name practices when they can find consistent, trustworthy information about them. Accurate listings, genuine reviews and clear service pages all feed that. You can test it by asking ChatGPT or Gemini who it recommends in your town. Our two-minute AI visibility check does this for your area and scores your practice out of 100. It is a snapshot of one AI engine, not a full analysis.
How long does local SEO take?
Fixes to your profile and pages can show up in search and AI answers within weeks. Authority built from reviews and mentions takes months. Expect meaningful movement across three to six months, depending on your market and how competitive your area is.
Do I need special structured data to appear in AI answers?
Google says no special markup is needed to appear in its AI features. Accurate LocalBusiness structured data still removes ambiguity about who you are and where you are, so we add it and check that it matches your profiles exactly.
What does local SEO cost?
It depends on the number of locations and how competitive your area is. We give you a costed, prioritised plan after a short analysis, so you know what you are buying before you commit.
Who does AI recommend instead of you?
Find out in two minutes, or talk it through with us. For a fuller picture of your site against your competitors, see our free website audit and Search Space Analysis, or the full AI visibility report.
Or call 020 300 20 511 or email [email protected].
Sources
- Ofcom, Adults’ Media Use and Attitudes Report 2026, 2 April 2026.
- Ofcom, Online Nation 2025, 10 December 2025 (includes Similarweb data).
- BrightLocal, Local Consumer Review Survey 2026 (US panel).
- Statcounter, UK search engine market share, 2026.
- Google Search Central, AI features and your website, 2026.