So much is subject to regulation for healthcare businesses that it’s no surprise that Google has its own set of rules for them, both for Google Ads and for Google Business Profiles (formerly known as Google My Business).
Maximizing online presence is a core component for maintaining patient volumes, and when you follow Google business profile guidelines you prevent disruption to your digital outreach. This article shares what to be aware of with Google Business Profile listing guidelines for medical practices.
Eligibility and Guidelines: Ensuring Your Healthcare Practice Qualifies
To maintain top-quality service to its user base, Google will only include vetted businesses in its digital directory. Requirements for Google Business Profile are that a business has a tangible, physical location where they engage in direct, face-to-face interactions with local consumers.
Qualified businesses fall into three principal categories: Service Area Businesses (SABs) that typically travel to customers, storefront serving customers on-site, and hybrid who have the dexterity to offer either mobile or on-site services.
Physical Location Requirements
So, if your healthcare business sees patients in person either in a physical establishment or by home visits, it qualifies for a Google Business Profile listing. What if your medical practice offers telehealth services? Businesses offering virtual services can have a Google Business Profile listing as long as in-person services are also being provided and tied to a local address.
For better visibility and top placement, medical practices need to follow Google Business Profile guidelines. This involves managing multiple clinic listings for different locations or a single establishment with separate areas, such as a medical group leasing multiple floors in a medical center.
Setting Up and Optimizing Your Practice’s GBP
When it comes to enhancing your practice’s digital footprint, few steps are as crucial as setting up and optimizing your Google Business Profile (GBP). The process begins with claiming and verifying ownership of your profile. This is a key step that ensures your practice is accurately represented online and that you have the authority to manage its information.
To maintain a strong online presence and comply with Google Business Profile guidelines, aim to have consistency across all digital platforms. This means keeping your practice’s name, address, and phone number (NAP) uniform across your website, social media, and online listings. This consistency boosts your visibility on Google, helping potential patients find and contact you easily.
To truly leverage your GBP, include as many details as possible about your practice. Upload high-quality photos to give potential patients a virtual glimpse into your facility, list all the services you offer, and ensure your operating hours are up to date. These details not only enrich your profile but also help in establishing a connection with prospective patients even before they visit your practice.
Compliance and Avoiding Suspension: Playing by Google’s Rules
The most widely used search engine globally has a lasting impact on online business promotion, including healthcare. Digital marketers always monitor Google’s rules and algorithm updates, but one core standard remains unchanged – providing useful information to users. Helpful information is not outdated, incomplete, erroneous, or intentionally misleading, and such ethics are reflected in Google Business Profile guidelines.
While beneficial to keep up on any Google policy changes, the core best practice is to keep information accurate. Not only do timely updates keep your Google accounts in good standing, but theyit also promotes trust with healthcare consumers through an excellent patient experience. Many patients rely on Google for accurate contact information and hours of operation, so when you keep all your details current, you align with consumer expectations.
In short, to remain compliant with Google’s rules, keep your business information updated, accurate, truthful, not promoting services that are prohibited by Google, and avoid any false or misleading claims.
Naming Rules and Accurate Information
When setting up a Google Business Profile for a medical practice, the name used should be exactly as it appears in the real world, minus any legal terminologies like LLC or Inc. For instance, if your medical practice’s legal name is “ABC LLC” and you specialize in pediatrics, you should enter your business name into Google Business Profiles as “ABC Pediatrics”. This approach ensures that your business name is not only compliant with Google Business Profile listing guidelines, but also clear and not misleading to potential patients.
To adhere to Google Business Profile naming guidelines, avoid adding unnecessary details or altering the name in ways that could confuse people. For example, don’t include terms that suggest you offer services or have affiliations that you don’t. If your practice operates in multiple locations or has different departments or providers, distinguish these entities clearly.
Use the main brand name followed by a descriptive identifier, like “ABC Regional Clinic: Downtown” for a location, or “ABC Pediatrics: Dr. Julie Jones” for an individual provider within the practice. This format keeps your brand’s presence cohesive and avoids the creation of duplicate or confusing listings. Remember, consistency across all your listings is key, not just for staying compliant with Google’s rules, but also for making it easier for patients to find and recognize your practice online.
The Consequences of Violating Google’s Guidelines
Consider the modern healthcare consumer. Frequently, they rely on Google to discover available services in their area, weighing factors like convenience and reliability. Practices absent from Google search results – especially Google Business Profiles – are effectively non-existent in their minds. “Out of sight, out of mind,” as the expression says. Consequently, healthcare businesses miss a significant chance to attract new patients when not showing up in search results.
Accounts in breach of Google’s terms of use may face temporary or permanent suspension, with severe violations resulting in permanent suspension. While minor infractions may result in only a temporary suspension, this is not without consequences. Even a brief suspension means potential patients won’t see your medical practice in the most visible area of local search results. It can also result in a loss of Google reviews, which often take years to accumulate. If your medical practice receives notification of a Google suspension, it is best to appeal promptly to restore local online visibility.
Monitoring and Maintaining Compliance
Keeping your healthcare practice’s profile in line with Google’s guidelines requires constant vigilance. Regularly check for unauthorized changes or suspicious activity to prevent misinformation or compliance issues. It’s also essential to keep your profile information updated, including hours, contact details, and services offered.
Promptly responding to patient reviews and messages demonstrates good customer service and meets Google’s engagement expectations. Avoid spammy behaviors or manipulative tactics, as these can lead to profile suspension or violation notices. If your profile is suspended or flagged, review Google Business Profiles guidelines closely, correct any issues, and submit a reinstatement request detailing your corrective actions. Upholding your practice’s digital integrity and trustworthiness is wholly dependent upon maintaining compliance
Summary: Google Business Profile Guidelines for Healthcare Businesses
To provide the best user experience, Google Business Profiles guidelines for medical practices have been established. Regulated industries like finance and healthcare will have additional rules to follow in terms of what is prohibited from being promoted.
When posting content related to certain regulated products or services, it must not include calls to action, offers for sale, or promotional materials. For example, restrictions apply to alcohol, gambling, tobacco, firearms, health and medical devices, regulated pharmaceuticals, adult services, and financial services.
Businesses are expressly prohibited from sharing links to purchase these restricted items, contact information for purchasing them, or any promotional offers like deals, coupons, or pricing information for such products or services on the Google Business Profiles platform. Additional rules may apply and are always subject to change. For this reason, many businesses rely on digital marketing services to keep up with compliance matters.
The ability to promote your healthcare business on Google is an indispensable asset for new patient acquisition. To avoid that disruption of new patient leads caused by account suspensions, medical practices must be proactive in following best practices including:
- Naming your business: Use the business name that is used for practical purposes. For example, instead of saying ABC Pediatrics Group LLC your business would be listed as ABC Pediatric Care or whatever is displayed on your promotional materials like signs and business cards. When your medical practice has a similar name to another local business it’s necessary to distinguish yours from theirs. Simple descriptors also help distinguish healthcare establishments with multiple locations or specialties such as ABC Clinics: Springfield or ABC Clinics: Urgent Care.
- Keep profiles current and accurate: Maintain a great user experience for Google consumers and potential patients by keeping contact information, location especially, update. Hours of operation and photos should also be up to date.
- Be mindful of promotions: Part of having a Google Business Profile with real impact is to optimize it with more information about your services. As long as your promotions do not violate Google’s guidelines, you should be in the clear.
Maintain Online Presence Best Practices with Confidence with Digital Marketers Who Know Healthcare
With an eye on maintaining the best patient care, other aspects of the business can easily escape your notice especially around digital marketing. Our digital marketing teams are fully dedicated to healthcare digital marketing where we not only know the most cost-effective strategies, but we also keep abreast of changes in the digital world that directly impact healthcare. Contact us to learn more about how we can maximize your digital reach to increase your patient volumes.
