Orthodontic marketing guides
Every guide for growing an orthodontic practice, in one place
33 practical guides written by Dr. Mahmoud Elsheikh, a dentist completing an MSD in Orthodontics, grouped by the problem you are trying to solve: getting found, earning reviews, converting enquiries and knowing what your marketing returns.
- 33 guides in 7 topics
- Written by an orthodontic-trained author
- No hype, sources cited
Start here
New to orthodontic marketing? Start with these
Three guides that show where most practices win or lose new patients, before you spend on anything.
12 orthodontic marketing ideas
Practical ideas ordered by effort, from profile fixes to paid search.
How to get more orthodontic patients
Nine places practices lose patients, from missed calls to hidden costs.
Marketing a new orthodontic practice
A week-by-week plan for before opening, launch and the first 90 days.
SEO and AI search
Getting found on Google and in AI answers
How search works for orthodontic practices, what it costs and how AI tools decide who to recommend.
SEO for orthodontists
Local search, treatment pages, reviews and technical basics, without jargon.
Dental SEO vs. orthodontic SEO
Why the buyer, search terms and content differ for orthodontics.
How AI search chooses an orthodontist
What Google says about AI Overviews and what is hype.
How much does orthodontic SEO cost?
Published market prices, what moves the price and warning signs in a quote.
Google Maps and local search
Showing up in the map pack
Most new patients find an orthodontist through Google Maps. These guides cover what you can control.
How to rank in the Google map pack
What decides map rankings and a practical plan to improve yours.
Google Business Profile checklist
Every field to complete, from category to photos, posts and reviews.
Competing with GP aligner providers
Win the local comparison on facts, without criticizing anyone.
Independent orthodontist vs DSO
Compete locally with groups on continuity, referrals and reviews.
Reviews and patient privacy
Earning reviews and protecting patients
How to earn more genuine reviews and reply to them, and how to keep your website tracking within the rules.
How to get more Google reviews
A fair, repeatable routine and what the FTC rule and Google prohibit.
Responding to reviews without violating HIPAA
What you can and cannot say, with safe reply templates.
Tracking pixels and patient privacy
What HHS guidance says about analytics and ad pixels on practice websites.
Specialist advertising rules
Who may claim specialist status, with state rule examples.
Websites and Google Ads
Turning visits into consultations
Your website and paid search either convert interest into bookings or leak it. Fix the leaks first.
9 orthodontic website mistakes
Common mistakes that cost consultations, and fixes without a redesign.
Do you own your practice website?
Leased vs. owned, what you lose and what to ask before signing.
Google Ads: what to set up before you spend
Tracking, landing pages, structure and negative keywords.
Missed calls: cost and fixes
Measure your miss rate and close the callback gap.
Orthodontic referral marketing
Dentist and patient referrals, and the legal limits on rewards.
Content and clinical accuracy
Writing pages patients trust
What to publish first and how to use the words patients search for without getting the clinical detail wrong.
Content marketing for orthodontists
Which pages to publish first, how to structure them and what to avoid.
Overbite vs. overjet: why accuracy matters
How to match patient language and stay clinically accurate.
Marketing to adult patients
The concerns, pages and booking fixes adults need.
Marketing to parents
The age 7 check, school timing and photo consent.
Prices and financing on your site
Show cost ranges honestly and word payment terms safely.
Website accessibility rules
ADA, WCAG and the updated HHS Section 504 dates.
Budget, measurement and agencies
Spending wisely and knowing what works
How much to spend, how to measure it from click to new start, and how to choose help.
Orthodontic marketing budget
Benchmarks, a capacity-based method and how to split spend.
Measuring orthodontic marketing
Connecting enquiries to consultations and starts, with a one-page report.
Consultation request follow-up
Why response time decides bookings and a routine to improve it.
How to choose an orthodontic marketing agency
Twelve questions to ask, good answers and red flags.
Orthodontic marketing ROI
Formulas and a worked example for cost per start.
Agency vs in-house
Costs, task fit and how to split work in a hybrid.
Marketing companies compared
What each company publishes about prices and terms.
Free tools and research
Put the guides into practice
Free calculators and checkers that turn these guides into numbers for your own practice, plus our original research.
Orthodontic Website Study 2026
What 30 orthodontic homepages in the 10 largest US cities show and hide.
Google Business Profile checker
Score your map listing in 2 minutes and see the top three fixes.
Missed call revenue calculator
What unanswered new-patient calls cost you each month.
All free tools
Nine calculators and checkers for orthodontic practices.
Questions
About these guides
Who writes these guides?
Every guide is written by Dr. Mahmoud Elsheikh, a dentist completing a Master of Science in Dentistry in Orthodontics and an SEO consultant with more than five years of experience. Each guide cites its sources, such as Google, the FTC, HHS and the American Association of Orthodontists, so you can check the claims yourself.
Where should a practice owner start?
Start with the three guides at the top of this page. They show where most practices lose new patients, such as missed calls, slow follow-up and a weak map listing, which are usually cheaper to fix than buying more traffic. Then pick the topic that matches your biggest gap.
Are these guides only for orthodontists?
They are written for orthodontic practices, but most of the advice on local search, reviews, patient privacy, websites and measurement also applies to general and pediatric dental practices. Where orthodontics differs, for example in search terms or treatment content, the guides say so.
Want a second opinion?
Get a free growth audit for your practice
We review your map listing, website and search visibility and send you the three changes most likely to bring more consultations.