Ranking guide
See what matters most to show up on Google and in AI answers, what Smileline has already checked for your practice, and how to do the rest.
Open SEO → Ranking guide. The guide lists what helps a dental practice show up on Google, in Google's AI answers, in ChatGPT and in Claude — most effective first — and shows, for the site you pick, what is already done.
Pick a tab and a site
The tabs are Google, Google AI, ChatGPT and Claude. Each has its own list, because each one finds practices in its own way: some points sit in several tabs.
If the practice has more than one site, choose it with the site picker. Google profiles, reviews and listings are per site, so every status and tick is too.
Read each row
Every point is always in the list, in order of how much it tends to move rankings:
- Status shows what Smileline has measured for the site — for example missing Google profile fields, reviews waiting for a reply, or listings whose details differ. When nothing has been measured yet it says so rather than guessing.
- Impact shows how much the point tends to matter on that tab.
- Quick action opens the place in Smileline where you do it, such as your Google profile fixes, Listings, Reviews or Website.
Open a point to see a before-and-after preview of what changes, the steps, how to check it worked and, for some points, a video.
Measured and ticked points
Smileline checks what it can — your Google profile, website check, listings, reviews, Search Console and AI visibility — and shows what it found on each point, with the date of the check.
- When a check finds a problem, such as a missing Google profile field or a listing with the wrong phone number, the point shows as to do until the next check finds it fixed. A tick never hides a problem.
- A point is completed automatically only when the check proves it: a verified Google profile, every review replied to, Search Console connected, the website's speed measured with no problems, a recent Google post, every directory that should list you checked and matching your details, a published Smileline website, or an AI check that named your practice.
- Everything else — including points whose check found nothing wrong but can't prove they're done, and points no check covers, such as local links or treatment pages — has Mark done. Tick it when you have done it; the tick is for the selected site only.
Claude's answers are not checked yet, so most Claude points are ticked by hand; points about your website use the website check. Review counts come from what Google Maps showed on a given day, so they are shown with their date and never complete a point on their own.
Gray-hat and black-hat tactics
The guide also lists tactics that break Google's rules, so you can recognise them — in an agency's proposal, or being used against you. They are labelled Gray or Black, ranked by how well they work like everything else, and show what happens when Google catches them. They have no quick action and never count as done.
Tactics that are illegal, such as fake reviews, are explained together with how to protect your practice, never how to do them.
Where the order comes from
Google doesn't publish how much each signal counts, so the order is Smileline's judgement based on published research — mainly the Whitespark Local Search Ranking Factors survey, Google's own guidance and studies of what AI search tools cite. Each point lists its sources.
Some points only apply in some countries, such as UK and US health directories; you see the ones for your practice's country.
Articles
Pick a topic or an existing page to improve, plan it from the pages that rank on Google, write it with research and AI help, send it for clinical review, then publish the approved article to your Smileline website now or later, email or download it, and see how it does on Google.
Reports overview
What each report shows and how to filter, compare and share them.