What You’ll Learn
- How Instagram being indexed by Google in August 2024 changed dental practice rankings overnight
- Why AI search engines prioritize practices that post consistent content across multiple platforms
- The zero-click search reality and what it means for patient acquisition
- Why dental practices can no longer effectively handle their own marketing
- What content strategy actually works for AI search visibility in 2026
Social Media Is Now SEO
In August 2024, something happened that most dental practices completely missed. Instagram started being indexed by Google search.
For practices already posting consistent, quality content, the results were immediate and dramatic.
“Almost overnight, 80% of our clients went number one at Google,” said Dr. Anissa Broussard, founder of Digital Floss and a dental marketing pioneer since 2010. “I was just like, whoa.”
Dr. Broussard recently joined the Byte Sized Podcast to break down what this shift means for dental practices and why the old rules of SEO no longer apply. Her perspective carries weight. She was among the first 50 clients of My Social Practice back in 2010, grew her social following to over 50,000, and generated 50 new patients monthly from social media alone.
The practices that ranked overnight were not doing anything magical. They were simply posting content consistently across platforms while their competitors were not.
Why Social Media Is Now a Ranking Factor
Traditional SEO operated on a simple matching system. You typed keywords into Google, and websites containing those keywords appeared in the results. Social media activity had almost no impact on search rankings. What you did on Facebook and what you did on your website were completely separate activities. That separation no longer exists.
AI search engines like Google Gemini, ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity do not just crawl your website. They pull data from everywhere: your Google reviews, your Facebook page, your Instagram posts, your LinkedIn profile, your YouTube videos, even your activity on X.
“It’s really pulling from every place,” Dr. Broussard explained. “This is why social is so impactful now. For those of you who are not doing blog posts, for those of you who have not updated your website in the last year or two, and you’ve got someone else who’s writing social media posts keeping AI SEO in mind, posting 16 times a month, that’s 16 times they’re having content that is now searchable by Google and all of the other platforms.”
The math is straightforward. A practice posting four times per week creates 16 pieces of searchable content monthly. A practice posting nothing creates zero. When AI engines synthesize information to make recommendations, the practice with more recent, relevant content wins.
The Zero-Click Reality
Here is where the situation becomes urgent. Google is preparing to shift its entire interface to AI mode in 2026. When that happens, the familiar experience of scrolling through 10 blue links disappears. Users will interact directly with Gemini, receive synthesized answers, and never click through to websites.
This is called zero-click search, and the data is already alarming. Patients trust AI responses more than traditional search results. Conversion rates from AI recommendations run four to eight times higher than from standard Google searches.
“If you’re not in the response of Gemini or in the response of ChatGPT, you’re not going to get found,” Dr. Broussard said. “You’re literally not going to get found.”
The AI overview that appears at the top of Google results already scans all available data about dental practices in a given area. The more content you have, the more clearly it is written for AI comprehension, the more likely you are to be cited in that overview.
Practices without consistent content across platforms simply do not have enough data for AI engines to work with. They dissolve into invisibility.
Why Dentists Cannot Do This Themselves Anymore
Dr. Broussard shares that the complexity of modern dental marketing has exceeded what most practices can handle internally.
“I don’t think dentists can do their own marketing anymore,” she admitted. “It is so freaking complicated. You have to have a team.”
Consider what effective AI search optimization now requires:
| Function | Skill Required |
| Copywriting | Human writers who understand SEO and brand voice |
| Video Production | Shooting, lighting, sound, editing |
| Platform Management | Posting across 7+ platforms with different formats |
| Paid Advertising | Understanding algorithms and geo-targeting |
| Technical SEO | Schema markup, site speed, proper indexing |
| Lead Management | CRM integration, AI receptionist setup |
Seven years ago, Dr. Broussard ran coaching programs teaching dentists how to manage their own Facebook marketing. She closed those programs down.
“There is no way right now,” she said. “What I realize is it is just like my good friend Dr. Benjamin Hardy says: it’s the who and not the how. I’m not trying to figure out how to do anything. I’m like, who can I hire to just do this?”
The how is changing too fast. Strategies that worked six months ago are already outdated. Keeping up requires dedicated professionals who live in this space daily.
What Actually Works Now
Despite the complexity, the core strategy is surprisingly simple. Be everywhere with consistent, quality content that showcases who you actually are.
AI search engines are trying to answer one question: who is genuinely the best option for this patient? They evaluate authority by looking at the volume and quality of content across platforms. They assess authenticity by comparing what you say about yourself against what others say about you in reviews and social mentions.
“They’re looking for human,” Dr. Broussard said. “They’re looking for human content on your website, human content on your social. Being able to have that is so many ways that they could pull data.”
The practices winning in AI search share common characteristics. They post content consistently across multiple platforms. They have websites with extensive service pages and FAQs written in conversational language. They respond to reviews. They create video content featuring actual team members and patients rather than relying on stock imagery.
Dr. Broussard shared a telling example. When searching for a new dentist in Fort Lauderdale, she found a practice with a website that was not particularly beautiful. But it had a video at the top, an opt-in form beside it, and pages full of text. That practice ranked number one for cosmetic dentistry in the entire Fort Lauderdale market.
“His website really wasn’t that pretty,” she said. “But guess what? He’s the number one highest rated cosmetic dentist in all of Fort Lauderdale.”
The content mattered more than the aesthetics.
The Starting Point
For practices not ready to invest in full-service marketing support, Dr. Broussard offered a minimum viable approach.
“If all you did was pick up your phone and start doing a story on your phone every single day, you’re going to eventually have people watching what you’re doing. And it’s good content for the AI search engines.”
Something is better than nothing. A practice posting amateur content consistently will outperform a practice posting nothing at all.
But she was equally honest about the limitation. Most practices start strong and fade within months. Consistency requires systems, and systems require dedicated resources.
The practices that will thrive through this transition are the ones recognizing that marketing has become infrastructure, not a side project. The AI search engines are rewriting the rules of visibility. Practices that adapt will be found. Practices that do not will wonder why the phone stopped ringing.
In This Episode:
Dr. Anissa Broussard, Founder of Digital Floss and Dentaflix
Dr. Anissa Broussard is a renowned expert in digital marketing for dentistry. She holds a Fellowship with the Dental Speaking Institute and has been invited to keynote at major events including the AACD, Social Media Marketing World, and Funnel Hacking Live. Her work has been featured in Dental Economics and highlighted in Russell Brunson’s Expert Secrets. Dr. Broussard is also the founder of Digital Floss, a full-service dental marketing agency, and Dentalflix, the premier online education platform delivering top-level training for both independent and group practices.
Adrian Lefler, CEO and Co-founder of My Social Practice
Adrian Lefler, CEO of My Social Practice, is a seasoned expert in the dental marketing industry with 14 years of experience. He is widely recognized for his engaging and informative presentations. Based in Suncrest, Utah, Adrian shares his life with his wife, four children, and a lively mix of pets. My Social Practice is a leading dental marketing company, and Adrian is passionate about helping dental professionals succeed in this dynamic field.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does social media posting affect dental practice search rankings now?
Since August 2024, Instagram content is indexed by Google search. AI search engines like Gemini, ChatGPT, and Perplexity pull data from social platforms when determining which practices to recommend. Practices posting consistent content across multiple platforms create more searchable data points, directly improving their visibility in AI-powered search results.
What is zero-click search and why does it matter for dentists?
Zero-click search occurs when users receive answers directly from AI without clicking through to websites. Google is transitioning to full AI mode in 2026, meaning patients will interact with Gemini rather than browsing traditional search results. Practices not appearing in AI responses will become invisible to potential patients regardless of their website quality.
Can dental practices still handle their own marketing effectively?
The complexity of modern dental marketing, which requires copywriting, video production, multi-platform posting, paid advertising, technical SEO, and lead management, exceeds what most practices can handle internally. Strategies change rapidly, and effective execution requires dedicated dental marketing professionals monitoring algorithm shifts daily.
