What You’ll Learn:
- Why search behavior has expanded far beyond Google
- Which social platforms patients are actually using to find healthcare providers
- How social content now shows up directly in Google results AND AI answers
- Why dental practices have a rare window to get ahead of this shift
- What “showing up” on social search actually looks like for a dental practice
Table of Contents
- Google Is Still the King, But the Kingdom Has Gotten a Lot Bigger
- Where Your Patients Are Actually Searching (And Why It Matters)
- Social Content Now Shows Up In Google, Too
- The Dental Industry Is (Mostly) Asleep on This
- What Social Search Actually Looks Like for a Dental Practice
- Be Where the Search Is
- FAQ
Hey Dentists, Your Patients Are Searching on TikTok, YouTube, and Reddit. Are You There?
Let us paint a picture. A 28-year-old with a chipped tooth and a touch of dental anxiety pulls out her phone. We’ll name her…I don’t know, Lauren or Jennifer. Laurennifer. She doesn’t type “dentist near me” into Google. Instead, Laurennifer opens TikTok and searches “how to find a dentist you can actually trust.” Then she hops over to YouTube to watch a real patient’s experience with a smile makeover. Then she checks Reddit to find out if anyone in her city has thoughts on which practices are worth calling. Then she Google’s government forms for a legal name change, but that’s on another tab.
By the time she actually Googles your practice name, she’s already made up her mind. She just needs to confirm you exist.
Well surprise! Laurennifer is a real person, in that she is the metaphorical embodiment of the new patient discovery journey. If your dental practice only shows up on Google, you’re invisible for most of that journey, and Laurennifer and her chipped tooth and whack-ass name will go elsewhere.
Google Is Still the King, But the Kingdom Has Gotten a Lot Bigger
Despite what clickbait news articles say, Google isn’t going anywhere. Google still dominates search activity, accounting for roughly 73.7% of searches across major platforms. That’s enormous, babe. You absolutely still need great dental SEO and a strong Google Business Profile.
But perhaps the dental marketing world hasn’t quite caught up with the fact that search behavior now spans a much wider set of platforms, and a growing share of discovery happens across a wider collection of platforms. A search universe, if you will. Like the marvel cinematic universe before it got sad and uncomfortable.
According to recent research from SparkToro and Datos, here’s roughly how search activity breaks down across the internet today:
| Platform Type | Share of Searches |
|---|---|
| Traditional search engines (Google, Bing, etc.) | ~80% |
| Commerce platforms (Amazon, Walmart, eBay) | ~10% |
| Social networks (TikTok, YouTube, Reddit, etc.) | ~5.5% |
| AI tools (ChatGPT, Claude, etc.) | ~3.2% |
Now, 5.5% might not sound like much, but think about what that means in real terms. Millions of searches happen on social platforms every single day. For healthcare decisions specifically, which are deeply personal, trust-driven, and often anxiety-laden, people are increasingly turning to social platforms where they can watch real humans talk about their real experiences.
Where Your Patients Are Actually Searching (And Why It Matters)
Different social platforms serve different roles in the patient discovery process. Social platforms are now core social search destinations, with people turning to TikTok for recommendations, YouTube for tutorials and problem-solving, Reddit for honest discussions and community opinions, and Pinterest for inspiration.
For dental practices, this maps out pretty clearly:
TikTok and Instagram are where people discover practices they’d never heard of. A fun behind-the-scenes video, a before-and-after transformation, or even a dentist explaining why your teeth hurt when you eat ice cream can introduce your practice to someone who wasn’t looking for you at all. Then they start looking for you.
YouTube is where patients go to get comfortable. Someone considering dental implants or Invisalign isn’t going to schedule a consultation cold. They’re going to watch three to five videos first. If one of those videos features your doctor speaking warmly and clearly about the process, you just became their front-runner before they even called.
Reddit is where the brutally honest stuff lives. People ask questions like “is this dental practice actually good or are the reviews fake?” and get real answers from real people. A practice with a strong reputation and tons of genuine reviews on Reddit becomes the one people recommend organically.
Social Content Now Shows Up In Google, Too
“But wait! We’ve invested so much into our spectacular dental SEO strategy!” you say. Not to worry. You don’t have to choose between SEO and social because they’re feeding each other. It’s uncomfortable to watch them eat spaghetti, but oh well, one cannot stand in the way of Lady and the Tramp love in the world of social search. Or something like that.
Google has significantly expanded how it surfaces social content within search results. They now frequently include TikTok videos, YouTube Shorts, Reddit threads, Instagram posts, and forum discussions. Google even partnered with platforms like Reddit to ensure that community discussions appear more prominently in results, which makes sense considering how many people were adding “Reddit” to the end of their search queries.
So when a prospective patient in your city Googles “best dentist for nervous patients,” they might see a YouTube video from your practice right there in the results. Or a Reddit thread where someone praised your front desk team. That content can rank on Google even if your website doesn’t, and it can show up alongside your website for a one-two punch that makes you look like the obvious choice.
This means social content can influence discovery in multiple ways, like through direct searches on social platforms, through visibility within Google search results, and through influence within AI-generated answers.
Yes, AI too. Haven’t you noticed the theme of the past few years? AI is always involved in everything and that’s fine, there’s nothing to worry about.
AI systems rely on content that reflects real-world experiences and discussions, which is why platforms like Reddit, YouTube, and creator-led content are frequently cited in AI-generated responses. When someone asks ChatGPT or Google’s AI Overviews for dentist recommendations, it draws from this exact pool of social content.
One good video. One honest Reddit mention. One Instagram reel that actually gets shared. A single piece of content can now travel much further across the universe, consistently providing signals to audiences just like Laurennifer Jessicarla, whose middle name I’ve just discovered. Poor thing.
The Dental Industry Is (Mostly) Asleep on This
There is an element here that should make you feel a little gleeful, if you’re the competitive type.
Most search strategies still revolve around Google SEO, paid search, and website content. Few brands have structured strategies for TikTok search optimization, YouTube search visibility, or Reddit community engagement.
Dentistry is no exception. The majority of dental practices are still fighting tooth and nail (pun absolutely intended) over the same Google keywords, the same paid search slots, the same Google Maps rankings. That competition is real and intense.
Meanwhile, social search remains relatively under-optimized, meaning brands that move early can capture visibility in spaces where demand already exists.
There are patients in your city right now searching on TikTok for a dentist. There are zero dental practices in your city that have claimed that space. That is a remarkable opportunity, and it will not stay open forever. (I learned that line from a car salesman and I thought it was brilliant. It’s brilliant, right?)
What Social Search Actually Looks Like for a Dental Practice
Social search visibility for a dental practice does not mean dancing on TikTok (though if you want to, go for it, no judgment here. Unless you’re really embarrassing). It means showing up where patients are with content that answers the questions they’re actually asking.
A few practical starting points:
- Short videos on Instagram or TikTok answering common questions: “What’s the difference between veneers and Lumineers and that one band called The Lumineers?” or “What actually happens during a root canal?” These get searched. A lot.
- YouTube videos featuring your doctors explaining treatment options in plain language. Think of it as a 24/7 consultation that screens and warms up patients before they ever call.
- Consistent, branded social posts that show the personality of your practice, because patients choose practices they feel connected to, not just ones with the best reviews.
- Authentic patient stories, when patients are willing to share, are search gold on every platform.
The good news is you don’t have to build this from scratch alone. We know that every three business days, some new component of dental marketing suddenly becomes mission critical, and you’re busy doing teeth stuff. My Social Practice’s social media service is built specifically for dental practices, handling everything from content creation to branded posting to hashtag strategy, so your team can stay focused on patients while your online presence does the heavy lifting.
Be Where the Search Is
The patients of 2026 do not have a single search behavior. They have five, in conjunction with the attention spans of caffeinated toddlers. Consumers search on platforms where they expect to find the most useful answers in the formats they prefer, rather than relying on Google to send them elsewhere.
Some of them will find you on Google Maps. Some will find you because their friend shared your TikTok. Some will watch your YouTube explainer on dental implants at 11pm before texting their spouse about finally getting it done. Some will read a Reddit thread where a stranger in your city said your hygienists are genuinely nice.
Every single one of those social search touchpoints is a chance to be not only found, but chosen. That’s the game now. And the cool part is, most of your competition hasn’t figured that out yet.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do dental practices actually need to be on TikTok and YouTube to get new patients?
Not necessarily on every platform, but the data increasingly says that social platforms are where a meaningful portion of patient discovery is happening. TikTok and YouTube in particular are used by millions of people specifically to research local services and healthcare providers before making decisions. A dental practice with an active, informative YouTube channel or consistent social presence has a distinct advantage over one that relies on Google alone. You don’t need to go viral. You just need to show up consistently with helpful content.
How does social media content help dental SEO if it's on a different platform?
This is the surprising part: Google now surfaces social content, including TikTok videos, YouTube Shorts, Instagram posts, and Reddit threads, directly within its search results. That means a video your practice posts on YouTube could rank in Google search for relevant terms in your area, independent of your website’s ranking. Social content also feeds AI-generated answers from tools like Google’s AI Overviews, which increasingly reference social and community-based content when generating responses to search queries.
What kind of social media content works best for dental practices trying to attract new patients?
Content that answers real patient questions tends to perform best. Think short explainer videos on common procedures, behind-the-scenes looks at your team and office environment, patient transformation stories (with permission), and candid responses to common fears or concerns about dental visits. Authenticity matters more than production value. A doctor talking directly to the camera about what to expect during a first visit will outperform a polished promotional video almost every time.
Is it too late for a dental practice to start building a social media presence?
It’s actually an ideal time. Research shows that most dental practices, and most local businesses in general, have not yet built structured social search strategies. The competition on TikTok and YouTube for dental-related searches is dramatically lower than on Google, where keyword competition has been intense for years. Practices that invest in social search visibility now are entering a relatively uncrowded space, which means real visibility is achievable without a massive budget.
About the Author: Megan Nielsen is an SEO strategist and the Grand Overlord of copywriting at My Social Practice. My Social Practice is a dental marketing company that offers a full suite of dental marketing services to thousands of dental practices throughout the United States and Canada.
