Writing

Notes from the team. No fluff. No clickbait.

Thinking out loud about healthcare reviews, patient experience, growth marketing, and the operational realities of running a modern practice.

Featured

Local Pack ranking factors for healthcare in 2026: the full breakdown

Every signal Google uses to decide which 3 practices appear in the Local Pack for healthcare queries — ordered by 2026 weight, with what to do about each.

Tom North · July 28, 2026 · 12 min readRead

Patient researching providers on a phone

Beyond Google: Healthgrades, ZocDoc, Vitals, and the patient research path

Most patients don't make booking decisions on Google alone. Here's how Healthgrades, ZocDoc, and Vitals factor in — and which deserves your attention.

Tom North · July 21, 2026 · 10 min

DIY vs done-for-you review generation: ROI math for healthcare practices

When does it make sense to run review outreach in-house, and when does done-for-you actually win on dollars? The honest breakdown.

Tom North · July 14, 2026 · 9 min

Interior of a newly opened dental practice

The 90-day patient review playbook for new dental practice openings

A week-by-week build plan to take a brand-new dental practice from zero Google reviews to a competitive Local Pack position by month three.

Avery Linden · July 7, 2026 · 10 min

Inside the call: what makes a 60-second review ask convert at 50%+

A breakdown of the call structure, tone, and pacing we use to convert post-visit calls to posted Google reviews at five times the industry standard.

Riley Patel · June 30, 2026 · 9 min

How specialty type changes your review benchmark: dental vs derm vs medspa

Why a 4.6 average is exceptional in family medicine but average in a medspa, and how to set the right competitive target for your specific practice type.

Avery Linden · June 23, 2026 · 9 min

Provider on a phone in a clinical setting

A2P 10DLC and the legal mess of patient SMS in 2026

Sending SMS to patients in 2026 requires carrier registration most healthcare vendors quietly skip. Here's what A2P 10DLC actually is, why it matters, and how to do it right.

Tom North · June 16, 2026 · 9 min

Healthcare provider considering a tablet

Responding to negative reviews in healthcare: scripts that work, traps that don't

How to respond to a 1- or 2-star review on Google when you're a healthcare practice — without violating HIPAA, escalating the patient, or hurting your ranking.

Tom North · June 9, 2026 · 11 min

Why review velocity matters more than total review count for medical SEO

A 200-review practice posting one per month ranks below an 80-review practice posting fifteen. Recency dominates totals in Google's 2026 local algorithm.

Tom North · June 2, 2026 · 9 min

How HIPAA actually affects patient review outreach (and what most vendors get wrong)

HIPAA doesn't prevent review outreach — it shapes it. A practical breakdown of what you can and can't do, what your BAA actually covers, and where most vendors slip.

Riley Patel · May 27, 2026 · 10 min

Google Business Profile optimization for medical practices: 2026 ranking factors

What actually moves the needle on GBP rankings for medical, dental, derm, and medspa practices in 2026 — by signal, in order of weight.

Tom North · May 20, 2026 · 11 min

The hidden math of one missing star: what a rating drop costs a multi-location practice

A 4.6 average that slides to a 4.4 doesn't feel dramatic. The booking impact is more dramatic than the number looks. Here's the math.

Avery Linden · May 14, 2026 · 10 min

Why your patient reviews shouldn't live in your front desk

Front-desk-led review asks cap out around 5% conversion no matter how good your team is. Here's the structural reason — and what to do instead.

Riley Patel · May 3, 2026 · 8 min

Provider reviewing a chart during a patient consultation

The 50% review conversion benchmark in healthcare — and why most practices miss it

What “visit-to-review” conversion actually means, why the industry average sits at 5%, and what changes when a practice gets to 50%.

Avery Linden · April 22, 2026 · 9 min