The short answer
Give every real, staffed office its own Business Profile, keep the practice name and main category the same across locations, and give each profile its own address, hours, local phone number and matching location page on your website. Keep all profiles in one business group so access is shared safely. With 10 or more locations you can manage them by spreadsheet and request bulk verification. Then review each location's performance and reviews on a fixed schedule.
One profile per office
Patients searching for a dentist nearby need to land on the office they will actually visit. Google's guidelines are built around that: each real-world location that is staffed and receives patients during its posted hours gets its own Business Profile. A single profile cannot list several addresses, and a rented mailbox or virtual office is not eligible at all.
Separate profiles keep the details that matter to a patient attached to the right place:
- •Reviews describe the team and office the reviewer visited.
- •Hours, holidays and phone numbers can differ by office.
- •Photos show the building and rooms a patient will walk into.
- •Calls, direction requests and website clicks can be measured per office.
Start with an inventory
Before changing anything, list every profile you can find for the practice: search the practice name and each address on Google Maps, and note which profiles are verified, who owns them and whether any duplicates or old addresses remain. Fix ownership and duplicates first, then work on content.
Set up and verify each location
Only the business owner or an authorized representative may verify a profile. For a small group, each location is verified on its own, and Google chooses which methods to offer, such as a phone or text code, email, video or a postcard. Our Google Business Profile setup guide walks through a single location.
Larger groups have another path. When an account holds 10 or more eligible profiles of the same business, Google offers bulk verification from the Verifications section of Business Profile Manager. A few conditions from Google's help page are worth knowing before you apply:
- •The account should include every location you operate, because Google checks that the number of profiles matches the real size of the business.
- •Duplicate, suspended or disabled profiles do not count toward the 10.
- •Agencies holding several different businesses in one account cannot bulk verify them.
- •Uploading a spreadsheet does not send the request by itself; you submit a separate form.
- •Google may remove bulk verification from accounts that stop maintaining their profiles.
For every location, gather the same set of details before you create or edit its profile:
- •The exact street address, with any suite number on the second address line
- •A phone number that rings that office
- •The main category, such as Dentist or Orthodontist, plus only the extra categories that truly apply
- •Regular hours and planned holiday hours for that office
- •The URL of that office's own page on your website
Names, addresses and phone numbers
Consistency works differently for a group than many owners expect. Google asks chains to use the same business name and the same main category at every location, so patients recognize the brand. Adding the city to the profile name is not the fix; the address already tells Google and patients where each office is. The exception is a location that genuinely goes by a different name on its sign, website and stationery.
Keep one master sheet with each location's name, address, phone, hours, categories and location page URL. Use it as the single source whenever you update Google, your website or directory listings, so the details never drift apart.
For phone numbers, Google asks for a number that connects to that individual location and is under the practice's direct control, and prefers a local number to a central helpline. If you want call tracking, read Google's phone guidelines and our guide to tracking calls from your profile before swapping numbers, so the profile always reaches the right office.
Make each profile local
Shared branding does not mean identical profiles. The details a patient compares between offices should be specific to each one:
- •Photos of that office: the entrance and sign, parking, reception, a treatment room and the team who works there. Our profile photo guide covers what to shoot.
- •Services that office really offers. If only one location has an orthodontist on the team, list orthodontic services on that profile only.
- •Posts with local news: holiday hours, a new team member, a community event the office joins. See profile posts that drive appointments for ideas.
- •A matching location page on your website with that office's address, hours, team, parking notes and directions, linked from its profile.
A steady rhythm matters more than volume. Pick a posting and photo schedule each office can keep up with, and make one person responsible for it.
Business groups and bulk tools
Once you have two or more profiles, Google recommends a business group: a shared folder for profiles inside Business Profile Manager. It replaces the risky habit of sharing one login, and it is where most multi-location work happens.
- •Access: owners and managers of a group can see and edit every current and future profile in it. If an office manager should only touch one location, give them access to that profile instead of the whole group.
- •Ownership: keep a practice owner as the primary owner, and remove access promptly when staff or vendors leave.
- •Spreadsheets: with 10 or more locations you can add and edit profiles in bulk by uploading a spreadsheet, then fix any errors Google flags in the dashboard before changes publish. A spreadsheet covers one group only.
- •Separate brands: if the organization runs distinct brands with different teams, separate groups keep access tidy.
If you work with an agency, add them as a manager rather than an owner, and keep a record of who has access to what.
Track each location
Verified profiles show performance data in Google: how many people viewed the profile, the searches that led to it (reported monthly), and actions such as calls from the call button, direction requests and website clicks. Review these per office each month next to your own booking numbers.
- •Compare searches and actions between offices to see where demand differs, for example urgent care searches at one location but not another.
- •Tag the website link on each profile with UTM parameters so your analytics shows visits by office. Our call tracking guide covers the phone side.
- •Track new reviews and average rating per location, and assign one person to read every location's reviews weekly.
Our dashboards and reporting service can pull these numbers into one view for the whole group.
Common mistakes
- •City names stuffed into profile names. Keep the real brand name on every location and let the address do the work.
- •Duplicate or orphaned profiles. Old profiles created by former staff or vendors confuse patients. Request access to any you do not control and clean them up from the verified account.
- •One phone number everywhere. Patients reach the wrong office and you lose per-location data.
- •Copy and photos pasted across offices. Each profile should show its own building, team and services.
- •Late updates after a move or closure. Change the address or mark the old office closed in Google, your website and directories on the same day.
- •Unanswered reviews. Reply on a schedule with short, privacy-safe responses. See responding to negative reviews.
For the wider marketing plan across offices, read marketing a multi-location practice. For brand architecture and an agency checklist, see DSO and multi-location marketing and how to choose a DSO dental marketing company.
Sources
Google updates its help pages, so check them for current wording.
- •Google Business Profile Help: Guidelines for representing your business on Google
- •Google Business Profile Help: Create and manage business groups
- •Google Business Profile Help: Bulk location management overview
- •Google Business Profile Help: Verify Business Profiles in bulk
- •Google Business Profile Help: Verify your business on Google
- •Google Business Profile Help: Manage owners and managers
- •Google Business Profile Help: Understand your Business Profile performance and insights
Frequently Asked Questions
Does each practice location need its own Google Business Profile?
Yes. Google expects one profile per real, staffed location that patients visit, with its own address, hours and phone number. A rented mailbox or virtual office is not eligible. Individual doctors can sometimes have their own profiles too; Google's practitioner guidelines explain when.
Should every location use the same business name?
Usually yes. Google asks chains to keep the same name and category across all locations unless a location really goes by a different name on its signage and website. Put the city or neighborhood on the website location page, not in the profile name.
How do we manage many locations from one place?
Create a business group in Business Profile Manager and keep every location in it. Owners and managers of the group can see and edit all profiles inside it, so add staff only to the groups they should manage. With 10 or more locations you can also upload and edit locations with a spreadsheet.
Can we verify all our locations at once?
Google offers bulk verification when an account has 10 or more eligible profiles of the same business. You submit a request from the Verifications section of Business Profile Manager and list every location you run. Smaller groups verify each profile individually with the method Google offers.
Should reviews be handled centrally or by each office?
Both. Have one person watch every location's reviews each week, and let the team at each office help shape replies so they sound local. Keep every reply privacy-safe: never confirm that a reviewer is a patient or mention a visit.