In recent months, Google My Business has rolled out several new attributes to help businesses – like dentists, dermatologists and hospitals – communicate updates to services and offerings.

Most healthcare marketers know that your primary category on Google My Business profiles will impact your ranking. What you may not know is that category is tied to most of the features within GMB.

Your primary category determines:

• Whether or not reviews are prominent or available for your listing
• If Q&A will be available
• If primary hours will display
• Access to secondary hours and Google Posts

But most importantly, your primary category determines which attributes, amenities and service options you have on your Google My Business profile.

Some attributes display on your local listings – in the map pack and knowledge panel. Others may only display on mobile on the ‘About’ tab, and this varies by industry and country.

For healthcare marketers, including the attributes available to you in your Google listings is necessary to inform patients and build brand authority.

In this post, we’ll cover the top primary categories related to healthcare and which attributes and features are available for each type.

Google My Business Attributes for Healthcare

In a Local U post about GMB, Krystal Taing reviewed 33 primary categories and identified 158 different attributes, which you can find in detail here. Those attributes are broken up into many topics, including service options, highlights, accessibility, planning and payments.

The study included multiple health-related primary categories, including hospital, doctor, pharmacy, medical clinic, dentist and dermatologist.

Here are the Google My Business attributes available to those healthcare businesses:

Dentist

Essential attributes: Online care, appointment links, Covid-19 info link, virtual care link, teeth whitening, accepts new patients, practitioner gender

Accessibility attributes: Wheelchair-accessible elevator, wheelchair-accessible entrance, wheelchair-accessible restroom

Other attributes: Black-owned, family-led, veteran-led, women-led, menu link, LGBTQ friendly

Note: The “teeth whitening” attribute is exclusive to dental facilities and can set your brand apart on local listings.

Dermatologist

Essential attributes: Online care, appointment links, Covid-19 info link, virtual care link, accepts new patients, practitioner gender

Accessibility attributes: Wheelchair-accessible elevator, wheelchair-accessible entrance, wheelchair-accessible restroom

Other attributes: Black-owned, family-led, veteran-led, women-led, menu link, transgender safespace, LGBTQ friendly

Note: The “menu link” feature displays a menu of services you offer.

Doctor

Essential attributes: Online care, appointment links, Covid-19 info link, virtual care link, accepts new patients, practitioner gender

Accessibility attributes: Wheelchair-accessible elevator, wheelchair-accessible entrance, wheelchair-accessible restroom

Other attributes: Black-owned, family-led, veteran-led, women-led, menu link, transgender safespace, LGBTQ friendly

Hospital

Essential attributes: Online care, Covid-19 info link, virtual care link, practitioner gender, treats adults, treats children

Accessibility attributes: Wheelchair-accessible elevator, wheelchair-accessible entrance, wheelchair-accessible restroom

Other attributes: Black-owned, family-led, veteran-led, women-led, transgender safespace, LGBTQ friendly

Note that “appointment links” and accessibility attributes are not available for hospitals.

Medical Clinic

Essential attributes: Online care, appointment links, Covid-19 info link, virtual care link, practitioner gender

Accessibility attributes: Wheelchair-accessible elevator, wheelchair-accessible entrance, wheelchair-accessible restroom

Other attributes: Black-owned, family-led, veteran-led, women-led, passport photos, LGBTQ friendly

Pharmacy

Essential attributes: Online care, curbside pickup, delivery, in-store pickup, in-store shopping, same-day delivery, practitioner gender

Accessibility attributes: Wheelchair-accessible elevator, wheelchair-accessible entrance, wheelchair-accessible parking lot

Other attributes: Black-owned, family-led, veteran-led, women-led, transgender safespace, LGBTQ friendly

Here’s a table laying out the most important GMB attributes for healthcare marketers to use:

Get Found on Google

As you can see, available attributes vary greatly based on your primary category, even within the medical industry.

To establish your brand as a healthcare authority and ensure patients find your medical facilities in search, ensure both your primary category and available attributes are selected for each location. Once your attributes are filled, work with internal teams or a listings management partner like Binary Fountain to monitor for new and changing attributes.

Click here to learn more about Binary Fountain’s healthcare-specific listings management capabilities. For a personal tour of our platform, click below.

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