Multi-Location Oral Surgery Practice Uses AI Optimization to Beat Every Competitor ™ – Who's Smiling Now?
Artificial Intelligence (AI) dramatically changed the way people search and find information online. If you follow digital marketing trends, you may have even heard or read statements like, “Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is dead.”
If you own a multi-location healthcare practice, that can sound alarming. After all, showing up on Google is how many patients find your locations.
But here’s the truth:
SEO is still helping people find your business online. It didn’t die. The way people search however has undergone a huge and evolving change.
Today, patients don’t only search on Google the way they once did. They also rely on Generative Engines, which are tools powered by artificial intelligence (AI) like ChatGPT, Google’s AI mode, and Microsoft’s CoPilot. Generative engines can answer patients’ questions directly in their chat interface. This means patients can consider your business without needing to click to your website.
In order to maintain and grow your patient acquisition today, multi-location businesses need to show up in more places, like the AI tools mentioned above.
This shift in how patients find and choose your locations online has changed how we talk about search optimization. Traditional optimization to help your website rank on Google is still referred to as Search Engine Optimization, or SEO. But, the way you’re found and chosen in AI Search is referred to as Generative Engine Optimization, or GEO.
The Evolution of SEO to GEO: What Actually Changed for the Healthcare Industry
You may have heard: AI is stealing all website traffic.
What actually happened is this: Healthcare websites lost traffic because their digital marketing agencies didn’t adapt to new search behavior.
Some healthcare digital marketing agencies kept doing what used to work years ago, like relying on outdated blog content, not updating their website, or not creating content that answers the real questions patients are asking today. As search engines and AI tools evolved, the sites they managed became less helpful and stopped showing up as often.
Single Throw Marketing helps healthcare businesses increase patient acquisition with advanced SEO and AI Optimization (GEO) strategies.
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Reach Out to the Marketing Experts at Single Throw
Our healthcare SEO and AI Optimization strategies are adapted to how people search today. In part, this includes creating clearer content that answers real patient questions, improving our clients’ local presence so they show up when patients are ready to act, and making their websites easier for patients to use. As a result, our multi-location healthcare clients have continued to show up in more places including Google and ChatGPT, and acquire more patient leads.
For our client, a multi-location oral surgery practice in New Jersey, our healthcare SEO and AI Optimization strategies led to increased traffic and most importantly, increased patient acquisition.
Four Steps to Acquire More Patients Online
Here are four key steps the Single Throw digital marketing team used to drive measurable growth for our oral surgery group client.
Patients now search inside Generative AI tools by asking real questions like:
“What sedation is used during wisdom teeth removal?”
Your content marketing strategy should address real patient concerns. This is a critical part of the patient acquisition process that starts with consideration and leads to action.
How we evolved content for our oral surgery client:
- Built clear, easy-to-understand content that answers common questions
- Focused on real problems patients are trying to solve
- Emphasized multi-location convenience so patients could find the nearest office
The result:
- Blog traffic increased 80%
- More of that traffic came from people actually considering treatment (demonstrated in the data by viewing which pages patients clicked on next)
One of the most important searches your patient makes is:
“Oral surgeon near me”
This is someone who is ready to book an appointment, not just research.
What we did:
- Optimized each location so it appears in local searches
- Personalized and improved Google Business Profiles so they show up more often
- Made sure every page answers the key question: “Can you help me right now?”
The result:
- +14% growth in high-intent local traffic to practice location pages
- +22% increase in visits from Google Business Profiles
Today, tools like ChatGPT and Google’s AI summaries often recommend businesses when users are typing their questions into their chat interfaces. This is different from traditional search. Instead of showing a list of links like Google does, AI tools show answers from sources they feel are trustworthy and highlight businesses they see as credible.
What we did:
- Structured content so AI tools can easily understand it
- Built trust signals across the site (expertise, clarity, consistency)
- Positioned the practice as a reliable source of information
The result:
- +811% increase in traffic from AI platforms like ChatGPT and Copilot
Getting traffic from Google and AI tools is only half the battle.
If patients land on your site and can’t quickly find what they need, they leave.
That sends negative signals to both Google and AI tools that your website isn’t helpful. These negative signals can cause you to rank lower on Google and be left out of recommendations and answers by AI tools.
What we did:
- Redesigned contact pages to make booking easier
- Reduced confusion in the journey to contact the business and made next steps obvious
- Helped users quickly find the “Request an Appointment” option
The result:
- 185% increase in users reaching the appointment page from organic traffic
What This Means for Your Healthcare Business
The biggest takeaway is simple:
It’s no longer enough for healthcare businesses to just “rank on Google.”
To grow your practice, your multi-location marketing strategy needs to make sure you:
- Show up in search results (traditional SEO)
- Be recommended by Generative AI tools (new AI Optimization/GEO)
- Convert visitors into patients (website experience)
If any one of these is missing, you’re leaving money on the table.
Reach Out to the Marketing Experts at Single Throw
Are You Getting Traffic or Getting Patients?
If your current marketing agency sends you performance reports focused on traffic but not actual patient actions, it may be time to rethink your agency.
The goal isn’t just to be seen. It’s to be chosen.
If you want to beat every competitor™ and turn your online presence into a consistent source of new patients, contact Single Throw Marketing for a complimentary consultation.
We’ve worked in healthcare marketing for over 20 years. We understand the difference between people browsing and patients who actually book. Our healthcare digital marketing strategies are built around patient acquisition, not surface-level metrics.
When you partner with Single Throw, you get clear, measurable patient growth that is repeatable and proven.
Your competitors aren’t waiting.
Learn how exclusivity with Single Throw could lock in your market before they do.
FAQ
SEO (Search Engine Optimization) helps your website rank in traditional search results like Google. AI Optimization, or GEO (Generative Engine Optimization), helps your practice appear in AI-driven tools like ChatGPT or Google’s AI summaries. Both are important because patients now use a mix of search engines and AI tools to find and choose healthcare providers.
Multi-location practices can improve visibility by optimizing each location page individually, maintaining accurate and active Google Business Profiles, and creating content that highlights location-specific services. This helps ensure each office shows up when patients search for care nearby.
Content that answers real patient questions, such as procedures, recovery, costs, and sedation options, tends to attract more qualified traffic. Patients searching these topics are often closer to making a decision, which increases the likelihood of booking an appointment.