A dental PPC agency buys search ads for a practice: it picks the keywords, writes the ads, builds the landing pages and tracks which clicks turn into booked appointments. Dental terms are among the more expensive clicks in local paid search, which is exactly why the buying decision deserves more scrutiny than it usually gets. The agency is spending your money in a live auction every day; the difference between a disciplined operator and a reseller is visible before you sign, in what it will show you and what it promises. This page sets out what the work actually involves, the Google policies that sit over healthcare advertising, and the questions that surface the difference.
What a dental PPC agency actually manages
The visible work is campaigns and ad copy; the work that decides the outcome is narrower. Keyword selection separates emergency intent (broken tooth, same-day appointment) from research intent, and negative keywords stop the budget leaking into searches the practice cannot serve. Landing pages matter as much as ads: Google's own Quality Score diagnostic rates every keyword from 1 to 10 on expected clickthrough rate, ad relevance and landing page experience, and Google describes it as a diagnostic tool rather than a number to chase. An agency that sends expensive dental clicks to a generic homepage is ignoring the one lever Google explicitly documents. Ask to see the landing pages the agency builds for other practices and how it tracks calls, not just clicks.
The policy layer dental advertisers sit under
Google Ads places healthcare in a policy category of its own. Routine dental services are not specifically restricted, but the surrounding healthcare and medicines policy restricts prescription drug terms, requires certification for several healthcare categories, and bans speculative or misleading treatment claims outright. A competent dental PPC agency knows where those lines sit before a disapproval arrives, because ad and landing page copy that drifts into clinical claims can suspend a campaign the practice depends on. In the vetting call, ask the agency how it handles healthcare policy reviews and what it does when an ad is disapproved; a blank answer means the practice becomes the test case.
Local Services Ads and paying per lead
Search ads are not the only paid channel an agency should be weighing. Google's Local Services Ads sit above regular search results in many local categories and bill per lead rather than per click: Google's documentation says you pay only for leads related to your business, delivered as calls or messages through the ad. Providers pass a screening process and can carry a verification badge, and listings that have not completed onboarding appear below those that have. Availability varies by category and market, so ask a prospective agency whether the format is open to your practice area and how it splits budget between pay-per-click and pay-per-lead; an agency that only ever recommends the channel it is paid to manage has answered a different question than the one you asked.
The vetting questions that separate operators
Three questions do most of the work. First, who owns the ad account: the practice should hold the account and billing in its own name, with the agency working inside it, so history and data survive a change of agency. Second, what is reported: booked appointments and calls answered, not impressions and clicks, and with call tracking the practice can audit. Third, what happens at the end: any agency that resists handing over account access at exit was selling access to your own data back to you. No agency can promise a fixed number of new patients from an auction it does not control; treat a patient-volume guarantee as a reason to end the call, not a reason to sign.
Questions people ask about dental ppc agency
What does a dental PPC agency cost?
Most charge a monthly management fee, either flat or as a share of ad spend, on top of the ad budget paid to Google. Printed prices are rare in this niche, so ask every finalist to state the fee and the minimum ad spend separately, in writing, before comparing.
Can an agency guarantee a number of new patients?
No. Ads run in a live auction against competitors whose bids and budgets change daily, and Google's own guidance for hiring search marketers warns against anyone promising guaranteed placement. Treat guaranteed-patient claims as a vetting failure.
Should the practice own its Google Ads account?
Yes. If the agency owns the account, the campaign history, conversion data and audience lists leave when the agency does. Insist on an account in the practice's name with the agency added as a manager.
Are dental ads restricted by Google?
Routine dental services are not a restricted category, but they sit inside Google's wider healthcare and medicines policy, which limits clinical claims and restricts drug terminology. An experienced agency writes copy that clears policy review the first time.