• majorAlexa

        See all notifications

        Skip to content
        Moz logo Menu open Menu close
        • Products
          • Moz Pro
          • Moz Pro Home
          • Moz Local
          • Moz Local Home
          • STAT
          • Moz API
          • Moz API Home
          • Compare SEO Products
          • Moz Data
        • Free SEO Tools
          • Domain Analysis
          • Keyword Explorer
          • Link Explorer
          • Competitive Research
          • MozBar
          • More Free SEO Tools
        • Learn SEO
          • Beginner's Guide to SEO
          • SEO Learning Center
          • Moz Academy
          • MozCon
          • Webinars, Whitepapers, & Guides
        • Blog
        • Why Moz
          • Digital Marketers
          • Agency Solutions
          • Enterprise Solutions
          • Small Business Solutions
          • The Moz Story
          • New Releases
        • Log in
        • Log out
        • Products
          • Moz Pro

            Your all-in-one suite of SEO essentials.

          • Moz Local

            Raise your local SEO visibility with complete local SEO management.

          • STAT

            SERP tracking and analytics for enterprise SEO experts.

          • Moz API

            Power your SEO with our index of over 44 trillion links.

          • Compare SEO Products

            See which Moz SEO solution best meets your business needs.

          • Moz Data

            Power your SEO strategy & AI models with custom data solutions.

          Let your business shine with Listings AI
          Moz Local

          Let your business shine with Listings AI

          Learn more
        • Free SEO Tools
          • Domain Analysis

            Get top competitive SEO metrics like DA, top pages and more.

          • Keyword Explorer

            Find traffic-driving keywords with our 1.25 billion+ keyword index.

          • Link Explorer

            Explore over 40 trillion links for powerful backlink data.

          • Competitive Research

            Uncover valuable insights on your organic search competitors.

          • MozBar

            See top SEO metrics for free as you browse the web.

          • More Free SEO Tools

            Explore all the free SEO tools Moz has to offer.

          NEW Keyword Suggestions by Topic
          Moz Pro

          NEW Keyword Suggestions by Topic

          Learn more
        • Learn SEO
          • Beginner's Guide to SEO

            The #1 most popular introduction to SEO, trusted by millions.

          • SEO Learning Center

            Broaden your knowledge with SEO resources for all skill levels.

          • On-Demand Webinars

            Learn modern SEO best practices from industry experts.

          • How-To Guides

            Step-by-step guides to search success from the authority on SEO.

          • Moz Academy

            Upskill and get certified with on-demand courses & certifications.

          • MozCon

            Save on Early Bird tickets and join us in London or New York City

          Unlock flexible pricing & new endpoints
          Moz API

          Unlock flexible pricing & new endpoints

          Find your plan
        • Blog
        • Why Moz
          • Digital Marketers

            Simplify SEO tasks to save time and grow your traffic.

          • Small Business Solutions

            Uncover insights to make smarter marketing decisions in less time.

          • Agency Solutions

            Earn & keep valuable clients with unparalleled data & insights.

          • Enterprise Solutions

            Gain a competitive edge in the ever-changing world of search.

          • The Moz Story

            Moz was the first & remains the most trusted SEO company.

          • New Releases

            Get the scoop on the latest and greatest from Moz.

          Surface actionable competitive intel
          New Feature

          Surface actionable competitive intel

          Learn More
        • Log in
          • Moz Pro
          • Moz Local
          • Moz Local Dashboard
          • Moz API
          • Moz API Dashboard
          • Moz Academy
        • Avatar
          • Moz Home
          • Notifications
          • Account & Billing
          • Manage Users
          • Community Profile
          • My Q&A
          • My Videos
          • Log Out

        The Moz Q&A Forum

        • Forum
        • Questions
        • My Q&A
        • Users
        • Ask the Community

        Welcome to the Q&A Forum

        Browse the forum for helpful insights and fresh discussions about all things SEO.

        1. Home
        2. SEO Tactics
        3. Image & Video Optimization
        4. Practice Name vs. Dr. Name in Local Search

        Moz Q&A is closed.

        After more than 13 years, and tens of thousands of questions, Moz Q&A closed on 12th December 2024. Whilst we’re not completely removing the content - many posts will still be possible to view - we have locked both new posts and new replies. More details here.

        Practice Name vs. Dr. Name in Local Search

        Image & Video Optimization
        2
        5
        2395
        Loading More Posts
        • Watching

          Notify me of new replies.
          Show question in unread.

        • Not Watching

          Do not notify me of new replies.
          Show question in unread if category is not ignored.

        • Ignoring

          Do not notify me of new replies.
          Do not show question in unread.

        • Oldest to Newest
        • Newest to Oldest
        • Most Votes
        Reply
        • Reply as question
        Locked
        This topic has been deleted. Only users with question management privileges can see it.
        • BedeFahey
          BedeFahey last edited by

          I wanted to get some opinions on an interesting situation for local search.

          Many doctors and dentists are found in one of two ways online:

          1. Their name and title, e.g. Dr. James A. Smith, MD

          2. Their practice name, e.g Smith Plastic Surgery, P.C

          Often sites like Healthgrades are providing data on the doctor him or herself, and the information can be tough to switch out. At the same time, there's a tendancy on the Dr's part to want to be listed as their practice name. Their site is often set up that way.

          How are you handling this kind of setup? Have you found a way to reliably associate (and format) a practice and doctor's name in a listing, in such a way that doesn't violate Google's quality guidelines?

          I know the drill for handling a doctor within a hospital, but this is a slightly different situation...

          1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • BedeFahey
            BedeFahey @MiriamEllis last edited by

            That makes sense, Thanks Miriam!

            1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • MiriamEllis
              MiriamEllis Subject Expert @BedeFahey last edited by

              Hi Bede,

              Unfortunately, yes, there is some concern about odd, buggy merges whenever this multiple practitioner approach is taken, but, as Google allows it, you have good ground to stand upon if troubles arise. Mike Blumenthal says that Google is getting better about this, and I value his opinion highly.

              One thing to be sure of is that you are using totally different categories for the two different Google Places/+ Local listings. In other words, the categories of the doctor must be different than the categories of the practice.

              Hope this helps! Good luck, Bede.

              BedeFahey 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • BedeFahey
                BedeFahey @MiriamEllis last edited by

                Hi Miriam,

                Thanks for the response. You are making sense.

                Your suggestion about it being two different opportunities is a completely different way of looking at it that I had not thought of. I was approaching it from the mindset of "Split or duplicate listings bad. One listing good."

                What are your thoughts on how much crossover or confusion a double listing approach might create? I like the idea from a higher-level perspective. I do wonder if the fact that the business address and phone number are identical for each listing, while the names are somewhat similar (e.g. James A. Smith and Smith Plastic Surgery), might cause problems.

                Cheers,

                Bede

                MiriamEllis 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • MiriamEllis
                  MiriamEllis Subject Expert last edited by

                  Hi Bede,

                  So, because of this from the Google Places Quality Guidelines:

                  Individual practitioners may be listed individually as long as those practitioners are public-facing within their parent organization. Common examples of such practitioners are doctors, dentists, lawyers, and real estate agents. The practitioner should be directly contactable at the verified location during stated hours. A practitioner should not have multiple listings to cover all of his or her specializations.

                  ...essentially, what you are dealing with is 2 listings: one of the doctor's name and one for the practice name. There isn't a way (that I know of) to combine them all into one, but as Google allows you to have the separate listings, then basically, a client like this has 2 ranking opportunities, 2 citation building opportunities, etc.

                  Does this make sense, or am I not getting to the heart of your question? Please, let me know.

                  BedeFahey 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                  • 1 / 1
                  • First post
                    Last post

                  Browse Questions

                  Explore more categories

                  • Moz Tools

                    Chat with the community about the Moz tools.

                  • SEO Tactics

                    Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers

                  • Community

                    Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!

                  • Digital Marketing

                    Chat about tactics outside of SEO

                  • Research & Trends

                    Dive into research and trends in the search industry.

                  • Support

                    Connect on product support and feature requests.

                  • See all categories

                  Related Questions

                  • vmialik

                    Amazon RTMP S3 vs Vimeo PRO vs Wistia? (Download Protection)

                    Context: A membership site, focused on a Russian market which is known to culturally pirate everything they see. Granted: ultimately you cannot hide video as a person can take a screen-capture/video camera method ultimately. Having said that. Is it still worth going the RTMP S3 route? Vs say Vimeo and Wistia. Will it help a bit or its a technology that is dying? Also with Vimeo PRO vs Wistia generally Vimeo is better value, but how is their analytics compared to Wistia (per user stats) if possible? Vimeo is a very popular, therefore downloaded 3rd party apps exist plentifully, is Wistia's platform unique to Vimeo in terms of its embed format if its same format this means that the commonly available tools as for Vimeo will work for Wistia, how ever if its different, and less popular as RTMP S3 is in this case less tools are available for it. Is that the case for Wistia?

                    Image & Video Optimization | | vmialik
                    0
                  • BobGW

                    Local SEO: Ste vs. Suite vs. #

                    Hi, I used the spelled out "Suite" in my local NAP, but sometimes it's been shortened to Ste by citation websites. I'm trying to remain consistent here Should I use Ste H, Suite H, or #H? This is a good article on it: http://localsearchforum.catalystemarketing.com/google-local-citations/1605-suite-vs-ste-vs-your-citation-addresses-2.html but I'd still like your opinion.

                    Image & Video Optimization | | BobGW
                    0
                  • casper434

                    Local Citation Sites

                    After searching through many local citation site I find that most only apply to the US. Are there any really good ones in Canada?

                    Image & Video Optimization | | casper434
                    0
                  • nicole.healthline

                    Yext vs Localeze vs UBL for Local SEO

                    Which of these services is the best? Does anyone have experience with all three?

                    Image & Video Optimization | | nicole.healthline
                    2
                  • David_ODonnell

                    Google Places / Map Results CTR vs Top Organic Result

                    I have a client who is currently ranking close to the top of the Google Places results for a handful of important local keywords. They have a competitor who is pretty consistantly ranking in number #1 and #2 organic positions, above the Places results. Does anyone know the average click through rates for results similar to these? Do the #1 and #2 organic positions still outperform the lower placed Google Places (with side map) results when the search intent is very local? I just wonder if they are possibly in a better position as-is if people are more likely to use the map or places listings on the SERPs page, rather than click through to another site. Thanks 🙂

                    Image & Video Optimization | | David_ODonnell
                    2
                  • LukeyJamo

                    Australian Service that Allows you to Control all your Local Listings

                    Hey, After a few stumbles upon a variety of services that allows you to manage all your local listings from the one profile (the latest one was Yext.com). It got me thinking - is there an Australian equivalent? My research revealed nothing. Thanks.

                    Image & Video Optimization | | LukeyJamo
                    1
                  • Neustop

                    Local Keyword vs Business Name in URL

                    I am working with a local business owner who has purchased multiple domains. One includes the geographic area she serves and the type of business she runs. The other includes her business name and the type of business she runs. She is unsure of which domain she would like to use as the main URL for her business website. When choosing a domain for a small, local business, would you consider it advantageous to have the main geographic area that the business serves in the URL rather than the actual name of the business? What would be the best use of domain name which isn't selected from a SEO standpoint?

                    Image & Video Optimization | | Neustop
                    0
                  • jimmyseo

                    Is there an easy way to see how competitive a local search term is?

                    Is there a quick and easy way to see how competitive local search terms are?  I am looking at helping my clients show up on the local search results.  Some times all I have to do is claim a listing and they move right to the top.  Sometimes I claim a listing and nothing happens so I get links and I get reviews and it takes awhile.  I want to be able to put an accurate price point on the service I am offering.  I have looked at the search volume and it hasn't been the best indicator because some industries are more competitve than others.  Any help or suggestions would be appreciated.

                    Image & Video Optimization | | jimmyseo
                    0

                  Get started with Moz Pro!

                  Unlock the power of advanced SEO tools and data-driven insights.

                  Start my free trial
                  Products
                  • Moz Pro
                  • Moz Local
                  • Moz API
                  • Moz Data
                  • STAT
                  • Product Updates
                  Moz Solutions
                  • SMB Solutions
                  • Agency Solutions
                  • Enterprise Solutions
                  • Digital Marketers
                  Free SEO Tools
                  • Domain Authority Checker
                  • Link Explorer
                  • Keyword Explorer
                  • Competitive Research
                  • Brand Authority Checker
                  • Local Citation Checker
                  • MozBar Extension
                  • MozCast
                  Resources
                  • Blog
                  • SEO Learning Center
                  • Help Hub
                  • Beginner's Guide to SEO
                  • How-to Guides
                  • Moz Academy
                  • API Docs
                  About Moz
                  • About
                  • Team
                  • Careers
                  • Contact
                  Why Moz
                  • Case Studies
                  • Testimonials
                  Get Involved
                  • Become an Affiliate
                  • MozCon
                  • Webinars
                  • Practical Marketer Series
                  • MozPod
                  Connect with us

                  Contact the Help team

                  Join our newsletter
                  Moz logo
                  © 2021 - 2025 SEOMoz, Inc., a Ziff Davis company. All rights reserved. Moz is a registered trademark of SEOMoz, Inc.
                  • Accessibility
                  • Terms of Use
                  • Privacy

                  Looks like your connection to Moz was lost, please wait while we try to reconnect.