SEO and GEO for doctors
Doctor SEO for Google and the AI Answer.
LLMReach is an SEO and GEO agency for doctors. We help your practice rank in Google and get named by ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity and Gemini when patients ask who to see. Doctor SEO services for both places.
By the numbers
The numbers behind how patients choose.
- of U.S. patients have used an AI tool to research or find a healthcare provider, up from 31% in 2025, and now the top influencer among patients who recently switched providers.
- 47%
- of U.S. patients have used an AI tool to research or find a healthcare provider, up from 31% in 2025, and now the top influencer among patients who recently switched providers.
- rater8, 2026 Patient Choice Report (April 2026, n=992 U.S. adults)
What patients search and ask first
Patients search Google, then ask AI.
- Primary care: “best primary care doctor in Austin”. The answer names a few doctors, often drawn from directories like Zocdoc and Healthgrades, and the patient books one of them.
- Concierge: “best concierge doctor in Los Angeles”. A buyer weighing a membership trusts the short list, which leans on directory and health system pages.
- Specialist: “best dermatologist in Houston”. Specialists with clear profile facts get named. Practices with thin pages are skipped.
- New patients: “best family doctor accepting new patients in Seattle”. Patients tired of calling around take the first doctor the assistant names as taking new patients.
Many practice sites say little that is specific. In our searches, assistants named doctors they could confirm on Zocdoc, Healthgrades and WebMD. A vague site loses in Google and in AI.
The basics
Doctor SEO, now that AI answers.
Doctor SEO puts your practice in Google when patients search for a doctor. GEO gets your practice named when patients ask AI. You need both.
AI answers draw on pages, reviews and directories. In our test of 30 answers, Zocdoc, Healthgrades and WebMD led the sources. Learn the GEO basics.
Two jobs follow. Make provider and location pages specific enough to rank and be quoted by AI. Keep directory profiles consistent, so AI visibility follows.
GEO and SEO
SEO vs GEO for doctors.
Both rest on the same provider pages, reviews and directory profiles, but Google ranks them and an assistant quotes them. This is where they differ for a practice.
| SEO | GEO | |
|---|---|---|
| What you win | A position in Google's list and local pack | Your practice named in the assistant's answer |
| Where the patient sees you | The results for "doctor near me" | The short list ChatGPT, Gemini or Perplexity gives patients |
| What decides it | Relevance, links, reviews and page experience | Facts the assistant can confirm on your site and in directories |
| Sources that weigh most | Your website and Google Business Profile | Your site plus Zocdoc, Healthgrades, WebMD and Google |
| How it is measured | Rankings, calls and booked visits | Citations across agreed patient prompts, and visits from AI assistants |
Our own results
We do this for our own brand first.
Gemini · Named
“best agency for getting cited in LLMs”
ChatGPT · Named
“agency that gets you cited in AI models”
ChatGPT · Named
“best agency for getting cited in LLMs”
AI answers vary by platform and moment, so these show the method working on those days, not a promise of identical answers.
See all resultsReal Google results
The sites Google ranks when patients search.
We searched Google for the same 10 questions your patients ask AI. 6 of the 10 results pages opened with an AI Overview and 10 with a map of local businesses. Only 22% of the sites ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity cite for the same questions rank in that top 10: ranking in Google and getting named by AI are two jobs.
- 01=alphasophia.comTop Pediatrics Centers and Practices in Denvertop 10 in 2 of 10 searches
- 01=ascension.orgFamily Medicine Physicians Near Me in Austin, TXtop 10 in 2 of 10 searches
- 01=onemedical.comPrimary Care Doctor's Office in Austin, TX South Austintop 10 in 2 of 10 searches
Google
- 01=top 10 in 2 of 10 searches
Google organic top 10, US, desktop, searched on 20 October 2026. Each site counts once per search; subdomains count with their site.
Real AI answers
Same question, three different answers.
We asked ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity 10 questions your patients ask, one in each of the 6 largest US cities. Here is what each one answered to the same question, word for word.
of the names in their answers were given by only one of the three assistants.
Only 1% were named by all three. Counted across our 10 questions, one question at a time.
Question asked
“best orthopedic surgeon in Dallas”
Dallas · 20 October 2026
- ChatGPTgpt-6
Named
- 1.Bradford S. Waddell, MD
- 2.Kurt J. Kitziger, MD
- 3.Jason S. Klein, MD
- 4.M. Brett Raynor, MD
- 5.UT Southwestern Orthopaedic Surgery Clinic
Sources cited
- Gemini3.5 Flash-Lite
Named
- 1.Texas Joint Institute
- 2.Baylor Scott & White Orthopedic Associates of Dallas
- 3.Dr. Steven J. Thornton
- 4.Dr. Ali Ashraf
- 5.Orthopedic Institute of North Texas (OINT)
- 6.Dr. James White Brodsky
- 7.Dr. Vikas Patel
Sources cited
- Perplexitysonar
Named
- 1.J. Conner Ryan, MD
- 2.J. Stephen Appleton, MD
- 3.Robert E. Berry, MD
- 4.Buford “Don” Buford, MD
- 5.Justin M. Kane, MD
- 6.William Z. Morris, MD
Sources cited
webmd.com
yably.com
healthgrades.com
bswhealth.com
zocdoc.com
dmagazine.com
tebra.comChatGPT (gpt-6), Gemini (3.5 Flash-Lite) and Perplexity (sonar), asked from the US in English on 20 October 2026. Names appear as each assistant gave them, in its order; we do not rank or endorse them.
Sources
The sites AI cites in your sector.
The sites the three assistants cited most across all 30 answers, counted by city. A site cited in 6 of 6 cities shapes the answer wherever your practice is.
- 01zocdoc.comDirectoryView Austin doctors on Zocdoccited in 5 of 6 cities
- ChatGPT
- Gemini
- Perplexity
- 02=healthgrades.comDirectoryBrowse primary care doctors on Healthgradescited in 4 of 6 cities
- ChatGPT
- Perplexity
- 02=cited in 4 of 6 cities
- Perplexity
ChatGPT
Gemini
Perplexity
- 02=cited in 4 of 6 cities
- ChatGPT
- Perplexity
- 05usnews.comCardiologists at Mayo Clinic-Arizonacited in 3 of 6 cities
- Perplexity
- 06healthline.comPrimary Care Doctors in Austin, TX | Schedule Onlinecited in 2 of 6 cities
- Perplexity
Measured on 20 October 2026. Each site counts once per answer; subdomains count with their site.
Specialties
Where SEO and GEO matter, by specialty.
Primary care
Patients ask who is taking new patients. Clear insurance and availability details help patients and assistants pick you.
Concierge medicine
Buyers compare memberships before joining. Pages on what is included give assistants facts to quote.
Dermatology
Patients search by condition and city. Specific service pages put you in the answer.
Orthopedics and sports medicine
Patients compare surgeons and clinics by credentials. State training, conditions treated and locations plainly.
Pediatrics
Parents look for trusted local care. Reviews, hours and complete directory profiles carry weight.
Cardiology, ENT and GI
Referral and self-search both matter. Clear specialty pages and consistent profiles make you easy to name.
What's included
Doctor SEO services, plus the AI answer.
A 90-day engagement built around how patients search for a doctor, in Google and in AI, for new patient and specialist visits.
- Patient keyword and prompt audit across Google, ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity and Gemini, by specialty and city
- Doctor SEO services: keyword research and specialty pages that rank in Google, from primary care to dermatology
- Answer-first rewrites of your home page, provider bios and service pages
- Technical SEO fixes plus Physician, MedicalClinic and FAQPage schema
- One consistent practice profile across Google, Zocdoc, Healthgrades, WebMD and insurer directories
- llms.txt and robots.txt set up for the AI crawlers
- Research into the Reddit and community threads where patients ask how to find a doctor
- A baseline of your Google rankings and AI citations, taken before work begins
- Weekly updates on your Google and AI visibility
How it works
How doctor SEO works: the Citation Stack.
We map what patients search in Google and ask AI, from "doctor near me" to "accepting new patients". Then we agree the searches and prompts that bring in new patient visits.
Explore AI Prompt ResearchGoogle and AI crawlers can reach and read every provider and service page. Site speed and medical schema are in place.
Explore technical SEOAnswer-first pages state your specialty, city, insurance accepted and new patient status in the first sentence. Clear bios build trust.
Explore on-page SEOResearch into the Reddit and Quora threads patients use to pick a doctor. We join only where it fits community rules.
Explore Reddit MarketingWe track your Google rankings for your specialty and city and count AI citations across the agreed prompts, against a baseline taken before work begins. You get weekly updates.
Explore AI Visibility Tracking
You have the final say on every page. We do the rest, and we write nothing that gives medical advice. See all our SEO services
Who this is for
For practices that win patients on trust.
Not for you
If any of these sound like you.
- You expect new patients in the first few days
- You want the cheapest doctor SEO you can find
- You only want a report on where your practice ranks, not the work done
- You can't approve the pages we write or share access to your site
For you
If this sounds like you.
- Patients compare doctors before they book
- You can share credentials, insurance details and service information
- You want the work done for you, not another report
- You have the final say on every page and want a 90-day window
- The work pays off where patients compare doctors before they book.
- It also works where you can show real credentials, reviews and clear service details.
FAQ
Doctor SEO: questions practices ask us.
What does a doctor SEO company do now that AI answers?
It still earns rankings in Google: provider pages, technical fixes, local profiles and reviews. Now it also has to get your practice named when patients ask ChatGPT, Perplexity or Gemini. One team handles both, in the same 90 days. Our guide shows how SEO and GEO differ.
Is GEO for doctors the same as AEO, AI SEO or LLM optimization?
AI SEO for doctors, AEO for doctors and LLM optimization for physician practices mean the same work. So does ChatGPT optimization. The goal is assistants naming your practice when patients ask who to see. The Citation Stack is our method.
What do your doctor SEO services include?
Keyword and patient prompt research, specialty and location pages, technical SEO and schema, consistent directory profiles, community research and weekly tracking against a baseline. The first step is a free AI visibility audit of the searches your patients use.
How long does doctor SEO take?
Usually months, not weeks. Local pages tend to move first. Competitive terms in a big city take longer. AI citations can move sooner, because profile updates are picked up fast. We report weekly against a baseline.
Why do AI assistants cite Zocdoc and Healthgrades instead of practice websites?
Because Zocdoc, Healthgrades and WebMD hold structured, outside views of many doctors. In our test of 30 answers, Zocdoc appeared in 15. We make your site specific and keep your profiles complete and consistent.
How do you get a doctor cited by ChatGPT and Perplexity?
We make your practice easy to confirm on the directories assistants read. Complete profiles and reviews come first. Then a page per specialty and city that answers the question first. Add schema, and track the prompts that matter. See healthcare SEO and GEO.
Do new patient and specialist searches need different work?
Yes. Patients seeking a new family doctor care about insurance, availability and fit. Specialist searches center on credentials and conditions treated. We build pages for each, so AI prompt research shapes what gets written.
How do you measure the work?
We track your Google rankings and count citations of your practice across the agreed patient prompts in ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity and Gemini. The baseline comes first, before any work starts. Visits from AI assistants show in GA4 as their own source, so you see which services they bring.
Do you give medical advice or promise patient numbers?
No. We write practice information, not medical advice, and you approve every page. The only promise we make is the citation guarantee: at least 30% more AI citations in 90 days against your own baseline, or work continues at no charge.
How do you compare doctor SEO and GEO agencies?
Ask three things before signing. Which patient searches and AI questions will it track, against what baseline? Which directory profiles will it fix, beyond pages? How will it keep every page accurate and compliant? Our free AI audit answers them for your practice.
Free AI Audit
Do patients find you on Google and AI?
You leave knowing where your practice is missing from AI answers, what is causing it, and which changes would matter first, whether we work together or not.
What to expect
Audit
Before the call, we run the questions your patients ask through ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity and Gemini.
Map
On the call, we show you where competitors are cited and you are not, and what's causing it.
Decide
An honest read on whether the Citation Stack fits. If it doesn't, you'll hear it on the call.
Don't see a time that works? Email Karim directly: contact@llmreach.ai