Guide
Google AI Overviews and your practice
Since July 22, 2026, the first thing a patient sees on Google is no longer a list of websites. It is an answer, written by AI, with a few sources cited. For a dental practice, being in that answer or left out of it changes everything.
What AI Overviews are
AI Overviews (called "Aperçus IA" in French) are a block Google displays at the top of the results for some searches. In it, Google writes an answer to the question asked, based on several pages it has read, and cites those pages as links. Google switched them on in France on July 22, 2026, according to its official announcement.
For a search such as "how much does a dental implant cost" or "veneers or whitening, which should I choose", the AI Overview answers directly. For "implant dentist Lyon 6e", it may name practices and point to the map. Either way, the answer comes before the list of websites, and some patients never scroll further down.
What this changes for a dental practice
- Fewer clicks on the organic results. Patients read the answer. Websites that lived off tenth place lose visits.
- More value for the cited sources. Being one of the three or four links under the answer is worth more than the top spot used to be: it is Google itself recommending you.
- Questions matter more than keywords. AI Overviews answer complete questions. A website that answers those questions, in clear sentences, is a natural source.
- Consistency becomes a criterion. Before citing a practice, Google cross-checks the website, the Google Business Profile and online directories. One contradiction, and it prefers another practice.
How to become part of the answer
Answer questions, do not just mention them
A "dental implant" page that opens with "A dental implant is an artificial titanium root placed in the bone to replace a missing tooth. The procedure takes about an hour, under local anesthesia…" can be picked up by an AI Overview. A page that says "we offer high-quality implants" never will be.
One page per important question
How much does it cost, how long does it take, does it hurt, what are the alternatives, how does the first appointment go. Each question deserves a clear answer at the top of the page, followed by the details.
Structured data
Schema markup in the website's code that describes the practice, the practitioners, the treatments and the frequently asked questions in a machine-readable format. Google uses it to understand who you are before citing you.
Fees on display
Many of the questions people ask Google are about price. A practice that displays its fees or clear price ranges has an answer to give; a practice that says nothing does not.
A Google Business Profile and a website that match
Same name, same address, same opening hours, same treatments, same practitioners, down to the letter.
What we measure
For your city and your treatments, we list the searches that trigger an AI Overview, we look at which practices and which sources are cited, and we record where you stand. It is part of the diagnostic, and then of the monthly follow-up. The topic is covered more broadly on our AI search visibility page, and in the guide how ChatGPT chooses the dentist it recommends.
Sources
This guide is based on the following official texts and documentation, last checked on September 27, 2026.
On the blog
Our articles on this topic.
Does your dental practice show up in ChatGPT? The ten-minute method to check
Five questions, three AI tools, one scoring grid: the method to measure for yourself how present your practice is in ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity.
Read the article ArticleHow AI reads a dentist website, and why yours may be invisible
The path an AI crawler takes to your website, and the four walls that make it invisible: scripts, blocking, vague text, no outside sources, with the test and the fix for each.
Read the articleFrequently asked questions
What dentists ask us about this.
Are Google AI Overviews live in France?
Yes, since July 22, 2026, according to Google's official announcement. They appear for some searches, above the list of websites.
Can you pay to appear in an AI Overview?
No. The cited sources are chosen by Google from the pages it considers most useful and reliable. For a dentist, any form of advertising would be prohibited anyway.
Can an AI Overview name my practice?
Yes, for local searches, based on your Google Business Profile and your website. The conditions: a complete profile, a website that answers patients' questions, and identical information everywhere.
What's next
Let's talk about your practice.
The simplest step is to request your diagnostic: you will see where your practice really stands on Google, on the map and in AI answers, and we walk through it together on a video call.
No commitment.