How to advertise on Google: which option suits a clinic

To advertise on Google, a clinic has five real options: a Google Business Profile (no charge), Search ads, Performance Max, YouTube video ads and Display ads. Start with the free profile and Search ads for one high-value treatment, because both reach patients who are already looking. Add the others only once you can track which enquiries turn into bookings.

What are the ways to advertise on Google?

Here is what each option does, in Google's own words where it matters.

• Google Business Profile: your listing on Google Maps and Search. Google says you can manage how your business shows up there "at no charge."
• Search ads: "Text ads on search results." You pay when someone clicks.
• Performance Max: one campaign that runs across Search, YouTube, Display, Gmail, Discover and Maps.
• YouTube video ads: "Video ads on YouTube", charged by views or impressions depending on how you bid.
• Display ads: "Image ads on websites."

The right order depends on one thing: is the patient searching for you, or do you have to reach them first?

Why start with your Google Business Profile?

When someone types "dentist near me" or "scan centre Wuse", Google can show your clinic on Maps and in Search before any paid ad does its work. A complete profile with the right category, opening hours, photos, a booking link and recent reviews competes there without paying for a click.

Ads also lean on it. A patient who clicks a Search ad often checks your profile and reviews before calling. A thin listing loses bookings the ad already paid for.

If your listing needs work, start with our post on setting up a Google Business Profile for clinics, then getting more Google reviews.

When are Search ads the right choice?

Search ads put your clinic at the top of results for the words patients type: "teeth whitening Lekki", "fertility clinic Abuja", "physiotherapy after knee surgery". The need already exists. Your ad only has to show you are close, qualified and easy to book.

You pay per click, and you control spend. Google sets a daily budget per campaign, and says spend "will never exceed 2 times your average daily budget on a given day", with the month capped at 30.4 times the daily figure.

That control makes Search the safest paid way to advertise on Google for a clinic with a modest budget. Pick one treatment that pays well, aim at the areas your patients actually travel from, and send clicks to a landing page for that treatment with a phone number and booking form.

Is Performance Max worth it for a clinic?

Google describes Performance Max as "a goal-based campaign type" that can reach "all Google Ads inventory, including YouTube, Display, Search, Discover, Gmail, and Maps." You give it goals, text, images and videos. Google decides where to show them.

That suits a clinic which already tracks calls, form fills and bookings as conversions. Without that tracking, Google has nothing reliable to aim at, so it risks spending your budget on clicks that never book. Run Search first, prove which enquiries become patients, then test Performance Max against it.

What about YouTube and Display ads?

Both reach people who were not searching for you. They build familiarity, so the patient recognises your clinic later on Google or Instagram.

YouTube skippable ads on view bidding charge when a viewer "watches 30 seconds of your video" (or the whole video if shorter) or interacts with it.

Use these after Search works, for treatments people weigh for weeks, such as aligners or skin treatments. For the same job on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, see social media ads for clinics.

You may also read about Google's Local Services Ads. Google's own country list for them does not include Nigeria, so check eligibility before you plan around them.

Which order should a clinic follow?

1. Fix the Business Profile. Category, hours, photos, booking link, reviews.
2. Run Search ads for one treatment. One area, one landing page, a clear phone number.
3. Track every enquiry. Record each call, message and form, its source, and who booked.
4. Add a second treatment once the first produces bookings at a cost you accept.
5. Test Performance Max or YouTube only when tracking is reliable, and compare cost per booking with Search.

What can a clinic say in a Google ad?

Google's Healthcare and medicines policy restricts prescription drug terms in ads, landing pages and keywords, and does not allow promotion of "speculative and/or experimental medical treatments." Name the consultation or procedure, never a prescription drug.

Your profession's own advertising rules apply on top: no promised results, no before-and-after claims you cannot stand behind, no patient details.

How Kren runs Google for clinics

Kren is a done-for-you growth team for private clinics in Lagos and Abuja. We set up and tidy your Business Profile, run Search ads within Google's health rules through our lead generation work, track each enquiry to its source, and report cost per booking. Your own team does the final follow-up and booking.

On a 30-minute strategy call we look at how patients find you on Google today and where your ad money should go first. Show me where my clinic is losing patients →

Questions clinic owners ask about how to advertise on Google

Is it free to advertise on Google?

A Google Business Profile costs nothing and shows your clinic on Maps and Search. Search, Performance Max, YouTube and Display ads are paid. You set a daily budget, and Google caps spend against it.

Should a new clinic start with Search ads or Performance Max?

Start with Search ads. They reach people already looking for a treatment and show you clearly which words bring enquiries. Performance Max needs reliable conversion tracking to aim well, so test it later.

Can a clinic advertise prescription drugs on Google?

Google restricts prescription drug terms in ads, landing pages and keywords. Advertise the consultation or procedure instead, and check the location rules in Google's Healthcare and medicines policy.

How do we know if Google ads are working?

Track every call, message and form back to its source and record who booked. Divide spend by patients who booked. Clicks and impressions alone do not tell you whether the clinic is getting paid.