Social media for orthodontists: a practical guide

Orthodontic practices talk to two quite different audiences. Parents want to know when their child should be seen, whether treatment is available on the NHS or privately, what it costs and how long it takes. Adults want discreet options, clear prices and reassurance that it is not too late.

Teenage patients are on social media too, but they are children. Content for them should be friendly and practical, such as looking after braces, never pressure about how they look.

Three posts a week is plenty. Patients ask the same questions every day, so keep a list at reception and turn them into posts.

• Monday: a braces care tip, such as cleaning around brackets.
• Tuesday: what to expect, such as a first assessment or the day braces go on.
• Wednesday: meet the team, with each person's role and GDC registration.
• Thursday: options explained, such as fixed braces, aligners and retainers.
• Friday: practical details, such as NHS or private status, prices or opening hours.

Accurate advertising: standard 1.3.3 of the GDC's Standards for the Dental Team says any advertising or promotional material you produce must be accurate, not misleading and follow the GDC's ethical advertising guidance. The guidance says information carrying your name must include your GDC registration number, avoid claims likely to create unjustified expectations and make clear whether the practice is NHS, mixed or wholly private.

Social media: the GDC says that if you promote services on social networking sites, such as Instagram, TikTok or LinkedIn, you must make clear the treatment may not be appropriate for every patient and is conditional on a satisfactory assessment. It also says practice websites must not compare the skills or qualifications of dental professionals with others.

The specialist title: the GDC says only dentists on a GDC specialist list can use the title "Specialist" or describe themselves as a "specialist in". Dentists not on a list must not use titles that imply specialist status, such as "Orthodontist", but may say they have a "special interest in" or are "experienced in" a treatment, or that their practice is limited to it. Dental care professionals must not use titles such as "Smile specialist".

Dr: the ASA says the GDC has allowed dentists to use "Dr" as a courtesy title since 1995, but the ASA has ruled that using it without making clear it is a courtesy title and that no general medical qualification is held was misleading.

This is general information, not legal or clinical advice. Rules differ by country and change, so check with your regulator, professional body or a lawyer before you post claims, prices or photos of the people you serve.

1. Add your GDC number to your bio, website and any post that names a clinician.
2. Say in your bio whether you are NHS, mixed or private.
3. Add "treatment subject to assessment" to every treatment post.
4. Check each clinician's title against the GDC specialist list.
5. Qualify "Dr" as a courtesy title, or leave it out.

Sources: GDC: Guidance on advertising, checked 15 October 2026; ASA Advice Online: Use of the term "Dr", dentists, checked 15 October 2026

Speed and comfort: the ASA's enforcement notice on braces and dental devices says advertisers must not claim their brace systems are "less painful" and have a "faster effect" than traditional braces without high-quality human clinical trials, which it has yet to see.

Aligners ordered remotely: the GDC says there is currently no effective substitute for a physical, clinical examination as the foundation for assessing whether orthodontic treatment is suitable, and that patients must know the full name of the dental professional responsible for their treatment. That gives you honest content: explain why you examine everyone in person.

Before and after photos: the ASA treats them like testimonials. Hold signed and dated proof that they are genuine and unretouched, and show typical results.

US: section 5.H of the ADA Code says a dentist may announce as a specialist only in a recognised specialty, such as orthodontics, and only if they meet the educational requirements. Advisory opinion 5.F.7 says social media advertising that promises superior results without supporting evidence is false or misleading, and anyone endorsing a product or service must disclose paid partnerships.

Sources: ASA: Enforcement Notice, braces and dental devices, checked 15 October 2026; GDC: Direct-to-consumer orthodontics, information to support professional judgement, checked 15 October 2026; ASA Advice Online: Before and after photos, checked 15 October 2026; ADA: Principles of Ethics and Code of Professional Conduct, 2025 edition (PDF), checked 15 October 2026

Many orthodontic patients are children, and a smile photo can identify a child. NSPCC Learning says children should always be consulted and give consent before their photo or video is used, and that for under 16s you should also get parental consent, in writing, with a clear way to withdraw it. The ICO says data concerning health is special category data.

In the US, HHS says the HIPAA Privacy Rule generally requires written authorization before protected health information is used for marketing.

Ask every patient for a review the same way, for example after debond. Google's review policy bans incentives for reviews and selectively asking happy patients, and the FTC's 2024 rule in the US bans fake reviews.

• Use a consent form that names social media and asks both the parent and the child.
• Crop to teeth and smile where you can, and leave out names and school uniforms.
• Never run a smile competition that rewards reviews.
• Take a post down promptly if a family changes their mind.

Sources: NSPCC Learning: Photography and sharing images and films, checked 15 October 2026; ICO: What is special category data?, checked 15 October 2026; HHS: HIPAA Privacy Rule, marketing, checked 15 October 2026; Google Maps user-generated content policy: fake engagement, checked 15 October 2026; FTC: Final rule banning fake reviews and testimonials (August 2024), checked 15 October 2026

Plan around the school year and the calendar: assessments before a new term, braces-friendly food at Halloween and Christmas, and adult treatment enquiries in the new year.

Disclosure: this guide is published by Zolyp, an AI social media manager. Zolyp plans a calendar around your content pillars, writes and designs each post, and schedules it to Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google Business, X, TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest, and Threads. You start in review-everything mode, so nothing goes live without your approval. Brand Brain can hold words you never want used, such as "specialist" for clinicians not on the list, "faster" or "pain-free". Zolyp does not check posts against GDC or ASA rules, so read every post before you approve it. Everything in this guide works just as well done by hand.

• Week 1: check Google hours, NHS or private status, prices and GDC numbers.
• Week 2: film two braces care tips and one options explainer.
• Week 3: one consented patient journey post and one team post.
• Week 4: reply to reviews, note which posts brought enquiries and plan next month.