Winners & losers of SEO visibility in the dental industry

With increasing health awareness, and a growing emphasis on oral hygiene, the dental care industry has seen substantial growth recently. This is particularly evident in the UK’s dental sector, where demand for both preventative and cosmetic treatments continues to rise. Studies show that the UK dentistry market is projected to grow by nearly 20% between 2024 and 2029.

As consumers become more focused on maintaining healthy teeth and gums, competition within the dental care market has intensified. Previously, we have analysed other industries, including Payroll, and Supplements. This time, we want to explore how dental care providers and brands are performing in SEO visibility and uncover the strategies behind their websites.

Winners

Colgate

Our first winner is Colgate, and below we can see their visibility over the past 5 years:

From late 2023 onwards, Colgate’s visibility has been on an upward trend, reaching its highest levels in early 2025. These improvements likely indicate strong SEO efforts, content optimisation, and technical enhancements that have helped the brand regain and strengthen its online presence.

Why is Colgate a winner?

Colgate has managed to maintain high visibility over the past few years, and we have explored their website to try to find the contributing factors. . that could have made them a winner in SEO visibility.

The first thing we did was to have a look at their backlink profile:

Colgate has a powerful backlink profile, with links from several high authority websites, such as USA Today, Unilever, and Dentalhealth.org, which is a strong indicator of trust and credibility in the eyes of search engines. These high-authority backlinks help improve Colgate’s domain authority, increasing its chances of ranking well for competitive dental and oral care-related keywords.

We also had a look at their category and product pages:

We found some best practices looking at their product and category pages, for instance:

Keyword optimisation: The page uses terms that align with common search queries related to their products, improving the page’s relevance in search engine results.

Product information: The page provides detailed information about the product’s benefits, key ingredients, and usage instructions.

High-quality images: The inclusion of high-quality product images with descriptive alt text improves user experience and provides additional context to search engines, which can help with image search visibility.

Internal linking: The page includes links to related products and resources, encouraging users to explore more of the website. This internal linking structure helps distribute page authority and can improve the SEO performance of the entire site.

User engagement features: Sections like “Ratings & Reviews” and “You might also like…” encourage user interaction and longer site visits, which are positive signals to search engines regarding the page’s value and relevance.

Now, let’s have a look at the keywords Colgate ranks for:

We can see that Colgate has a strong SEO presence, ranking for branded searches and key oral health topics like “white spots on tongue” and “black spot on tongue.” It also performs well for competitive terms such as “oil pulling” and “tooth pain relief”.

Moreover, we have checked if core functionalities are available with JavaScript turned off and they do. This ensures that essential content and navigation are still available to users and search engines, supporting accessibility and maintaining SEO performance even in cases where JavaScript fails to load.

We have also checked their blog pages:

They do follow some best practices such as inclusion of related articles, and internal linking, which is important for improving site structure, distributing link equity, and keeping users engaged for longer. By linking to related content, Colgate enhances the user experience, encourages deeper exploration of its site. However, they are missing author information, which is important for E-E-A-T.

Author transparency helps establish credibility, especially for health-related content like oral care. Without clear attribution, users may question the reliability of the information, and search engines may view the content as less authoritative.

We have also tested the page’s mobile speed:

They have not only failed the core web vitals test but also have scored very low for their performance. This means the website needs to improve its speed because a slow page frustrates visitors, often making them leave before exploring the content. Google uses speed as a ranking factor, so a slow site can hurt search rankings and reduce traffic.

Oral B

Also featuring our winners is Oral B. Below, is their visibility from the past 5 years:

While there were fluctuations in earlier years, their visibility has significantly improved, suggesting successful SEO efforts, likely through content optimisation, technical improvements, and stronger keyword targeting. If they continue refining their strategy and addressing any dips, they’ll likely recover the visibility they have lost recently.

Why is Oral B a winner?

Oral B has not only been following some good SEO practices, but they also have a strong brand name and recognition, which may have helped them on the rankings.

First, let’s have a look at their backlink profile:

Just like Colgate, they also have a strong backlink profile with links coming from high authority links, such as Huffington Post, and dentalhealth.org.

Oral-B’s anchor text profile looks natural and well-balanced, which is great for SEO and user trust. The presence of branded terms like “Oral-B,” ensures strong brand recognition, while product-related keywords such as “toothbrush,” “electric,” “whitening,” and “flossing” indicate relevance to their niche. Additionally, informational terms like “importance,” “causes,” and “how” suggest they have a mix of commercial and educational content, which helps attract a wider audience.

Now looking at the keywords they rank for, we can see the following:

Oral-B ranks for many branded keywords. They also perform well for high-intent searches like “electric toothbrush sale” but have room to improve for broader terms like “electric toothbrush” and “best electric toothbrush”.

Moreover, looking at their category and product pages, we can see that they also follow some best practices:

Optimised product title & headings: Helps search engines understand the page and improves ranking for relevant queries.

High-quality product descriptions: Engages users, provides key information, and improves SEO by including relevant keywords.

Internal linking for user engagement: Keeps visitors on the site longer, improves navigation, and distributes page authority effectively.

High-quality product images: Increases user engagement.

Clear CTAs (Calls to Action): Directs users toward purchasing decisions, improving conversion rates and sales.

Reviews: Essential for building trust and influencing buyers.

Now, let’s test their mobile speed:

Oral-B’s mobile performance score of 57/100 indicates that the page loads slower than ideal, which could impact user experience and conversions. While accessibility and best practices are strong, improving page speed by optimising images for example, would help performance. Faster loading times can reduce bounce rates and improve overall SEO rankings.

Losers

Close up

Featuring our first loser is Close up and below we can see the visibility for them:

From early 2024, there has been a noticeable decline, likely due to Google algorithm updates or technical issues. While there are small signs of recovery in early 2025, further improvements in page speed, content quality, and technical SEO are needed to regain rankings and boost visibility.

Why is Close Up a loser?

We have investigated reasons that may have turned Close Up into a loser in SEO visibility. First, we can see that they have got a much smaller backlink profile when compared to the winners:

Close up still has links from some high authority websites such as Newsweek, and Heath digest. But most of their links come from lower authority websites.

Looking at their anchor text, we can also see some of the words seem spammy or not directly related to the company’s industry.

Their product pages can still improve. Here are some things we have noticed:

URL structure: The URL they use (https://www.close-up.com/uk/p/close-up-gel-toothpaste-red-hot.html/08717163896518) is not user friendly, and contains unnecessary numbers.

Imagery quality: The images they use are not high quality. Product pages need high-quality, clear images with better resolution.

FAQs section: They fail to address common concerns, such as ingredients, usage frequency, and suitability for sensitive teeth.

We have also reviewed their blog pages, but the articles are not accessible (not clickable), preventing us from conducting a full in-depth analysis of their content and overall website quality.

This lack of accessibility (pages don’t seem to be live) could impact user engagement, SEO performance, and credibility, as valuable content remains hidden from both visitors and search engines. Ensuring that blog pages are fully functional and easily accessible would improve the user experience and allow for a better evaluation.

We have also tested the page speed of the website:

They have failed the core web vitals assessment, but did well with their performance score (scoring 73/100). While this isn’t a major issue there’s still room for improvement to enhance user experience and search rankings.

Lastly, we have investigated the keywords they rank for:

Close-Up ranks well for branded keywords, which ensures strong visibility among existing customers. However, they lack rankings for general toothpaste-related terms, limiting their ability to attract new users. To expand their reach, they should target broader keywords like “best whitening toothpaste” or “toothpaste for fresh breath” by optimising content, improving SEO, and creating informative blog posts.

Electric Teeth

Our second loser is Electric teeth. They are a lead-gen site to inform readers about the best dental care products on the market. And as we can see, they’ve got a different trend when it comes to SEO visibility:

While the recent spike in 2025 looks promising, the site’s history of sudden declines suggests it may not be stable long-term. These fluctuations could be due to Google algorithm updates, content changes, or technical issues. If they don’t address the underlying causes, there’s a risk of another drop. To maintain consistent visibility, they need to focus on sustainable SEO practices, including high-quality content, strong backlinks, and technical optimisation.

Why is Electric Teeth a loser?

Let’s examine their website and discover what could have caused them to be so unstable on search rankings.

Their profile is smaller compared to the other website we analysed, but they have some good backlinks from Metro, and DentalBuzz.

Having a look at the keywords they rank for, we can see that Electric Teeth ranks for branded and product-specific keywords, holding #1 for “electric teeth” and “oral-b pro 2000 toothbrush.”

However, they are losing ground in competitive, high-traffic queries like “best electric toothbrush” (#10, down 5 spots), which could have impacted organic traffic.

We also had a look at their blog pages:

Overall, their blog pages are well-structured and contain a good number of internal links. They also clearly state who wrote the blog and who peer-reviewed it, which adds credibility and transparency.

As they’ve got an unusual trend when it comes to SEO visibility, we also had a look at Wayback Machine, a tool that archives web pages over time, allowing us to see how a website has changed. This is useful for identifying site migrations, redesigns, or content removals that might impact rankings.

Their visibility suggests that they may have undergone a migration, which could explain the ranking drops. Changes in URLs, site structure, or lost backlinks during a migration can cause temporary and permanent ranking declines if not properly managed.

We have confirmed that the site structure has changed, which supports the theory that a migration or major redesign took place. Structural changes, such as URL modifications, navigation adjustments, or content reorganisation, can impact SEO if redirects aren’t properly implemented. If key pages lost internal links or were moved without correct 301 redirects, this could explain ranking drops.

Lastly, we have tested the Site Speed of the website:

Despite losing SEO visibility, ElectricTeeth.com has an excellent page speed score (89/100). This suggests that technical performance isn’t the site’s biggest issue, and their ranking drops are likely due to factors like site migration, content restructuring, or algorithm updates. While fast-loading pages improve user experience and engagement, maintaining visibility also requires strong content, backlinks, and a stable site structure.

Conclusion

As we have seen, Colgate and Oral-B stand out as the top performers, benefiting from strong backlink profiles, well-optimised product pages, and high keyword rankings. They have managed to maintain their SEO visibility over time driven by a mix of high-authority links, structured internal linking, and strong content strategies. However, Colgate’s slow site speed and Oral-B’s need for better non-branded keyword rankings present areas for improvement.

On the other hand, Close-Up and ElectricTeeth.com have experienced SEO struggles, with noticeable ranking drops. Close-Up’s limited backlink authority, and lack of general keyword coverage could explain why they have struggled with their performance. ElectricTeeth.com’s instability appears to be linked to a site migration, which may have disrupted URL structures and internal linking. Despite their strong page speed, they must address content stability and backlink acquisition to regain lost ground.

For long-term SEO success, brands must focus on sustainable content strategies, technical SEO improvements, and backlink diversification. Ensuring fast page speed, well-optimised content, and structured site navigation will be essential in maintaining search visibility.