A mother two weeks from her due date opens Google, types “pediatrician near me”, and taps the top three. She is looking for four things in about ninety seconds: are they close, do they take her plan, do the reviews mention the wait, and does the practice look like it is still open. Your last profile post is from two winters ago.
What stings is that she would have loved your practice. Your nurses call parents back. Your same-day slots are real. None of that is visible on a map card, and the practice that took her is not better — it is just more legible.
So the office manager posts when the schedule allows, which is never during flu season, which is exactly when families are searching hardest. The listing goes quiet in the months that matter and catches up in the months that do not.
And when a panel spot opens, you find yourself hoping the hospital referral list is enough, because you genuinely do not know how many new families in your area looked, chose someone else, and will now stay with them until the kids are eighteen.