Mental health marketing is full of misunderstandings, overpriced services, and flat out lies. Most agencies and freelancers sell you services in a silo — each piece disconnected from the bigger puzzle of how to grow your practice.
To truly get more clients for less money, you need an integrative, affordable mix of Google Ads, SEO, directory sites, referrals, social media, and more … managed by a single point of contact with a deep understanding of how the entire therapist marketing puzzle fits together. That’s what you get with me!
Stop trying to DIY your way to a full practice. Instead, let me and my team of experts take the burden off your shoulders and help you:
There are an overwhelming number of marketing options when it comes to growing your private practice. While each one has its merits, most are superfluous (I’m looking at you, social media).
After working with hundreds of solo practitioners and group practices in the past 18 years, I have discovered that successful marketing for therapists only requires five key areas:
A shocking 79% of therapists spend less than $100/month on marketing. Or, they try to DIY their way through Google Ads and SEO and don’t get the results they want. Then, they call me and wonder why their caseloads remain empty.
Your therapist marketing budget should be between 5-15% of your desired revenue.
While that may sound like a lot when you’re getting started, you need to think about where you want to be rather than where you are right now.
It’s ok to dream big! The more money you earn, the more people you are helping. For example, if you want to earn $250,000/year, you should budget an average of $2,100/month to get there.
Marketing for therapists should make you money – not put you in the red. However, when therapists ask me how many new clients they can expect per month or what their return on investment (ROI) will be, the answer becomes a bit murkier.
While services like Google Ads, Psychology Today, and ZocDoc can be directly tracked and should provide at least a 2:1 ROI, long-term efforts like SEO and social media are more difficult to quantity. That’s why it’s essential to have a therapist marketing agency that provides all services under one roof.
Want more clients for less money? Every successful marketing for therapists campaign has one thing in common. They all took the time to define their niche and client. If you already have this, great. You can skip to the next step. Otherwise, you are going to be paying way too much for marketing.
Many therapists worry about not getting enough clients with a niche-based practice. They tell me they want to help everyone and don’t want to do just one thing for the rest of their career. To those therapists, I say, “choose two dream clients and see where they overlap.”
You’re not locking yourself into anything for life. You can change your niche and dream client whenever you want. It’s just a bunch of words on a website.
When you have such clarity on the struggles, needs, and desires of one person, you actually make it easier for people to choose you. Plus, you get to raise your rates. Everyone pays more money for the brain surgeon than they do for the general practitioner.
Here are 3 possible outcomes of infusing a dream client and niche into your website and marketing for therapists:
Marketing for therapists is like a giant flag you wave to get someone’s attention and bring them to your website.
Once there, your therapist website serves as a virtual intake call. It makes a deep connection with your dream client and inspires them to reach out.
By creating content that reads like a page out of your dream client’s journal, your therapist website filters out unqualified leads.
When your website tries to speak to everyone, you wind up connecting with no one. When you deeply understand (and speak to) a specific person, you instantly stand out in a very busy therapist crowd.
Plus, data shows that having a well-defined niche and dream client inspires a higher percentage of people to click the “schedule a consult” button. That’s the key to getting more clients for less money.
When we created Julie’s couples counseling website, we infused her dream client and niche into every digital inch. Then, we used that same understanding to craft an incredibly effective Google Ads campaign that converts at nearly 5x the industry average.
The biggest takeaway? Having a clearly-defined dream client and niche saves you hundreds of dollars every month.
Here’s the math: according to industry averages, you pay $5 for everyone who visits your website through Google Ads. Of that, only 2-4% of people will reach out … and only a fraction of those leads become paying clients.
The industry average is 2-4%
Julie converts an astounding 44% of leads
The industry average is 2%
Google Ads is the fastest and easiest way to get your therapy practice in front of people who are ready to start therapy now. It’s not cheap, but it is extremely effective and should be a centerpiece of marketing for therapists.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the best longterm gift you can give your practice. Unlike paid ads, which stop generating traffic once you stop paying, a well-optimized website can show up on Page 1 of Google and continue to attract clients for years. Here are some elements of successful SEO for therapists.
Keyword Research: Identify the keywords and phrases your potential clients are using to search for therapy services. Then, incorporate those keywords into the text of your website. They should be included in headings, paragraph text, and as image descriptions.
Page Speed: Most people will leave a website if it takes more than 3 seconds to load. Google knows this and rewards sites that load quickly with higher placement in the search engine rankings.
Mobile Friendliness: Websites look better on a desktop. But, more than 50% of people are looking at your website from their phone. That means it has to look good on all devices. Otherwise, people will leave quickly and Google will not be happy.
Don’t Be Salesy: Would you rather visit a page that teaches you something or one that just tries to get your business? Google is just like you in that way. It loves pages that provide value to the reader. The moral of the story? Teach and connect before you sell.
Google My Business: If you’re practice is not on Google Business, stop reading this and go add it. Google is nepotistic and wants you to use its products. Plus, you need a profile to get your practice on local maps.
Blog Posts: The more content you have, the better Google understands what your website is about. Just make sure that each post is linking to other posts inside your site. Google follows those links closely.
External Links: The more reputable, high-quality websites that link to your site the better your SEO. Guest blogging, collaborations, or being featured in articles can help you get more backlinks for therapists.
User Experience: Google monitors everything everyone does on your website. The longer they stay and the more pages they visit, the higher your webpage ranks.
You do not need to be on social media. It’s a waste of time and money. Your dream client is not using Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, or LinkedIn to find a therapist. They are trying to disassociate from their troubles and get that dopamine boost.
Social media is like a billboard on the side of the road. Every time you post content, run ads, or share updates, you’re reinforcing your brand. Over time, people will come to know, like, and trust you. THAT’s when they become clients. Maybe. If you’re lucky.
All that said, Social media gets a bad rap in the therapy world. While I understand the ethical and confidentiality concerns, I also have seen how Facebook and Instagram can be a beacon of hope — offering validation, transformation, connection, and understanding.
A successful social media feed requires a consistent flow of impactful posts, eye-catching visuals, practical insights, valuable resources, and a touch of self-promotion. To be honest, it’s a lot of work.
If you do decide to focus on social media for therapists, make sure you’re consistent and post at least 2-3x/week. There’s nothing worse than following a therapist, only to see that the last time they updated their feed was during the pandemic.
You also need to allocate a budget of at least $10/day. Facebook and Instagram business pages exist to make money for Facebook. If you don’t pay to boost your posts or run ads, no one will ever see your content. (learn more here).
Finally, I suggest running Facebook ads to people who have visited your website. Known as “retargeting ads,” they nurture the customer journey and keep your practice in the forefront of your dream client’s mind while they consider who to choose as their therapists. Plus, since Facebook has agreements with millions of websites, your ads appear everywhere your dream client goes online. Reach out if you need help setting that up.
Your therapist website is the key to marketing success. A well-designed website that speaks to your dream client and gives them plenty of ways to reach out can cut your marketing budget in half.
On the flip side, I don’t recommend investing in marketing for therapists until you have a highly effective website. Otherwise, you’re just wasting money. Here are 7 ways an effective therapist website can get you more clients for less money:
Love it or hate it, Psychology Today is a key part of the therapist marketing puzzle. Yes, the search results are random and there is copious competition. Yet, the platform excels at putting you in front of people who are ready to start therapy asap. Be sure to Include photos and a 15-second video (rumor has it, that helps you with the algorithm).
As for the other therapist directory sites, I recommend GoodTherapy, ZocDoc, Bark, TherapyDen, and a handful of others. Whichever you choose, make sure your profile focuses on your dream client rather than you.
To properly track what clients come from which directory site, set up different phone numbers and therapist website landing pages for each one. Reach out if you need help setting that up.
Therapist marketing automations help you work smarter, not harder. They get you more leads for less money and grow your practice on autopilot. Instead of being weighed down by repetitive marketing tasks, establish a system that guarantees long-term success and scalability. Here are a few common examples of marketing automation for therapists.
At Goodman Creatives, we will develop a marketing automation strategy. Then, my team of experts can implement and manage everything for you.
Or, if you prefer the done-with-you approach, the Profitable Practice Program provides guides and templates that empower you to take charge of your automations. The choice is yours, and I’m here to support you every step of the way.
I didn’t choose to be a therapist marketing expert. Rather, the industry chose me. It all started in 2006, when a family friend asked me to manage her group practice’s Google Ads campaign.
A few years later, while working at a fine art photo printing lab, the owner’s wife (also a therapist) referred me to a few of her colleagues who needed new websites and more clients. Word spread; and, before I knew it, I had discovered my true calling, my career path, and my life’s purpose.
I have helped therapists succeed in every stage of their business journey — from associates to recently-licensed clinicians, solo practice owners, group practices, clinics, and large mental health companies.
A career highlight came during my six year tenure as Head of Marketing and Design for Well Clinic, where I kept 43 caseloads full: even during the pandemic. Now, I’m ready to share everything I know with you.
Reach out today and let’s chat about how I can help.
To help guide your journey, please click the description that best matches you.
Learn how the marketing puzzle fits together with my library of DIY resources, trainings, and guides to set your practice up for success.
Create a scalable system to help you double, triple, or 10x your client base with 1-1 coaching for your marketing, website, and business.
Keep your clinicians full and your admin happy with marketing management, automated leadgen systems, and an upgraded intake process.
To improve our collective mental health by providing a clear, sustainable path for clinicians to support more people and make the world a better place.
You can expect transparency, integrity, accountability, honesty, compassion, innovation, and open communication at every step of our collaboration.
An integrative mix of business coaching for therapists and done-for-you web design and marketing services.
Learn how to get a steady flow of therapy clients you love by building a foundation for a thriving practice.
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