What should you focus on in your therapy business?
Updated: Sep 22
Have you ever sat down at your computer, ready to work on your therapy business, and wondered where to start?
You could update your website, write a social media post, look into a directory listing or get in touch with past clients. Perhaps you’ve saved some marketing advice that sounded useful, but haven’t quite worked out how to apply it.
Before you know it, the time you set aside has disappeared and you’re still unsure what to do next.
When you’re running a therapy business on your own, you’re responsible for both looking after clients and working out how to attract them. That means making decisions about things you may never have covered in your therapy training.
A useful starting point is to look at what’s happening in your own business before choosing your next marketing task.
Where might potential clients be getting stuck?
Imagine someone who could benefit from what you offer. Think about how they might move from looking for help to booking an appointment with you.
There are three questions worth considering.
1. Can they find you?
Where are your enquiries currently coming from? You might have people finding you through recommendations, Google, a professional directory, local connections or social media.
If you’ve had recent enquiries or bookings, look back at how those people heard about you. If you don’t know, you could start asking new clients a simple question: “How did you hear about me?”
You’re looking for clues about what is already helping people discover your business. A small number of enquiries won’t tell you the whole story, but it gives you something to investigate.
For example, if several clients have come through a local connection, it may be worth putting some attention into that relationship. If people mention a directory, check that your profile is up to date and explains your work clearly.
2. Can they understand what you offer?
You know your therapy well. Someone considering it for the first time may be unfamiliar with the terminology, the appointment options or what a session involves.
Read your website or directory profile as though you’re seeing it for the first time. Can someone understand:
Who you work with?
What they can come to you for, within the scope of your practice?
What an appointment involves?
Whether you work in person, online or both?
What it costs?
A potential client needs enough information to judge whether your service might be suitable for them.
If your description feels vague or complicated, clarifying it could be a useful priority before you spend more time directing people towards it.
3. Is the next step clear?
Once someone is interested, can they easily see how to enquire or book?
Open your website on your phone and follow the process yourself. Check whether the relevant button is easy to find, the links work and the instructions make sense.
If someone needs to contact you first, explain how to do that and what happens afterwards. For example, do you arrange an initial conversation, answer questions by email or send them a booking link?
You don’t have to offer instant online booking. Whatever process suits your practice, make it straightforward for someone to follow.
Choose your therapy business marketing priorities
After looking at those three areas, you may spot several things you’d like to improve. You don’t have to tackle all of them this week.
Choose a priority by completing this sentence:
“I’m going to focus on ______ because I’ve noticed ______.”
For example:
“I’m going to clarify my appointment options because my website doesn’t explain the difference between them.”
Or:
“I’m going to check my enquiry form because someone told me they weren’t sure whether their message had gone through.”
This gives your task a purpose. You know what you’re trying to improve and why it deserves your attention.
If you don’t yet know where the difficulty lies, your first priority might simply be gathering information about how people find you and what they ask before booking.
Make the task fit your available time
“Improve my marketing” is difficult to put into a diary. “Rewrite the introduction to my directory profile” is much easier to start and finish.
Break your priority into a specific action, then decide when you can realistically do it. Allow for your client work, other commitments and the energy you have available.
You might choose one main priority or a small number of related tasks. What matters is having a plan you can carry out, with space to notice what happens afterwards.
Review what you learn
An updated page or a social post won’t necessarily lead to an immediate booking. Try to look at the information available without treating every quiet week as a verdict on your business.
What changed? Did anyone enquire? Where did those enquiries come from? Are people still asking questions you thought your website answered?
Keep a brief note of what you did and what you noticed. Over time, this can help you make more informed decisions about what to continue, adjust or investigate further.
Would you like help creating your plan?
I created A Practical Client Growth Plan for Therapists to guide you through this process.
Drawing on more than 30 years of experience as a therapist, alongside my work supporting other practitioners, the course helps you review your business and decide what deserves your attention.
It includes eight focussed teaching videos and an integrated downloadable workbook, with activities to help you:
Identify gaps that may be affecting your enquiries and bookings.
Clarify the clients you are particularly well placed to help.
Review whether your services are clear and easy to choose.
Choose three realistic routes through which clients can find you.
Select no more than three priorities for the next month.
Create a practical 30-day plan, with a weekly tracker to support you.
The course gives you immediate access. You can work through it at your own pace, around your clients, commitments and available energy.
The next time you sit down to work on your business, having a clear, manageable priority can make it easier to begin.
Would you like some help finding your own direction?
If you're overwhelmed by everything you think you should be doing, you're welcome to book a free 30-minute chat with me.
I'm Sue Jaycock, The Holistic Growth Coach. I help holistic, complementary and wellbeing therapists build practical, sustainable businesses that work for them.
If you would like help making your marketing clearer and finding a way to promote your business that feels natural to you, you can book a free half-hour chat with me. We can talk about what is happening in your business and begin identifying the adjustments that could make it feel clearer, calmer and more sustainable.
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