Do Therapists Need to Be on Social Media to Market Their Practice?
Maybe you see more and more of your colleagues on Instagram or TikTok these days and wonder if you need to do it too.
Or maybe you’re on social but feel like you’re not gaining any traction. You post and then it’s like crickets. And you aren’t getting any inquiries from it either.
If you are looking for some alternatives to social media to get clients for your practice, then today’s post is for you!
Recently, I sat down with Nikki Rubin, PsyD, LA-based psychotherapist, consultant, and creator of The Complete Private Practice Toolkit. We had an in-depth conversation about whether therapists need to be on social media for their private practice.
You can watch our conversation here!
Here’s a rundown of what we discussed about therapists on social media:
Social media is not a must-have for every private practice.
It is a tool that can be used if:
It suits your particular business model because you are a mental health influencer
Your ideal client is searching for a therapist in their area on social media
It allows you to connect with referral sources for your ideal client or network with other therapists
It just brings you joy!
Using social media for marketing has become much more time-consuming than it used to be. You have to ask yourself, “Is this taking time away from other marketing that I could be doing that is more effective for my specific practice?”
Ethical considerations and potential legal issues can arise when therapists use social media. You will need to educate yourself and take steps to protect yourself, your clients, and your audience.
There are other ways to market your private practice! Here’s a list of those ways:
Have a professional website that acts as a comprehensive business card.
SEO (Search Engine Optimization)helps clients in your area find your website when they search for specific terms online (btw, we can help you get started with a website SEO audit in a live support hour or website tune-up!)
Building personal connections with other therapists.
Joining professional organizations
Have your website listed on their website
Engage with their listservs by responding to your colleagues inquiries (even if it’s not directly related to openings in your own practice, you can help people remember you by giving them referrals by sharing resources)
Attend trainings
Join group supervisions
Be good at your job. A huge number of referrals can come your way by word-of-mouth!
Email marketing has the highest engagement of any other online marketing strategy! It doesn’t have to be super complex. Even a few updates per year can help keep you in mind.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Make sure you only send out marketing emails to people who have “opted-in” and make sure you provide an easy way for people to opt-out. Otherwise, you are in spam territory, and we all hate spam, right?
You can use email platforms like Flodesk, which has an unsubscribe feature built-in, so the person has the power to unsubscribe with one click.
Therapist directories like Therapy Den and ZenCare can significantly increase your visibility and reach (and being listed on them also helps SEO for your own website!)
We don’t have full control over technology. No matter what, it’s best to mix it up with real-world marketing so you aren’t relying on one (kind of unreliable) source.
What do I mean by that?
For example Instagram and TikTok constantly update their algorithms to favor what content gets shown and what doesn’t.
Google constantly updates it’s algorithm similarly. What worked 2 years ago for SEO may not work as well now.
Even email can change. Gmail and Yahoo are going through some big updates to help combat spam. While this is great news, it also can impact whether your emails to your mailing list are showing up or not.
I’m a big fan of technology (obviously, I build websites for a living haha) but it comes with drawbacks and it’s important to have a balanced approach.
To wrap up, remember–building a private practice takes time! It's a process of planting many different types of seeds and nurturing them.
Nothing, social media included, can give you instant results.
Social media can be a tool for marketing your private practice, it's not a necessity for everyone. You can use other strategies that align with your comfort level and professional approach and it’s important to have a mix of strategies and not to rely on just one.
The Complete Private Practice Toolkit
Want to learn more from Dr. Nikki Rubin?
Check out The Complete Private Practice Toolkit for the most practical, comprehensive tools and advice for starting a private practice, all in one easy-to-use place!
