Getting Clients for Your Psychotherapy Private Practice: Important "Shifts"



Posted: Tuesday, May 30, 2006

by
http://www.todaysprivatepractice.com

Solid clinical knowledge and skills may be enough for providing good therapy. However, it is not enough to get referrals and attract clients.

Getting clients is key to building a thriving practice. But this is where many practitioners struggle.

Many therapists feel awkward about marketing.

Marketing is simply getting the word out about who you are and what you do for people.

It’s telling people what you do over and over. There are many ways of telling people — in person, in writing, through the media and by phone. You have to tell them. You can’t just wait for the phone to start ringing.

Marketing benefits your community because they can access the help you provide.

Marketing builds your practice as it generates referrals.

This can seem like an enormous challenge for many mental health professionals. Many of us are not comfortable with promoting ourselves or our services. We tend to like to provide our helpful services, but become shy about promoting them.

Understanding more about what marketing is and some simple, effective ways to do it can help. Shedding unhelpful limiting beliefs about ourselves, marketing and what we can do and how we should do it may also be necessary.

Developing know-how and skills will also go a long way toward becoming more comfortable with marketing our practice.

Of course, our marketing and materials must be in keeping with the dignity of our profession.

Good marketing is engaging people in a consideration of taking a step that will result in their greater good. Good marketing strategies develop when we select methods that fit well with who we are as individuals.

For example, if you like to write but do not like to speak to groups, your marketing should emphasize your writing talents. Those of you who enjoy speaking and making presentations will find this is an excellent way to get the word out.

You may think, “But I’m not a business person. How can I effectively market my practice and get clients?"

Don’t lose sight of why you are a therapist. Stay connected to it. But regardless of where you are in your learning about the business side of private practice, you can learn step by step how to get clients.

The key to marketing psychotherapy services is choosing a set of simple effective things to do, and do them consistently

William D. Morgan is a psychologist, author, and private practice business coach. He coaches human service professionals and others who want to build thriving practices. For more helpful information and tips, visit http://www.TodaysPrivatePractice.com/membershipinfo.html This is an excerpt from his NEW BOOK – Today's Private Practice: Strategies for Building a Thriving Managed-Care Free Psychotherapy Practice, http://www.TodaysPrivatePractice.com

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Top-level comments on this article: (1 total)
» left by David from Alan 2 years 357 days ago.
As a fellow therapist, I find the opt-in "become a member of your William Morgan FAN CLUB rather unprofessional. If you keep putting yourself out to the public as a psychologist-it seems you would fit better as a rock star, and not a licensed mental health professional. Freud taught that it would to well for everyone to go through a long and intensive psychoanalysis. Maybe it's your time. I hope this feedback is not too offensive, but I could see how it would sting a bit, if you even read it at all and take the feedback seriously. I think that it is important for therapist to communicate in a constructive manner to our own. So, that is why I have taken 10 minutes out of my eve to do so to you..- D. Alan, Marina del Rey, CA
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