Walking into the gym after a long break can feel so hard.

You look around and everyone seems to know what they’re doing - toned, confident, striding on machines that look more like torture devices than exercise equipment.

Meanwhile, you’re tugging at your leggings, feeling out of place, and wondering if it would be easier to give up and buy a big box of Maltesers on the way home.

That’s exactly how marketing your private practice can feel.

You see other counsellors with slick websites, polished blogs, or big social followings and you think, “I don’t belong here.”

But remember, just like in the gym, every single one of them had to start somewhere.

In this episode, I’ll show you why blogging is the treadmill of marketing: reliable, adaptable, and the perfect first step to get you moving.

Just like the treadmill builds stamina, strength, and confidence for everything else in the gym, blogging gives you the solid foundation you need for the rest of your marketing.

You’ll learn:

• Why blogging is a safe, steady starting point, whether you’re brand new or experienced.
• How consistency builds confidence (like going from 2 minutes on the cross trainer to 30).
• Why you don’t need the “flashy machines” of marketing before you’ve got a solid base.
• How blogging supports everything else: social media, directories, networking, even workshops.

So if you’ve been standing at the edge of your marketing 'gym', comparing yourself to everyone who looks like they’ve got it together, this episode is your nudge to step onto the treadmill and just get started.

👉 And if blogging feels overwhelming, that’s exactly why I created Grow Your Blog. It’s designed to help you start, stay consistent, and build your confidence, whether you’ve written zero blogs or fifty. Find out more here

And for more of my free and paid resources CLICK HERE

Over the years I’ve had messages from therapists saying the podcast has been their companion on dog walks, in the car, or when they’re feeling stuck and need a nudge. If the show has been that for you and you’d like to support it, you can now Buy Me a Coffee.

It helps keep the lights on and the episodes flowing, one brew at a time.

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Now, the last time I walked into the gym, I was already preparing my escape route. You know, straight outta the double doors, down the stairs to my car detour to the chip shop, and a box of Maltesers for the Journey home. Chocolate and chips are officially the true athlete's diet, but what on earth does any of that have to do with marketing?

You practice well more than you'd think.

Hello and welcome to the Grow Your Private Practice Show. I'm Jane Travis and I help counselors to get found by more of the right clients, mainly through blogging, but always in ways that feel doable and even a little bit fun. Each week we'll look at practical ways to grow your practice, cut through the confusion and build your confidence all in a way that actually feels manageable.

So let's get started.

So hello, hello, hello, and welcome back and if it's your first time here, it's lovely to have you on board. I hope you're having a good day. So I think that getting started with marketing feels a little bit like going to the gym. So just bear with me here. Like I say, I remember the last time I decided to start going to the gym again.

You know, when I was younger, I pretty much went to every gym in the local area. I knew the drill, I knew what to do. But after a long break, walking back into that space just felt really different. You know, I can remember that sinking feeling in my stomach as I stepped through the doors. And everywhere I looked, there seemed to be people who looked like they'd been born into the gym, you know, toned and fit and gliding through their routines with immaculate gym gear.

And then there was me there, took in at my leggings and feeling like I stuck out like a sore thumb. And honestly in that moment, all I wanted to do was turn around and just go home. You know, like I say, I'm by myself, a big box of Maltesers on the way. But once I actually got into it, once I actually started moving through, things started to shift.

So 10 minutes on the treadmill and I could already start to feel the difference. And the cross trainer. Now the cross trainer, the first time I got on the cross trainer, I'm not even kidding. The first time I got on the crosstrainer, my knees started to crack. You know, I could glow sticker to school disco, and within seconds.

It hurt. Two minutes. I managed, like I say, I'm not kidding, two minutes I managed and I had to get off again, and I was already convinced that my body was just ready for early retirement. But the thing about exercise, and if you do exercise or have ever exercised, you'll know. That just a few weeks of sticking with it makes such a massive, massive difference.

So it was, I dunno how long it was, but I worked my way up to half an hour on the cross trainer, within a short amount of time. So step by step, session by session, I got stronger and I got more confident. And the more I showed up, the easier it became. And slowly that really horrible feeling of like, I don't belong here started to fade.

I started to feel like I belonged there. So what can going to the gym teach us about marketing? Well, that whole experience is exactly what marketing your practice feels like, because at first it feels really intimidating. You know, you see all of these other counselors who look like they've got it all figured out with their polished websites and slick social media and blogs that all sound effortless and you can't help but compare yourself with them and it leaves you feeling like an awkward beginner surrounded by experts, but the thing is, it's just like in the gym.

Because look, everybody starts somewhere and the confidence that people get, it only comes from actually doing the stuff. So if you are wondering what is the best first step when it comes to marketing your practice? Well, it's blogging. You know, blogging really does tick all of the boxes.

And here's the good news. You don't have to write every week because one blog post a month is the perfect place to start, and that is doable. So let's have a look at why blogging is the best first step in marketing. So I consider blogging to be like the treadmill of marketing. Going back to my gym analogy.

So the treadmill of marketing. Think about what that treadmill's like. It's reliable, it's steady, it's versatile. You can get onto the treadmill and you can start work straight away. So the great thing about it is it gets you moving. So it's just like stepping onto the treadmill, writing a blog gets you out there. It stops you from just thinking about it and gets you into that. Oh, so important bit of actually taking action. Also with blogging, it meets you where you are. So think about the treadmill. You can walk, you can jog, you can run you.

There are all sorts of different, oh, what do you call them? Different programs of like going up a hill and all sorts of different things that you can do. And similarly with a blog post, you can write in so many different ways. You can write short encouragement posts, you can write long detailed guides, you can write how tos and listicles, and you can suggest ideas for people, and it's going to adapt to your level.

Something else that happens is, again, similar to a treadmill, it's going to help to build that stamina. Think about it. One run is not gonna make you fit, and similarly, one blog isn't gonna transform your practice, but that consistency is gonna compound over time. So over time you get stronger. Over time, you start writing more and more and better and better.

Also it supports everything else. So again, back to the treadmill analogy, A treadmill is gonna make all other exercises easier. Just by getting that foundation of that, you know, increasing your strength, increasing your cardiovascular, it means that anything else that you do is gonna just be easier and in a similar way with blogging, that's gonna strengthen the whole of your marketing ecosystem.

So it's going to give you content to share on your social media. It's gonna give you content that you can share in your newsletters. It's gonna help you when you're putting together workshops. And even if you're having networking conversations, it's gonna help you because when you are writing a blog, you are getting a lot more clear on what you're talking about.

So it makes the whole thing. Again, a lot more easier. And of course it helps to grow your confidence because with each blog post that you publish, you prove to yourself that you can do it. And that awkwardness, it starts to fade and it starts to be replaced by a growing sense of capability. Now you don't need any flashy marketing tools to grow your practice.

You know, in the gym. It's sometimes tempting to get drawn to those flashy machines. You know, the ones, they look really impressive. You see other people using them, and they seem to be the shortcut to results. But for me, the snag with that was I could never quite, this is a bit embarrassing actually. I could never quite figure out how to use them and how to change the weights on them.

So every time I used them, somebody would show me and I'd go, mm mm-hmm. Yeah, yeah. Get that. Thank you very much. And then the next time I went on it, I'd have completely forgotten again and I'd have to ask again. And eventually I avoided those machines altogether because it just made me feel silly to constantly be saying, you know, I just dunno how to do this thing.

So marketing can feel exactly the same. You know, everybody else seems to know how to do Facebook ads or how to do Instagram reels, or how to do sales funnels or you know, and you're stood there fiddling with the settings and hoping nobody notices that you've actually got no idea what you're doing. It's frustrating and it's a bit embarrassing and eventually.

You'll just give it up. You'll just avoid doing it. But you know, going back to the treadmill, it's not glamorous, but it's safe, it's effective, and it's dependable. It's the one thing that will steadily build your confidence and give you the foundation you need before you try the trickiest. And remember, blogging is your marketing version of the treadmill.

So blogging is gonna help you. It's gonna be safe, it's gonna be effective, it's gonna be dependable, and it's gonna build your confidence. So that's why I say that when it comes to marketing your practice. Blogging is going to be a great first step because you don't have to master each piece of marketing equipment straight away. You don't need to be perfect. You don't need to be polished. You don't need to even be fit enough to start because you are already good enough.

To write blogs, you just need to step on that treadmill. You just need to get started, and once you do, it's not gonna take you long before you start realizing that you know more than you thought you knew. You already have such a lot of information already in your brain, so it means that you are gonna get stronger and more confident and more capable just like in the gym.

Those small, consistent steps add up faster than you think. So how can I help you with it? Well, if blogging feels daunting, that's exactly why I created Grow Your Blog. Now, this was originally called the Framework First Blogging Method, but I just didn't feel like that title was helping people to really understand what it does.

So I've changed the name. It is now called Grow Your Blog. Which is I think, a lot more simple, isn't it? So for the record, you know, Grow Your Blog is giving you a low-cost monthly step-by-step support. So it helps you to blog more confidently, more consistently, and in a way that actually gets you posts seen, but without the overwhelm.

So imagine this. Imagine sitting down and actually knowing what you're gonna say. There's gonna be no more staring at a blank page or losing hours. Second-guessing yourself and going down rabbit holes of research. Because with grow your blog, you are always going to know. What your next step is, you know there are clear step-by-step frameworks so you don't ever feel stuck and you'll never feel overwhelmed, and you're gonna have fresh ideas handed to you every month.

So you're never gonna be left wondering what to write about. You are also gonna see exactly how it's done, because I write a sample blog for you so you can have a look at how I write it. And this is gonna make it more easy for you to model what that framework is, but you're not gonna copy it because every time I show you how to write a blog, I'm gonna show you how to become more you so that it's unique to you.

And I am gonna help your writing to become faster and lighter by using ChatGPT, because it's a great way of saving time and energy. But there are ways to use it and ways I don't recommend using it. Now go through that with you. And there are also going to be ready-to-use, headline ideas and lots of writing notes and call-to-action ideas.

So polishing your blog doesn't feel like pulling teeth and you know, whether you are brand new to blogging. Whether you've dabbled before or whether you are brand new to counseling or whether you've been a counselor for many years, grow your blog is gonna help you to feel clear and confident and consistent.

So instead of circling around that hole, I really should write a blog. You'll actually press publish and feel really good doing it. And like I say, even better, it's only 9 pounds a month, so come on, it's definitely gonna be worth a look. So, another reason I think blogging is so powerful is that it lasts, you know, a social media post. It might get a bit of attention for a short amount of time, maybe an hour, maybe a day if you are lucky. But then it disappears, you know, disappears down the feed and all that effort, it's gone. You know, with a blog post, on the other hand, it's gonna keep working for you.

Someone will find it weeks, months, even years later. You know, when they're searching for exactly the sort of support that you offer. It's like putting timing on the treadmill. The benefits don't just vanish as soon as you step off. They keep adding. And this is where consistency really matters. When you get into the rhythm of writing one blog a month and remember one blog a month, that is doable, isn't it?

Then you've created a steady stream of content that doesn't just vanish. You know? From there you can choose to step it up. You know, you might choose to write two blocks a month, or you might branch out into other marketing that builds on the strong foundation that you've already created, and every blog that you write you can actually repurpose.

So you can repurpose it into social media posts, you can repurpose it into workshops, you can repurpose it into so many different things. So there you go. If you are standing at the edge of your marketing gym, feeling out of place, comparing yourself to everyone who seems to have it all figured out, just remember this. They all started somewhere. They all started where you are now. So come on, step onto the treadmill. Start with blocking. It's the simplest, most reliable way to build strength.

Confidence and it gives you a foundation for everything else that you do, that's why blogging really is the best first stepping counseling, marketing. It gives you the steady start that you need before trying the flashiest stuff. So look, question, could one blog a month be the steady start that you've been looking for? Okay, so thank you so much for listening to the Grow Your Private Practice Show.

And if you've enjoyed today's episode, make sure that you hit follow so you don't miss the next one. And look, if counseling feels daunting, remember you don't have to do it alone. Grow your blog is my simple low-cost membership that gives you the structure, the ideas, and the encouragement that you need to actually get your blog written and found by the right clients.

How would that feel? So you'll find all the details in the show notes, but for now I just want to say thank you for coming and have a fantastic week. I hope to speak to you soon. Bye-bye.