7 Ways Psychologists and Therapists Can Use LinkedIn to grow their practices

Firstly let’s not beat around the bush. LinkedIn is a powerful social media platform for psychologists and therapists looking to grow their authority and ultimately their practices. I think we have ignored it for much too long. I am not claiming to be an expert on LinkedIn by a long way. I actually have an expert speaker, Sarah Clay, coming into the Do More Than Therapy membership this month to teach us about how we can use LinkedIn to the full. That said, LinkedIn has been instrumental in the way I have grown the Psychology Business School and this podcast so I wanted to share some of the insights I have gathered along the way so you can get started now.

Psychologists and therapists! Do this before you do anything else on LinkedIn if you want to grow your practice.

Before you start reaching out to anyone on LinkedIn (LI) you need to set up your profile as an awesome business card that showcases exactly what you want to offer your LI audience. Don’t try and cover everything in your profile. Think about who you want to connect with and build relationships with on LI and create your profile for them. You can use this space to showcase what you offer to them and your relevant experience. Include good photos that make you seem professional but also easy to talk to. 

A good example from our own community is Alexandra Button’s profile. Alex is an EMDR consultant and offers EMDR and equine therapy to her clients but she recognised that LinkedIn was going to be most useful for reaching out to other psychologists and therapists who might want to book supervision or consultancy to help them through the EMDR accreditation process. Her profile is therefore tailored towards those people rather than trying to speak to both her potential therapy clients and her potential supervisees. This is a great example of knowing who your ideal client group is for a particular platform and making sure you create everything for them. We have talked about the importance of this in episodes on social media more generally, Facebook and Instagram but it is particularly true on LinkedIn. 

Get your strapline on LinkedIn right for maximum impact

The strapline under your name shows up everywhere you post and connect so is very important. It can only be a few words but should sum up who you help and how you help. If you have space you could also put some of your key skills like: Therapy. Podcasting. Online Courses. 

The most important thing is to write your strapline in terms your ideal client group would understand. For example, if I am trying to reach clients directly on LinkedIn I would probably say something more tangible and specific to a particular project I am working on. 

If I had an online course coming out for working parents struggling with anxiety and I hoped to talk to those people directly on LI my strapline might change to “Clinical Psychologist and creator of “become the boss of your anxiety” helping working parents to overcome anxiety so they can be rewarded at work and enjoy their time at home.” 

But if I was mainly planning to use LI to talk to other professionals about the project and get referrals from them I might use different language like “Clinical Psychologist using CFT and ACT to help working parents struggling with anxiety and trauma.” That would be a rubbish strapline to use for one ideal client group but perfect for another! 

The 7 ways psychologists and therapists can use LinkedIn

1. Connect with your IC group directly. Send them a message that asks for feedback about your project or offer them your freebie (if appropriate). To be honest I prefer just using LI to ask for feedback on clinical projects as I wouldn’t feel too comfortable reaching out directly and suggesting someone needs my freebie but if you have an offer for other professionals it is perfectly OK to let them know that you have created something valuable they might find useful and drop them the link to it. I’d also ask for some feedback because you really want to start conversations here.
2. Connect with people who have access to your ICA/know your ICA better than you. This is my favourite way to use LinkedIn. You can use the search bar to look for people who have specialisms in the area you are working in or who do a relevant job role and send them a connection request with a message explaining your project and asking if they would be willing to have a chat with you so you can meet the needs of the client group better. I love receiving these and I love the conversations I get to have when I send them. Yes people are busy and lots of people won’t see your message but the few that do can provide you with really important information and connections as you develop your service. They may also be able to recommend you to others who need you. 
3. Create an audience of people who need your product or service and/or can recommend your product or service
4. Post your authority-building content on LI directly (videos, LI articles)
5. Link out to your authority-building content on another platform
6. Build relationships with conversational content
7. Help out and get seen by commenting on other peoples' content

Ps. If you don’t know how to send a connection request check out this video I created to show you how to do it!

Mistakes to avoid when using LinkedIn

1. Don't post generic and boring stuff. Always aim to start a conversation it is a “social” platform and generally a short bit of your opinion followed by something that sparks debate and conversation will work much better than purely educational content. Don’t be afraid to stand out and talk about issues that frustrate you, upset you or amuse you. People want to connect with and ultimately work with, real people. Please don’t post any generic mental health memes. They are just so bland no one will ever interact with them so it is a waste of time.
2. Don't post links to other peoples’ content often. It is usually better to summarise the content you want to share and let people find the link themselves if they are interested. LI, like all other platforms, wants to keep people on LI so links to external sites rarely work well. I do think it is ok to share links to your own, cornerstone content, but don’t expect lots of traction on these posts. Instead, be confident that if people like your other content they will stalk your profile and see your post about your latest blog. You can also drop the link in the comments to people who respond to your more conversational posts.

Do you want more support with LinkedIn?

Join us in the Do More Than Therapy membership for our LinkedIn Masterclass with expert, Sarah Clay. 

Sarah will be teaching a class specifically for psychologists and therapists who want to use LinkedIn to grow their practice or audience for an online course. The class is taking place on 18th November at 12:30 (that is 2021) but will be recorded so all members can access it at any time. 

To find out more about Do More Than Therapy membership click here. This is our monthly membership that helps you to confidently step out of the therapy room and help more people in creative ways. We have masterclasses with experts to help you get that book written, to launch that online course, podcast or community project. On top of that we also have a supportive community with weekly coaching calls, monthly peer supervision and a thriving Facebook group. Come join us at: https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-do-more-than-therapy-membership/

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List of full links for this episode:

Podcasts:

Episode 62: Which Social Media platform works best for Psychologists and Therapists https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-business-of-psychology/which-social-media-platform-works-best-for-psychologists-and-therapists

Episode 48: 3 Ways to use Facebook for Psychologists and Therapists https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-business-of-psychology/3-ways-to-use-facebook-for-psychologists-and-therapists

Episode 46: How to get started on Instagram as a Psychologist or Therapist with Helen Perry https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-business-of-psychology/how-to-get-started-on-instagram-as-a-psychologist-or-therapist-with-helen-perry

Video on how to send a connection request: https://vimeo.com/628973509

DMTT Membership: https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-do-more-than-therapy-membership/

Sarah Clay: https://sarahclaysocial.com/

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Are you looking to build an independent practice that is fulfilling, impactful and financially rewarding? Did you know that I run a business course that is designed to help you do exactly that without making all the mistakes I made along the way? Over 12 weeks we take you through everything you need to know to set up a practice that lets you live your values. Through a combination of teaching from experts, legal templates to make sure your practice is covered, peer support and group coaching sessions this is the place for anyone looking to get off the starting blocks in private practice.

The course is always accessible in pre-recorded format and three times a year we run a live cohort so what are you waiting for? Join us at:

https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-psychology-business-school/

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Thank you for listening to this week's episode of the Business of Psychology podcast. If you share my passion for doing more than therapy, then make sure you come over and join my free Do More Than Therapy Facebook community, where you can work on getting your big ideas off the ground with like minded psychologists and therapists. I'd also love it if you could leave the show a five star review wherever you listen to your podcasts. It will help more of the people who need it to find it.