If your caseload has slowed down recently, you’re not alone—and this episode is going to give you a clear path forward.

In this alumni check-in, Anna answers two powerful questions from Confident Copy graduates: one about what to update on your website when things feel stuck… and one about how to get more creative with visibility and referrals.

Together, they highlight the two sides of marketing you have to get right in today’s landscape: your foundation (your website) and your visibility (how people find you).

Here’s what you’ll learn in this episode:

1️⃣ The three key updates to make on your website to reflect how clients are searching today

2️⃣ Why specificity (including micro-niches and method pages) is more powerful than ever

3️⃣ How to use FAQs and authority signals to improve trust, SEO, and AI visibility

4️⃣ A creative, underused networking strategy to get in front of your ideal clients (without relying only on referrals)

Resources & Links Mentioned:

• Birthday Sale: https://walkerstrategyco.com/bs26
• Confident Copy: https://walkerstrategyco.com/cc
• Squarespace Templates: https://walkerstrategyco.com/templates
• DIY Brand Kit (DBK): https://walkerstrategyco.com/dbk
• Done-for-you Services: https://walkerstrategyco.com/services

Connect + Subscribe

Enjoying the podcast? Subscribe so you never miss an episode—and feel free to share it with a fellow therapist who’s building their private practice. Explore more marketing support for therapists: https://walkerstrategyco.com

About Marketing Therapy

Marketing Therapy is the podcast where therapists learn how to market their private practices without burnout, self-doubt, or sleazy tactics. Hosted by Anna Walker, a marketing strategist and founder of Walker Strategy Co, each episode brings you clear, grounded advice to help you attract the right-fit, full-fee clients and grow a practice you feel proud of.

Hey, hey, welcome back to Marketing Therapy.

2

Today is another alumni check-in episode,

so if you're new around here, these

3

alumni check-in episodes are opportunities

for our Confident Copy graduates.

4

So graduates who have been through our

Confident Copy program have implemented

5

our framework, have worked on getting

a website launched and are now thinking

6

about their marketing in new ways.

7

They have a chance to submit questions

to me, and so you get to sit in on

8

these check-in sessions just like you

might have a check-in session with a

9

client who graduated from therapy 3, 6,

9, 12 months ago, this is a chance for

10

me to check in with these therapists

and for you to get to listen in.

11

This is exactly what I would

say to these therapists if we

12

were in a one-on-one session.

13

But we've learned and seen

and heard from y'all that.

14

The answers here and the discussions are

useful and applicable to lots and lots of

15

practices, not just the one who submitted.

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Right.

17

So we're actually answering

two questions today.

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The first one is from Tara,

the second is from Ellie, and

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they are related in some ways.

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The reason I'm choosing to answer

them together is because they

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address the two ways you need to

be thinking about your marketing.

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If you're finding in Tara's words

that your caseload has stalled.

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So let's start with Tara's here.

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Tara is a PsyPact clinician.

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She is a psychologist who has been

long well known in things like

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A DHD executives, entrepreneurs,

anxiety, trauma, things like that.

27

And so Tara graduated from Kata

copy a number of years ago and.

28

Her question is essentially

what are the top three changes

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I should make on my website?

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Since I took the course in 2023,

she gave a little bit of background

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noting that things have stalled.

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It's been like this for a while.

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I know other clinicians are feeling

this way and it's worrying and

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Can we just take a minute, Tara?

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Of course it is.

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You are so not alone.

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The market has shifted.

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This has been a really consistent thing

I've heard from many, many therapists in

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the last two years, for sure, but even

more acutely in the last six months or so.

40

So may I first normalize that experience?

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As you noted, Tara, other

clinicians are feeling this way.

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You may be listening to this

episode because you find

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yourself in that position.

44

But although the market has

shifted, it isn't broken.

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There are absolutely still clients

out there seeking therapy at full

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fees, premium fees all the things

right, and I have wonderful evidence

47

and helpful evidence to back that up.

48

Now, what I'm glad to see here, Tara,

is that you are thinking about A,

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what's in your control, and B, how

do we make sure that your website

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is doing what it needs to do?

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Your website is still your most

important asset, and in these

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cases it's good news because it's

something you have control over.

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So I wanna give you, as requested,

the three areas I would recommend

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revisiting when it comes to your

website to make sure that it's doing

55

its job for you in the current market.

56

Okay, so the first one, explore additional

specialty page or method page topics

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the way people search for things have

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took the competent copy curriculum and

we've updated a lot of our, especially

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SEO related lessons related to that.

60

So definitely feel free to jump back

into the vault and check those out.

61

But we know, we talk about this

often here on the podcast that

62

the way people search has changed.

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AI in particular has made specificity more

viable and also more powerful than ever.

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And so there's always been some

power and some viability in

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what we call the micro niche.

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But in this market, I think

it's even more exciting.

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Micro niches aren't a liability.

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You're not at risk of being too narrow,

especially when micro niches are paired

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with some more general specialties.

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I think that they're an advantage.

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So this would mean looking at specialty

page topics that are ultra, ultra

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specific to a particular demographic

or presenting issue that you enjoy.

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So not just for instance, like

pregnancy and perinatal, but a

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page about postpartum rage, or not

just a page about professionals,

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but entrepreneurs or lawyers.

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Okay, so kind of doing a double

click down on the specificity

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of your specialty page topics.

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Now there's a balance between having too

many specialties and it watering you down

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and being like, yeah, of course you're a

quote unquote expert in 16 specialties.

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Right?

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So there's a balance between

having too many, but also having

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ones that support one another and

that are specific and relevant to

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particular demographics or issues.

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So consider what specific things

your ideal client, your current ideal

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client here in 2026 is actually.

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Typing in, asking, searching, talking to

AI about, and how could you potentially

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create a page to align with that?

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So exploring micro niche

pages in terms of specialty.

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So that would be, like I said,

a specific topic or demographic

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that is a hyper-specific

area that you specialize in.

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The other thing on this.

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Point to think on are those method pages.

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So we have a unique

framework for method pages.

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In Confident copy, we approach

them a little bit differently.

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You know, the way that you're

gonna talk about DBT, for instance

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is gonna be different than

the way you talk about trauma.

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So it's worth considering layering

in some method pages, you already

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have some, perhaps some net new ones.

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If there are any updated methods

that you're using in your practice,

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or if you've never used them,

consider adding one or two.

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We know that clients are more psycho

savvy than they've ever been, and

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that's only going to continue to grow.

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They're often walking into therapy

having done some research, or

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at least been given some answers

around EMDR or IFS or somatic work.

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And so they want to know if you offer

what they're looking for, and so

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consider adding a method page or two

relevant to your kind of primary methods,

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especially if your clients tend to be

interested in those types of things.

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Or you wish they were.

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If you wanna be attracting more

people that are interested in IFS are

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interested in DBT, then having a page

specific to that is going to allow

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you to leverage that in a new way.

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So the specialty and method pages

together, kind of that combo is a really

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powerful one right now, especially when

there's a level of specificity that could

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be relevant to some of your ideal client.

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Method pages are all

about enhancing authority.

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They're about communicating your expertise

in particular areas, meeting clients

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where they are in that research process.

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And then those specialty pages are

about helping that very specific

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client feel, seen, feel understood,

and view you as an expert in that area.

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Because if I land on a site that talks

about postpartum rage in particular,

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I'm gonna be way more compelled to reach

out to that therapist than one that

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just talks about postpartum in general.

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Okay.

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So I would explore additional

specialty page topics and.

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Potential method pages.

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As you revisit your website, it's

quite possible in the three years

127

since you graduated that your ideal

clients have shifted that your approach,

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your methodology, your symptomology

that you are addressing has changed.

129

And so I would definitely

revisit that part.

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Next up, pretty low hanging fruit,

but revisit your specialty page FAQs.

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Your frequently asked questions are one

of your greatest assets in the age of ai.

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If you have specialty pages

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time you looked at those FAQs?

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It's probably time to add.

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To that list.

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Previously in Confident copy, we

would recommend three to five These

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days, seven to 10 is totally fine

per page, especially if they're

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incredibly specific to that specialty.

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This is where search engines, AI

tools, learning language models,

140

whatever you wanna call 'em, whatever

they are, are polling from In this

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conversational world, we're moving to

where we're asking questions and having

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conversations with Google, with ai.

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FAQs are a huge asset to you, so

this is really low hanging fruit.

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Go revisit those.

145

Go Add a handful of FAQs to the bottom

of your specialty pages that you already

146

have and the new ones you might consider

to make sure that you are answering the

147

really specific questions that your ideal

client is likely to ask on those things.

148

The more relevant your FAQs, the

more quotable, and ultimately the

149

more searchable your site becomes.

150

Okay.

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The last thing that I would do here,

Tara, is I would add what we're calling

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authority signals to your website.

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Now, Tara is someone who has years

and years of experience, right?

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You are a licensed psychologist,

you're a PsyPact provider.

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You've got a lot of chops.

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I remember that from supporting you

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have signals throughout your site about

how long you've been practicing your

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specific training, why you're trusted,

what experience you have working in

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these different areas of specialty.

160

We know that clients are more

discerning than ever, absolutely.

161

But we also know that those signals

are supporting your ability to

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be found and ultimately to be

surfaced in AI and SEO results.

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So making sure that those authority

signals are really, really clear

164

throughout your site, your about page,

your specialty pages, things like that.

165

And this doesn't really fit.

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You asked for three, but man design.

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It matters more than it used to.

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And so revisit your design.

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If you built your site in 2023, take an

honest look at where that design is today.

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Three years is a long time, right?

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Has the experience kept up?

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Does this represent.

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What you're offering to clients, are they

getting a premium feel from what it is

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that they're experiencing on your website?

175

And this doesn't necessarily mean you

need to go do a full rebuild, right?

176

But it does mean that you might

want to look critically at the

177

visual experience of your website

because we're seeing the way that

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design matters more than it ever has

179

because we're seeing the way that

your website really does go before

180

you and set expectations, prime people

for your fee and things like that.

181

Tara.

182

That's what I would

recommend for you here.

183

So change number one.

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Go ahead and explore additional

specialty page topics.

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Integrate your methods.

186

Change.

187

Two.

188

Go ahead and revisit your

specialty page, FAQs.

189

Make sure that they are

robust and specific.

190

And then change.

191

Number three, add those authority

signals throughout your website.

192

Consider refreshing the design or

at least looking critically at it

193

and making some improvements there.

194

These are all focused on making

sure that your website is doing

195

some extra heavy lifting for you.

196

What I wanna remind you, Tara, and

everyone, is that if your marketing

197

has worked in the past, it can work.

198

Again.

199

Marketing does not just stop

working overnight, and so nothing

200

I suggested for you here, Tara,

is ripping up the pavement and re.

201

Doing absolutely everything, but it is

upleveling what's happening on your site

202

to meet the current needs of the market.

203

And I've talked a lot about AI

here only because we're seeing that

204

really drive a lot of these changes.

205

But the fact is all three of these

updates can serve you in whatever

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marketing strategy you are using.

207

What is most important is that, as

we talked about, your website is

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the foundation of your marketing.

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Which is awesome because

you are in control of it.

210

And so before you step into the additional

marketing required in this type of

211

market, and I'm gonna talk about that

with Ellie's question, let's make sure

212

your website is set up for success, right?

213

Is going to do its job so that we know

whatever traffic or visibility efforts

214

you're putting in are driving back

to something that's really working.

215

All right.

216

Now let's shift over

into Ellie's questions.

217

So Tara's question was all about your

website, and that is 100% correct.

218

We have to start there.

219

We need to make sure

that is doing its job.

220

We know that if it's not

pulling its weight, everything

221

else is gonna get harder.

222

But once that foundation is solid,

okay, Anna, my website is doing

223

what it needs to do, then what?

224

Okay.

225

And that's kind of Ellie's question.

226

It's quite specific in this

regard, but like I said, speaks to

227

sort of that larger expectation.

228

We need to have that once the website is

set up, then we've gotta go take action.

229

So Ellie is a clinician

based in the Chicago area.

230

I've had the pleasure of supporting

Ellie in lots of different

231

ways, in Confident Copy and some

of our done for you services.

232

And Ellie asked a great question.

233

She said, would there be any value

to reaching out to corporations or

234

companies that employ your ideal client

to introduce yourself, especially

235

given that most have EAP programs.

236

So there's a lot here.

237

Ellie, and I'm glad you

asked this question.

238

And my answer straight up

is yes, wholeheartedly.

239

This is a smart and quite frankly,

likely underused strategy.

240

I mean, think about it.

241

If you were to get in with a corporation

or a company where your ideal clients

242

already are, you are entering into

an ecosystem where your ideal clients

243

are already interacting, already

talking at the water cooler, right?

244

Already slacking each

other between meetings.

245

Getting your foot in the door in

companies or corporations, especially

246

if they're on the medium to smaller

size, is absolutely opening you up to

247

access to not just that contact, but that

contact coworker and colleague and peer.

248

All right.

249

So that's really, really fabulous.

250

And EAPs are a really

powerful access point.

251

I hear from lots of private pay clinicians

that they find EAPs really, really useful.

252

Now, not every single EAP client's gonna

stay on for a long-term engagement, but

253

they can be a great way to bring

in ideal clients at a higher

254

fee and potentially convert them

into long-term clients as well.

255

So yes, the EAPs are helpful, but I

think just in general, this is a sign

256

of Ellie thinking really creatively

about how you get into the right rooms.

257

And we talk a lot about networking

and with good reason because the data

258

shows us about how powerful it is.

259

But when we think about networking,

it's kind of in four primary categories.

260

So one same niche therapists, so

people that actually share a niche

261

with you that is not competition.

262

It's actually really viable

networking adjacent niche therapists.

263

So these are people that are running

into your ideal client, but not

264

necessarily serving them directly.

265

So if you work with men, an adjacent niche

therapist would be a couple's therapist.

266

Then we think about complimentary

professionals, so all the other

267

professionals that are employing in

this case or seeing your ideal client.

268

And then we have what are called

aligned wellness providers.

269

So that would be other full fee

wellness providers, chiropractors,

270

acupuncturists, things like that.

271

So corporate outreach, like what Ellie's

thinking about fits really squarely

272

into that complimentary professionals.

273

Ecosystem.

274

And like I said, the cool thing is

that it is an ecosystem that if you

275

were to get your foot in the door with

one person, you are gaining access

276

to an entire network of people who

likely share a lot of the qualities

277

that you enjoy in your ideal clients.

278

As always, if this is something you

choose to experiment with, and I think

279

that there's absolutely no reason not

to always enter into these with a spirit

280

of curiosity and a desire to serve.

281

Not, I need referrals.

282

Not, I'm hoping your employees turn

into clients, but instead, I serve

283

this type of population and I think

I might have some value to offer.

284

I'd love to provide some education.

285

Do you see any needs on your team

that a professional therapist

286

could potentially support you with?

287

Going in with a desire to serve

and a spirit of curiosity?

288

It's very possible that your micro

niche, which I was just talking to Tara

289

about, is going to be an advantage here.

290

Right.

291

If you have a really specific demographic,

if you're deciding to focus in on lawyers,

292

for instance, and you engage in some

networking with a firm, for instance, the

293

more specific you are, the more memorable

you're gonna be, and the more memorable

294

you are, the more referable you become.

295

Okay?

296

How could you bring value here?

297

Could you offer, you know, a lunch

and learn, a resource, something

298

that demonstrates your expertise

before you're asking for anything

299

or sharing your website right?

300

Now EAPs are absolutely a great

avenue if that's something

301

that you're able to get in on.

302

But in a decent sized company,

there's also HR teams, right?

303

There are sometimes wellness coordinators.

304

There are employee resource groups.

305

There are lots of contacts you could

potentially be making and exploring.

306

And if you live in a metropolitan area,

which I know Ellie you do, there's

307

lots of those out there as always.

308

You're not gonna form a really

deep, meaningful relationship

309

with every single one of these.

310

You might not hear back from every single

one of these, but this presents really

311

rich opportunity that most therapists

are probably not even thinking about.

312

So think about who inside that company

could be championing employee wellbeing

313

and how you could get connected with them.

314

This is going to take time

as all networking does.

315

It is a volume game.

316

It is a relationship game, but.

317

It's powerful and there's a lot

of potential fruit to be harvested

318

here if this is something that

you are willing to engage in.

319

So, Ellie, fantastic question.

320

I love seeing your head there and

what I wanna offer as a reminder in

321

this entire session in general is.

322

The thought process that

goes into this, right?

323

If you are listening to this episode,

because your caseload has stalled,

324

if you are not experiencing the

number of referrals that you used

325

to, then first and foremost, make

sure your website is doing its job.

326

If you've not been through Confident

copy, if you don't have that framework,

327

maybe that's where you need to start.

328

But make sure your website is pulling the

weight that it needs to, and then go out

329

there and make sure people know you exist.

330

That's the sequence here, and that's

why I chose to answer both of these

331

questions together because we got

some really great practical ideas

332

about how to improve the website.

333

And then we also started getting some

creative gears turning around how to

334

make sure people know that you exist

and some underutilized strategies

335

out there that could potentially be

connections into your ideal client

336

that you have never even thought of.

337

These two things work together.

338

Website visibility.

339

We can't have one without the other,

but we do wanna make sure that we have

340

the foundation in place before we start

building on it so that when you go

341

out there and you start making those

connections, the effort is worth it.

342

Okay, so I love these questions.

343

Confident.

344

Copy alumni.

345

If you are listening,

please go submit yours.

346

I would love to know what you are

thinking about, what you would like

347

insight on, but if this episode got

you thinking about your own website,

348

like I said, maybe Confident Copy

is the right next step for you.

349

Maybe you're looking for,

you know, a professionally

350

designed template or whatever.

351

We've got great resources for that.

352

But what I want you to take away to

today is primarily the thought process.

353

Okay?

354

If client referrals have slowed

down, what is within my control?

355

How do I make sure my foundation is solid?

356

How do I build thoughtfully and creatively

and consistently upon that foundation?

357

That's the process right now when

I am looking at clinicians who are

358

continuing to move through slow seasons,

I'm not saying that I know therapists

359

who are immune to it, 'cause most

therapists I've talked to have noticed

360

a change in the last six months.

361

The ones who are continuing to move

through it, the ones who do absolutely

362

still have wait lists who are still

maintaining their caseload at levels

363

that they're feeling good about.

364

They're going through this.

365

They're regularly revisiting this process.

366

The foundation is strong.

367

How do I build upon it?

368

That's what I invite you to do

here, to remind yourself of what

369

you have within your control,

because there's a lot that's not.

370

And then how do you take what you

have within your control and make

371

sure that it's working for you?

372

Doing it in a sustainable way, thinking

about it creatively, and entering into

373

it with that spirit of curiosity and

a belief in your ability to do this

374

because you absolutely, positively can

even when things are changing out there.

375

Thanks for joining me for

this check-in episode.

376

Ellie Tara, thank you.

377

Wishing you well, cheering you on and

that goes for all of you listening as

378

you go out there and seek out the clients

that you are best equipped to serve.

379

Thanks for being here today.

380

I'll see you next week.