You’re ready to raise your fees, step into the next phase of your practice, and be perceived as the skilled, premium therapist you truly are. But how do you look the part—without spinning out over which font feels more “grounded confident” or whether beige or blush sends the right message?

In this episode, I’m walking you through how to define your visual identity in a way that feels clear, aligned, and truly representative of your expertise. We’ll talk about why design isn’t just about looking good—it’s about creating emotional safety and trust. And I’ll give you four grounding exercises to help you clarify the feeling you want to evoke and make design decisions that actually reflect your brand, not someone else’s.

Whether you’re DIYing your visuals or feeling overwhelmed by the idea, this episode will help you move forward with confidence.

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

1️⃣ Why design isn’t just decoration—it’s a tool for building trust, safety, and connection

2️⃣ Four guided exercises to define the emotional tone and personality of your brand

3️⃣ How to spot and stop the spiral of trying to “be everything” visually—and what to do instead

Resources & Links Mentioned:

• The Walker Strategy Co website: walkerstrategyco.com
• Signature Brand Intensive (Black Friday offer): walkerstrategyco.com/bf25 

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: The Walker Strategy Co website: 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—marketing coach, 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.

Hi there.

2

Welcome back to this week's episode

of Marketing Therapy number 36,

3

all about what it means to look

like a premium fee practice.

4

The past few weeks, we've been

talking a lot about looks.

5

We've been talking about branding and

design and how these things work together.

6

Last week we talked about the hidden

psychology behind good design.

7

The things that are happening on a

website or when we're interacting

8

with things that instantly shape how

we feel about them and how you can

9

then extrapolate that into your own

marketing to influence how clients

10

experience and feel about your practice.

11

Now, what's interesting as we choose

to dedicate in an entire other

12

episode to design is I'm noticing

this attitude of leveling up.

13

In clinicians right now.

14

I have the pleasure of speaking to,

anywhere from three to 10 therapists

15

in a one-on-one setting every week.

16

So I get a lot of insight into what

they're working on, what they're nervous

17

about, what they're really focused on,

and I'm just noticing this like hunger.

18

In a lot of clinicians we've talked a lot

recently on the marketing therapy podcast

19

about how times have changed, right?

20

And what once worked isn't working

the way that it used to, and therefore

21

there's a need to step up and be open to

evolution and doing things differently.

22

And man, I am meeting some of you and

I am hearing in you the desire to.

23

Level up and to really take ownership

of your practice to depa, to raise

24

your fees to make this happen.

25

I had the incredible pleasure of speaking

to a clinician last week who booked a

26

meeting with me the day before she was

leaving her government job for good

27

and was jumping into private practice.

28

And so I got to see her and talk to

her at that juncture in her journey.

29

And so anyway I share that as a little

bit of background as we get into today

30

because one theme I'm hearing from

those clinicians who are ready to level

31

up is they know this stuff matters.

32

They recognize how the way that they

show up, the way that they look, the

33

way that they're perceived is critical,

especially for those therapists who

34

are looking to get off of insurance

panels or raise their fees or really

35

create that premium fee practice.

36

They know this matters, and

they feel a little bit hamstrung

37

when it comes to creating that.

38

So that is why we are spending another

episode really talking about what

39

we're gonna call visual identity.

40

Because we know that design matters.

41

You know, Design matters if you're

choosing to listen to this episode.

42

But the next question becomes, how

do you actually figure out what

43

yours should look like, what your

brand should look and feel like?

44

And I find that this is where

many therapists get stuck.

45

Because they know that they

need and want that professional

46

and cohesive and high-end feel.

47

But there are literally 1 million fonts

and colors and styles to choose from.

48

So today I really wanna nerd out a little

bit on how to define your visual identity.

49

How to make your brand look and feel like

you and be perceived as the premium fee

50

practice that you are looking to build.

51

So while we are gonna nerd out a

little bit, and I'm gonna give you some

52

cool exercises, my hope is also that

you get some really tangible, simple

53

questions and exercises to really

help you narrow down your direction.

54

And I'm also gonna help you

decide when it makes sense to DIY.

55

Because for some of you, you're

listening and you're like, let's go.

56

I love this stuff.

57

And also when to maybe

outsource or get some support.

58

'cause for others, this is

massively overwhelming despite

59

knowing that it's important.

60

Okay.

61

So that's what I wanna do today.

62

And like I said, I am really focusing

this episode on the clinician who's

63

ready, who knows this matters and

is really ready to make this part

64

of their marketing a priority.

65

So, All right, let's get into it.

66

And I wanna start with a

really clear definition.

67

'cause quote unquote visual identity.

68

What does that even mean?

69

It can sound kind of abstract, right?

70

And so I want you to imagine your

visual identity as the visual language

71

of your brand and of your practice.

72

This is how you express

your values, your tone, your

73

personality, your client experience.

74

Through things like color and

typography and imagery and

75

layout through design visuals.

76

It's really the combination of design

elements that tells people, this is

77

who I am, this is what I stand for,

and this is the kind of experience

78

you can expect working with me.

79

That's what a premium

visual identity does.

80

It says, when you work with me, you're

gonna get an experience like this.

81

When your visual identity is cohesive,

then every single touch point someone

82

has with you, your website, your printed

flyers, and your business cards, your

83

social posts, even your EHR and your

intake forms, they all feel connected.

84

And remember last week we talked

about the fact that when things are

85

similar or consistent, it builds trust.

86

It's the reason I love to rewatch

the office and Grey's Anatomy, right?

87

When people recognize your brand visually.

88

It creates familiarity.

89

That familiarity creates comfort.

90

The same reason you might be

watching Gilmore Girls, because

91

that's what you do every fall, okay?

92

But comfort is what makes

people more likely to reach out.

93

So again, consistency builds trust.

94

Trust builds familiarity.

95

Familiarity creates comfort.

96

And comfort is what really

does lead people to reach out.

97

Now we know that this is especially

true in therapy and in the place that

98

your clients find themselves, they

are scanning for cues anywhere and

99

everywhere for safety and credibility

before they even choose to contact you.

100

It's one of the hard parts of

design because it is so subjective

101

and it is highly subconscious.

102

Your client isn't coming in saying,

oh, I'm scanning the design of

103

this website to determine if this

clinician is worth $250 an hour.

104

And yet that's what's happening.

105

Now, what I want you to know about a

visual identity is that this is not

106

about being trendy or being fancy.

107

And it is absolutely, please hear me,

not about copying what you see out there,

108

what everyone else is doing chasing

aesthetics that don't fit you because

109

you feel like they're what you should do.

110

It's really at the end of the

day about being intentional

111

about intentionally choosing.

112

A visual language for your

brand and for your practice that

113

reflects your expertise and your

personality and the transformation

114

that you offer your clients.

115

So if you specialize in trauma or anxiety,

then your visual identity likely needs to

116

communicate calm and safety and stability.

117

If you work with high achieving

professionals and executives, then

118

your visual identity likely needs to be

structured and modern, maybe minimal.

119

If you love working with creatives

or couples, it might be more about

120

warmth and energy and movement.

121

What I want you to know as we head

into the exercises for defining your

122

visual identity is that a strong

visual identity is what turns nice.

123

Design designed that abides by the

principles we talked about in last week's

124

episode into actual recognizable trust.

125

That's what your identity

has the ability to do.

126

So I wanna give you four exercises,

or I'm calling them the four lenses

127

for defining a visual identity.

128

And these are exercises, some of

which you can probably do as you're

129

sitting here listening, and others

that you might want to spend a little

130

bit of time doing some research on.

131

But the hope is that after you

complete these, you have a really

132

good sense of what matters to you

and of what should be driving your

133

decisions when it comes to what you're

creating visually for your practice.

134

So the first one should sound

familiar if you've been listening

135

to our past few episodes, and that's

all about starting with emotion.

136

This is where I want you to

anchor your visual identity

137

to your client's experience.

138

Okay?

139

So we are creating something intentional

as it relates to the emotion that your

140

clients feel when they interact with you.

141

So before you think about

fonts or colors, ask yourself.

142

What do I want people to feel

when they interact with my brand?

143

Calm, grounded, inspired,

hopeful, empowered.

144

What words describe how you

want your clients to feel

145

when they interact with you?

146

We just shared a homepage design

today with a done for you client

147

of ours, and she had this deep sigh

when she saw it for the first time.

148

And so I completed scrolling

through the homepage.

149

Then I asked her initial thoughts

and I reflected back that I

150

noticed that sigh and how that

was really what we were after.

151

We had talked about in her kickoff

call how she wanted people to feel

152

like there was invitation and space

in her practice, and that's what she

153

wanted to show through her design.

154

And so this feeling of this sigh or exhale

as she saw it really reflected that goal.

155

So how do you want people to

feel when they interact with you?

156

Calm.

157

Maybe that's gonna point us

more toward muted tones or

158

soft lighting or open spaces.

159

If it's empowered, we might want bolder

contrast or stronger fonts or more of that

160

modern vibe, warm, maybe neutral textures,

cozy imagery, golden or warmer tones.

161

And all of those decisions,

like I said, can come later.

162

But think now about how you want people

to feel when they interact with you.

163

Now I know of a dear client of mine

right now who has experienced a bit

164

of an evolution in who she is as a

clinician and her current branding

165

and visual identity is quite soft and

feminine and rounded around the edges.

166

She uses a script font in her design,

and there's lots of kind of soft pastels.

167

She's really realized she's

embodying a bit more of a

168

stronger, more direct presence.

169

And so we're looking at what

would it look like to update her

170

brand to reflect that a bit more.

171

She's not quite as soft around the

edges or feminine as she used to be.

172

She's working with many of the same

clients, but the way that people feel

173

when they interact with her, we're

wanting to update that a little bit.

174

So again, how do you want people to

feel when they interact with you?

175

Design is ultimately emotional, right?

176

It starts with feelings, not color.

177

Swatches.

178

Okay?

179

So if a client walked into your therapy

room, how would you want them to feel?

180

I want you to bring that same energy

online as you make these decisions.

181

Now our second step or lens here

is about defining opposites.

182

So in step one, you identified

how you want your clients to feel.

183

Now I want to invite you to clarify

what qualities your brand would need to

184

express in order to create that feeling.

185

Okay.

186

So if you said you want your clients to

feel calm and grounded, for instance,

187

then your brand might need to feel

steady and minimal and natural.

188

Or if you said empowered,

maybe your visuals should be

189

bold and modern and confident.

190

So again, you know how you want

people to feel in step one.

191

What qualities of your brand's personality

would make that experience possible?

192

Now, you might pull these

straight from your own personality

193

or your own clinical style.

194

That's usually a great

place to start, right?

195

Because this is very much about

your own energy that you bring.

196

But I want you to identify a handful of

adjectives that describe the energy or

197

the character that your brand needs to

embody in order to evoke that feeling.

198

So again, some examples would

be structured, steady, minimal,

199

bold, modern, confident.

200

And from there I wanna introduce

what's called the opposite test.

201

So for each of those adjectives

write, its opposite If you need to be

202

structured, the opposite would be flowy.

203

If you need to be modern, the

opposite would be classic.

204

If you need to be minimal.

205

The opposite might be playful.

206

So after you've defined the opposite,

and we're not trying to pick one

207

or the other here, what I want you

to see is that you're creating a

208

spectrum between structured and flowy.

209

A spectrum between modern and classic.

210

And once you've got both of those words

there, pause and ask yourself, where

211

on this scale does my brand belong?

212

Maybe you're not actually fully

minimalist or fully playful.

213

You're somewhere in between.

214

Maybe you're not fully

modern or fully classic.

215

You lean modern, but not

sterile in all hard edges.

216

This middle ground decision is

gold because it's giving you

217

parameters for your design, right?

218

The rails that keep your brand feeling

consistent, no matter what font or

219

color you end up choosing later.

220

This exercise really matters because

most inconsistent or weak visual brands

221

I see out there, especially in the

therapy space, aren't necessarily poorly

222

designed, but they lack these boundaries.

223

They're trying to be a little

bit of everything warm.

224

But also clinical, modern and

earthy, bold and subtle, and

225

they don't end up being anything.

226

It becomes very vanilla and so

defining your edges really helps

227

you choose visuals that are going

to consistently tell the same story.

228

This is about knowing what lane

you're going to live in visually.

229

And once you know your lane here,

even roughly, we can't quantify this.

230

You can make every design decision

faster because you'll instantly know,

231

does this font, color, photo, whatever

fit inside my lane or outside of it?

232

Where do I belong on this

spectrum and how do I not try

233

and be all things to all people?

234

This is about not watering down your

brand in an attempt to appeal to everyone,

235

but instead to have a point of view.

236

So that's step two.

237

Clarifying the edges of

your brand personality.

238

You've named how you want people to

feel, and now you've outlined the

239

qualities that make that possible.

240

So next, let's take these traits

and actually bring them to life

241

picturing what they look like.

242

So here in step three, I'm going to

invite you to visualize the feeling.

243

If your brand were a space,

what would it look like?

244

I want you to close your eyes and

imagine your brand as a physical space.

245

Maybe it's a therapy office, maybe it's

something else, and tune into your senses.

246

What would it look like?

247

What would it sound like in that space?

248

What made it smell like?

249

What would it feel like?

250

Is it a bright, airy studio with

plants and sunlight, or is it a cozy

251

reading nook with soft light and

layered textures and cozy blankets?

252

I find therapists do really well in

this exercise because they tend to

253

be very intuitive thinkers, so this

is helping you access that instinct

254

visually once you can see the space

that you want your brand to be.

255

You can start to translate it.

256

Those textures, the lighting,

even the smells, the materials,

257

they become cues for all of the

design decisions that you make.

258

The color palette, the

imagery, the typography.

259

Maybe you imagined a cozy

cabin with a roaring fire.

260

When you walk in, we're gonna

be looking at warm neutrals.

261

And soft serif fonts, perhaps natural

imagery, if that's who you're gonna love.

262

Our new template design that's coming.

263

Maybe you imagined a more modern loft.

264

So we're gonna be looking more at

crisp whites and clean lines and

265

really modern, interesting fonts,

perhaps pops of bright color.

266

If your brand were a physical

space, what would it look like?

267

What would it feel like?

268

How can you take that feeling

into your design decisions?

269

This is really where you begin to see

that design is so much more than just

270

decoration, especially in this market.

271

It's creating atmosphere, it's

creating experience, and that's

272

what your clients are seeking.

273

That's what's leading them to make

decisions about who they reach out to.

274

All right.

275

Finally, step four is where you're

gonna start to spot patterns in

276

what it is that resonates with you.

277

So in step one, we talked about

how we want your clients to feel.

278

In step two, we talked about the

qualities that your brand needs to

279

embody in order to create that feeling.

280

In step three, we thought about how those

things come together in a physical space.

281

And now I want you to go out

into the wild and look for it.

282

Okay, so I want you to spend some

time, and this is where you might

283

have to complete this activity after

today's episode, but pull up three to

284

five brands or websites that you love.

285

They do not need to be therapists.

286

I actually recommend they maybe aren't.

287

You might use Pinterest for this.

288

You might already know of some,

there might be some Instagram

289

folks you follow, but pull up

some that just resonate with you.

290

You've liked them in the past.

291

Perhaps you've bookmarked them.

292

And then ask, study them.

293

What do they have in common?

294

Visually?

295

How do they make you feel?

296

Scroll through them.

297

Click through the pages, check out

their posts, and pay attention to

298

things like spacing and color tones

and fonts, and the use of imagery.

299

What themes are there?

300

Now as you do this, not only is it

a heck of a lot of fun, one of my

301

favorite exercises, but you're gonna

start to recognize your preferences

302

and why they work together.

303

Now, it's very important here that this

isn't about eventually copying what

304

they're doing, but like I said, it's

about studying why those things resonate.

305

It might be that you're looking at

a brand that is incredibly bold and

306

high contrast, and in fact you're

creating something more minimal , but

307

there's still something to learn there.

308

What about it stood out to you?

309

Why do you like it?

310

What are they doing well, and how could

you translate that into your own brand?

311

Because again, cohesion, the cohesion you

are seeing across all of these brands, the

312

cohesion you are seeing in each website,

that's what makes them feel trustworthy.

313

The repetition and the consistency creates

recognition and familiarity and comfort.

314

So go out into the wild and

look for examples of things

315

that are resonating with you.

316

And then study them.

317

How can you take what you're learning

there and apply it to create your own

318

space, your own brand that evokes the

emotion that we talked about in step one.

319

So those are the four exercises in

really thinking about visual identity.

320

Now I mentioned that today's episode

is a little bit about nerding out.

321

It's not for everyone.

322

Some therapists find this hmm, a waste

of time might be a little negative, but

323

some therapists find this unnecessary.

324

This isn't the most important

part of their marketing.

325

In the list of priorities,

perhaps it's not.

326

But in this market, we're seeing

the need for these visual identities

327

to be stronger and to have more of

a point of view than we ever have.

328

Now, if you've listened all the way

through these exercises, I would guess

329

that you're someone who recognizes,

all right, this is something I need to

330

prioritize and need to be thinking about.

331

And some of you right now are sitting

here thinking, this is awesome.

332

You feel energized at this.

333

The idea of gathering inspiration

and experimenting and defining

334

this and eventually going out and

making decisions and putting all

335

this together, that's incredible.

336

DIYing.

337

This is exactly what you can and should

be doing because now you've got the

338

clarity to make some really good choices.

339

And to have a point of view with

your visual identity that deeply

340

resonates with your clients.

341

For others, and I only know this

because I've talked to some of you, this

342

feels like absolute sensory overload.

343

You know what you want

your brand to feel like.

344

You can answer exercise one just fine.

345

You want it to feel calm or

elevated or polished, but the

346

idea of actually translating

that into a logo, fonts, colors,

347

images, that's where you get stuck,

348

And you want a cohesive, high-end brand.

349

That matches your expertise.

350

You are seeking that premium

fee experience and you

351

offer that to your clients.

352

You are deeply skilled, but you also

don't wanna spend weeks or months

353

second guessing whether beige or blush.

354

Better communicates your

grounded confidence.

355

I remember talking to a confident Copy

alumni, who we ended up designing her

356

website for her, but she told me she

lost hours in trying to figure out the

357

right shade of purple for her brand.

358

It was just, she spiraled over it.

359

Maybe that's you.

360

Maybe you also feel like you're

gonna spiral and, lose hours of your

361

life deciding on different fonts or

colors or whatever that might be.

362

I want you to know that whether you

fall in the DIY camp or the sensory

363

overload camp, that there are resources

that you can absolutely be successful.

364

You don't have to be interested in this to

do it well, but it is important right now.

365

It's why we've decided to launch

something completely brand new that

366

we have never, ever done before

as part of our Black Friday sale.

367

And this is actually the first

time I'm talking about it publicly.

368

So if you are listening, congratulations,

you're getting the inside scoop, but it's

369

called the Signature Brand Intensive.

370

And it is for our therapists who are

ready to look the part of the thriving

371

premium fee practice they have built or

our building without drowning in the DIY.

372

And again, if this is exciting

to you, I want to empower you to

373

go forth and do the dang thing.

374

But if you're sitting here

wondering, how am I gonna do this?

375

That's what the Signature brand

intensive was created for.

376

So we're calling it in intensive

because it is indeed an intensive.

377

It is a one week done for you experience

where we create your custom color palette,

378

fonts, logos, branded marketing assets,

all personalized to your practice.

379

This is our first ever complete brand

and visual service we've ever offered.

380

If you feel like you've outgrown DIY,

and you want a brand that truly reflects

381

your expertise, then stay tuned.

382

This is gonna be part of

our Black Friday lineup.

383

We're putting all the finishing

touches on the page right now.

384

But you will be able to access

the page as soon as it's ready

385

at walker strategy co.com/bf

386

25.

387

That's where you'll be able to navigate

to the signature brand intensive page.

388

But to give you a little bit of an

insight scoop of what we're looking

389

at, if this is something that

piques your interest during that one

390

week experience, we're going to be

developing multiple mood boards for you.

391

You'll have opportunities to provide

feedback, and then during your design

392

day, we're gonna be taking that brand.

393

Installing it into the Squarespace

template of your choice, sourcing

394

images, uploading your logo, adding

your headshot if you've got them.

395

And then also designing a marketing flyer

template and a business card template.

396

All things that you can literally

drop in your content and go.

397

And one of the best things

is a bonus we're offering

398

that we've never done before.

399

Yeah, whichever Squarespace design

you choose, you're gonna get a custom

400

copywriting template created just for

that design . So copying and pasting and

401

adding your content to the site is going

to be easier than ever because we're

402

going to give you a formatted template.

403

You literally plug in what you wanna say,

copy and paste over into the Squarespace

404

site , and you'll be ready to go.

405

So that's a little bit more about

the Signature brand intensive.

406

All the details will be available

on that page that we are working on.

407

So keep an eye on walker

strategy code.com/bf

408

25.

409

But again, whether you DIY, this or

you get support, I want to remind you

410

that your visual identity, it matters.

411

It matters more than it ever has,

and it matters if you are that

412

therapist who is ready to level up.

413

One of the most powerful ways you can

do that is the way that you show up

414

online and off, and that starts with

understanding your visual identity,

415

creating something that is cohesive and

reflective of the quality of your work

416

and the experience you offer your clients.

417

Making sure that you are perceived as the

high caliber, high touch, deeply invested,

418

deeply skilled clinician that you are.

419

When your brand looks as credible

as your clinical work, clients will

420

notice and they will trust you faster.

421

So again, if you wanna see

what's coming with the signature

422

brand intensive, make sure.

423

You keep an eye on Walker

strategy code.com/bf

424

25, you'll get first access

during that Black Friday event.

425

We're gonna have just a handful of spots,

but remember, whatever you do, start

426

with the feeling you want to create and

then let everything else flow from there.

427

Thanks for being with me today.

428

I've enjoyed this little mini design

series and I hope you have too, and

429

I'll see you in our next episode.