In this fifth alumni check-in episode of Marketing Therapy, Anna answers two thoughtful questions from Confident Copy alumni about the “other” elements of a therapy website — the things beyond the copy itself that still deeply influence connection, trust, and conversion. From colleague endorsements to website imagery, this episode explores how therapists can make intentional choices that support both credibility and emotional resonance online.

Anna breaks down how to ethically and strategically use colleague testimonials, where to place them for maximum impact, and why Google Business Profile matters more than ever for visibility in both Google and AI search results. She also shares a grounded framework for choosing website imagery that helps clients envision hope, healing, and transformation — instead of reinforcing the pain they’re already carrying.

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

1️⃣ How to use colleague endorsements on your website in a way that builds trust and credibility

2️⃣ Why Google Business Profile reviews matter more than website testimonials for SEO and AI visibility

3️⃣ How to choose website imagery that emotionally connects with ideal clients

4️⃣ The difference between traditional stock imagery and environmental imagery — and when to use each

RESOURCES & LINKS MENTIONED

• Confident Copy: https://walkerstrategyco.com/cc
• Done-for-you services: https://walkerstrategyco.com/services
• The Walker Strategy Co website: https://walkerstrategyco.com

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: 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 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 Marketing

Therapy episode 72.

3

This is our fifth alumni check-in.

4

So if you're new around here, our alumni

check-in sessions are designed in the same

5

way that you might have a check-in session

with a client after they discharge.

6

It's a way for our Confident Copy alumni,

so anyone that has graduated our Confident

7

Copy program to ask follow-up questions.

8

So after they've graduated, after they've

perhaps written their copy and gotten

9

their website out there, other things that

they're thinking about in their marketing.

10

And what I would recommend to them.

11

So this is exactly what I would

say to these clinicians if we were

12

sitting down together one-on-one

and you just get to listen in.

13

We've heard from many of you that

these have been incredibly useful,

14

both our Confident Copy alumni

and those who have never joined.

15

So I hope that this one is helpful.

16

Today we're talking about the other

stuff you put on your website.

17

I've got two questions, one from Becky

Wilson and another from Noor, and both

18

are wondering about the kind of non copy

things that you put on your website.

19

So Confident Copy of course, is

all about helping you identify your

20

niche and then write really, really

compelling optimized client friendly

21

copy for every page of your website.

22

So your homepage, your about page,

your specialties, your fees, your

23

methods, whatever that might be.

24

Well, these questions are

about, okay, the other stuff.

25

So Becky's is about colleague

endorsements, right?

26

Testimonials from colleagues, and

then Noor's question is about imagery.

27

So I'm excited about both of these.

28

And like I said, the through

line here is the non copy things

29

that get added to your site.

30

What do we do with that stuff to

make our sites work even better?

31

And how do we make sure that

they're doing their job?

32

So our first question

is from Becky Wilson.

33

And Becky asked, do you recommend

including colleague endorsements

34

or testimonials on your website?

35

And if so, what would you

ask colleagues to include?

36

Where would you place them?

37

You know, should you spread

'em out across various pages?

38

Should you put him on your about

page, a completely separate page.

39

What to do with them now to give you some

context, Becky shared that I'm trying

40

to attract self-pay clients by building

trust, authority, and credibility.

41

Dang, straight.

42

I love that.

43

Yes, you are Becky, and

you're doing great job.

44

She said as therapists, we're also unable

to request reviews from clients, right.

45

But I want them to understand what

it might be like to work with me

46

through my C Colleague relationships.

47

I've also been learning that AI is

changing the marketing game and wonder if

48

this could help to show up in AI searches.

49

Clients have been funneling to

my website through Psych today,

50

but I'd also like them to be able

to find me more through Google.

51

Okay.

52

Excellent.

53

So, Becky, lots of good things

happening in this question.

54

You are doing a fantastic

job thinking about this.

55

You're thinking about it in the right way.

56

I love that you are being

mindful of AI and Google because.

57

We're not asking clients

for reviews of your work.

58

If you were a traditional

service provider, those would

59

be included on your website.

60

We call that social proof, and

it's incredibly valuable because

61

people get to hear from people

who actually know you, right?

62

That's why testimonials

are so, so, so valuable.

63

In therapy, it's different

because that's not an option.

64

So colleague endorsements are a great way

to still get a little bit of that feel

65

while staying within all of the necessary

ethical boundaries and guidelines.

66

Now I love colleague endorsements.

67

I think they are a really nice

addition, and I do think that

68

they're in general underused.

69

I think that's something that anyone

who has good, solid professional

70

relationships should be leveraging.

71

But one thing that I would just straight

up not recommend based on your question

72

here, is having a separate page for them.

73

If I'm an interested client coming

to you, Becky, for, you know, OCD.

74

I'm not going to click over

to your endorsements page and

75

scroll through a list of what

therapists have to say to you.

76

These are gonna be a lot more

valuable in context, right?

77

So not just like a trophy wall of all of

you know these compliments of Becky, but

78

instead some insight into how you work

as it relates to your specific specialty.

79

Now.

80

This is not going to surprise anyone.

81

That generic is not

going to help you here.

82

Becky's a wonderful therapist

with a warm presence in the room.

83

Yeah.

84

Mm-hmm.

85

Not gonna do much for you, Kay.

86

So specificity really

is the name of the game.

87

You want an endorsement to

actually do some work for you.

88

So when requesting an endorsement from

someone, I recommend that you ask them to

89

name your specialty or specialties what

they know about how you work what you

90

specialize in, what your modalities are.

91

That could be a population you serve.

92

Like encourage them to be specific

about what they know about you.

93

They might not understand the

full scope of your practice.

94

That's okay.

95

Maybe they know you as an ICBT therapist.

96

Great.

97

Have them mention that.

98

Okay, so instead of.

99

You know, Anna is a really, like

I said, wonderful therapist with

100

a warm presence in the room.

101

Like something that would really

pull some weight would be something

102

like, I trust Anna specifically

with high conflict couples.

103

She navigates that dynamic with

real skill, and I've seen couples

104

experience incredible growth as

a result of working with her.

105

Okay, so the high conflict

couples, or Anna is one of the most

106

skilled EMDR clinicians I know.

107

I've seen clients experience real

relief from trauma and phobias

108

through their work together.

109

So again, what you

treated, how you did it.

110

So encourage specificity here.

111

Essentially, you want the colleague to

write some niche relevant copy for you.

112

That also happens to be credible

because it's not coming from you.

113

Okay, so that's my suggestion there.

114

When it comes to what to

ask a colleague to include.

115

Now when it comes to placement, this

can definitely be added to your website.

116

Like I mentioned, I don't suggest a

dedicated page and instead I suggest

117

that they be placed into context.

118

So specialty or methods specific

endorsements should go on

119

those pages of your website.

120

So the EMDR endorsement should go on

your EMDR page or the high conflict

121

couples endorsement should go on your

high conflict couples therapy page.

122

Because that's where they're going to

be landing with the most relevance.

123

If you have something that's a bit

more general, then I would place them

124

toward the bottom of your homepage or

about page and you can repeat them.

125

You could have, you know, one

endorsement on your homepage and have

126

it reflected again on your EMDR page.

127

But we don't want them to be a hundred

percent identical page to page.

128

'cause then it can sort of start

to feel a little bit suspect.

129

So we're talking about sprinkling these

thoughtfully throughout the website,

130

not dumping them in one specific place.

131

Okay.

132

Now, like I mentioned, this is good

to use on your website, but when

133

it comes to Google and ai, there's

another mechanism at play here.

134

So while putting these on your

website is a great move, and there's

135

literally no downside to that.

136

It's not likely to really enhance

your Google or AI findability.

137

What's going to be most helpful

here is Google Business Profile.

138

I've said it before, I'll say it again.

139

If you are an in-person therapist,

you need to run over to Google

140

Business Profile, create it

and optimize it right now.

141

Literally one of the lowest hanging

fruits available to you in your marketing.

142

And one of the defining factors about

whether or not you are surfaced in

143

Google and AI results right now,

Google Business profile at this

144

moment reign Supreme in a lot of ways.

145

Okay?

146

So the most powerful way to leverage

endorsements would be for those

147

endorsements to be added as reviews to

your Google business profile, rather

148

than placing their words on your site.

149

And you could also do that when

it comes to ranking on Google.

150

Those Google business profile

reviews are what are going to

151

pull the most weight for you?

152

They're third party verified,

and Google's gonna trust that

153

a lot more than onsite content.

154

They're still gonna treat what you write

on your own site as your own content.

155

Whereas if it is submitted as a

review, that is treated differently.

156

So that can impact your

local search rankings.

157

That can impact your ability to

show up in organic results, star

158

ratings, snippets, things like that.

159

On the AI side of things, like I

said, AI is still looking at Google

160

business profile, so that would

be the, definitely the leading.

161

Suggestion here.

162

The onsite endorsements could still

potentially contribute, but only

163

if they're very, very specific.

164

Because we know that AI tools are

reading for, as you mentioned,

165

authority and credibility.

166

Expertise.

167

And so a colleague naming your

method, your population definitely

168

does add indexable specific content

that is signaling that expertise.

169

But it's not like it's gonna launch

you to the top of the chances for

170

being surfaced in those results.

171

This is where those generic

endorsements about having a warm

172

presence or being a good therapist

aren't gonna do anything for you.

173

Right?

174

AI tools aren't impressed by you being

a wonderful therapist nearly as much

175

as they are by you being a very skilled

EMDR clinician specializing in phobias.

176

Okay?

177

So to round out this question, Becky.

178

Quality endorsements really great if

they are specific, if they are sprinkled

179

throughout your website thoughtfully

and in context, and especially if they

180

are placed primarily through Google

Business profile as opposed to just being

181

copied that you put on your website.

182

That's what I would recommend here.

183

Now, if you're asking for a review, I

encourage you not to overthink that ask.

184

Right.

185

Colleagues want to support one another.

186

You should have an established

relationship with this person.

187

And a lot of people don't

even realize it's an option.

188

So give them a little bit of

guidance on the specificity.

189

Request it in good faith, let it be.

190

And then of course, if you know

how they are clinically, perhaps

191

you can do the same for them.

192

But keep that easy.

193

Don't put a lot of pressure on that.

194

All right, Becky, I hope that was

helpful for you and those listening.

195

' because I'm seeing more and more

clinicians you know, really thinking

196

about this idea of colleague endorsements.

197

So some good practical steps there.

198

Now let's shift over to Noor's

question, and this is all about imagery.

199

So Noor said.

200

I'm wondering if you could talk more about

the feel of our website pictures, should

201

they convey how the client is currently

feeling, or how they want to feel.

202

Such a good question, Noor and

I have a great answer for you.

203

She shared that she's been updating

her specialty page pictures and

204

wanna make sure she's not turning

clients away because the, the

205

pictures are too depressing.

206

Now, my fundamental recommendation when

it comes to choosing imagery for your

207

website is that almost universally this

imagery should communicate to clients

208

where they want to go, not remind them of

the pain that they're already living in.

209

I kind of giggle at the example of, you

know, landing on an anxiety page and

210

there being a picture of a woman with

her head in her hands or like pulling

211

her hair out, or a depression page and

it's someone staring at a rainy window

212

with like their hand on the window.

213

You know what I'm talking about?

214

Like those really kind

of cringey stock photos.

215

That's what we're avoiding here.

216

When I land on your website, I want to

be able to see myself in the imagery

217

as an element of vision casting.

218

I want to feel that way.

219

Now there is a time and a place to

consider imagery that implies more of

220

where they find themselves right now.

221

But the overarching theme in the imagery

that you choose should be positive.

222

Your client is already on your

site feeling that way, right?

223

We're gonna use the words to

empathize and to prove our

224

understanding of what's going on.

225

The images don't need to

necessarily depict that struggle

226

back to them in that way.

227

So instead, show them what's

possible through your work together.

228

Not remind them of where they are today.

229

I want them to look at your images and

think that's what I want for my life.

230

Not, oh yeah, that's what I did yesterday.

231

You know, so my thought for you

here, Noor, is that if you feel

232

like your images are too depressing,

they're probably too depressing.

233

And I would encourage

you to look at those.

234

There are two things to sort

of diagnose this one, is it the

235

subject of the image itself?

236

Like that staring at a rainy window?

237

Okay.

238

Or is it just kind of the

composition or the aesthetic?

239

Could it be a little bit lighter?

240

Could it be brighter in terms of color?

241

You know, could it be brightened up?

242

Composition wise without

changing the subject entirely.

243

So those are sort of the

two things to look at.

244

Like I said, we're all trying to

stay away from those really standard

245

cringey stock photos these days.

246

We want things that feel a little bit

more natural, and sometimes it's just

247

a matter of finding an image that feels

more positive or light or hopeful, and

248

the actual subject doesn't need to change.

249

The other thing that I will throw

in here is that not every image on

250

your website needs to be of people

when we are kicking off with a done

251

for you client in a design project.

252

So sometimes we'll work with

a confident copy student to

253

build and design their website.

254

Other times, you know, we'll, we'll write

the copy for them, whatever it might be.

255

But when we're kicking

off the design portion.

256

One of the questions we always

ask them is, what types of

257

stock imagery feel good for you?

258

One is the more traditional stock

imagery that includes people.

259

So that would be, you know, a couple

walking on the beach or that woman

260

with the hand on the window or

someone writing in their journal.

261

Okay?

262

Those are examples of traditional stock

imagery that include human subjects, but

263

then there's a whole other category of

what we call environmental stock imagery.

264

This communicates environment.

265

This could be.

266

A coffee cup.

267

This could be a desk, this could be a

couch, this could be a sunrise, right?

268

This is communicating environment.

269

Sometimes environmental imagery is

way more powerful than traditional

270

imagery, so don't feel like every

single image you choose on your

271

website has to include people.

272

In fact, we have clients who

said, I don't want any people on

273

my website, and so we choose all

environmental, and it still ends up

274

communicating the vibe that we want.

275

So don't feel like you are bound only

to people imagery, but instead consider

276

environmental imagery because sometimes

that can be a great option as well.

277

Whatever you choose.

278

Noor, I wanna acknowledge how wise

it is that you are asking this.

279

Because most people don't

stop to evaluate it.

280

Most people don't stop to think about

how impactful the images that they're

281

choosing are when it comes to what

people experience on the website.

282

Because we know that

design is subconscious.

283

We know that visuals, right

pictures are worth a thousand words.

284

These are powerful and we need

to be thoughtful about them.

285

We need to be thinking about what

it's invoking, how it aligns with

286

your brand, what the aesthetic is.

287

And so I wanna commend you for

stopping and considering this.

288

And now, like I said, if.

289

If your gut is saying it's too

depressing, maybe we need to revisit that.

290

Alright, that's our check-in

session for this month.

291

And like I said, the through

line here is that everything on

292

your site is sending a signal.

293

So yes, your copy is the driving force

there, but the other stuff you add or

294

don't add, also pull some weight for you.

295

They're also saying something or

not saying something, and we need

296

to be thoughtful about what that is,

whether that's an endorsement, an

297

image, or the absence of one of those.

298

Okay?

299

We've gotta be thoughtful.

300

So the question to ask yourself

is, is the signal that this is

301

giving off helping someone take the

next step, providing context, or

302

is it neutral at best, or

is it potentially hindering

303

that decision making?

304

That's it for this

month's check-in session.

305

If you are a Confident Copy alumni and you

are listening, please do reach out to us.

306

If you don't yet have the link for

submitting your questions, I love them.

307

I love seeing them come

through, and I'd love to get to

308

answer one of your questions.

309

If you are interested in jumping into

Confident copy, of course that is open

310

year round, and you can enroll anytime

walker strategy co.com/confident-copy.

311

Whatever you do.

312

I hope this one was helpful and I'll see

you for next month's check-in session.

313

Have a good one.