Ethical marketing: How do we let people know that therapy works?

Today I’m excited to answer a question that I got on one of my Facebook ads from Julie Grace. Julie found me via the checklist that I created for setting up in private practice and commented that it was really helpful but it left her with one big question and that was as a regulated group of mental health professionals how do we let people know that therapy works without making overstated overblown claims like some of the unregulated online coaches and similar make? We are all aware of this issue because we are all bombarded with it all the unscrupulous unqualified people that are out there telling people that they can cure them of depression, they can take away anxiety, they can give you online EMDR with no chance of an Ab reaction. It is a bit of a scary landscape out there to be honest. So how can we compete with unscrupulous and unqualified people who are willing to make wild claims? How can we market ourselves effectively in a way that feels ethical?

Fix your mindset first. Remember what makes you different as a mental health professional before you attempt ethical marketing. 

You are not “selling” the same thing at all here. You have to really understand and appreciate your professional skill set in order to demonstrate your worth to other people effectively. For me, I think that our understanding of complexity and formulation skills set us miles apart from those unregulated coaches and online text bots. Don't try to compete on price or claims, focus instead on becoming confident in your worth as a professional.

In order to help me get in the right frame of mind for marketing I often refer to a bank I keep of success stories, you know the client feedback that makes your heart sing? Even if it is only a few words I make an effort to write them down and store them in a file that I can look at when I need to feel more confident in my abilities. I also always find I get a boost of confidence after indulging my academic side a bit and doing some reading. And connecting with peers also really helps which is one of the reasons people value the coaching sessions and peer supervision that we have in psychology business school and the do more than therapy membership so highly. 

Show people your expertise and authority as a mental health professional in your marketing. Don't tell them.

Blogs, videos, podcasts, books all allow you to show your authority and the deeper knowledge you have. They also allow you to demonstrate your approach. Your blog post on how to deal with a panic attack with kids in the car will be different to mine. That is because we would also be different to work with! It means a lot more than" I create a safe space" or" I use my vast experience to help you feel understood". Show people you understand their experiences and how you can help.

Use client stories/testimonials in your marketing to show people that change is possible. 

If you have ever struggled with your mental health you know that part of you always wonders if change is truly possible. There is always part of you that wonders if you will feel like this forever. In the episodes we have recorded on blogging and writing for your website a key take home for me was that we should create our marketing with the suffering, overwhelmed person in mind. 

So what do they need to see? Hope. we all need hope.

We are in the privileged position of knowing the strength of the evidence behind our interventions and witnessing people recovering from extraordinarily challenging life experiences. We also know that it doesn't happen for everyone. So how do we represent that? There is a lot of debate on this subject but for me, for this reason, I think we need to use client stories that show hope. Personally, I could feedback forms from my therapy clients and ask permission to take comments from those for my website. On the form I ask questions about my practice but also some key questions that have potential clients in mind

1. Why did you seek help?

2. What else had you tried before coming to me?

3. Did you have any worries about coming?

4. What has changed for you since we started working together? 

5. What would you say to someone considering therapy?

These are questions designed to show the journey a client has been on, in their words. This is far more powerful than the claim “I can cure depression" because people can see themselves in the answers.

Should client stories be kept anonymous to be ethical?

I chose to keep my client stories anonymous, I have had clients ask me to use their name and picture as they passionately want to help spread the message that therapy wants but at the moment I don't.

It feels uncomfortable to say that as my clients are all adults with full capacity and I'm imposing my view on them but I have made that choice for 2 reasons:

1. Power dynamics of the therapy relationship.

2. Future proofing. I always want my clients to be free to step away from the identity of "mental health patient" or "survivor" anytime they don't find it useful to them. The internet may not allow for that.

Make your marketing tangible for your overwhelmed ideal client.

Use examples of common, everyday problems people face and talk about how you helped a client to deal with that problem. These make great blog posts, videos + podcasts. On your homepage you can list the range of problems you can help with (and I mean problems, not just symptoms, so for example you might say "feelings of anxiety that are so strong you can't face leaving the house'' not just anxiety) and simply say for more information about how I help with these problems see this blog and this client story and hyperlink to them. If you haven't already then do go back to our episodes on blog writing and copy writing for some more advice on how to write in a way that speaks to the tangible problems your ideal clients are facing. 

If you aren't sure who your ideal clients are then the episode on the ideal client avatar will help you find and get to know your ideal clients.

So in conclusion, do not despair when you see those FB ads with overblown claims. You are not competing with them. Focus on showing people who land on your site what you can do for them and feel confident in that truth. That confidence will come across to potential clients and they will see you as a safe pair of hands.

If you want to go deeper or marketing and writing check out the Do More Than Therapy membership. We have an in-depth marketing course to help you nail the ideal, overwhelm free, marketing strategy for your project as well as masterclasses on all the major marketing platforms from the press to Instagram, podcasting and Youtube. And you get to learn in the company of a community of like-minded professionals who regularly debate some of the sticky stuff we've been talking about today in our weekly coaching calls and monthly peer supervision sessions. Join DMTT on a free 7 day trial here.

Links:

Checklist

https://psychologybusinessschool.com/client-checklist/

Psychology Business School

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

DMTT Membership

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

DMTT Free 7 Day Trial

https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-do-more-than-therapy-membership/#price-table-middle

Podcast Links: 

Ideal Client Avatar 

Episode 19: How psychologists and therapists can use an ideal client avatar to co create and market their services https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-business-of-psychology/ideal-client-avatar-psychologists-therapists-marketing/

Blogging

Episode 26: Five ways to get people to read your psychology blog https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-business-of-psychology/five-ways-to-get-people-to-read-your-psychology-blog/

Episode 32: How to get your blog post seen with Vicki Jakes: SEO for psychologists and therapists https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-business-of-psychology/how-to-get-your-blog-post-seen-with-vicki-jakes-seo-for-psychologists-and-therapists/

Episode 33: Why you should BLOG when you have NO time https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-business-of-psychology/why-you-should-blog/

Episode 34: What you should be blogging about: Choosing topics and titles for your psychology blog https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-business-of-psychology/titles-for-psychology-blogs/

Copywriting / Writing for you Website

Episode 54: How to write for your website: Copywriting for Psychologists and Therapists with Allie Linn https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-business-of-psychology/how-to-write-for-your-website-copywriting-for-psychologists-and-therapists-with-allie-linn/

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