Anna Walker:
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Hey, hey.
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Welcome back to Marketing Therapy,
episode 69 today kicks off a little
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mini two-part series where we're talking
about preparing for the summer slump.
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Now the summer slump is catchy.
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First of all, I love some alliteration.
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And a fairly real and
recurring phenomenon.
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It is not universal.
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You'll hear from people I've never
experienced a summer slump or
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the summer is my busiest season,
and for that I am so grateful.
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I think that's fantastic.
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But we do know culturally.
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In this industry that there tends
to be a slowdown in the summer,
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and I think it's common enough
that it's worth talking about.
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And you know what?
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Even if you don't have a summer
slump, what we're gonna talk about
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is still gonna be helpful for you.
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But the fact is that when things slow
down, especially if you are in the
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first couple years of your practice, if
it's your first summer or your second,
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it can be incredibly anxiety inducing.
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And one of the first things I'm
gonna suggest, I mean these next.
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Two episodes are going to be very
tactical and strategy forward, and
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you're gonna leave with things to do.
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But I just wanna remind you,
hey, there are ups and downs,
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there are ebbs and flows.
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This is normal.
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Seasonality is okay.
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It doesn't necessarily
indicate something is wrong.
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Okay?
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So in case you need that reminder
now, or to come back to in June
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or July, remember that, but.
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It's normal.
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It's normal to have the thoughts.
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What if the clients never bounce back?
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Right?
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What if I lose whatever momentum I
have felt leading up to this year?
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And here we are in a time of economic
uncertainty and lots of changes
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in our world and in our industry.
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And so those fears and those thoughts
are even more understandable.
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But we know that the antidote to
fear isn't hair on fire panicking.
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We know it's not burning it
all down and working at Costco.
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We know it's figuring
out what to do, right?
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It's about getting our heads clear.
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It's about being honest with ourselves.
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It's about getting our mind right, and
then it's about taking action accordingly.
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And so that's what these two
episodes are gonna be about.
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This one is where I wanna look
at what levers are available
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to you because you know what?
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There are things you can do.
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And that's the best feeling
when you're in the middle of
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a season that feels uncertain.
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When things slow down,
there are things you can do.
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This is not out of your control.
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You can remain in the driver's seat of
your practice if you know what to do.
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And so today is about looking at
what levers are available to you
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to pull during the summer slump,
or any slowdown, quite frankly.
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And then next week's episode
is gonna be more about auditing
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where you're at and helping you
determine where you need to be.
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Focusing your energy.
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So there are really two things
you need to be looking at as we
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get started with this episode.
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In order to quote unquote get ahead
of the summer slump or at least get
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your mind right and one of them, quite
frankly, therapists get backwards a lot.
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So we're gonna make sure
we're clear on that.
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And then like I said, we're gonna
get into looking at what all
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of these levers actually are.
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Now, before we get into this, I
want to remind you that maybe a
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slowdown is permission to slow down.
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A slower season is not always
a problem to solve, okay?
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Now you need to maintain your income.
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You need to make sure that your
caseload is at a reliable level.
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I get all of those things, but sometimes.
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Sometimes it's just a chance to slow down.
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Sometimes it's just a chance to rest.
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And so depending on where you find
yourself in your practice, I want to
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remind you that an open slot on your
calendar might actually be a gift to you.
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It could be a gift to
invest in your marketing.
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It could just be a gift to rest.
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And so remember that rest and
reflection and continuing education.
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All of these things are productive.
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They feed your practice, they feed
your long-term sustainability.
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They feed your wellness as a clinician.
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So if rest is the right lever for
you this summer, that's a plan too.
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Okay?
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Name it and claim it.
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Now, it's not always a
problem to solve, okay?
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So just remember that and maybe
you're in a place where you need
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to maintain or build income.
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Cool.
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There's a framework.
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We're gonna talk about that, but
maybe, maybe it is just an invitation
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to slow down to enjoy that.
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Knowing that it'll pick back up again.
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It always does.
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Right?
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So with that caveat, now let's get
into the two things you need to be
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looking at and the order of them.
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Okay.
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So when things slow down in, in a
clinician's practice, whether it's
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in the summer or another season, most
therapists jump straight to visibility.
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And you know what?
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I'm glad for that.
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I'm glad that therapists are
thinking about, okay, how do
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I get my name out there more?
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What do I need to be doing?
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What more can I be doing?
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Like there are lots of healthy
things about that thought, but.
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They often think, well, now I need more
content, or Now I need more outreach,
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or more presence, or more whatever.
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And like I said, that instinct isn't
wrong, but it's the second thing that
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you need to be looking at, not the first.
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Okay.
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So the two levers here, when we're
thinking about what to do during a
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slow season, what to do to improve
your marketing, our conversion,
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and then traffic in that order.
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We have to be able to convert if
we can meaningfully send traffic.
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So conversion has to come
first when inquiries slow down
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because they will at some point.
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You have to be able to make
the most of every single one.
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Okay, so for the purposes of
this example, let's just think
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about visitors to your website.
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If due to the summer season, there's
going to be less traffic to your website.
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Because people are on vacation,
they have priorities elsewhere.
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Their attention is just not on therapy.
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I want you to be able to
capitalize as much as possible
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on the traffic you are getting.
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If you can't do that, if it requires
massive numbers in order for you to even
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get a handful of inquiries, then we are
missing out on that conversion piece.
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More traffic just means
more people leaving.
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My stomach turns at the
thought of that for you.
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Okay.
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So conversion matters first so that
whoever does come to your website,
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and that is not to say of course,
that every single person landing on
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your website is an ideal fit client.
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No way, Jose, but.
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I want you to be able to capitalize
on whoever is on your website
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confidently to know, okay, if my
traffic slows down, my website is
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still set up to do what it needs to do.
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That's why conversion matters so much.
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Then traffic comes, okay?
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Once you know that that conversion engine,
as we call it, is solid, then you focus
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on getting more people to it, then you
know, okay, I have an engine that if I
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fuel it with my traffic, it will turn.
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It's so critical that you think about it
in this order because I see therapists
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get it backwards all the time, and it's
one of the most common and frustrating
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mistakes they make because they put in
all of this effort into social media
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or networking with very little return
because the engine isn't turning,
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they're not really going anywhere.
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You've heard me talk before about
the metaphor of a leaky bucket.
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If you do not have the conversion
piece in place, if you do not have a
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solid client conversion engine, then.
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You going out there and spinning
your wheels, networking, posting
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on social media, blogging,
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even printing business cards, is like
pouring water into a leaky bucket.
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So you're spending all of this energy.
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Pouring the water, finding the water,
pouring it, and then the bucket,
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your website can't even hold it.
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That's what we're trying to fix here.
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So, like I said, in the next episode
of this little mini series, we're
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gonna talk about how to diagnose
that, is this a traffic issue?
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But just first and foremost, remember
conversion first, traffic second,
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conversion first, traffic second.
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If conversion is not solid.
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Then more traffic is just gonna
hurt because you're gonna work
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really, really hard for it and
then not see the return you need.
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Okay?
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So just remember that now as we think
about the summer ahead, or any slower
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season before you pick a strategy,
just because someone mentioned it
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in a Facebook group or you saw it
on Instagram, or this colleague you
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know is doing it before you do that.
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It's really important that you get
honest about three things, okay?
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Get honest about the
time you have available.
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Get honest about the energy you have
to dedicate and get honest about
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the budget that's available to you.
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These are separate things, and you
might have time, but be depleted
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energy wise or have no budget.
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That's gonna change which marketing
strategy makes sense for you.
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Okay?
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So just because that.
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$10,000 Mastermind program
teaches you how to do Google Ads.
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Doesn't mean Google Ads is a
good fit for you if you have no
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budget or no time to implement.
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Do you see what I mean?
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Just because someone says to
do something does not mean it's
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gonna match your bandwidth, your
time, your energy, your budget.
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So we have to know what we're working
with in order to make meaningful decisions
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about the levers available to you.
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Okay, so time, how many hours
per week can you realistically.
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Give realistically, sustainably,
consistently over time.
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Now, summer might shift
that profile for you.
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Maybe you have less time because
your kids are home from school.
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This was my first year with having
a child in school, and so I'm
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about to have a summer break with
a child in a way I never have.
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I'll fortunately still have some childcare
and that kind of thing, but I can
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empathize with parents in a way I never
have because my kid is about to be home.
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That takes up your time, right?
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So maybe your time is less in the summer.
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Maybe when you're honest about it,
your time is more because you might
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have an open client slot or two.
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So remember, the season that you're
in, might impact your bandwidth.
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But like I said, that first one is time.
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Then energy.
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What kind of tasks can
you actually sustain?
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What can you actually do consistently?
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You're gonna hear me use
that word consistently a lot.
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These next two episodes, I'm talking
about creating content, right?
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That could be on social media, that
could be blogging, relationship building.
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How much energy do you have to
be put in a Zoom coffee chat
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on a calendar, or reaching out
to someone in your local area?
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The behind the scenes setup of
some of these marketing strategies.
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Again, if we use Google Ads as an example.
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So yeah, you need to have some budget
available to pay for the ads and
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likely to pay someone to run those
ads and or the time and energy to
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learn how to do that well yourself.
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So that's the cost here.
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We need to be keeping all
three of these things in mind.
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And then of course,
budget, just straight up.
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Is money an option?
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This season, or we need some
low zero cost things, right?
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So get honest about this and
then let that drive your decision
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making about what you do next about
these levers that we're gonna talk
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about, these levers that you pull.
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This is not about, again, what
sounds impressive or what's
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flashy, or what your friend did.
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It's what actually makes sense for you.
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'cause that focus, that ability
to do it well over time.
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Matters way more than the
effectiveness of the strategy, the
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popularity of the strategy, whether
or not your friends are doing it.
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Okay, so let's now get into our levers,
and you might roll your eyes at me,
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but the first one we gotta do, we
have to talk about networking here.
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We just cannot talk about being effective
in this industry, in this market,
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especially in the private pay space.
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If we're not talking about networking
, it's why it has just been a through
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line of so much of what we've been
talking about here on marketing
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therapy in the last six months or so.
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Networking is, hello, a non-negotiable,
regardless of your bandwidth,
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and I don't have a lot of time.
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I don't have a lot of energy.
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Okay.
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Then what you do have we need
to put towards networking first?
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Fortunately, it's pretty
low budget usually.
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However, the format of your networking
that is yours, you get to pick.
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You've heard me say that before.
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We have an entire episode on
networking as an introvert.
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That we will link in the show
notes, but you gotta market
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how you market is up to you.
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Most therapists think of
marketing as one thing.
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I don't know what comes to
mind for you that might be.
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Cold calling a doctor's office that
might be sending a weird Instagram
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DM to a therapist, like, I don't
know what it looks like for you, but
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many therapists have this like one
idea about what networking is for us.
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It can look so many different
ways, and we really think about
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it in four different categories.
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With most people, kind of tapping
into only one or two and leaving
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some opportunity on the table.
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So this is worth thinking about our,
the four categories of networking.
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These four networking levers you can
consider pulling in this upcoming season.
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So the first is same niche therapist.
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So that might be someone who is in
the same niche as you, but has a
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different modality or perhaps is at
capacity has a different fee structure.
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This can sometimes be misconstrued
as competition but they really
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are very, very natural referral
partners because the fit is obvious.
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Maybe someone sees a different age range
or prefers to work a different way.
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Even availability can be a factor here.
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Like this is just a really, really direct
referral opportunity that does not have
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to look like you trying to poach clients.
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Same for adjacent niche therapists.
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If you recently caught our interview
here on the podcast with Taylor Williams,
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she talked about how powerful adjacent
niche therapists have been for her
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in filling her full fee caseload.
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There has long sort of been this
underlying connotation that maybe you're
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trying to poach someone's clients,
but actually there's a lot of value
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in connecting with people who see
your client, but maybe not directly.
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So they see couples, you see
individuals, they see moms.
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You see children.
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So related, but very low
competition with high alignment.
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Adjacent niche therapists are
hugely untapped for many clinicians.
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The next step are
complimentary professionals.
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So this is where we group anyone
that isn't a therapist, that also
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sees your client professionally.
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So this could be a ob,
a lactation consultant.
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This could be a school
counselor, a pediatrician.
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These are kind of the stereotypical
traditional networking contacts,
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private schools I've heard of.
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Great.
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A success that folks have had,
especially as we get to the end of
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the summer and into the school season.
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But anyway, complimentary professionals.
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Who else sees your ideal client
professionally that you could speak to?
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And then finally, this one I see hugely
untapped, and that is the other full fee
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wellness kind of ecosystem out there.
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So these are providers whose
clients are already saying yes
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to investing in themselves.
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I've talked about this recently, but
this could be something like a functional
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medicine doctor, a chiropractor, an
acupuncturist, a yoga instructor,
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a dietician, a massage therapist.
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Who else is seeing clients who value
their wellness, who are likely paying
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00:14:28
out of pocket, and who could be a
really, really natural referral source
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:
00:14:33
and who probably has never networked
with another therapist before, right?
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:
00:14:36
It's not like an OB that probably has
a laundry list of potential therapists
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00:14:40
they could refer to, but instead, maybe
they've never talked to a therapist
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00:14:44
about their ability to cross refer.
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00:14:47
So that full fee wellness ecosystem
is another group that I see a lot of
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clinicians potentially missing out on
that you could consider leaning into.
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00:14:54
Summer is a fantastic time to
be building these relationships.
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00:14:58
Other therapists might be slow,
they might be open to connection.
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00:15:02
I just met a therapist at
church last week actually.
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:
00:15:05
She mentioned that she was a clinician,
so I was of course curious in asking
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her about her practice and she mentioned
that she's in person a few times a
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:
00:15:11
week, mostly just to be in community
because it can be so isolating sometimes.
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00:15:16
Solo practice can be incredibly isolating.
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00:15:18
So if nothing else, go make some
connections to get out of your own head.
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00:15:23
Right?
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To be in community with other clinicians
and open up space for genuine connection
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00:15:28
and potential symbiotic relationships
with other professionals, whether
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:
00:15:32
those are therapists or otherwise.
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00:15:35
And remember, networking is a volume game.
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00:15:36
You're gonna reach out to
people you never hear from.
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00:15:39
You're gonna reach out to
people you don't click with.
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00:15:41
That's okay.
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00:15:42
We're looking for a handful of really
meaningful relationships that you
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:
00:15:45
can foster and cultivate over time.
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:
00:15:48
So we gotta talk about networking.
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:
00:15:49
Like I said, if all you've got is a little
time and a little energy, I'm going to
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00:15:52
suggest you invest it here before the
other levers we're gonna talk about.
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:
00:15:56
Okay?
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00:15:57
Next up directories.
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:
00:15:58
We did a recent podcast episode
that we will also link in the
328
:
00:16:01
show notes about psych today.
329
:
00:16:02
Yes, you should still be on psych today
for reasons maybe you aren't aware of.
330
:
00:16:06
Directories are still meaningful.
331
:
00:16:08
In addition to PsychToday , we
see clinicians experiencing
332
:
00:16:11
most of their success right now
on very niche specific ones.
333
:
00:16:15
I worked with a clinician
a handful of weeks ago who
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:
00:16:18
works with food allergy moms.
335
:
00:16:19
There's actually a directory for
food allergy counselors out there.
336
:
00:16:22
Amazing.
337
:
00:16:23
Faith-based directories,
niche specific, direct.
338
:
00:16:26
Modality specific directories
demographic specific directories.
339
:
00:16:30
So while there are some other
general ones, you know, we know of
340
:
00:16:32
good therapy and therapy den mental
health match, which are worth a shot.
341
:
00:16:36
In addition to psych today, we suggest
considering any niche specific directories
342
:
00:16:40
you could be investing in, but making
sure those are pulling their weight.
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:
00:16:44
As I talked about in that psych today,
episodes directories are one of the only
344
:
00:16:47
things you can almost set and forget.
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:
00:16:50
Like optimize it, do it.
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:
00:16:51
Well, maybe drop in and change a
comma to a period now and then.
347
:
00:16:55
But like this is one of the only
available strategies to you that
348
:
00:16:59
are essentially on autopilot.
349
:
00:17:01
So making sure that you are making
use of those in a meaningful way.
350
:
00:17:04
We also know that these days
your directory profiles are
351
:
00:17:07
enhancing your AI authority.
352
:
00:17:10
And so even if you're not getting
direct referrals through them,
353
:
00:17:12
chances are for a low fee, they're
still doing something for you.
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:
00:17:16
So make sure that you're
making use of that.
355
:
00:17:18
It's just some really low hanging
fruit marketing wise that you could
356
:
00:17:21
absolutely use a few hours this
summer to make sure are whipped
357
:
00:17:24
into shape if they're not already.
358
:
00:17:27
Alright, let's talk about the
other levers available to you.
359
:
00:17:30
And this is where I recommend really
thinking about your bandwidth, thinking
360
:
00:17:34
about your time, your energy, your
money, because like I said, Google Ads
361
:
00:17:38
very different than Instagram, where
you're gonna have to be creating a lot.
362
:
00:17:42
I'm gonna walk through a handful
of the most popular strategies that
363
:
00:17:45
I'm seeing out there right now.
364
:
00:17:47
Please know the suggestion here
is not that these are all for you
365
:
00:17:51
or that you dabble in all of them.
366
:
00:17:53
But instead that you pick one to two
that match your honest bandwidth, right?
367
:
00:17:58
Your ability to do this over time, not
your aspirational bandwidth, not the
368
:
00:18:02
clinician you hope to be, but instead
the clinician you are right now.
369
:
00:18:06
Okay?
370
:
00:18:07
Be honest with yourself here.
371
:
00:18:08
So first and foremost, S-E-O-S-E-O is
still a very meaningful, viable strategy.
372
:
00:18:16
It is a long term play.
373
:
00:18:18
So this is a strategy for therapists
who are interested in playing a long
374
:
00:18:22
game, who don't necessarily need clients
tomorrow, but want to set up kind of a
375
:
00:18:27
larger infrastructure for their marketing.
376
:
00:18:30
This is gonna take moderate time
and energy at the very least, and
377
:
00:18:33
it's going to include things like
creating content, blog posts.
378
:
00:18:37
Location pages, additional specialty or
method pages and then some additional
379
:
00:18:42
strategies when it comes to AI
optimization, Google business profile
380
:
00:18:47
that you can also be leveraging.
381
:
00:18:49
So results here are going to be slow.
382
:
00:18:51
We are talking months, not weeks
here, but they do compound.
383
:
00:18:56
And every action that you take
in this ecosystem of SEO and ai.
384
:
00:19:01
Can absolutely build upon one another.
385
:
00:19:06
I have to mention here in this SEO section
that Google business profile matters
386
:
00:19:10
more now than it absolutely ever has.
387
:
00:19:15
I mean, Google business profile matters
more now than it did in February, like.
388
:
00:19:20
It matters.
389
:
00:19:21
If you are an in-person clinician and
you do not have a well optimized Google
390
:
00:19:25
business profile, go do that right now.
391
:
00:19:27
Please don't wait till
the summer, go do that.
392
:
00:19:29
But that is factoring into SEO
and AI right now in ways we
393
:
00:19:34
honestly didn't even really expect.
394
:
00:19:36
If you are online only, you may not be
able to leverage Google Business profile.
395
:
00:19:41
I don't know that that necessarily means
you need to go out and get a physical
396
:
00:19:44
address in an office just for this reason.
397
:
00:19:47
But do recognize that if you are in
person, the potential for this strategy
398
:
00:19:51
and the power it has when it comes to
your findability is greater than ever.
399
:
00:19:56
So please make sure, especially if
this is a strategy you decide to really
400
:
00:19:59
lean into that you are maximizing that.
401
:
00:20:01
In particular, now, as you can tell,
SE o's not gonna be a good fit if time
402
:
00:20:06
and energy are limited unless you have
budget to just go hire someone for this.
403
:
00:20:11
It's gonna require consistency, it's
going to require patience, but it does
404
:
00:20:14
have the power to compound in big ways.
405
:
00:20:17
Okay, next up, Instagram,
it's a really common one.
406
:
00:20:20
I see people asking regularly.
407
:
00:20:21
Someone actually asked in
our Get Booked Out community,
408
:
00:20:23
just in the last week or so.
409
:
00:20:25
Like, are you getting
clients on Instagram?
410
:
00:20:27
How do you do this?
411
:
00:20:27
That sort of thing.
412
:
00:20:28
So Instagram can absolutely
work with the right strategy.
413
:
00:20:33
It's very much about building visibility
and community through regular content.
414
:
00:20:37
Okay, so that's reels.
415
:
00:20:39
That could be static posts, carousels,
education stories, whatever that might be.
416
:
00:20:47
And it requires showing up regularly,
consistently, daily, weekly, overtime.
417
:
00:20:54
One of the challenges of Instagram is
that you are marketing to the entire
418
:
00:20:57
world and you can only see clients in
a very small part of that world, right?
419
:
00:21:01
And so that is one kind of limitation
here, that as your audience grows,
420
:
00:21:06
your ability to serve them is only
gonna grow as much as people that
421
:
00:21:09
are in your area of licensure.
422
:
00:21:11
I have heard of some clinicians
experiencing great success using
423
:
00:21:14
Instagram as more of a networking tool
than a direct client contact tool.
424
:
00:21:18
And so you may find that that,
especially if you're early on in
425
:
00:21:21
your Instagram days that you're.
426
:
00:21:22
Mostly only connecting
with other therapists.
427
:
00:21:24
That might still be a
viable option for you.
428
:
00:21:26
We talked about how important networking
is, but Instagram is gonna be for
429
:
00:21:30
the therapist whose ideal client.
430
:
00:21:32
Definitely skews a little younger.
431
:
00:21:34
Right.
432
:
00:21:34
If we're looking at teens,
twenties, thirties, Instagram
433
:
00:21:37
is gonna be really key.
434
:
00:21:39
And who are comfortable showing
up consistently, probably
435
:
00:21:42
with their face to the camera.
436
:
00:21:43
If that sounds absolutely
cringe-worthy to you, then don't do it.
437
:
00:21:46
That's totally fine.
438
:
00:21:48
But this is going to require
probably the most ongoing energy
439
:
00:21:51
than any strategy in this list, at
least on a daily and weekly basis.
440
:
00:21:56
So I recommend not starting
Instagram or at least banking
441
:
00:21:58
on it if you can't sustain it.
442
:
00:22:01
Because an abandoned account
is gonna work against you more
443
:
00:22:04
than it's gonna work for you.
444
:
00:22:05
So make sure this is something you
really feel comfortable investing in,
445
:
00:22:07
and maybe that means you're not posting
daily, but it does mean that you need
446
:
00:22:11
to be committing to regular content.
447
:
00:22:13
On a fairly regular basis, not gonna
be a great fit if both your time
448
:
00:22:17
and your energy are limited because
you yourself are required for this.
449
:
00:22:22
All right, next up is LinkedIn.
450
:
00:22:23
This is one of those strategies that
I think is available to clinicians.
451
:
00:22:27
I have never seen someone productize
essentially a, a LinkedIn strategy.
452
:
00:22:34
I've not seen someone really put
together, here's what's working
453
:
00:22:36
well, here's what to do on LinkedIn.
454
:
00:22:38
And full disclosure, it's
not my zone of genius.
455
:
00:22:41
I log into LinkedIn like every six months.
456
:
00:22:44
But I do think it's viable, and I
have heard from clinicians that it
457
:
00:22:48
has been, especially for professional
networking with other clinicians and
458
:
00:22:51
also networking with professionals.
459
:
00:22:54
So if you are a clinician who is perhaps
a second career therapist or someone
460
:
00:22:58
who really specializes in executives,
professionals, entrepreneurs, then
461
:
00:23:02
maybe that is a meaningful place to be.
462
:
00:23:04
Now, if you've been on LinkedIn recently,
you need to know that it is essentially
463
:
00:23:08
a content creation platform as well,
so you need to be prepared similarly
464
:
00:23:12
to how you would be on Instagram, but
in a bit of a different format to be
465
:
00:23:16
sharing your thoughts on a regular basis.
466
:
00:23:18
Essentially thought leadership.
467
:
00:23:21
So LinkedIn can be an interesting
strategy to consider for therapists
468
:
00:23:25
who are wanting those referrals
that are in the professional
469
:
00:23:28
setting or referral partners, right?
470
:
00:23:31
EAPs, hr.
471
:
00:23:33
Executive coaching, corporate wellness,
like those are some interesting things
472
:
00:23:37
that I think are kind of untapped in
the LinkedIn space because this is
473
:
00:23:41
sort of newer ground for therapists.
474
:
00:23:44
You need to be open to experimenting
and getting a little bit creative.
475
:
00:23:47
But I do think it can be powerful.
476
:
00:23:50
It will definitely be a lower time
investment than Instagram, but like I
477
:
00:23:53
said, it takes a different format and
it's reaching a different audience.
478
:
00:23:56
Alright, next up, local marketing.
479
:
00:23:58
And this is adjacent to networking because
local marketing usually means forming
480
:
00:24:03
relationships with people in your area.
481
:
00:24:04
But essentially local marketing is
anything that is requiring you to
482
:
00:24:08
show up in your physical community.
483
:
00:24:10
In the age of ai, y'all, we are all
just looking for more connection with
484
:
00:24:14
other humans and for that reason,
I think that we're gonna see local
485
:
00:24:17
marketing be more powerful than it
used to be because we all just, you
486
:
00:24:20
know, post pandemic ai, just give me
people, just gimme community, right?
487
:
00:24:26
So local marketing is anywhere that
you're showing up in that regard.
488
:
00:24:28
So that's as simple as a flyer
and a coffee shop all the way
489
:
00:24:32
up to hosting a event or a free
workshop or whatever that might be.
490
:
00:24:36
So this is great for those clinicians
who are in person or who are
491
:
00:24:40
just really interested in forming
connection in their local community.
492
:
00:24:43
Very relationship oriented therapists are
gonna enjoy this, who enjoy that organic
493
:
00:24:48
community building, who are interested in
sharing their knowledge and fun new ways.
494
:
00:24:53
It's gonna be a slower burn, most
likely than digital strategies, although
495
:
00:24:58
I've heard of people putting on a
workshop and then like one event being
496
:
00:25:02
able to point back to it for years as
far as referrals that came from it.
497
:
00:25:05
So I guess a more accurate way to put
that is it can be hit or miss in that
498
:
00:25:10
you might do an event or engage in
something where you never see a direct
499
:
00:25:14
client who knows if it did something.
500
:
00:25:16
'cause it very well may have.
501
:
00:25:17
Or you might do something where you
hear from two clients and then they
502
:
00:25:22
refer someone else, and then three
years later you still hear from someone
503
:
00:25:26
who references back to it, you know?
504
:
00:25:27
So.
505
:
00:25:29
It is a little bit less formulaic
than some of the other strategies
506
:
00:25:32
out there, so it's good if you have
kind of moderate time and energy.
507
:
00:25:36
Very little budget is
required here for this one.
508
:
00:25:39
And then finally, Google Ads.
509
:
00:25:40
I mentioned that at the top of the
episode, but essentially Google
510
:
00:25:43
Ads are you paying to appear
at the top of Google results.
511
:
00:25:47
So before we get into all of the
organic results, you see paid ads.
512
:
00:25:52
So they're putting you at the
top when someone is searching for
513
:
00:25:54
something relevant to your services.
514
:
00:25:56
Now it is in Google's best interest
to make Google Ads seem simple.
515
:
00:26:00
Oh, just sign up here, click
these buttons, put in your
516
:
00:26:04
practice info, and off you go.
517
:
00:26:06
Google ads have a lot of nuance to them.
518
:
00:26:09
That is not to say you can't learn
to do them yourself, but it is to say
519
:
00:26:12
that if you're not doing it correctly,
this might just be a money pit for you.
520
:
00:26:16
So I share that because I do recommend
that most therapists work with another
521
:
00:26:20
professional, ideally, someone who
specializes in the therapy space in
522
:
00:26:24
particular to run their Google ads, which
does indicate additional budget or that
523
:
00:26:28
are serious about learning it themselves.
524
:
00:26:30
Do not just dive into
this strategy willy-nilly.
525
:
00:26:33
Okay, I just don't wanna see
you flush money down the toilet.
526
:
00:26:36
That said, once it's set.
527
:
00:26:39
Google ads can be really, really powerful.
528
:
00:26:40
So there is some immediacy
to this strategy, right?
529
:
00:26:43
When it's set up and optimized
that other strategies, SEO, for
530
:
00:26:47
instance, are not gonna offer, right?
531
:
00:26:49
That's the long term strategy.
532
:
00:26:50
So Google ads are really powerful
in that regard, but there's a
533
:
00:26:53
payoff literally in terms of what
you're able to put in financially.
534
:
00:26:58
So this is great because it can
generate inquiries quickly, but it
535
:
00:27:02
does need that proper management.
536
:
00:27:03
It needs optimization,
it needs monitoring.
537
:
00:27:07
It's not just a straight up DIY strategy,
so keep that in mind and then of
538
:
00:27:10
course, just skip that one entirely.
539
:
00:27:12
If budget isn't there right
now, maybe it's something
540
:
00:27:14
you can pursue down the road.
541
:
00:27:16
So those are some of the most
popular strategies that you
542
:
00:27:18
can be considering right now.
543
:
00:27:19
Again, in addition to
networking and directories,
544
:
00:27:22
if those are available to you.
545
:
00:27:25
This episode was all about looking
at the levers available to you.
546
:
00:27:28
It was all about identifying,
okay, if things slow down, when
547
:
00:27:32
things slow down, what can I do?
548
:
00:27:35
How can I remain in the
driver's seat of my business?
549
:
00:27:37
How can I take action that is in
alignment with the time, energy, and
550
:
00:27:40
budget that I have so I can maintain or
build momentum even in the summer season.
551
:
00:27:47
Next episode is gonna be about you
figuring out is this a conversion issue,
552
:
00:27:52
is this a traffic or visibility issue?
553
:
00:27:53
And what do I do next?
554
:
00:27:55
Okay, so now that you know the levers, we
can talk about how do I identify what's
555
:
00:27:58
actually happening in your practice?
556
:
00:28:01
Alright, I hope this
one was helpful for you.
557
:
00:28:03
I'll see you in part two of our series.