Which Marketing Channel Should Therapists & Coaches Invest In?

It's tough to grow your practice without investing in some form of marketing.

If you're like most of my clients, you've felt overwhelmed with marketing and aren't sure in which channel you should invest.

If this sounds like you, I have a few questions that you can ask yourself about a particular marketing channel so you can decide whether or not you should invest.

Is this a long term solution?

There's a time and place for most forms of marketing, but before you invest, ask yourself if this particular form is a long term solution.

One of the greatest downfalls of a marketing strategy is that you didn't dedicate enough time to trying it. That being said, some forms of marketing are temporary by nature.

Advertising on Google, Facebook, or Instagram are long term solutions only if you keep paying them each month. Advertising can work, no doubt. But do you want to pay a fee every time you get a new client?

Along the same lines, ask yourself if your investment will keep paying off. Would paying someone to write a kickass email sequence pay off? Yeah, probably for years. Would investing in high quality, evergreen content pay off? Yeah, I bet it would.

Do I understand it?

You don't have to understand a form of marketing like the back of your hand, but it's crucial to know the basics.

Why?

So you know if it's working. If you're paying someone to do your marketing, you should understand enough so that you can communicate about that channel.

Knowledge is power: it's YOUR marketing budget, so you should know how it's being spent.

How will I know that I'm successful?

Decide on what success looks like right away.

Do you want more traffic to your website? Do you want more followers on your social accounts? Do you want more calls from potential clients?

Your marketing goal will, in part, determine your marketing channel.

Advertising on Instagram = more followers. Investing in SEO for therapists or SEO for coaches = more traffic to your website. Investing in copywriting and branding = client calls.

Define success to ensure that you're getting your money's worth.

Will it make a noticeable difference?

Your efforts and investment should make a difference. Some marketing efforts may not make a difference in your business, and if you’re not feeling a difference, it’s likely not worth it.

But keep in mind that some marketing takes time to go into effect (like SEO!), which makes having a realistic timeline equally important.

Is this the best choice right now?

If you're deciding between a few forms of marketing, ask yourself if this is the best choice right now. Will this channel help me meet my goals? Will this channel serve me the best at this particular stage in the lifecycle of my practice?

For example, branding is crucial, but I don't recommend investing in anything fancy when you start your private practice. Or, advertising on Instagram to get more followers only makes sense if you have a well thought out marketing funnel that converts followers into paying clients. If you're only starting and don't have that in place, advertising on Instagram isn't the best use of your budget (in my opinion).

Tired of the marketing hustle?

I'm super biased, but I think SEO should make up a significant percentage of your marketing budget.

Why?

• It pays off for years to come.

• Although there's a learning curve, it's learnable with useful articles or a SEO coach.

• There are analytics in place that help you gauge whether your SEO work is paying off.

• It WILL make a difference in time.

• And finally, SEO is an evergreen investment. People will always go to Google to look for services, so it's essential at all stages of your business.

If you're ready to invest in SEO, you can get a copy of our Investment Guide.