Growing a business in the mental health space is a wonderful thing. If you’ve just gone out on your own, congratulations. You’re in for an exciting journey and you’re about to make a profound impact on the lives of many people in your area. If you’ve been running your own business for a while, then you’ve seen enough to know the industry is going through huge growth and massive change.
Most therapists would agree that the most difficult part of running a business, outside the challenges of your clinical practice, is connecting with the right people. How can you make sure people find you? How can you make sure their needs lie within your specialties? How can you make sure your schedule is full to help as many people as possible while maximizing your income?
In this blog, we’re going to take a look at modern marketing – including the essential marketing tools every health professional needs. We’ll explain what each one does, let you in on a few strategic tips that have worked for us, and talk about a kid on the block that you’re going to want to meet.
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Let’s Start with the Basics of Mental Health Marketing
Digital marketing is a great way to connect with people in your local area. Rather than using traditional advertising, like TV or radio commercials that put your message in front of people, digital marketing makes sure people can find you when they need you. In other words, they come to you.
There are three key ways every mental health provider should market their businesses:
- Facebook. Facebook is the biggest social media platform by a long way. It allows you to set up a business page that will allow you to start connecting with people in your local area. Importantly, it includes a reviews section that is a great way to build trust with people considering scheduling their first appointment. You can also share photos and videos, which helps people get to know you a little bit before they visit your office in person. We’ve found this makes it much easier to build a rapport in the early stages of treatment.
- LinkedIn. LinkedIn is a really helpful tool every mental health professional should use. It’s not designed to connect with potential clients, but other mental health professionals. This is a great way to stay across industry trends, including emerging research, while building a network of people who are on the same page both clinically and professionally. This is a huge help when it comes to setting up and growing a new business.
- Google. Google is much more than just a search engine. If you’re setting up a mental health practice, and you want people to be able to find you, then you need two things. First, set up a Google My Business page. It’s free and it adds a lot of credibility to your business – when people search for you, your business will pop up in a panel beside the list of search results. Second, you should consider running Google Ads. This allows you to target specific keywords so that if people search for things like “Marriage Counseling” or “Anxiety,” your business name will pop up at the top of the list. It’s a powerful way to connect with the kinds of people who are ready to make changes and actively looking for professional guidance.
There are lots of other platforms you can consider, too, based on your business goals. This could include YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, and even creative platforms like Pinterest and TikTok. The main thing is to let people know you’re based in their area, skilled in what they need, and ready to help. However, they don’t solve the problems we described at the start – what if the wrong types of people are contacting you? What if you’re spending all your time answering questions without actually booking appointments? Or what if you’re too short on time to maintain a presence?
Psychology Today Set a New Marketing Standard
The biggest marketing tool in the pockets of most mental health professionals is Psychology Today. It’s a publishing enterprise that focuses exclusively on mental health and behavioral science. It started as a print magazine in 1967 and had a circulation of more than 1 million by 1981. Eventually, Psychology Today added a “Find a Therapist” directory that now extends to 20 countries. It lists psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, art therapists, school counselors, and much more.
This was a game changer in mental health marketing because it allows people to find therapists in their local area. In the United States, for example, you can search by popular locations – such as Brooklyn, NY, or Houston, TX – or you can simply enter a ZIP code. The profile lists each provider’s qualifications, credentials, and contact details. It also includes space for them to write a bio.
If you haven’t got a Psychology Today profile already, you should. However, you’ll quickly notice some flaws in the system. This platform makes it easy for people to find you, but there’s obviously no guarantee you’ll be able to fit them into your schedule. If you’re booked solidly from 9am until 5pm every day, it’s common to hear your phone ringing off the hook. At the end of the day, you might find yourself returning message after message after message just to turn people away. On top of that, they may not necessarily be experiencing symptoms that fall into your wheelhouse.
The business side of being a mental health service provider is complicated. We mentioned at the start that demand for mental health services is increasing dramatically all across the country. According to data from the National Alliance on Mental Health, an estimated one in five American adults is currently experiencing mental health issues. That means it’s time to get a better system.
That’s Why We’re Launching Ravel Mental Health
Ravel Mental Health is revolutionizing the way mental health professionals market themselves. America has a problem – that much is clear. About 23 million adults received mental health services across the country in 2019, but experts estimated about 38% of people are still not getting the services they need. It’s clear we need a new way of connecting with clients, to ensure mental health services are easy to access for those in need. It should be simple and easy for providers and clients to find good matches, schedule convenient appointments, and start treatments.
We’re currently building an innovative platform specifically designed to make your life easier. It’s an online booking platform for therapists that doesn’t just tell people who you are – it allows them to check your availability and make an appointment on the spot. That means no more phone calls hanging over your head. No more turning away people who need help. And no more administrative stress. Ravel Mental Health includes a comprehensive filtering system that allows you to list your specialties, preferred modalities, languages spoken, and more. This means when clients are looking for matches, they simply apply the relevant filters and instantly connect with the right providers.
Getting started is easier than setting up a Facebook account. We’re currently in the alpha testing phase, but we’re about to move to the beta testing phase, and then we’ll launch nationwide.
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