If you are a therapist or a coach, you have several options for promoting your therapy practice. Digital ads (PPC - pay-per-click) are extremely effective, provided they are done correctly and adjusted to your business profile. However, there are some major differences between them.
If you want to boost your therapy/coaching business, you must be smart about your PPC campaigns and pick tools that will give you the expected result (i.e., good conversion rates).
Below, we show you three of the most effective types of ads, along with a short explanation of when you should use them in your marketing strategy.
Google Ads (formerly Google AdWords): Effective advertising for therapists and coaches
They should be your first choice if you want to reach people specifically looking for a given therapy/coaching service on Google. In fact, all mental health services can benefit from Google Ads.
The reason is very simple: Clients looking for therapy practices frequently start looking for the right place for themselves on Google. Take a look at this study conducted a few years ago by Brightlocal:
Google Ads are so effective primarily because they respond to specific user queries. Imagine you are a potential client looking for a psychotherapist. What do you do? Probably, you go to Google and type something like that:
Psychotherapist London
Anxiety counselling Toronto
Therapist Chicago
When you do, you see both local search results (on Google Maps) as well as promoted results, also known as Google Ads. This is how it usually looks:
The ads for your private practice can show up in direct response to a specific user query. In other words, if there is a potential client looking for a therapist in London, and you have such a keyword added to your campaign, your ad will show up (of course, there are several other questions to consider, but that's a story for a different time).
That's the beauty of this marketing technique.
What's the cost per conversion with Google Ads?
As you probably imagine, there's no one-fits-all answer. But based on the insights from managing our clients' accounts, we can tell you that you can get a conversion (so typically a booking from a new client) for under $100.
This means that if you charge $150 or $200 per session, your campaign can become profitable after just one session (of course, still we're talking about the cost per conversion, not the entire campaign performance).
Naturally, to succeed with Google Ads and get more potential clients using this strategy, you need to consider several vital elements, such as:
Bidding strategy (also known as bid strategy)
Your ideal target audience (who should see your ads)
Copywriting (you need good copy that resonates with your potential clients)
Website quality (you need good and specific landing pages for Google Ads)
And, of course, your advertising budget
But if you get these things right, Google Ads can become a great channel allowing you to reach your target audience and get more clients for your therapy services or coaching services.
Mind you, a good conversion rate in Google Ads is pretty much anything above 1.5% (100 clicks equals one booking). Sometimes, you can get 2%, 4%, or even more, but don't beat yourself up if you don't. Many therapy practices struggle to go above 1.5%.
Tip: If you struggle to get better conversion rates, make sure your conversion tracking is set and implemented properly!
The importance of the keyword research tool
Google Ads, just like SEO (Search Engine Optimization), are based on specific keywords. Those keywords are tightly related to what people are looking for on Google. Depending on your target audience, you may want to target keywords based on:
The modalities that you offer (e.g., CBT, EMDR, DBT, ACT...)
The issues that you help with (e.g., anxiety, depression, trauma...)
The target groups that you serve (e.g., couples therapy, youth therapy...)
To make your ads more effective and cost-effective. And this is important if you're running a private practice and want to advertise via Google Ads:
Different services will have different cost-per-click. So, do your research and put your advertising budget where you may get the highest number of clicks (and, ideally, bookings).
Take a look at this example. This is a short KW research we've run for one of our US clients. As you can see, those two services have different popularity on Google as well as different costs:
Facebook Ads: One of the best online advertising platforms out there
These ads work a bit differently. Here, it's all about the characteristics of your target audience. That's because Facebook Ads do not target people looking for a specific product/service but people matching a specific profile, primarily composed of characteristics and interests.
So, for instance, if you work only with veterinarians in your area, you can create an ad campaign targeting only vets in Toronto or Utah. If you can narrow this profile even further, your ads will have a higher chance of reaching the right audience.
If you can describe your ideal client this way, Facebook ads can be a great source of leads! In fact, we believe it's one of the best marketing channels out there, with high click-through rates and potentially huge search volumes. Facebook Ads (or Instagram Ads) are a fantastic number-one choice for thousands of companies out there.
But not necessarily for therapists (coaches are a bit of a different story). How so?
Will Facebook Ads work for therapy services?
If you specialize in a specific type of therapy or you excel at solving a specific problem (e.g., you are a trauma therapist), Facebook Ads probably won't be your first choice primarily because it's usually challenging to match a given problem with a given group (with a few exceptions like ex-soldiers and PTSD).
I mean, anxiety can be a problem for both a salesperson, a student, and a surgeon, right? You cannot really "predict" who has depression or anxiety. In such a scenario, Google Ads tend to work much better because they target a query, not a person.
LinkedIn Ads
Lastly, I want to mention LinkedIn Ads, which can also work really well when it comes to reaching potential clients. But that's the case only if your target audience is frequently active on this platform. For example, if you are a coach working with C-suite executives, LinkedIn is probably the best choice because this platform is full of your ideal clients, right?
Keep in mind, though, that, similar to Facebook, here, you target people with a specific profile, not interests or needs. Take this into account when designing an advertising campaign on LinkedIn so that you can make an informed decision.
Additionally, keep in mind that LinkedIn is a place where people build their personal brands and network a lot. If you want to succeed on LinkedIn (but on other social media platforms as well), you may need to lay some groundwork for why it's a good idea to work with you and not your competition.
It's a good idea to build your network a little as well as post some useful content before you start any advertising campaigns on this platform.
Ads for therapists and coaches: Wrapping up
While there are many options out there, we're full supporters of the "Google route". If you run a coaching or therapy business, Google Ads is by far the best (and surely the fastest) source of leads and new bookings. And that's true for the vast majority of mental health professionals.
Also, if you're not sure which option will be optimal in your case, start with Google Ads as well. They will give you tons of information on the popularity of the keywords you intend to target.
Facebook Ads, Instagram Ads and LinkedIn Ads are worth considering if you target a specific audience that's based on interests or characteristics.
And if you already have a Google Ads account, you can use their free tool With it, you can run checks on different keywords and assess their popularity in your area. This will give you a bigger picture of what's going on in your niche. Take a look at this example:
This is an analysis run for trauma therapy keywords with targeting set to the UK. You can see the popularity of these keywords along with competition and expected rates per click. With this information, you can plan your campaign as well as your budget.
If you want to give Google Ads a shot and you feel overwhelmed with the amount of available options, don't worry. We're here to help! Schedule a free consultation today, and let's see what we can do together! :-)