If you want to market your business, get more bookings and grow your private practice, you need to take care of your visibility on Google. That's where people are looking for mental health services. And to make the most of this channel, you have two options: Google Ads and SEO (Search Engine Optimization). Which one should you pick (and when) to get more potential clients through your door?
Here's the situation: You run a PP; perhaps you've been doing so for quite some time now. Or maybe you've just started.
Doesn't really matter.
What matters is that either you don't get as many clients as you'd like, or you're struggling with a roller coaster where sometimes you have new clients coming to your business, and sometimes you don't.
What do you do? Obviously, you can't keep going on like that. For an entrepreneur, there's nothing worse than an unstable business. There is only one way out: You need to improve your online presence.
You need to get more clients and do something to get them REGULARLY. And this is where Google comes into play. Because with Google, you can get in front of your ideal client. How so?
Marketing for therapists: Why should you promote your private practice on Google?
The short answer is because that's where your potential clients are. We really think that the vast majority of your marketing efforts should revolve around Google (yes, social media platforms are good too, but that's a story for a different article :)) Hundreds of people look for such services as anxiety therapy, CBT, or couples counselling every day. In your area, too! Take a look at this study conducted a few years ago by Brightlocal:
It's just one of many such studies showing that Google is the go-to place for the vast majority of clients looking for local businesses (including therapists, psychologists and coaches).
By being visible on Google, you can get in front of those people and present your offer and expertise. And here's what's absolutely fantastic: You can get in front of people who are interested in starting therapy/coaching RIGHT NOW.
How awesome is that?!
Recipe for success on Google:
Let people find you. Have a great website. Offer a free initial consultation (so-called lead magnet). Watch people coming through your door.
Google is the fastest and the shortest way to get more bookings and, ultimately, more clients. But getting there is possible via two different routes. Don't get us wrong; you can do both, but we assume your marketing budget is not infinite, right? So, you need to make a decision, at least for now:
Google Ads vs. SEO
And we have the answer! Let's have a look at both strategies.
SEO for therapy practice
Search Engine Optimization is all about showing up as high as possible in the so-called organic search results. These search results are always below the promoted ones, but many people trust them more (because they don't view them as advertisements). Here's how it looks in the results page:
Being at the top of the organic results for a keyword that matters to your business is surely a great thing! However, you need to be aware that getting there won't be easy and will likely take some time. Let me explain.
Key components of effective SEO for therapists
The first thing you need to know is that SEO is a multi-faceted marketing strategy. It's far more than just tweaking your website a little and adding it to several therapist directories. In fact, there are four vital aspects of SEO:
Keyword research: The foundation of any successful SEO strategy lies in thorough keyword research. Understanding the specific terms and phrases potential clients use to search for therapy services enables you to tailor your content and other aspects of SEO effectively.
High-quality content: High-quality, informative content is crucial for establishing your authority in the mental health field. Publishing blog posts, articles and resources that address common concerns and questions that potential clients have is the foundation of successful SEO. Your ideal client wants to know you better before they book with you, and that's what high-quality, valuable content is for.
On-page SEO optimization: On-page SEO involves optimizing the individual pages of your website to improve their search engine rankings. This includes such elements as headings, image alt tags, URL structures and internal linking. This part also includes improving site speed, ensuring secure connections (HTTPS), and optimizing your website’s architecture for easy navigation.
Backlinks: Getting backlinks from reputable websites can significantly boost your SEO efforts. It's an ongoing work that requires finding those websites, talking to their owners, sometimes ordering paid guest posts, etc. The more high-quality backlinks you acquire, the more credible your site appears to search engines, which can improve its ranking.
SEO is a long-term game. Are you ok with that?
Because organic results are, at least in theory, free (you can't pay to get there), getting there is 100% dependent on Google algorithms and your efforts. As you can probably imagine, it doesn't happen overnight. In fact, that's one of the biggest challenges with SEO - it can take several months before you start seeing the first tangible results.
Here's how it goes:
As you can see, it's not a quick and easy process. Depending on the competition and the popularity of the keywords you're interested in, achieving your desired position can take even longer or cost more money. So, why the hassle? Why should you even consider this service?
Because SEO also offers more long-term results. Here's how it goes: Google Ads work for you only if you keep an active campaign (i.e., you pay). The minute you stop paying, your website disappears from Google.
With SEO, you will stay up there for a longer time. But here's a little plot twist: You still need to pay to maintain your position. How so?
Why do I need to keep paying to maintain my position on Google?
The answer is simple: There are more therapists interested in the TOP3 positions than there are TOP3 positions :)
So, getting to the very top of the SERP (Search Engine Results Page) means you must be better than your competitors - other therapists working on their websites' SEO. And even once you get there, your competitors will keep trying to replace you at the top. So, you need to fight for your position. And it's not always easy.
And I know I sound like a total bummer right now. I know it sounds like I'm trying to discourage you from doing SEO. I'm doing that only because I want you to make an informed decision.
SEO is not easy. SEO takes time. And SEO doesn't guarantee any specific results in any specific time frame. Anyone claiming otherwise doesn't know what they are talking about.
But that's just half the story. What's the other half?
If you get SEO right and patiently wait for the results, you will enjoy good visibility on Google and build a tremendous lead generation channel that can work for your business for years.
Now, let's answer an important question: How much will you have to pay for SEO?
How much does SEO cost?
In the next post, we talk about fake SEO services. Please make sure to read it! Fake SEO services are affordable, but real SEO is not cheap. That's because SEO comprises several elements:
Creating content for your website (blog posts, marketing materials and new pages)
Making technical changes to your website (which sometimes requires a support of an experienced web developer)
Acquiring backlinks from other websites (sometimes, you can get them for free, but most of the time, you need to pay, sometimes over $500 per backlink)
All in all, quite a lot work to be done regularly. That's why we start at a $2,000 monthly fee for the SEO services.
Now, let's talk a bit about Google Ads.
Google Ads for therapists
Please take one more look at the screen I showed you above. Did you notice that sponsored results take over 70% of the top of the search results page? Again, there is a perfectly simple explanation:
That's. How. Google. Makes. Money!
They want you to advertise, so they are willing to devote a large part of the SERP exclusively to advertisers. What does it mean?
Google Ads can give you better visibility than SEO and within less than 48 hours.
Isn't that fantastic? Of course, Google Ads comes with a price tag, and it's not a cheap service. But it's way faster than SEO, that's for sure! That's how you can get more prospective clients even within a few days!
How Google Ads work
So, how does it work? In theory, it's quite straightforward:
You create a website (or if you already have one, one or two landing pages to direct potential clients to).
You create a Google Ads account (as well as two or three other accounts, but that's a story for a different post).
You create a Google Payments profile (which basically consists of your credit card details).
You create your first campaign.
After 24-48h, your campaign goes live, and people start seeing your ads.
Naturally, all the preparations can take more time, but given you have all the pieces in place, you can land at the top of the results page tomorrow. Here's a more realistic timeline:
How much do I have to pay for Google Ads?
The answer mostly depends on the CPC (cost-per-click) rates for your services in your area. They can be anywhere between $1.00 and $10.00 on average. Most of the time, those rates are lower, and closer to $3/$4 per click, especially in Canada.
Now, in order to get enough data from Google (i.e., enough traffic) so that we can optimize your account and make informed decisions on how to do so, you need - on average - 10 clicks per day.
Let's do a quick math, and we end up with a $30/$40 daily advertising budget. Do some more math, and we get a monthly advertising budget of around $1,200.
Most of the time, that's a good budget to start with. As your business grows, it's good to increase your budget, at least slightly, as your caseload grows. You don't have to do so, though, just a suggestion :)
The importance of thorough keyword research
Of course, one of the things we need to do before even creating your campaign is run the keyword research to see what you can expect, both cost and traffic-wise. Sometimes, it may turn out, that there are cheaper services to advertise on Google.
Take a look at this example of KW research for one of our US clients. If they wanted to advertise for the "anxiety counselling" keyword, they would have to pay anything between $5.49 and $20.04 per click.
However, because this therapy practice also offers EMDR, we checked this service in the KW research tool. It turned out EMDR is cheaper (no more than $7.96 per click), more popular and less competitive!
So, we recommended this client to start with EMDR, as it will most likely get them quicker and cheaper results (at least compared to anxiety).
That's how you can save quite a lot of money, and that's why we always run thorough keyword research for our clients. It should be one of the very first things you do, way before you write even one headline for your Google Ads campaign.
So, what's the best way to go?
Google Ads vs SEO, what should you pick? First, take a look at this short comparison of both services:
Both SEO and Google Ads will enable you to get more potential clients through your door. They are both effective marketing strategies. But put shortly, Google Ads are cheaper and faster. They will help you build a thriving practice faster.
That's why when it comes to Google Ads vs. SEO for mental health professionals, we always recommend our clients to start with Google Ads, build caseload, get more clients and plan the future development of their private practice. If they decide that they want to grow, hire more people, open another office, etc. That's a good moment to introduce SEO to their strategy.
This way, SEO is not too damaging to your wallet, you can afford to wait for the results, and you still have new clients coming through your door thanks to Google Ads. That's the best way to go for 95% of PPs out there.
And once you do, combining Google Ads and SEO will give you a "Google marketing powerhouse" that gives you visibility both in the promoted and organic results. And that's always the perfect place to be!
Let's talk about therapist marketing and your online presence!
Marketing for therapists can be difficult, but not with us! Go ahead and schedule a free consultation with us. We're happy to analyze your situation and provide you with the best marketing plan for your business so that you can attract more potential clients to your therapy practice.
Let's talk!