Mental health is rightly gaining more importance lately. Often, we don’t give the same attention to an issue that haunts our minds as we do for a physical illness. Thanks to awareness campaigns run by different governmental and non-governmental organizations, we are slowly progressing towards better mental health care. The on-going pandemic and extended lockdowns make mental health care more relevant than ever before in recent history.
Therapists play a vital role in making this world a better place, healing one person or one family at a time. Busy work schedule, economy, employment worries, peer pressure, etc., make everyone vulnerable to stress and anxiety. It is time for therapists to make themselves easily approachable and visible to people in need. What better way to do that than a therapist website for your practice?
Why is a therapist website important for your service?
The first place people look for when they face any problem is the internet. Be it parents looking for ideas to manage sibling rivalry or highly successful businessmen looking for peace of mind. The first person they go to is not a friend or a family member. They go to a search engine like Google. To make your services visible to people who need them is most crucial for any business. After all, if your potential clients don’t even know that you exist, how will you reach them? Having a website for your service makes it possible for them to find you.
You may think that a profile on LinkedIn or a FaceBook page can do the job. But, social media can never replace a website. Clients are more likely to trust a counselor who has a dedicated therapist website more than someone who runs a promotional page on social media. And, when it comes to therapy, gaining your customer’s trust is something you cannot take lightly.
How to connect with your customers through therapist websites?
There are some sure ways of connecting with your existing and potential customers through a therapist website. Though these are mostly small things that many may overlook, these features on your site will make a big difference for a troubled mind. Read on to know what these features are.
- Right theme
Every therapist puts thought into their office’s interior design and makes it a pleasant environment for their clients. Think of your therapist website as your digital office. Make the design as comfortable for your visitors as possible. Choose the colors, fonts, background images, etc., according to your specialization or niche. For example, if you are making marriage counselling websites, you may want to add pictures of happy couples in a homely location. If you specialize in teenage stress management, you need a more wacky design to make your young customers think of you as a friend rather than a doctor. If you are a psychotherapist, choose the right one for you from the best psychotherapy website templates available.
Image taken from Strikingly website.
Whatever be your niche, make sure you make your website cheerful. Most probably, your customers are already in a vulnerable mental state. So, it is vital to show them what they can transform themselves into by opting for your sessions. Include a hero image on your landing page that will immediately ring a bell with your target visitors.
- Multiple options for contacting you
As a counselor, you need to be easily approachable. On a therapist website, the main Call To Action (CTA) is to contact you. But, some of your clients may be too shy or reluctant to make the first move. You must complete the process of getting you simple. When a potential client decides to book a session with you, there may be certain things that stop them from reaching out to you. Some may want to talk to a human to schedule their session, while others may prefer to hide behind a computer. Whatever the preference is, make it possible for them to do it. Provide both phone number and email id in a prominent place. The best therapist websites put them in multiple locations within the same page, such as the header and the body. But make sure you don’t look too pushy. Two or three places should be ideal.
Image taken from Strikingly user’s website.
You can also add a contact form that will make the mailing process simple. Another way of communication could be through chat. This may be financially demanding for you since you have to employ executives to stay online round the clock. Go for it if you think you can reach out to more clients and improve your business by this method.
Another pro-tip here is to make the phone number and email id clickable. This will help the user to avoid having to copy and paste or type the contact information. Most users today view websites on their smartphones, and this feature will unblock one hurdle that your customers may face while taking the first step towards their mental health care.
- Team bio
What makes a good therapist is their human touch. Most of the mental health issues arising out of a lack of social life. You need to show your human face to your potential clients through your therapist website. The best way to do this is by adding a ‘Team Bio’ page, where you can share a short intro about you and your staff. Right from the person who will answer the initial scheduling call to the one who raises invoices, be sure to give a personality to everyone that your client may come in contact with. This will help remove any uncertainties in your potential client’s mind and encourage them to reach out.
One thing to avoid here is a series of headshots with just their professional achievements. This will be a turndown. Make the profiles and photos happy and cheerful.
- Blogs and videos
Adding content to your website serves multiple purposes. First of all, it helps you to connect with your client deeply. A blog on the importance of therapy to heal a troubled mind may be the last nudge required to convince an indecisive client. Similarly, you can also upload relevant videos on your site. But make sure your videos are light and don’t play automatically. These may cause your website to slow down, and that is a deal-breaker when it comes to an oscillating client. You need to be regular in uploading blogs and videos. If a visitor sees that your last blog was a year ago, it gives an abandoned feeling, which is not positive.
- Stay in touch through emails
It is always a good idea to stay fresh in your visitor’s mind through email opt-ins. Instead of asking for email addresses directly, you can lure your visitors into sharing them by offering to send an ebook to their email addresses. For example, a stressed person will be interested in reading a short book on better work-life balance because of work pressure. He would readily exchange his email address for this book, and you can continue sending regular newsletters relevant to him.
- Build trust
A great way to build trust is through online reviews. Integrate your social media profiles with your therapist website. Show your ratings and reviews. You can even add a dedicated testimonials page to share positive feedback that you got from your clients. This may be more effective than social media ratings. This is because, in the testimonials section, visitors can see the face of a person who benefited from your service, and that is sure to form a deep trust.
Another way to build trust is through the ‘About Us’ page. Explain the vision of your business, what you want to achieve, your methodologies, etc. Be sure to be kind and empathetic in your words. You can also add details of your certifications and professional qualifications here.
- FAQ
Some users may have a lot of questions in their minds but still hesitate to ask. An FAQ page will solve this problem. Be sure to include essential questions regarding the kind of services you offer, the customer details’ confidentiality, etc.
Image taken from Strikingly user’s website.
Building a therapist website with Strikingly
Suppose you are a therapist or a counselor. In that case, you are more likely to be a person who is into human emotions, and you may wonder how you can successfully build a therapist website for yourself, and how you can manage the cost of running a website. Strikingly is here to help you with the whole journey of your therapist website.
Strikingly stands out as the best website builder for therapists. Feel free to check out some therapist website examples hosted here. For starters, you can look at the Berkeley Therapy Service Website. The clear background image of the ocean, the navigation bar, and the therapist profile make it the best example for psychotherapy website design.
Image taken from Strikingly user’s website.
Strikingly offers you an easy-to-use website builder using which you can construct your website on your own without having to hire a software developer. All you need to do is choose a template from our collection of soothing therapist website designs and fill up your business’s details. Your website will be up and running within 30 minutes. Are you thinking, ‘But, what about the cost’? The good news is you can launch your website absolutely free of cost.
