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May 20, 2025 15 mins

Welcome to the very first episode of Marketing Therapy! If you’ve been following all the "tried and true" advice—like just being patient, relying on referrals, or doing all the things online—and still aren’t seeing consistent, right-fit clients… this one’s for you. The truth is, the private practice landscape has changed, and so must your marketing.

In this episode, I’m pulling back the curtain on five outdated marketing rules that just don’t hold up anymore. We’ll look at what’s different now, why it’s not your fault, and what actually does work to attract the clients who are already looking for someone like you. Let this be your first step in unlearning the old rules—and embracing a more modern, aligned way to grow your practice.

Here’s what you’ll learn in this episode:

1️⃣ Why “just be patient” isn’t a strategy—and what to do instead if you want consistent client inquiries.

2️⃣ The real reason your website might be costing you clients (and what comparison-shopping means for your online presence).

3️⃣ How to market your practice without burning out or being everywhere online—by getting clear and strategic instead.

Resources & Links Mentioned:


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Explore more marketing support for therapists: The Walker Strategy Co website


About Marketing Therapy

Marketing Therapy is the podcast where therapists learn how to market their private practices without burnout, self-doubt, or sleazy tactics. Hosted by Anna Walker—marketing coach, strategist, and founder of Walker Strategy Co—each episode brings you clear, grounded advice to help you attract the right-fit, full-fee clients and grow a practice you feel proud of.

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Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Hello, hello.

(00:01):
Welcome to the first episodeof Marketing Therapy.
This podcast has been, inmany ways, a long time coming.
I took pretty seriously theidea of this first episode.
What are we gonna talk about on thevery first episode of your podcast?
Right.
And as I thought about it, it occurredto me and became really clear to me.
That we have to be really honestabout where we're at right now.

(00:24):
If this podcast is going to be atall useful to you, and here we are
in 2025 as I sit here recordingthis and the game has changed.
You are hearing this everywhere.
You're hearing this in the Facebookgroups, you're experiencing it yourself.
Things are different now, and thefact is that the old marketing

(00:45):
rules, they don't work anymore.
And so if this podcast marketingtherapy is going to be helpful for
you, then we've got to get current.
We've got to get honest, and we'vegot to look at what is working today.
So today we're gonna talk aboutwhy a lot of the marketing advice
that therapists have been given hashistorically just isn't working anymore.

(01:08):
And more importantly, it's notbecause you're doing this wrong.
This isn't a personal failure, it'ssimply because the rules have changed.
And if you're going to be a successfulbusiness owner over time, if you're going
to grow this practice in a way that itsustains you for the next 5, 10, 15 plus
years, you've got to be willing to adapt.

(01:28):
And what we're gonna look at here is whereyou need to be making those adaptations
in order to continue being successful.
Because let me remind you of this.
If you want to look for evidencethat, quote unquote, no one's
paying for therapy anymore or.
It's impossible to get clients orwhatever the narrative is out there.
If you wanna find evidencefor that, you can.

(01:51):
If you'd like to find evidence that youcan't continue being successful, that
there are full fee perfect fit clientsout there looking for your services
ready to pay your fees, then you will.
I hope that this podcast can beone of those places you can look
to be reminded that success isstill possible, but ultimately,
whatever evidence you're looking for,whatever belief you'd like to hold.

(02:13):
As it relates to marketing and successright now, you will find, but to be
successful today, because it's there forthe taking, we have to make some changes.
So let's start here.
Maybe you've been told, just be patient.
Just be patient.
You'll get clients or get on psychtoday or get this, do this one
thing, do this one strategy insert.

(02:35):
Whatever that strategy is.
That'll do the trick.
Or just keep networking.
Just keep networking.
Clients will find you.
So you've done those things.
You hopefully have a website,but the clients aren't coming
consistently and the ones who doreach out aren't always the right fit.
Did I just describe your life?

(02:56):
What I want you to hear today isthis, you are not the problem.
You're just working off of advicethat was built for a different time.
Things are changing andthey are changing quickly.
So here I wanna walk through fiveold school marketing rules that
made a lot of sense in yesterday'sprivate practice landscape and why

(03:16):
they don't hold up in today's world.
We'll also, of course, look at whatactually works and what I suggest
instead, but we've gotta dismantlethis old advice in order to remain
current and to keep moving forward.
The first rule.
If you build it, they'llcome the Just be patient.

(03:37):
This one is a classic.
A therapist used to hear,and it used to work.
Just get your website up.
You'll start getting clients.
Just launch a Psychology Today profile.
You'll get clients, andthat used to be enough.
Those were the absolute glory days whenI started serving clinicians six years
ago, and we could change their PsychToday profile, and I kid you not three

(03:58):
days later, have five more clients.
It was a beautiful time.
We're just not there anymore.
Back in the day, there weren'tthat many therapists online.
If someone needed support, they'dfind you, they'd hear about you.
Maybe they'd check out yourwebsite, they'd reach out.
Today, your clients, theyare comparison shopping.

(04:18):
Studies show us that they're reading atleast five to seven different therapy
websites before ever sending an email.
So if your site is vague, outdated,unclear, you're not even in the running
when it comes to the comparison shoppingthat we know your clients are doing.
When we recently surveyed over 400therapists at the end of 20 24, 1 of the

(04:41):
biggest themes we heard is that clientsare doing more comparison shopping.
They are having multiple consults.
And good on them in orderto find the right fit.
Right.
We ultimately, at the end of theday want that, but the fact is that
you are up against quote unquote,multiple other therapists as they
decide, as your ideal client decides.
Are you the therapist thatthey're going to proceed with?

(05:01):
What works Now, what's working nowis a website that's really clear
that's deeply emotionally resonantwith your clients, and that's
ultimately built to convert them.
But this whole, if you buildit, they will come thing.
Just as importantly, you needa strategy to get people there.
You need people, you needeyeballs on that website, right?

(05:23):
And whether that's through searchengines, directories, relationship
building, social media, whatever you mightchoose, you cannot expect to just click
launch and watch the clients come in.
You have to commit and be okay withand accept that you must take a more
active role in your marketing in orderto be successful in this climate.

(05:44):
The second rule of yesteryearis this whole idea that word of
mouth will fill your caseload.
Now look, I love referrals.
I love networking, but in today's world,even when someone's friend or provider
gives them your name, that's not themoment that they're deciding to reach out.
What do they do next?

(06:04):
They Google you, right?
They click on your website.
They decide, do I feel safe here?
It does this clinician truly,deeply understand me and meet the
specific needs I have for therapy?
Word of mouth absolutely still matters.
Again, in that survey I mentionedNA Networking, reign Supreme.
Absolutely.
But it's just step one, youronline presence is what's actually

(06:28):
sealing the deal, again, becauseof that comparison shopping that
we know your clients are doing.
So networking absolutely isn't dead.
No way, Jose, but it has evolved.
Today it's about being referable.
It's about being memorable, and it's abouthaving a site and a presence that backs
up everything someone says about you.

(06:48):
I can rave all I want about howincredible of a clinician you are, but
if I go check you out after I heardabout you and you don't live up to that
expectation, I'm not gonna reach out.
There are too many otheroptions available to me.
So word of mouth is step one,but it doesn't operate alone.
Okay?
The third rule, just be patient.

(07:10):
The whole pay your duesthing, it'll happen.
Now, this one's trickybecause patience is important.
I've talked in past conversationswith therapists and trainings and
things like that, that time is a tool.
It is a good thing.
It is important, buttherapists are so often told.
Don't worry.
Like just wait.
Just pay your dues.
The clients are coming, and Ijust wanna say this, patients

(07:35):
without a plan is not a strategy.
Now building a business, growingyour caseload is going to take time.
It will not happen overnight.
But if you are just sitting aroundhoping that referrals are gonna roll
in without intentionally building yourvisibility and creating awareness,
you my friend, are relying on luck.

(07:57):
And luck these days is not a strategy.
What's working now is reallystarting with clarity.
Who do you help?
Who do you help best?
How do you help them?
And then how can they find you?
It's about clarity and visibility here.

(08:18):
Once you know the answers tothose questions, who do you help?
Who do you help best?
How do you help them andhow can they find you?
Then you can really start takingaligned action from day one.
So while time will continue to bea tool, and it will likely take
time to see results, you know thatyou can be starting that process

(08:39):
with intention, with strategy, withaction, focused in the right direction
for what's actually working today.
Okay.
The fourth rule.
This one's interesting.
You need to be everywhere.
Do all the things, and I don't knowif this is necessarily a rule or
just something that in the past somany therapists have believed as they

(09:03):
watched marketing kind of explode.
They had this poll to be everywhere,to do all the things, to blog, podcast,
dance on TikTok, post on Instagram,you know, be active in Facebook
groups, do all the things right.
This one, whether it's a external rule ormore of an internal one that you may have

(09:23):
internalized, whether you knew it or not,it's gonna lead to burnout, and it's also
gonna lead to really lackluster results.
If you've been feeling like I needto post every day, or I should be on
social media, the number of therapistsI've talked to who say, I hate
social media, I don't wanna use it.
You don't have to.
But if you feel this pressure, then you'reprobably, whether you know it or not.

(09:45):
A little bit constrained by this rule.
Here's the thing, more platformsdoesn't equal more clients.
Let me say that again.
More platforms doesn't equal more clients.
Being everywhere doesn't help ifyou're not being clear anywhere.
There are some things that have changedand some things that haven't in the six

(10:08):
years that I have served therapists, andone thing that hasn't is that if you can
do a handful of things exceptionally wellwith absolute excellence, you'll get far
more results then spreading yourself thinand doing a bunch more things less well.
Okay?

(10:28):
What works now is choosing marketingstrategies that match your strength.
Okay.
Ones that make it easy for the rightpeople to find you and to trust you.
The beauty of this is that thatlooks different for everyone.
You don't have to use socialmedia if you don't want to.
If you absolutely loathethe idea of writing a blog

(10:49):
post every week, guess what?
You don't have to.
So it could be SEO, it could bedirectories, it could be posting on
Instagram or launching a podcast.
It could be whatever you want it to be.
It just has to be something, and thatsomething has to be done well, and
it has to be done with consistency.
Okay?
So you don't need to beeverywhere to stand out.

(11:11):
You just need to be in acouple of those key places.
That make it easy for the right peopleto find you and to trust you, and you
get to decide what that looks like.
Alright.
The last rule, and again, this is oneof those more kind of internalized
beliefs that I see ruining today'stherapist in many ways, is this idea

(11:32):
that marketing is just self-promotion.
That especially if you're a solopractice owner, this is just
about, this is the Anna show.
It's, it's not.
This one really gets under my skin becauseit keeps so many amazing therapists.
Playing small marketing in thisclimate is not about being flashy.
It is not.
Being about is not aboutbeing manipulative.

(11:53):
It's not about pretending tobe someone that you're not.
Right.
What's working now, and quite frankly,what's always worked is ethical,
aligned, honest, and authentic marketing.
It's about bringing forth the thing thatyou do so incredibly well that leads
to those incredible client outcomes.
It's about just bringing that forward.

(12:16):
I love helping clinicians reframethe idea of marketing from
self-promotion to connection.
This is simply about connecting withthe right fit client who is out there
looking for the support you can offer.
Marketing is in service to those people.
They are out there needing what youcan do for them, what you can guide

(12:38):
them toward, the transformationthat can happen as a result of
working for you, working with you.
Marketing is simply about letting themknow that that's available and making
it easy to find and to take hold of.
Marketing is not self-promotion,it is connection.
This isn't about selling yourself.

(12:58):
It's about saying, Hey, if you'restruggling with this, I can help.
And here's how.
That kind of clarity is a service, andit's how your future, right fit clients,
the ones that absolutely light you up.
It's how they find you.
So if you're sitting here rightnow, episode one of marketing
therapy, I'm so happy you're hereand you're realizing, you know what?

(13:21):
I've been following some of this adviceand maybe that advice used to work.
Maybe you're here becauseyou've noticed an abrupt change.
You're noticing that it'snot just cutting it anymore.
I hope that this episode gave you bothsome relief, but also some direction, some
place to take action because action isrequired right now because the landscape

(13:42):
has changed and today's therapistscannot rely on yesterday's rules.
That's why everything we create,magnetic niche method, confident
copy, even our website templatesis built for this reality.
That a modern, crowded onlinefirst world means that clarity and

(14:04):
connection matter more than ever.
So what rule of yesteryear mightyou have been relying on that
you need to start shifting?
Remember, you don't need to be everywhere.
You just need to be clear.
Thanks for joining me for thisfirst episode of Marketing Therapy.

(14:26):
I'm so glad you're here andwe are just getting started.
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