Our marketing coordinator recently evaluated the effectiveness of our top marketing strategies, rating each on a scale from 1 to 5. Here's the breakdown of what’s working best to grow our practice and reach new clients:
1. Community Marketing (5/5)
- Why it works: Building real connections with referral sources in our community has been a game-changer. By visiting local offices and offering information folders, swag, or treats like cookies, we stay top-of-mind for referrals. It’s about showing up and fostering relationships; this strategy has been incredibly effective.
- We made shirts for our referral sources.
- Dunkin Donuts Boo Baskets for our top community partners.
- We mailed letters with information about our practice as well as our most recent marketing materials to any new referral sources.
- We planned a Free community Halloween event, promoted it through our local Chamber of Commerce, Facebook, and printed flyers, and received donations from places like Walmart for 400 hotdogs, chips, water, etc.
2. Google Ads (5/5)
- Why it works: Running targeted Google Ads based on specific keywords such as "mental health therapy" or "psychiatric assessments" helps us attract clients actively searching for services. This is one of our highest-performing strategies in terms of generating new leads and inquiries. Although we are not quite hitting our conversion goals at the moment, with each month we are learning more and more about what people are searching for.
3. SEO (Search Engine Optimization) (5/5)
- Why it works: Optimizing our website for search engines ensures that potential clients find us when they’re searching for services like therapy or mental health support. By improving site speed and usability and regularly updating content, we’ve seen a strong increase in website traffic and engagement.
4. Content Marketing (Blog Posts & Articles) (4/5)
- Why it works: Publishing blog posts on mental health topics, therapy techniques, and wellness tips positions us as experts in the field while driving traffic to our website through SEO. This strategy helps build credibility and trust with both current and potential clients. Disclaimer: we do encourage our clinicians to write blogs for our company. However, we know that their time is limited, just like ours. Instead, we use ChatGPT to generate ideas and the framework for posts so that our marketing team can write these with the utmost efficiency.
5. Social Media Marketing (3/5)
- Why it works: Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and TikTok allow us to share mental health tips, introduce staff, and announce events. While this helps us stay connected with our audience, we see moderate returns compared to other strategies. With Facebook's Insight tab, we can choose competing companies and compare our posts against theirs for engagement, comments, shares, etc.
6. Print Marketing (Brochures, Flyers, Direct Mail) (3/5)
- Why it works: Distributing flyers and brochures in local hubs like community centers and hospitals helps us reach people in a more traditional way. This strategy has a steady impact, particularly with local awareness. We regularly (weekly) visit new and existing community partners and keep a core set of marketing materials that best describe our company. We keep them simple and memorable.
7. Online Directories & Paid Listings (3/5)
- Why it works: Being listed on directories like Psychology Today and Zocdoc gives us visibility among clients actively searching for mental health professionals. It’s a solid strategy but works best when combined with other marketing efforts. We only choose up to five clinicians that we pay to promote on Psychology Today. When we get a new lead, and the requested person is full, we attempt to convert to a different clinician, which is usually successful.
8. Email Marketing (2/5)
- Why it works or doesn't: While sending newsletters and updates helps maintain relationships with existing clients, we’ve found that email marketing is less effective in generating new client leads.
9. Events & Appearances (2/5)
- Why it works or doesn't: Participating in events or making public appearances helps raise awareness, but we’ve seen lower returns in terms of direct client acquisition. It works well for brand building but isn’t a top driver for new business.
10. Online Reviews & Testimonials (2/5)
- Why it works or doesn't: Encouraging clients to leave reviews on platforms like Google and Yelp boosts our credibility. However, this strategy is more of a long-term play that builds trust over time rather than a quick win. We encourage our staff to encourage their colleagues, community connections, or anyone they work with on a therapeutic level. Once we have a great working relationship with a community partner, we will ask them to leave a review as well.
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