7 Reasons Why You Need a Therapy Website
With over 600,000 searches for therapy each month and even referrals checking your online presence before booking an appointment, a strong online presence is essential for therapists who want to generate more leads and grow their practice.
And while platforms like Psychology Today provide visibility, they come with limitations. A personal website, on the other hand, offers complete control over your branding, messaging, and the way you engage with potential clients.
Your website is more than just an online brochure (even though lots of people like to call it that) - it’s a dynamic tool that builds trust, improves visibility, and helps prospective clients decide if you’re the right fit.
Below, I’ll dive into the key reasons why every therapist needs a website to grow their practice and attract more clients.
Build Trust and Credibility to Book More Clients
Having your own website allows you not only to share your credentials, experience, and therapeutic approach, but also builds trust with potential clients and makes it easy for them to book a consultation or reach out about working with you.
When someone is seeking therapy, they have decided that they need help and they’re looking for a provider they can connect with and trust. Your website is where you tell them why they should choose to work with you instead of any of the other 40 therapists that showed up in their search results.
Your website also allows you to provide clear information about your therapy approach, fees, insurance policies, and what clients can expect in their sessions. This not only reduces uncertainty but also helps potential clients feel more confident in reaching out to you.
Control Your First Impression through Branding & Design
First impressions matter, especially when someone is searching for a therapist. And just like you’ve taken time and care to decorate your office so that it’s welcoming and warm, you should do the same with your website.
Because your website is going to be one of the first places someone learns about you, you get to shape how they perceive your practice. Instead of relying on the limitations of a template-based directory profile or the Google Maps version of your business, you can craft a cohesive brand experience through design, colors, and images that reflect your personality and approach.
Beyond visuals, your website also offers a strategic way to present information in a way that is easy to navigate. You can highlight your specialties and services, share your approach to therapy, and provide clear next steps for potential clients. Rather than being just another name on a list, your website will make sure that you’re the first person someone reaches out to when they’re ready for your help.
Showcase Your Services and Specialties
Your website is the perfect place to share information about your services and your specialties (because while Psychology Today may tell you that everyone can help you with anxiety, they’re not all going to be experts at it).
You want your website to describe your general approach to therapy, as well as the areas that you have expertise and special training in. ANd while many leads aren't looking for a specific modality, there will be some who are, so your website gives you a place to share that information as well.
If you have multiple services or offer 1:1 therapy along with group programs, your website should include all of those options along with information about each so that visitors can get an idea of what might work best for them.
Provide Easy Online Booking
With the popularity of online therapy platforms like Talkspace and BetterHelp, it’s clear that people want to book their therapy appointments online (and probably show up virtually as well). These platforms are popular because they’re convenient and affordable for people who know that therapy might help them, but don’t know how to go about finding a private practice therapist to work with.
While you don’t have the budget for podcast ads, you can still take the pieces that make these platforms so easy to use and incorporate them into your practice.
The functionality your practice needs
Online Scheduling: Allowing leads to schedule a consultation online will mean that you not only stand out from most other therapists, but will also mean that you can capture the people who are reaching out for help at 11pm after a long day. You won’t have to worry about responding within 15 minutes or playing phone tag the next day.
Secure Messaging: Another thing people like about online therapy is that they can message their therapist at any time instead of waiting until the next week when they have probably forgotten what they wanted to talk about. Including an online portal with messaging on your website will allow existing patients to contact you (without worrying about HIPAA or giving out your phone number).
Virtual Sessions: Even patients who know the value of therapy can have a hard time making it a priority when that means finding childcare or taking time off work, driving 30 minutes to an office, sitting in a waiting room, and then driving back afterwards. Offering a virtual option for appointments means that you can make it easier for people to attend their sessions and is a selling point for potential clients (60,000 people search for “online therapy” every month).
I recommend using a platform like Practice Better to manage your practice, embed your calendar on your website, and offer messaging and virtual appointments.
Stand Out on Psychology Today and Other Directories
A therapist on Reddit asked if they needed to continue paying for their website or if they could rely only on their Psychology Today profile, since that is where they would look for a therapist. The responses were overwhelmingly on the side of needing a website.
“I personally enjoy seeing a therapist's website. Although I use PT, I have never chosen a therapist who only has a PT profile and no website.”
“I wouldn’t personally choose a therapist based on psychology today only.”
“I actually like seeing a website because honestly a lot of PT profiles are so poorly put together…I think a well designed and simple (short blurbs) site makes me feel like I know the person I am going to be sharing my story with.”
“When I’m looking for a therapist, I look for a website.”
“As a client who has seen a few different therapists over the last 5 years, websites were vital for me. I'm not sure why but I use PT to search for therapists then go to their websites. If they don't have a website I don't usually include them in my search. I think their website just gives me more of a feel for them -- are they super formal, casual, where did they go to school, etc.”
“A website that has the capability to schedule appointments online, or send a message without having to call, is invaluable. That, plus branding that tells me what I'm getting into, makes or breaks a therapist search. If the only info I can get about a therapist is on PT, that's almost an immediate rule-out.”
A website allows you to stand out because you can showcase your brand through your copy and visuals, share your story, and answer all the questions that a lead might have about working with you beyond what you can share in a profile that only asks the basics.
The questions you need to answer on your therapy website
Who you work with (and who you don’t)
If you take insurance (and which ones)
What a typical session looks like
Where you’re located (and where to park)
Your specialties
Your qualifications and education (or at least that you have them)
Your modalities
Your personality
Even a robust Psychology Today profile isn’t going to be able to answer all of these questions or help you stand out from every other therapist in your area, so having a website allows you to share more about your practice and who you are.
And because many of the people who find you through a directory will still look at your website (and disqualify you if you don’t have one), you need to make sure that it is up-to-date, professional, and doesn’t just lead to another generic profile.
By the way, out of the first 40 Psychology Today profiles that come up in my area:
11 didn’t have a website on their profile
12 linked to another generic profile with the same information
Putting the effort to create a website for your practice means that you’ll stand out and bring in more clients.
Improve SEO and Local Visibility
According to UberSuggest, there are thousands of searches for “therapist near me” every month. These are people who are actively looking for your help and are going to find someone through their website.
And it’s not just mental health therapists who can benefit. These are just some of the recent search volumes I found:
Therapist near me: 600k
Massage therapist near me: 201k
Physical therapist near me: 74k
Couples therapist near me: 60K
Aba therapist near me: 49k
Occupational therapist near me: 27k
Pediatric occupational therapist near me: 6k
Adhd therapist near me: 5k
This means that no matter what type of therapy you offer, there are people searching for your services on Google and they are going to be clicking on practice websites to decide who to work with.
What you need to include on your website in order to show up in front of the right people
Your industry: Leads should be able to tell if you’re a mental health therapist or an OT from both the search results they see on Google (your site title & description) as well as in the first 3 seconds that they spend on your website.
Your specialities: Once someone knows what you do, they then need to know who you work with. If you specialize in pediatric therapy, certain diagnoses, or a particular type of patient, that should be clear right away so that they can decide if you’re a good fit.
Your location: When someone types “near me” in a search engine, it’s not going to show them websites that use “near me” in their keywords (Google is smarter than that). Instead, it’s going to use their physical location to give results that are close to where they are. This is why you need to use keywords like your city, metro area, or the state you work in if you see patients virtually.
In addition to including the basics on your website, you can also get more traffic by writing blog posts that answer the questions that your clients are asking. Think about the topics you address frequently or things someone might search for when they need an answer that you could help them with and write content that answers those questions. And don’t forget to add a call to action that reminds them that they can also hire you.
Offer Additional Resources and Value
A website is the best place for offering additional resources to your audience (even if you’re sharing educational content on social media) because it's a place that you own and can handle longer content in multiple forms.
Types of content my clients have on their websites
At-home exercise videos for clients
Blog posts about seasonal issues and symptoms
Links to podcast episodes and guest posts
Resource libraries with downloadable PDFs relating to their field
Low cost recipe books
Replays of trainings and masterclasses
Hosting any or all of these on your website means that you can have all your content in one place that’s easy to share with clients and boost your SEO efforts (if you choose to have the page come up in search results).
Create a Website That Generates More Leads
While directory listings can help with visibility, they don’t offer the flexibility, personalization, or credibility that a dedicated website provides. Your website is an essential tool for shaping your brand, improving SEO, providing resources, and making it easier for clients to connect with you.
If you’re ready to elevate your therapy practice with a professional, conversion-focused website, let’s chat. Book a consultation today to learn how we can create a website that attracts more clients and reflects your unique approach to therapy.
