Episode #604: Where NOT To Spend Money In A New Practice

Sat Dec 21 2024

Starting a practice can feel financially overwhelming. In today's Ask Allison episode of the podcast, Allison shares a few areas where scrimping is perfectly okay (and might even be better for your business in the long term). Prefer video? This...

Summary

Abundant Practice Podcast Summary
Episode #604: Where NOT To Spend Money In A New Practice
Release Date: December 21, 2024

Introduction

In Episode #604 of the Abundant Practice Podcast, host Allison Puryear addresses a common concern among aspiring private practitioners: limited startup funds. The episode, titled "Where NOT To Spend Money In A New Practice," delves into strategic areas where new therapists can conserve resources without compromising the quality or growth potential of their practice. Allison leverages her decade-long experience to provide actionable insights, ensuring that listeners can establish a thriving practice without financial strain.

1. Office Setup: Prioritize Function Over Aesthetics

Allison emphasizes the importance of balancing a professional environment with financial prudence. While a beautifully decorated office is appealing, it isn’t essential for new practitioners.

Functional Furnishings:
"We'd all love a beautifully fully decorated office from day one, but that's not really in our best interest as a new business... You might not love this space, but it gets the job done." [02:30]

Instead of investing heavily in décor, opt for essential furniture that is comfortable and functional. A simple, well-maintained space can effectively serve clients without draining resources.
Shared Office Spaces:
"Consider subleasing and sharing an office. That way you can save money by splitting the rent and you can schedule different days... and that keeps you from overworking too." [05:15]

Sharing office space not only reduces costs but also fosters a sense of community and support among fellow practitioners.

2. Event Sponsorship: Be Selective and Strategic

Allison warns against indiscriminate spending on event sponsorships, a common pitfall for new therapists eager to network.

Evaluate ROI:
"I once looked into sponsoring a table at an eating disorder professional conference that less than a hundred people were going to attend and it was $1,200... It just didn’t make sense at twelve hundred dollars." [09:45]

Before committing funds to any event sponsorship, assess whether the event aligns with your niche and has the potential to attract suitable clients. Often, the return on investment (ROI) does not justify the expense.

3. Advertising: Rethink Your Marketing Strategies

Traditional advertising methods like Google AdWords may seem enticing but can be costly and ineffective for certain audiences.

Alternative Marketing Channels:
"Google AdWords sounds like easy exposure, but in reality, it's really expensive... there are other much more engaging ways to reach people, like social media or organic search efforts." [13:20]

Allison recommends leveraging free or low-cost marketing strategies such as social media and SEO to attract clients more efficiently.

4. Website Development: Opt for DIY Solutions

A professional online presence is crucial, but it doesn't require a substantial financial investment.

Use Affordable Platforms:
"DIY platforms like Squarespace, they're affordable, they're user friendly. If you're willing to dive in and make a like, simple but attractive and effective site, I would say go for Squarespace." [17:10]

Building your website using platforms like Squarespace can save money while still providing a polished and functional site. Unless you're encountering significant challenges, professional help might not be necessary.

5. Social Media: Harness Free Marketing Power

Social media can be a powerful tool for client acquisition when used correctly.

Consistency and Best Practices:
"Consistency is really key on social media, so if you're counting it as a marketing strategy, make sure you're actually using marketing best practices and the best practices for getting clients in the door." [21:05]

Maintaining a consistent and strategic presence on social media can help attract clients without the added cost of paid advertising.

6. Electronic Health Records (EHR): Delay Until Necessary

Investing in an EHR system is important for practice management, but it can be postponed until your practice has a stable client base.

Wait for Implementation:
"I would wait until you have clients. You don’t have to get it before you have clients to put in the system." [24:30]

Allison advises waiting to invest in comprehensive EHR systems like Therapy Notes until after you've secured clients, allowing you to utilize free trial periods effectively.

7. Practice Building Programs: Choose Cost-Effective Options

Developing your practice's growth should be cost-efficient and yield tangible results.

Affordable Learning:
"A month of the abundance party, a whole month of it costs a lot less than even one session of therapy... the party gets you set up, it gets you all the knowledge you need." [28:15]

Instead of investing in expensive programs, Allison suggests utilizing her own Abundance Party membership program, which offers step-by-step guidance at a fraction of the cost, enabling practitioners to build a robust practice affordably.

Practical Tools and Resources

To aid in financial decision-making, Allison offers a free Return on Investment (ROI) calculator worksheet. This tool helps practitioners evaluate potential expenditures by calculating the expected returns, ensuring that every investment is strategic and growth-oriented.

Accessing Resources:
"Today's free worksheet is a return on investment calculator. And if you want to get that, you can DM me the word sheets." [32:00]

Allison also provides additional worksheets and training materials through her website, abundancepracticebuilding.com, to support therapists in making informed financial decisions.

Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Allison wraps up the episode by reiterating the importance of strategic financial planning when starting a private practice. By focusing on essential expenditures and leveraging cost-effective alternatives, new therapists can establish a successful practice without excessive financial burdens.

Final Advice:
"Saving wisely is about focusing on your return on investment spending, where you'll see growth and holding back on what can wait." [35:10]

Listeners are encouraged to access the provided worksheets, follow best practices in marketing, and invest in tools that directly contribute to their practice's growth and sustainability.

Key Takeaways:

Prioritize Function Over Aesthetics:
Keep office costs low by opting for essential furnishings and considering shared office spaces.
Be Selective with Sponsorships:
Only invest in event sponsorships that align with your niche and offer a clear ROI.
Leverage Alternative Marketing:
Utilize social media and organic search strategies instead of expensive advertising platforms like Google AdWords.
Build a DIY Website:
Use affordable website builders like Squarespace to establish an online presence without high costs.
Use Social Media Effectively:
Maintain consistent and strategic social media profiles to attract clients organically.
Delay EHR Investment:
Implement comprehensive EHR systems after securing your initial client base, using free trials to your advantage.
Choose Cost-Effective Practice Building Programs:
Opt for affordable programs such as Abundance Party to gain the necessary knowledge and tools for practice growth.

By adhering to these principles, new private practitioners can establish a solid foundation for their practice, ensuring both financial stability and professional success.

For further resources and support, visit abundancepracticebuilding.com or email the team at help@abundancepracticebuilding.com.

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Transcript

Allison (0:00)

Foreign welcome to Ask Allison. Y'all ask the questions about having a fun and thriving practice and I answer them. We have a worksheet for you today so you can bring this answer into your life. You can Access that@AbundancePracticeBuilding.com links where you'll also be able to ask any questions you have for Ask Allison. If you want more support, we've got some free trainings in there too. If you can't get enough Ask Allison, check out our YouTube channel for our entire Ask Allison library. Hello and welcome back to Ask Allison. Here is today's question. I don't have a lot of money to start a private practice. What don't I need to spend on? Love this. This is something I actually get asked about a lot and over a decade of experience now helping people start practices. I've got some pretty strong opinions. So I don't want this to feel financially overwhelming. So we're going to talk about some areas where scrimping is totally okay and might even be for your business long term. Might not even be a temporary situation. So first I would like to thank Therapy Notes for sponsoring Ask Allison. They're the number one rated electronic health record system available today. They have live telephone support seven days a week. And it makes it clear by Therapy Notes is rated 4.9 out of 5 stars on Trustpilot and has a 5 star rating on Google. They make billing, scheduling, note taking and telehealth incredibly easy. And for all you prescribers out there, they do offer e prescribe. So if you're coming from another ehr, Therapy Notes makes the transition incredibly easy. They import your demo graphic data free of charge so you can get going right away. Find out what more than 100,000 mental health professionals already know. You can use promo code abundanttherapynotes.com and that'll give you two free months to play with it. All right, so if you want to work online only, you can save on office rent. There's a good way to scrimp. And for those of you that strongly prefer in person, I am not here to tell you you need to do online to save money. Back before online was such a thing, most of us had to pay office rent when we were first starting out. So here's what I think you should focus on with your office. Like, we'd all love a beautifully fully decorated office from day one, but that's not really in our best interest as a new business. So in your first year, profit is going to be a lot more important than the cute face you got. I often compare it to living in a dorm during college. You might not love this space, but it gets the job done. So I would say instead of spending money on decor and stuff like that, a cute couch, like you can get good enough, all of that. Also, instead of paying for a solo office, consider subleasing and sharing an office. That way you can save money by splitting the rent and you can schedule different days. And that way it keeps you from overworking too, which is great. You can save for your dream office later. Sometimes I see people getting caught up in sponsoring events. They might be networking and somebody's like, oh well, you should sponsor this event that this thing that I volunteer for is putting on. I would say it's only worth it if it really aligns with your niche and has the potential to bring in clients. I once looked into sponsoring a table at an eating disorder professional conference that less than a hundred people were going to attend and it was $1,200. So just the simple math of like how many people am I going to bring into my. This was for practice building, obviously. How many of these less than 100 people would the practice building be a good fit for? It just didn't make sense at twelve hundred dollars. So I want you to do the same kind of math for anything that you're considering sponsoring. I would honestly instead just focus on working a marketing plan that's going to give you better return on your investment. Google AdWords is another tempting option. It sounds like easy exposure, but in reality it's really expensive and many people, especially your younger clients, aren't going to click on ads. I've hired two different companies to do AdWords for me, and I never got a return on my investment with either of them. There are other much more engaging ways to reach people, like social media or organic search efforts. So unless you really know AdWords is going to work for your audience, I would say to skip it. You need a website, but that doesn't have to be like a custom masterpiece. DIY platforms like Squarespace, they're affordable, they're user friendly. If you're willing to dive in and make a like, simple but attractive and effective site, I would say go for Squarespace. It's going to save you a lot of money. But if you are getting stuck and you're procrastinating and you're telling yourself you can't do it, then it might make sense to invest in help because you really, really do need a website. But you truly could knock out a website in a weekend. So if you're doing it yourself, so keep that in mind. Social media is free if you love it and you're using a proven social strategy that can be an option for getting clients. Consistency is really key on social media, so if you're counting it as a marketing strategy, make sure you're actually using marketing best practices and the best practices for getting clients in the door, not just for getting followers, because that's a totally different thing. I also strongly suggest you have an EHR like Therapy Notes. As soon as you have clients, it makes your practice run so much smoother. But I would wait until you have clients. You don't have to get it before you have clients to put in the system. And once you do have clients, as I mentioned before, you can get two months for free of therapy notes if you use the promo code abundant. So I would wait and then get two free months and then start paying and by then you should have some income rolling in. You also don't have to spend thousands on practice building either. A month of the abundance party, a whole month of it costs a lot less than even one session of therapy, even if it's a really poorly reimbursing insurance session. So you can learn everything you need to learn to have a thriving practice for so much less than all the other programs out there, including some of my other programs. And that's why we have thousands of party grads, because people often can't afford the higher ticket items that are out there. But the party gets you set up, it gets you all the knowledge you need. And all you have to do, if you will, implement, all you have to do is implement and then you can have a full practice. So those are my top areas to save when you're starting out. Remember, saving wisely is about focusing on your return on investment spending, where you'll see growth and holding back on what can wait. Today's free worksheet is a return on investment calculator. And if you want to get that, you can DM me the word sheets. And you also get all the past worksheets in the series that you'll have access to. And that way you can really vet each thing you're considering spending money on with math, because we need to do that. We're not typically mathy people as therapists, but we as business owners, we need to be. All right. I hope you have a really great day. Take care. If you're ready for a much easier practice, Therapy Notes is the way to go. Go to therapynotes.com and use the promo code abundant for two months free. I hope that helped. If you have questions for Ask Allison or you want to get your hands on the worksheet for this episode, go to abundancepracticebuilding.com Links if you're listening, you probably need some support building your practice. If you're a super newbie, grab our free CH checklist using the link in the show notes. I'd love for you to follow rate and review, but I really want you to share this episode with a therapist friend. Let's help all our colleagues build what they want.