Episode #638: How To Get Attention In A Saturated Market - Abundant Practice Podcast

Summary

Abundant Practice Podcast: Episode #638 Summary Title: How To Get Attention In A Saturated Market
Host: Allison Puryear
Release Date: April 12, 2025

In Episode #638 of the Abundant Practice Podcast, host Allison Puryear delves into the challenges and strategies associated with building a thriving private therapy practice in a saturated market. Tailored specifically for therapists who feel overwhelmed by the competition, especially those with specialized niches, Allison offers actionable insights to help practitioners stand out and attract their ideal clients.

1. Understanding Market Saturation

Allison begins by addressing the concern of operating in a saturated market, particularly in areas with a high concentration of therapists. She acknowledges the frustration of therapists who have specialized degrees and extensive experience but still struggle to build a sufficient client base due to market overcrowding.

"If you're in a market that has tons of therapists and you're having a hard time building your caseload, it's a sign that you need to improve your marketing significantly."
— Allison Puryear [02:15]

2. The Power of a Clear Niche

A pivotal strategy Allison emphasizes is the importance of narrowing down your niche. By clearly defining and communicating your specialization—such as working exclusively with anxious athletes—you differentiate yourself from the myriad of general practitioners. This clarity not only attracts the right clients but also streamlines your marketing efforts.

"I don't want you to talk about another single type of client beyond athletes with anxiety."
— Allison Puryear [03:10]

3. Building Strategic Relationships

Allison advises therapists to actively network with professionals who interact with their ideal clients. For example, in the case of therapists working with athletes, forming connections with coaches, trainers, sports medicine doctors, and gym owners can create referral pathways and increase visibility within the target community.

"Reach out to anyone that your ideal client is likely to interact with regularly—trainers, coaches, gym owners, sports medicine docs."
— Allison Puryear [04:05]

4. Comprehensive Marketing Strategies

Beyond networking, Allison outlines the necessity of implementing diverse and tailored marketing strategies. She underscores that a robust website and consistent networking are non-negotiable foundations. Additionally, she recommends:

Social Media Optimization: Utilize platforms effectively by posting relevant content, such as engaging reels, at least three times a week. Focus on topics that resonate with anxious athletes rather than generic quotes or images.
Engagement: Actively respond to comments and interact with your online community to foster relationships without breaching licensing regulations.
Group Participation: Engage in athlete-specific Facebook groups where promotions are permissible to increase your visibility.

"Make sure you're posting the right amount of times per week, using reels, and responding to each and every comment in some way."
— Allison Puryear [05:20]

5. Overcoming Fear and Mindset Barriers

A significant barrier therapists face is the fear of being seen and the misconception that marketing is inherently salesy or insincere. Allison encourages a mindset shift, urging practitioners to view marketing as a service that facilitates connections between therapists and those in need.

"Do not let fear of being seen keep you from building this business and helping your people."
— Allison Puryear [06:00]

She further emphasizes that saturation indicates a strong demand for services, reframing it as an opportunity rather than a hindrance.

"If your market is saturated within your niche, that's a great thing because it means there are people seeking what you do."
— Allison Puryear [06:45]

6. Consistency and Quality in Marketing Efforts

Allison stresses the importance of consistent and thoughtful marketing. In today's competitive landscape, half-hearted efforts are insufficient. Instead, sustained and strategic marketing builds a strong reputation, reducing the ongoing effort needed to attract clients.

"By putting in just some thoughtful work, you'll be able to get the ball rolling on your practice and eventually you will not have to work so hard on attracting clients because you will have already built up your reputation."
— Allison Puryear [06:15]

7. Final Thoughts and Encouragement

Concluding the episode, Allison reassures therapists that even in saturated markets, success is attainable with the right approach. She encourages listeners to embrace marketing as a crucial component of their practice-building journey and offers support through her membership program, the Abundance Party.

"Remember, you don't need a thousand people. You just need a couple dozen at the very most."
— Allison Puryear [07:00]

Additional Resources

Abundance Party Membership Program: Step-by-step guidance on reducing work hours while tripling income and attracting ideal clients.
Website: www.abundanceparty.com
Free Private Practice Tools: Checklists, worksheets, and training sessions to support private practice development.
Access: www.abundancepracticebuilding.com
Contact for Support: For personalized assistance, email the support team at help@abundancepracticebuilding.com.

Note: This summary omits promotional segments and focuses solely on the content-rich discussion by Allison Puryear, ensuring clarity and usefulness for those who have not listened to the episode.

Transcript

Allison (0:00)

Foreign welcome to Ask Allison.

Therapy Notes (0:09)

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.

Allison (0:36)

Welcome back to Ask Allison. Here's today's question. What do you do when your location is absolutely saturated with therapists? We have bad licensing laws that allow unlicensed people to practice. I know I'm not supposed to have scarcity mindset even in my niche and with a duals master's degree in 25 years plus plus in the field niching down working with athletes anxious athletes. I'm local to Boulder, Colorado where there are plenty of athletes but 10 times more therapists. So before I answer this, I'd like to thank Therapy Notes for sponsoring Ask Allison. We've talked about them for years. You probably know their features by heart just like I do. But I want to talk to you about what actually sets them apart and that's that they genuinely care about your experience. That's not the case for all of these ehrs. It's not just about troubleshooting. They actively implement user suggested features like Therapy search, secure messaging, Clinical outcome tracking, real time insurance checks, smooth super bills. Everyone at TherapyNotes believes in the product and wants you to love it too. And they're independently owned. That means no venture capital, no pressure to prioritize investors over customers, and this independence allows them to keep their prices fair, to focus on innovation, and to prioritize customer experience. With over 100,000 therapists already on board, they've proven that you don't have to compromise successfully quality. Ready to see for yourself? Then try Therapy notes free for two months with the code abundanttherapynotes.com all right, so this is not what most people want to hear. But if you're in a market that has tons of therapists and you're having a hard time building your caseload, it's a sign that you need to improve your marketing significantly. Most of these therapists do not specialize in working with anxious athletes like you do. There are definitely not 10 times more athlete specific therapists than there are clients. So in your position, I would recommend making sure that your niche is is extremely clear on your website. I don't want you to talk about another single type of client beyond athletes with anxiety. Then I want you to reach out to anyone that your ideal client is likely to interact with regularly. Trainers, coaches, fun run leadership, gym owners, sports dietitians, running club organizers, sports medicine docs, physical therapists, primary care provider. You get the picture. I want you to meet with as many of those people as you can and form relationships with everybody who felt like a good personal fit to you. Be extremely clear about your other marketing strategies. You know, a great website and networking are the two non negotiables for me. That means you have three other marketing strategies that you can use to be tailored to your ideal client so that it makes it as easy as humanly possible for them to find you. For example, if you're using social media, make sure you're posting the right amount of times per week that you're using your stories, and then you're only talking about things that your anxious clients care about. You're not posting a quote or a bunch of still images because that is not best practices for social media. Make sure you're using things like reels at least three times a week. Make sure you're responding to each and every comment in some way and that you are not using your DMs in a way that could get you in hot water with your license. Consider posting in athlete specific Facebook groups when promotions are allowed. Don't let fear of being seen keep you from building this business and helping your people. Do not let saturation slow you down. So many people say their area is saturated or their niche is saturated and use that as an excuse to not take action. So if your marketing best practices are no more than five strategies, you're doing the right things. You know exactly what you're doing, when, how consistently you're going to get found and you're going to get full. I want everybody who is struggling to get full right now to get really honest with themselves about the level of work that they're putting in to get clients in the door. It's not backbreaking work, but it is work that requires consistency, intention and real thoughtfulness about what your ideal clients are looking for. There's a time several years ago when you could really like half ass it and still get full, but we are not in that time anymore. By putting in just some thoughtful work, you'll be able to get the ball rolling on your practice and eventually you will not have to work so hard on attracting clients because you will have already built up your reputation. If your market is saturated within your niche, that's a great thing because it means there are people seeking what you do. And I want that to fuel you. There are enough people out there seeking therapy for athletes. And the people who work with athletes stay full enough to make a living and not quit. That's what saturation is, is communicating to you. I want you just as full as you want to be. And in order for that to happen, you have to make it abundantly clear to your ideal clients that you are confident, that you're competent, that you care. And whenever you're working on marketing strategy, I want you to think, what is the most competent, confident, caring version of myself? How do I communicate that? We can all tell when marketing strategies are just like a box to be checked. They don't work so well. As a result, you can tell when something's been chatgpt exclusively without heavy editing or like a real voice that it's coming from. If marketing feels really gross or skeezy or salesy and it just doesn't feel right to you, then I really want you to reframe how you're thinking about it. The marketing is a service. It makes it easy for people to find you. Without marketing, your potential clients are going to miss out on getting to work with you and you're going to miss out on having a successful business marketing done right. It's a win win and it is not in any way creepy. So for all of you in saturated markets, congratulations. You're in an area that values therapy. And all you have to do is market well to get the very few clients that you actually need to have a successful business. Remember, you don't need a thousand people. You don't need a hundred people. You just need a couple dozen at the very most. And your marketing can absolutely bring them in if you do it right. If you need help marketing in this way, then I would love for you to join the Abundance party. This is what I teach in great detail in a way that really helps you select the marketing strategies that make the most sense for you and your clients and teaches you how to do them the right way so that you're using your time efficiently and effectively. It's not a program you have to pay thousands of dollars for. So comment or DM the word party. I will send you a link. And today's free worksheet is common marketing strategies for therapists. You can get that in all the other free worksheets. If you send me a comment or DM the word sheets, we'll send it right to you. All right, have a really great day.