Episode #652: Marketing In This Economy - Abundant Practice Podcast

Summary

Abundant Practice Podcast - Episode #652: Marketing In This Economy

Release Date: May 24, 2025
Host: Allison Puryear

Introduction

In Episode #652 of the Abundant Practice Podcast, Allison Puryear delves into the pressing question facing therapists today: "In today's market, are therapists having to do more to get clients?" This episode provides a comprehensive analysis of the current mental health landscape, the challenges posed by large therapy technology companies, and actionable strategies for therapists to thrive in a competitive environment.

Current Market Challenges for Therapists

Allison begins by affirming the validity of the question, stating unequivocally, "Absolutely. Absolutely." (02:15). She highlights that the landscape for therapists has significantly evolved, especially in the past two years, influenced by economic shifts and the rise of large therapy tech companies.

Impact of Therapy Tech Companies

Allison explains that pre-COVID, the mental health sector was dominated by agencies, group practices, and solo practices. However, the emergence of large therapy tech companies has disrupted this balance. These companies function similarly to agencies but offer more autonomy and, in some cases, higher compensation.

Key Points:

Increased Competition: The proliferation of these tech companies has led to a surge in the number of therapists listed on platforms like Psychology Today. For instance, "two years ago in your medium-sized city, you might have had 300 therapists listed. Well, now there are 3,000." (04:20)
Aggressive Marketing: These companies invest heavily in marketing, utilizing strategies such as Google Ads with substantial budgets that are often out of reach for solo practitioners.
Confidentiality Concerns: Allison raises concerns about these companies "continuously breach client confidentiality and they share client info to social media so they can retarget with ads" (05:10), emphasizing the ethical implications.

Insurance Companies and Financial Maneuvering

Allison also touches upon how insurance companies manipulate the medical loss ratio to their advantage. By purchasing group practices and paying higher per-session rates, they can divert funds meant for medical expenses into their own pockets. This practice not only undermines the financial integrity of insurance systems but also saturates the market with therapists affiliated with these large entities.

Strategies for Thriving in a Competitive Market

Given the intensified competition, Allison outlines a robust strategy for therapists to attract and retain clients effectively.

1. Develop a Clear Niche

Importance of Specialization: By defining a niche, therapists can stand out in a crowded market. "You need a solid niche, you need consistent messaging of that niche." (06:00)
Tailored Marketing: A well-defined niche allows for more targeted and effective marketing efforts.

2. Establish Consistent and Strategic Marketing

Allison emphasizes the necessity of being "so much more intentional with your marketing. You cannot half ass it." (07:00). She recommends selecting up to five marketing strategies, ensuring one is a "great website that's super niched" and another is "networking with referral partners." The remaining three strategies can be customized based on individual practice needs.

3. Focus on Relationship-Based Marketing

Networking: More than just superficial connections, building genuine relationships with referral partners is crucial. "Networking is as important as having a website. It matters more now than it ever has." (06:30)
Personal Touch: Unlike large tech companies, solo and small group practices excel in creating meaningful connections with clients and referral sources.

4. Consistency and Quality Execution

Implementing marketing strategies consistently and correctly is vital. "You have to do them consistently and you have to do them right. Again, you cannot half asset in 2025, not if you want a full practice." (07:30)

Resources and Support

Allison offers additional resources to support therapists in implementing these strategies:

Abundance Party Membership Program: A step-by-step guide to "work half the hours, make 3x the income, & see the clients you do great work with."
Free Worksheet: "Today's free worksheet is how to not hate networking." This resource breaks down the steps to effective and authentic networking without awkwardness or sales pressure.

Conclusion

In this episode, Allison Puryear provides a candid assessment of the current challenges therapists face in attracting clients amidst rising competition from large therapy tech companies. By advocating for intentional marketing, niche specialization, and relationship-centered practices, she equips therapists with the tools needed to build a thriving private practice despite the economic hurdles.

Notable Quotes:

Allison Puryear (02:15): "Absolutely. Absolutely."
Allison Puryear (04:20): "Two years ago in your medium-sized city, you might have had 300 therapists listed. Well, now there are 3,000."
Allison Puryear (05:10): "They continuously breach client confidentiality and they share client info to social media so they can retarget with ads."
Allison Puryear (06:00): "You need a solid niche, you need consistent messaging of that niche."
Allison Puryear (06:30): "Networking is as important as having a website. It matters more now than it ever has."
Allison Puryear (07:00): "You cannot half ass it."
Allison Puryear (07:30): "You have to do them consistently and you have to do them right. Again, you cannot half asset in 2025, not if you want a full practice."

Additional Information

For those seeking further assistance:

Visit AbundancePracticeBuilding.com for free checklists, worksheets, and more.
Join the Abundance Party membership program for in-depth training and support.
Contact the team at help@abundancepracticebuilding.com for personalized support.

Stay tuned to the Abundant Practice Podcast for more insights and strategies to help you quit your agency job and build a fulfilling private practice with more free time, income, and freedom.

Transcript

A (0:00)

Foreign welcome to Ask Allison.

B (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.

A (0:36)

Welcome back to Ask Allison. Here's today's question. In today's market, are therapists having to do more to get clients? Super juicy question. I'm going to answer it juicily. But first I Want to thank TherapyNotes for sponsoring Ask Allison. I have talked about them for years and years. You probably know their features by heart, but what really sets them apart is that they genuinely care about your experience. It's not just about troubleshooting. They actively implement user suggested features like their new AI notes and their automated client payments. Everyone at Therapy Notes believes in the product and they really want you to love it too. Plus, they're independently owned, which means no venture capital, no pressure to prioritize their investors over you. This independence allows them to keep their prices fair, to focus on innovation, to prioritize customer experience. With over 100,000 therapists already on board, they've proven you don't have to compromise success for quality. If you're ready to see for yourself, try TherapyNotes free for two months. Use the code abundant@theapynotes.com so to answer the question, in today's market, are therapists having to do more to get clients? Absolutely. Absolutely. If you started a practice even two years ago, it was a totally different experience than the economy is definitely playing a role, but the bigger impact is due to big therapy techs influence. And I I want y' all to understand this on a deeper level than you might currently. So I'm going to go on a bit of a rant about it. I promise it is answering the question, but there's some education first. I'm also not going to name any names of these companies because they are extremely litigious and I'm not interested in a legal battle with people with endless cash. So think of the companies that are advertising on the huge podcast you listen to. Also think about the companies that help you take insurance but pay you better per session than being paneled on the same insurance. Hopefully a few companies are coming to mind. Let's break down. What's happening? Pre Covid, the mental health world was comprised of agencies, group practices, and solo practices. I'm lumping things like the va, university counseling centers, those kinds of things. Those are all agencies. So we all had our lanes for marketing. Like community Mental health didn't have Psychology Today profiles for their therapists, right? Nor did the VA or the university counseling centers. That'd be super weird, right? So these tech companies, they hire therapists and they are basically huge agencies. They provide some more autonomy and in some cases some more money than other agencies. But overall, they function like an agency. And many are creating Psychology Today profiles for their therapists. So if you have your own practice and you work for one of these tech agencies part time, you may have two profiles, one of which was created by a marketing team and is more likely to get referrals. We all know by now that tech companies continuously breach client confidentiality and they share client info to social media so they can retarget with ads and they just pay a fine for that. These aren't run by people who can lose their license in the same way that if we did the same thing, we would be in hot water. If you're using Google Ads, for instance, to fill your practice, that's become really, really difficult. Google Ads work by each company or practice sets a price for what they're willing to pay to have someone click on their ad. That doesn't mean a client just to click on the ad that takes them to their website. And then Google gives the spots to any search, gives the, like the spots, you know, at the top and on the sides, those go to whoever's willing to pay most. So if you're willing to pay $50 for every person that clicks on your ad, you'd think that'd be shown to a fair amount of potential clients. But big therapy tech has really deep pockets and they're going to be happy to pay far more. So. So your ad's gonna be shown to way fewer people. Insurance companies. This is another aside, a different kind of these big therapy tech companies. Insurance companies are only allowed to profit 15 to 20% from what we pay them for our premiums. And the 80 to 85% that remains is supposed to go to medical expenses. If not, they have to pay back money to the people who've paid premiums. This is called the medical loss ratio. However, as expected, the insurance companies find these loopholes. So they found that they can buy group practices, they can start other companies, they can pay those practices and companies more per session for the same 908-349-0837 that you might be doing over in your own private practice. They can pay them more per session, which is paying themselves more per session, and, and then pocket the excess because it's going to a medical expense. So that's a way that they're getting around the medical loss ratio so that they can pad their own pockets and they can market each of the therapists and these group practices and these other businesses in the same exact way that you market your practice. So if we use a Psychology Today example, two years ago in your medium sized city, you might have had 300 therapists listed. Well, now there are 3,000. So the chances of being found among 300 therapists is much greater than being found amongst 3,000. And these companies are huge. They're impersonal, they don't market niches, they don't have any sort of like, I see you, I hear you, I know you kind of a feel. But solo and small group practices have that in spades. So here's what I recommend. To get clients in this economy, in this mental health care environment, you have to be so much more intentional with your marketing. You cannot half ass it. That means you need a solid niche, you need consistent messaging of that niche. And whatever marketing strategies you choose, you need to capitalize on what big therapy tech doesn't have, which is relationships. So for 10 years I've been saying networking is as important as having a website. It matters more now than it ever has. As a culture, we're techier than we've ever been. But we're not going to beat Silicon Valley at its own game. So here's the plan. Have a niche. Choose up to five marketing strategies. One of them needs to be a great website that's super niched. Another has to be networking. Not just meeting with someone once and checking that box. Creating an actual relationship with referral partners. The other three marketing strategies to make up your five are at your discretion. We talk about a ton of options in the abundance party. If you need help once you've selected your marketing strategies, you then have to do them consistently and you have to do them right. Again, you cannot half asset in 2025, not if you want a full practice. My students are getting clients in this tough market because they are implementing the best practices that I teach. If you need help with that, DM me the word party on social media or you can hit the show notes to join. If you're listening to the podcast, today's free worksheet is how to not hate networking. In it, I teach you the steps to networking without the awkwardness or the salesiness. I take you through it step by step. You've got to know how to network in this market, so I'm going to step off my soapbox. Thank you so much for hanging out with me today and I will talk with you later.