ADVERTISING

If you have implemented some or all of your ‘free’ marketing activities and want to further promote the practice or specific services that you offer, advertising is the next step.

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For practices and businesses wishing to sustain their revenue, 5% of revenue or income is the standard rate to spend on marketing. For those wishing to grow, 10% of revenue for marketing activities is the recommended level. This includes all forms of marketing including website maintenance etc.

 

Many forms of digital advertising are low risk as you can limit your budget to what you are willing to spend. You can start out spending just a few euro per day, see how your ads perform and carry on with those that appear to work best.

This is a strong option for Psychotherapists who need an injection of clients or are not yet receiving referrals due to the early stage of their careers.

 

TRADITIONAL ADVERTISING (Mass Media & Direct Marketing)

 

Until the turn of this century, traditional marketing methods were the mainstream advertising options for practices and businesses. The methodology is simpler and less targeted – you create an ad aimed at your target audience and place it wherever you think they might be. This will also reach a lot of people who may not be your audience but finer targeting is not possible with many of these activities.

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The most common examples are:

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• Print Advertising (Newspapers & Magazines)

• TV & Radio Advertising

• Billboards

• Telesales

• Flyers Drops

• Mailshots

For the most part these activities are a One Way Street - you tell prospective clients how great you are and hope they will believe and book! For psychotherapy practices, placing local newspaper ads would have been the most appropriate option. Direct marketing may have been seen as too invasive for the nature of the profession.

With higher circulation needed, mass media methods can be expensive and therefore prohibitive for many practitioners and small businesses.

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TRADITIONAL ADVERTISING OPTIONS FOR PSYCHOTHERAPY

 

For Psychotherapy practices, there is a still a place for a couple of these traditional activities, local ads, flyers and notice boards.

Local newspaper advertising can be a great way to reach older audiences who are not as present online as others. If you have just started your practice or a new service within the practice, an advert with an adjacent write-up (many newspapers will offer free advertorial space with an ad for local services) in the local newspaper can be a way to introduce yourself.