What I Need From You To Design Your Therapy Website
A professional, engaging online presence is key for therapists who want to grow their private or group practice. A well designed therapy website will reflect your unique approach, attracting your ideal clients and making it easy for them to connect with you.
To build your dream website, I’ll need five key elements from you. Preparing these in advance ensures a smooth start and keeps your project on track.
1. Clear Messaging: To create a website that resonates with your target audience, you’ll want to provide a clearly stated mission and explain how you help clients. Use compassionate language, like my client, Shannon, did on her therapy website home page. Speak directly to the needs of your potential clients and convey how they’ll feel after working with you. Explain why you’re passionate about what you do, and what sets your practice apart from others.
2. All About You: A well-crafted bio for yourself and your team members should include qualifications, experience, and therapeutic approach. Don’t forget to include any continuing education, certifications, or ongoing training. And be sure to send over headshots. I know not everyone is comfortable displaying photos of themselves online, and I get it! However, it doesn’t have to be a full page photo, or even a shot of you looking at the camera. Get creative and take a photo of a mock session, or get candid shots of you taking notes. Consider fun, casual pictures like my client, Colleen, chose for her therapy website. Unique photos add visual interest to your website and, most importantly, helps to build trust and establish credibility by putting a face to the name.
3. Your Services: Provide detailed explanations for each of the services you offer, including individual counseling, group therapy, workshops, etc. This is a great opportunity to use keywords to help potential clients find you. Be clear about who you work with, whether that’s adults, children and teens, families, couples, or any specific communities. And let visitors know up front whether you offer in-office appointments, virtual appointments, or both.
4. Location & Contact: Showcase a warm and inviting atmosphere with photos of your office, like I did for my client, Lisa’s therapy website. We sprinkled them throughout her website to let potential clients know what to expect, while also conveying the welcoming environment that her team has created. Good quality stock photos are always an option, but they just can’t compete with pictures of your space. It’s a great personal touch and something I highly recommend. And of course, if you see clients in person, you’ll want to include your office address and a clickable map on your website so people can easily find you. Let clients know how to get in touch - should they fill out a form on your website? Send an email? Call your office? No one wants to dig for this information so make it super easy to find.
5. Branding Assets: If you have a brand guide, logo, color palette, or specific fonts in mind, I’ll need these before we get started as these elements will set the foundation for your website design. If you don’t have any branding in place, we can develop a color palette and font pairings during our initial strategy session. And if you need a logo, I have an add-on option for that.
Your Website is the Key to Growing Your Therapy Practice
More than just an online presence, your website is a vital tool for connecting with potential clients, building trust, and ultimately growing your practice. By clearly defining your messaging, showcasing your expertise, and providing essential details about your services and contact information, you’ll make it easier for clients to find and choose you.
Whether you're starting from scratch or refreshing an existing site, investing in a thoughtfully designed website will help establish credibility and attract the right clients to your practice.
Ready to create a website that truly represents your therapy practice?
Let’s work together to build a professional, SEO-optimized website that helps you grow your business and connect with more clients. We’ll kick off your design with a comprehensive project planner that will help you get crystal clear on your messaging. Contact me today to get started!
Written by Tabitha Stevenson, Squarespace Web Designer & Founder of Mindful Design Solutions
I’m passionate about helping therapists, health & wellness professionals, creatives, and community-based businesses stand out online with modern and engaging websites. You can learn more about me here.
