Her eye was first drawn to the beautiful image on the card and the headline that fit her deep desire for relief. Feeling hope and a bit of excitement from the bold declaration on the card, the professionally dressed woman decided that it couldn’t hurt to text the number on the card for more information. In this crowded doctor’s lobby, no one would know that she was inquiring into mental health services.
Connect offline Clients with Online Resources
One of the most common problems faced in starting an online counseling practice is the question of how to market or advertise the practice to acquire clients. An ad, leading to a text-base interaction, is just one of many innovative ways you can get clients to see you online. Many online counseling marketing programs have some of these same elements. But, more often, they have a link or two missing in the chain of events that get clients to go online. Maybe their marketing is only web based. Those who use websites as their sole referral source can tell you that the referral process often gets stalled there. A website alone will not bring in enough referrals for a full-time practice. Maybe it is time to try something more interactive that meets clients at their point of need. Counselors should use their considerable problem solving skills to help clients adopt online counseling services. Consider again the example.
This article first appeared in the Summer 2012 issue of TILT Magazine ~ Therapeutic Innovations in Light of Technology.
Click here to read the entire PDF version of the Innovative Online Counseling Referral Programs (Part 1) article.
Jay Ostrowski is a Telemental health and marketing innovator with www.BehavioralHealthInnovation.com. BHI created www.telementalhealthcomparisons.com to help professionals choose technology. He lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA.
Access TILT Magazine archives: http://issuu.com/onlinetherapyinstitute/docs
