Revisiting My Predictions for Therapist Web Marketing - 2011

I rarely read or see pundits (political, financial or otherwise) go back and review their predictions. I'm going to try (and maybe see why those others don't!) :-)

So here's what I predicted on January 2, 2011, with my view of what really happened.

1) Google Stays #1, But Something Lurks in the Shadows
What Really Happened: I predicted others would try to eat away at Google's supremacy. But no one has truly come close: not Bing/Yahoo, not Yelp, not Groupon, not even Facebook (yet). I pondered Bing/Yahoo combining with Facebook to have FB be a place you search, too. Didn't happen. We still see three giants with three rather distinct kingdoms: Twitter for microblogging, Facebook for social, and Google for search.

2) The Therapist Directory Wars Continue
What Really Happened: Well, it was more an evolution than a revolution. Psychology Today brought in a new feature that tracked people calling you from their directory - helping prove their value (that the referral came from PT). Despite this, the murmurs I've heard from many therapists is that PT doesn't provide enough value for the higher cost. What I've really noticed is an upstart quality of smaller directories aimed at using video technology (doing the filming, editing and posting themselves). Examples include Therapick and NW Therapy Finder. This, by the way, plays into Prediction #3.

3) Video Takes Off
What Really Happened: It's finally happening, folks. When I go Google a therapist in my city and find new people ahead of ME each month in the video results you see on many search results pages. With the advent of Flip cameras, iPads, iPods, HD webcams and the like, the thing I've been waiting for is finally here (in my estimation). What do you think?

4) Dynamic Website Technology Takes Over
What Really Happened: I'd say I was right on this one. If you built a website in 2011, or started looking into it, I would bet you came across WordPress. Most of the new sites I see are WordPress now (if they are being done as a custom gig, not through GoDaddy, etc.).

5) Reputation Management/Social Media Optimization Becomes a New Focus
What Really Happened: I don't think the reputation management idea really took hold (though if you have gotten a bad review on Yelp or InsiderPages, you have painfully been initiated into it). Social Media? Well, hell yeah it bloomed in 2011. Look at all the Twitter handles you see on every TV show now. Look at the prevalence of "hashtags" now. I'll give myself a point on this one. #selfcongratulation

6) Mobile & How to Deal With It Enters the Conversation

What Really Happened: While the smartphone became ubiquitous, it's impact on therapy was less on marketing than on what happens in the room (from it disrupting families and marriages, to every gosh-darn client pulling out their phone when it's time to schedule the next appointment). But read my upcoming posts to see a NEW twist on this point in 2012.

7) Local! Local! Local!

What Really Happened: I'll give myself points here. The Google Places map took even more prominence in the search engine results. Google Places optimization is much hotter right now than engineering the organic results below. This has driven some people MORE towards Adwords, as the ability to show up for multiple city searches (especially a city you are not located in) did get harder in 2011.

8) Bing + Yahoo = Yawn

What Really Happened: Points, again. Have *you* been all hot and bothered over Bing or Yahoo? I didn't think so. Have you "Binged" anything lately? Have you "Yahoo'ed"? Yeah, me neither. But I Google things every day. Every. Day. Many times a day,

9) Twitter. OK, I Relent.

What Really Happened: From an SEO perspective, a marketing perspective, and a real-life use perspective (for news, fantasy football, breaking stories and the like), I really adopted Twitter in 2011. OK, so I was not a first adopter here. Give me a break, I have a toddler. And perhaps the kick-ass Android phone I got in mid-2011 helped me get into true Twitter-user mode. It's a fun way to kill 2 minutes waiting for a client. After I post this to my blog, I'll Tweet out the news of the post. #isurrender

9) More Use of Paid SEO Consultants

What Really Happened: I would give myself more points if I had said "more %&#@*% cold calls from SEO companies". Really, I get at least one a week, usually with some pseudo-truth about being "Google-authorized" or a "Google Partner". Ha! I've also, in selling SEO services myself, found myself competing against more people this year than ever before. I would bet a dollar you got a cold call from an SEO company this year, too.

OVERALL, I will give myself a solid "B+" grade on my predictions for 2011. But just you wait, I am cooking up a new set of predictions for 2012, that should come out sometime in early January.

Until then, happy marketing!

Sincerely, Peter Hannah

Your Oh-So-Googley Guy

Web Marketing Consulting for Therapists, Counselors and Psychologists

A New Take on Website Video for Therapists

The world just keeps inventing new things, though few make me pay attention. This one did.

A website for a therapist in Montreal, Bianca Saia, includes a new kind of use of video. Apparently, the website uses a service call VYou, which in essence makes it looks like a) you're sitting there online on a webcam when people visit, and b) you can answer questions.

It seems you must record answers to some questions and the VYou service must use some kind of artificial intelligence to pick the right video answer to play.

It is sorta damn cool. And maybe a little spooky. Take a peek and tell me what you think! Peter

Google Adwords ads - some now appearing at the bottom of the page

Hi fellow therapists,

If you are already an Adwords customer, you may have been looking at the Google search results lately going "where is my ad?" You may want to scroll down and look for it at the bottom of the page.

According to this November 2nd post on Google's Inside Adwords blog Google has decided to move ads for some searches (seems like local service searches, mostly) from the right side to the bottom. It appears ads that were able to have a high enough CTR/bid for that keyword will still show at the top of the page. This will only impact the ads that were showing on the right side of the screen.

They claim this will often result in an INCREASE in click-thru rate. I don't know that I believe that will be true, but I don't have any data yet to back it up.

I do believe it will cause an increase in worried emails to Your Google Guy :-)

I'll be watching this to see what the impact of this change is.

Best, Peter

"The Blog Life-Cycle"

I LOVE this article, found it yesterday. It echoes my belief that most people launch into blogging and will  stop (pretty quickly).

Their stats are that 95% of blogs are abandoned within 120 days. 60-80% in the first month.

Well I can bore you to death or you can read it here.

If you're wondering whether to bother clicking, the very funny Blog Lifecycle is worth it!

Best, Peter
Your Web-Blog-Marketing-Twitter-Google Guy

The First "Death Watch" Article I've Seen for Google+

Hi everyone,

I've been pretty busy in both the counseling and SEO/Adwords sphere lately. Not a lot of time for fun and games. So, I've got to say I am one of the many who apparently spent a week on Google+, and then never went back. I've certainly been on Facebook, but have heard nary a peep from old +, or people inviting me/dogging me to get active on it.

I hadn't thought about it much (I've been basically waiting to see when they offered some kind of Business Page - I'll be the first to hop on and list mine when they do!) until today. One of the industry newsletters I follow had the following article: Google+ Goes Critical - But Not in a Good Way.

It's the first "death watch" article I've seen. I've always been pretty pessimistic that Google+ could break the hold Facebook had on us, or that there was enough attention to support both. Appears I was right.

Money quote:

Millions signed onto Google's service as soon as it went public. Critical mass seemed well on its way. If the trends held up, this could change everything. 
And then it died.

How about you? Have you stayed active on Google+? Or tried it and forgot it? I'd love to know. Comment, tweet me or email.

Take care, Peter
Your Good Ole Google Guy

My newest SEO package for therapists!

Hi everyone,

Well, fall is like an elixir for me, gets me refocused on work and getting stuff done! To that end, I am happy to present my newest SEO services package to you. It's based on the experienced, feedback and input of therapists along the way, and is really focused on providing value for your money.

The full details are at: http://www.yourgoogleguy.com/seofortherapists.htm but here's the gist of it:

MONTH 1

1/2 Hour Call with Peter - Feedback on Your Website to Help Make More Visitors Turn Into Clients!

Claim Google Places page

Optimize Google Places page

Keyword Research

Keyword Mapping - Identifying which pages should rank for each page

Title Tag Optimization

Meta Tag Optimization (Description & Keyword Tags)

Creation of Sitemap.xml File

Robots.txt File Review

Setup Google Webmaster Tools

On-site footer optimization






MONTH 2 and BEYOND

Rank Tracking for multiple keywords on Google & Google Local

Continued Link-Building to raise your rankings

Updates (and action if needed) on all major Google algorithm changes

Action Item for you to increase web & SEO visibility






PRICING:

First month: $399

Following months: $199

Minimum 2 months of service

Prices slightly higher for practitioners wishing to optimize multiple office locations





For this package, you'll be working with me and my business partner, Michael Borgelt. Michael's got an amazing track record of national and local SEO results. If this package doesn't meet your particular needs, please contact me to discuss a custom SEO services package.



I know this stuff can be confusing for many practitioners, so I am happy to offer a free 20-30 minute chat to answer all your questions. Drop me an email and we'll set something up! Best, Peter

About That Adwords Click-To-Call Email

Hi Folks,

Getting a lot of questions about the announcement from Google about an enhancement to their Click-To-Call service. This is one that let's you actually call (from your computer) based on an Adwords ad.

Two things, first for people who I've worked with - this doesn't affect you. This feature is not something I use for therapy businesses. So, as with many Google things, just delete that email and enjoy your weekend.

For those out there, this only impacts you if you have ads with your phone # in them, or are using a very advanced feature called "Call Extensions".

I don't think that having the phone # in an ad is useful for us as therapists. For some businesses (let's say a locksmith, or a tow-truck) where you really don't care *who* provides the service, you just want it *now*, I see this as a useful thing. But, unless your ideal client really can pick a therapist from a 25-character headline, and 70 characters of ad copy, then I have never seen it as a useful thing.

In my counseling experience, I've found people who want a generic counselor to be difficult clients that don't stay long, don't do much work, and often have trouble paying.

As a client of other practitioners (therapy, massage, acupuncture, etc.) I cannot imagine calling from an Adwords ad. I'd need to go to the therapist's website (or some other web page about them) before wanting to call.

As always, you can count on me to have an opinion :-)

Now go get back to the weekend! Best, Peter
Google Adwords for Therapists

Today's Advice About Google Plus

Hey folks,

Had some fun with an animating tool called Xtranormal. But the message is what I'd say if I had to type it. So take a look - two and a half minutes of fun (it made my wife laugh).



FYI, the link for a Google Plus button is at http://www.google.com/webmasters/+1/button/

Happy Summer! Peter in still rainy Seattle
Your Google (+?) Guy

How To Lose Me As a Twitter Follower

OK, so I've often been a critic of Twitter. I've been using it a bit more lately, and find that it can be a useful business, P.R. and news tool.

As I've lived it a little more, I've found my personal pet peeves about Twitter. They are the things that can drive me to unfollow someone.

1) Too personal - I'm a business tweeter. Talk about your favorite TV shows on Facebook, for God's sake. I don't care what you ate for dinner, or are stuck in traffic. Buh-bye.

2) High-volume, Low-value - so if you tweet 10 times in 15 minutes, a few things happen for me. First, you are drowning out other people on my screen. Second, I can't tell which thing you've written is important. Usually if you say 10 things in 10 minutes, I find none of them are important. (Breaking news eyewitnessing is the sole exception). Buh-bye.

3) TOTD & QOTD - OMG, I am sooooo sick of Quote of the Day, Thought of the Day tweets. I am intelligent and so most of my friends and network are too. I like new information (find me a great article, or resource, for instance). If I see one more "Deep Thought" I am going to puke. Buh-bye.

What causes *you* to unfollow someone? Your Google Guy would like to know!

Best, Peter
Search Engine Marketing for Therapists
Follow my low-volume, high-value Tweets on Twitter!

More SEO Cold Calls

Hi folks,

Got an email from a colleague today, saying "Google had called her". She was a bit upset, as the person on the phone got irate when she told them she didn't think she was interested.

I replied that I was pretty sure this wasn't Google calling. I want *you* to hear that, too, and let any of your friends know. Google *rarely* if *ever* calls people like us. We are small fish.

Who does call us? Salesmen making cold calls. And they use confusion and obfuscation as a tool. I had a voicemail last week from a man who said "he was from Google". He said he could get "get me on the search engines, Google, Yahoo and Bing." That was a good clue. Google would *never* mention, or try to help, Yahoo and Bing. Never, ever, ever. It was pretty bold-faced lying on his part.

Terms companies can used, which would be confusing, but not a lie, include:
- Google-certified
- Google-qualified
- Google-listed

They do *NOT* work for Google.

Finally, here is a strategy for getting true info and getting them off the phone (if they reach you in person).

1) Act nice, but say you have someone (a webmaster, a marketing coach, a spouse) who does your webmarketing for you, so you'll need to run this by them.
2) Ask for callback info (name, company, phone #) or to have them email you info.
3) Get the heck off the phone!
4) If you wonder who they are, Google the phone # you gave them. I'll be you a dollar it ain't Google!

OK, remember don't take the snake oil!

Best, Peter
Google SEO Help for Therapists

Marketing Info Products, Commitment, Success & ROI for Therapists

Hi Folks,

I am working with a lovely therapist right now who has written a great book, and is looking to promote it and make money from it online. I really look up to what she's created and the value she can bring to people's lives. She's got something original to say. But, I'm worried for her.

See, she is like many people I know - she's heard that she should write a book, have an info product, build an email list. She is psyched. Thinks she'll be raking in the dough. I'm a bit dubious.

It reminds me of people over the last 3 years saying "I've heard I should blog! I've heard it will do wonders for my business!" If you've heard me speak on this topic (and I'm a pretty good Devil's Advocate on many things) you know I think most people aren't ready to write regularly and passionately about topics for weeks, then months, then years. A blog last updated in 2009, in my mind, looks crappy.

Anyway, back to information products. Selling e-books, MP3's & videos is something I think most anyone *can* do. I just don't think most people are ready to do everything necessary to make it successful. And, frankly, I don't think most people do the math about the ROI (return on investment) of it all.

See, to do this whole thing properly, you'll need to learn about, and either do (or outsource) a number of different things.

First, you'll need the information products themselves. You'll need things at least 3 different price points (free, cheap, and profitable). This is all part of working the "sales funnel".

Then, you'll need a website that sells the products. A good sales website is a LOT different than a therapist's site. It also operates to get people to trade their email addresses for a free e-book or white paper (this is called the "squeeze page" with the "ethical bribe").

Now, you're into auto-responders and email marketing. You have to send some emails to start trying to sell these new list-members your more profitable items.

And, I haven't even gotten to the question of "how do you get leads TO your website in the first place."

So, sorry to be a wet blanket, but for most people this level of learning and commitment (it takes continuing effort) isn't realistic.

Listen, most of the therapists I know really love doing therapy. They aren't great salesmen or marketers. There are exception - the Casey Truffos and Juliet Austins of the world - who actually DO it online, but they are skilled and stick to it.

When you look at what we can get for an hour of work ($100 at least, I hope) versus what you'll spend in either time, consulting or money to make an info products business run - I strongly suggest you do your homework before diving in.

Best to you all, Peter

Announcing My New Google Places SEO Service

Hi everyone,

I'm excited to announce a new, exciting SEO service for the therapy community. It's goal is simple - to get you on Page 1 of Google, in the Places section (that Pushpin section which used to be called Google Local or Google Maps) for multiple phrases in your city.

It's simple - we do all the work. There's no long-term commitment, and you don't pay until we get you to Page 1! I don't know how you can get any lower-risk than that.

Here's the web page for the new SEO service as well as a brief video to describe it.

I'm doing this in partnership with the amazing Michael Borgelt, an SEO wizard who has been quietly working with me for a few years now. With my Adwords and his SEO, we make a heckuva 1-2 punch!

Please feel free to email me with any questions - or to get a quote for your city!

Best, Peter

It's Becoming An Email, Email World

Found a very interesting NY Times article this weekend that indicates we are becoming less and less of a phone call culture, as email and text and Facebook supplant that form of communication.

This can important for therapists to know, as I've found many, especially older ones, are still in the telephone paradigm, and miss potential new clients because they don't check email often.

I'm working on a new White Paper on the different way we need to approach web-based potential clients, but becoming fluent in email, and checking it regularly, are definitely a must if you are going to be marketing your practice on the web.

OK, here's the article (linked via Seattle Times to avoid the new NYT paywall):
Don't call me, I won't call you

Happy, well, emailing! Peter

Why I Wouldn't Do Groupon For a Private Practice (and 2 Exceptions)

Unless you've been living under a rock, you have probably been heard of Groupon by now. If not, you might take a moment to visit Groupon now (or one of it's evergrowing list of competitors, like LivingSocial, LocalTwist, or local newspaper & TV station ones) before reading onward.

In short, each of these companies markets a coupon promotion to a HUGE group of consumers (via a website and email list) that you can only purchase for a short time (24 hours to a few days). They are really quite a good deal for the consumer. In the last few months, I bought an Amazon Fresh deal ($100 worth of groceries for $50), a one-hour massage, and a deal from a hardware store ($20 for $40 of merchandise). Quite a good way to save money. I frankly feel a little guilty about buying the massage one, but I'm in need (too much sitting - you fellow therapists and computer people know what I mean).

But if you are thinking about ever doing this for your private practice (counseling, coaching, any other 1-on-1 service), we had better talk. In fact, STOP, do not sign anything yet. In most cases, it just is not good business.

The basic deal with Groupon looks like this: you must agree to offer a 50% discount off of your usual price. So if you're $100 a session, the consumer only pays $50. Groupon gets half of that, so you end up only getting $25.

There are several problems with driving business this way, the biggest being:

1. Most of these discount customers will not become repeat clients
   
2. If the coupon pushes you over capacity, you will lose spots that full-pay clients want, definitely costing you that $, and possibly costing you the client.
   

This was definitely the experience of the famous cafe in Portland - the owner of which blogged about her Groupon nightmare. When I look at any service where there is limited throughput (like only one person per hour, for example, or only 10 tables in the cafe), or a store where the profit margin is already low (most of retail, I'd think), you are basically driving down the profit per customer, and your pay per hour. In Seattle, with all the massage deals I've seen, it feels like people are now valuing massage at $30 an hour!

The only business model I've seen that makes sense, truly, is classes. My friend Dina runs an amazing Nia fitness program, and for each class, it doesn't really matter if she has 20, 25, or 30 customers. She can handle it. The costs are the same. If I were teaching a class, and the additional people didn't add to my costs or work, I would consider it.

Now, onto my 2 exceptions: the brand new coach or therapist, and the clinic/group practice.

The Brand New Coach or Therapist: In my first year, I remember when 3 clients a week was a lot! I had lots and lots of free time. The office sat unused most of the time. Time in which I earned exactly ZERO dollars an hour. If I could have had 10 clients @ $20 hour, I would have taken it! I would have taken it for the money, and the experience! So if you have an office sitting open, and you are not making money during those hours it can work for you. It can also provide PR, some SEO benefits, and possibly some long-term clients. (Dear full-fee therapists, please no *not* flame me for this suggestion, as these clients are *not* going to spend the $ for us, trust me on that. These are the people looking for the cheapest therapist they can find.)

The Clinic/Group Practice: My internship was at a wonderful group-practice that had some licensed supervisors, some interns (we were the ones who saw the sliding scale clients) and some externs. If I was running something like this, I might take a look at a coupon deal. You can negotiate fine-print in these deals, and I'd have it limited to sessions with the interns/externs - depending on the fee/pay deal you have with them. In my internship, I wanted the hours and experience (heck, I needed them!)

If you choose to do one of these deals, really focus on the fine-print! I might exclude insurance billing, limit which practitioners you can see, give it an end-date, make it subject to scheduling and availability, and you can even limit the numbers sold. If anyone does try this, please let me know about your results!

Best, Peter

My Predictions for Therapist Web Marketing in 2011

I’ve been a webmaster since the term was coined (1996 @ Citizens Utilities in Stamford CT). I lived through the dot-com/dot-bomb era (ah, the mess that was ShopLocal.com), and doing PPC and SEO for therapists since 2005. The rate of change in 2010 in terms of search engines and overall web marketing, was astounding, and I expect that to continue in 2011.

Marketing for our particular business continues to be tricky, due to the ethical constraints of being a psychotherapist. We can’t (ethically) solicit for online reviews or testimonials from clients. We are even hamstrung in responding *to* poor reviews on Yelp, etc. (been there, and it hurts!). Heck, even having our office as a Facebook Place to be checked into is probably not something we should do. That said, here are some trends I see for 2011:


Google Stays #1, But Something Lurks in the Shadows: Google is still where to be at, folks. Some in the search engine community say the actual percentage of searches that goes on at Google is over 80%, not the 70% that is usually reported. The Bing/Yahoo combination hasn’t made much of a dent yet. Adwords continues to pour in money. (By the way, Adwords will continue to work for therapists, but get more and more expensive, complex and difficult – to me the ROI is really beginning to turn for SEO over Adwords in many cases). Google is taking on Yelp with its new HotPot offering. They pull off huge changes every month or so (Google Instant, the Local results integration that took place around Halloween, etc).

What Lurks in the Shadows is Facebook: Just imagine this – if instead of leaving Facebook to do your searches, you did them *from* your Facebook page. You’ve just entered Google’s worst nightmare. Of course, it wouldn’t be Google search. Likely Microsoft/Bing/Yahoo. This could be a game-changer. I’ve been wondering when Facebook would really change things for therapists (right now, Fan Pages, and FB ads are nice, but really not a big driver of therapy clients). This might be it. Watch Facebook in 2011, folks.

The Therapist Directory Wars Continue: For so long, PsychologyToday and AAMFT’s TherapistLocator.net had the directory business mainly to themselves. Not so anymore. Hungry upstarts have started eating their lunches. The most aggressive, and most impressive to me is GoodTherapy.org. They’ve rocketed to #2, and are much more innovative than PT, offering CEU’s, marketing webinars, media relations, audio and video, and lots more. I also see innovation in niche-related directories (for various communities or therapy approaches) which can provide good ROI. Directories continue to provide an easy, passive way of marketing your practice. They are not usually barn-burners as far as call volume, but usually more than pay for themselves.

Video – Get off the sidelines in 2011, folks! There are more and more inexpensive ways of creating videos (including some where it’s just your voice over images, like Jing, which I use extensively for Your Google Guy). Flip HD cameras can make some beautiful images. Just like headshots became more and more expected, video will be too. People will choose someone they get to see and get a feel of over a therapist who they only can measure by their written words.

Dynamic Website Technology Takes Over: More and more therapists will be moving their websites to platforms like WordPress and Joomla, or increasingly sophisticated templates on their ISPs. This both with be for practical reasons (the ability to update content without paying/waiting for a web designer) as well the very beautiful visual design aspects, and the ability to integrate social media (Facebook, Twitter, blogs, etc). If it’s time to update your site in 2011, I suggest looking at WordPress.

Reputation Mgmt/SMO: You’ll hear the acronym SMO a lot in 2011, it stands for “Social Media Optimization”. Pretty much SEO for Social Media. With review sites like Yelp and InsiderPages having a bigger influence, and with Twitter and Facebook the two dominant players in social media, it makes sense to pay attention to how other therapists in your markets are using these mediums. It also makes sense to check out what is being said about *you* - this is the idea of Reputation Management. Setting a Google Alerts to watch for your name is a good place to start.

Mobile: Smartphones are here to stay, folks (and iPads and other tablets). More and more people are doing more and more of their web-surfing from them. But at the same time, the browsers and screens are improving so much, that customizing a site for these devices is *not* something you need to be concerned with. So just do what you need to do for Local, and the carryover should be enough.

Local: I did a workshop here in Seattle a couple of months ago. One slide just said “LOCAL! LOCAL! LOCAL!” and for 2011 I’d just add a couple more exclamation points. The changes Google made in fall of 2010 (basically combining the map and non-map listings for searches they deem to be for local businesses) made it MUCH harder to rank in a city in which you do *not* have an office. This trend will continue in 2011.

Bing/Yahoo: See my Facebook comments. Otherwise, not much on my radar. I was initially excited by the combination, but have found running ads on their networks to be difficult and underwhelming. How do you beat Google? I just don't see it.

Twitter? OK, I Relent: So I have pooh-poohed Twitter for a long time. I still do from the standpoint of it being a place where your clients live – I still don’t believe that! But what is now obvious is that Twitter is weighing more and more heavily on SEO. If you write blog entries, or articles, or otherwise have news, you should be posting it on Twitter, for the search engines to find.

More Use of Paid SEO Consultants: 2010 was the year where I could see other SEO firms work showing up in the local search results for therapists (though many using tactics I think are unethical, like posting multiple fake reviews). I can only see this continuing and increasing in 2011. It’s a complex, ever-changing world out there on the Internet. I’ve always thought most therapists didn’t want to have to be marketing experts OR high-tech experts – they just want to do good therapy work with as many clients as they’d like. The smart and hungry will be hiring out – expect the rankings in your area to be very, very dynamic in 2011.

All the best, Peter