Psychotherapy Advertising and Client Testimonials
I’ve been noticing something lately with therapist’s websites. More MFT’s are putting up client
testimonials which is interesting because at least in California, this is a legal and ethical issue according to the BBS. Not only are we not supposed to be soliciting testimonials from our clients - but we aren’t supposed to be displaying them in our advertising.
I can understand why this is in place – it’s a protective mechanism for the public. Anyone have any thoughts – pros or cons – about using testimonials?
I’m kind of wondering if it’s one of those things like MFT’s offering phone therapy across state lines even though they’re not supposed to – until there’s a legal precedent people may be open to risk taking? Or – perhaps people don’t realize this is the case?
Thoughts?
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Lisa Brookes Kift is a psychotherapist in private practice. She is the creator Notes from a Therapist’s Chair - A Therapy and Counseling Blog, a blog of interest to therapists. Subscribe to the RSS Feed for Lisa’s Therapist Blog to be notified of new entries.
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It’s interesting to hear that it is not legal (did i read that right?) in California; I dont know that there is a specific law in Virginia but always wondered about the ethical implications. The business part of me of course loves the idea of testimonials, I really believe that word of mouth is the best advertising especially for such a personal service but my therapist self is very uncomfortable with the idea. It just seems to walk too close to the line of violating client confidentiality for me.
Looking forward to other’s feedback on this issue. Advertising is such a challenge so I’m curious if there are other ways that folks are marketing their practice that seems to really work without breaking any laws :)
Hm. Interesting stuff. As long as client’s names are not used it seems okay. Soliciting the feedback seems like it could be a bit odd. Not sure how that would work. But I would love an outlet to tell the world how helpful my therapist is. And if I was seeking out a new therapist or trying to help someone find one, I would definitely find client testimonials the most helpful.
I was chatting with a colleague more about this topic the other day – she’s noticed a number of therapists soliciting reviews on Yelp. Great if you have lots of great feedback I suppose – but not so great if a client gets angry and decides to air their frustration in this venue. To create a Yelp profile like this seems to potentially create a high level of vulnerability.
On the flip side – Bethany’s point about having a venue to “tell the world how helpful my therapist is” makes sense and I can see how the public might find that helpful.
But – I still can’t help but thinking that people have different experiences with therapists based on so many other things such as attitide going in, desire for change, personality matches and so on. A client-therapist fit for one does not guarantee a client-therapist fit for another.
Nice to get a therapist and non-therapist commenting!
I think it is even more interesting to check out what clients are saying on Yelp! about therapist. Here are some examples:
http://www.yelp.com/biz/truth-sayer-l-ac-lmft-san-francisco
http://local.yahoo.com/info-32220524-gary-hornfeld-lmsw-lmft-diplomate-counseling-saginaw?tab=reviews#reviews
I wonder if online reviews might be more or less helpful based on the type of clientele that you specialize in working with. For example, if you specialize in working with clients with personality disorders, it might be a really bad idea.
However, if you have a more “vanilla” clientele, you might be quite safe allowing reviews.
I placed myself on yelp some time ago because it was a free place to list ;0) Since then I think it is great because of Yelp apps on smart phones!
Miranda Palmer, LMFT
http://mftguide.com
Thanks Miranda,
Interesting questions – and observations. Considering anyone apparently can add you to Yelp, it seems as though it’s less a matter of whether we want to be there to solicit reviews – and more about the fact that it just might happen anyway.
Times they are changing!
I hadn’t even considered people reviewing my services on Yelp or Yahoo Local… times are changing. I’m still conflicted on the issue of testimonials but have dipped my toe in the water I guess with a new “in the news” page on my website.
http://www.grouptherapyassociates.org/Press.html
I included some LinkedIn recommendations there from colleagues and other professionals that are not clients. It seemed like a way to reap some of the benefits of a testimonial and still avoid the murky waters of using clients to promote my practice. Wondering what you all think about that approach or if anyone has had other ideas of how to incorporate the positive feedback we get from others into effective marketing?