Therapists, the Internet and Social Networking
Isn’t it amazing how much the internet has impacted therapists?
I’m talking about the way we operate in marketing (yes, therapists now “market) and often times, practice running (many offer phone and online therapy.) Personally, I’ve been very active online the last several years and have created somewhat of a presence in my niche through my articles, resources website (The Toolbox at LisaKiftTherapy.com), therapy eworkbooks and other venues. It’s been an interesting shift from “the therapist behind the curtain” to someone is the general public has an opportunity to know more about, which I believe isn’t such a bad thing (with certain limitations of course). I am always mindful of “the line” but also feel that being authentic resonates more with people.
Then there’s social networking. I’m curious to know if any therapists out there with Facebook accounts have had clients attempt to befriend you there. I have – and I’ve had to carefully draw the line. I recently created a separate Facebook page for my website, in case people want to stay connected that way. But again, it’s always a conundrum to figure out how to “walk the line.”
And Twitter. That’s a serious phenomenon, another that I’m active on. I “tweet” about various mental health and relationship topics as well as add in a few personal musings about this and that.
Perhaps if I didn’t have side business related to my therapy practice (the workbooks and other paid writing gigs), it would be easier for me to know how to operate in this landscape. But I find myself alternating between my “therapist” hat – and my “business” hat…which by the way, all therapists might want to consider having as well if you want to survive in this economy (unless you thrive on referrals alone and if so, good for you!).
I would love to hear what other therapist/counselor types think about this topic.
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Lisa Brookes Kift is a psychotherapist and creator of Notes from a Therapist’s Chair – The Therapy and Counseling Blog; a blog for therapists featured in The Toolbox: Resources for Emotional and Relationship Health.
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Lisa – We are singing in the same choir. There are 4 points I would like to make in support of therapists taking an active role in marketing their services and using social media as part of a larger marketing strategy.
First, Private practice clinicians are running a business. After all, how many of us would work for free? As long as we take money in exchange for services we are in business.
Second – Many of our new clients and potential clients are looking us up on the internet before they call to make the first appointment or walk into the office. We can either sit back and let the internet define us or we can get in front of the curve and represent ourselves accurately and professionally. This also pro actively increases the chances of a good fit between patient and therapist, and this fit – or chemistry – is an important aspect of therapy.
Third, many therapists either complain of burn out or dream of working in the garden, painting, etc. Some already do find more joy and fulfillment by expanding beyond the “curtain” as you call it – adding other types of work and activities to their repertoire. Many more could benefit from imagining and implementing such changes. This will also result in being more alive, available and engaged in working with those clients we choose to work with.
Finally, marketing is not a dirty word. When done well, authentically and with integrity marketing is a way to educate those who need and will benefit from your services. Marketing in the form of free or low cost seminars, brochures, radio broadcasts, blogs etc. is a way to bring solid information to potential clients who are in turn educated consumers.
Keep up the good work Lisa -
Warm Regards,
Dr. Anne Perschel
http://shrinkbiz.com
Excellent points, Anne. The entire landscape of how therapists position themselves (and what is “acceptable”) has changed drastically. I believe that therapists who embrace the paradigm shift will reap the benefits in their practices.
Thank you for sharing your ideas.
Lisa
The Toolbox at LisaKiftTherapy.com
Hi Lisa,
Yay for comments working again. :) We found each other through Twitter so I have to give it a huge thumbs up.
That said, you really are an ideal therapist to be on social media. I have not yet decided (as a trusted voice for therapists) whether social media is really all that for all types of therapists. We have to look at types of therapists and whether their business model (soley one-on-one client sessions, classes plus sessions, books, therapist-to-therapist training, etc) support a gain from social media. It’s also important to look at their personality and financial need to spend time on social media that could be spent doing something else.
There are “rules” of social media that many newbies make, but if you’re a therapist breaking “the rules”, you could actually turn off potential clients. The best example I can think of is simply pushing yourself, your books, your classes, not tweeting about anything else, not engaging in others, etc. Without a colleague to gently correct them, those types of therapists could be doing their professional career harm. This gets to the whole “native” vs “immigrant” website user. I’m 33 so people my age or younger are “natives” and can smell out the bad apples really fast.
To your question, yes, I ran into a therapist at a conference who does have clients try to “friend” her on Facebook. She played dumb, saying she never saw the request when they ask why she hasn’t accepted. My recommendation would be to make it a policy to NOT friend clients, NOT follow them back on Twitter, and to even have this policy on your intake form so there are clear boundaries without offending anyone.
My father (Bill Doherty, Ph.D.) is going to start a blog on a large psychotherapy website soon, which is great fun for me to help him! And he may start Twittering. It’s a whole topic “Twitter vs Facebook” or blogging, but the biggest benefit to Twitter, in my opinion, is therapists can 1) not deal with friending people or having an inbox to deal with, 2) not have to do lots of updates like they have to on blogs, 3) it’s much more visible and potentially more expansive to be on Twitter than FB or blogs.
See you on Twitter! :)
Elizabeth Doherty Thomas
http://www.ThomasConsultation.com
Elizabeth – excellent points. It depends on what lens you are peering through and what your goals are. I have two businesses – my therapy practice (with a separate website) and The Toolbox (which is only monetized at all by my therapy workbooks at this point) – and I use the social networking primarily for The Toolbox (not my practice) – but do utilize a lot of online marketing strategies for my practice too.
Bottom line: It has the potential to get very sticky with the lines blurred this way. I like your idea of putting something in the consent form about not “friending” people in the various possible places they could. Interesting times for us therapists for sure.
Lisa
The Toolbox at LisaKiftTherapy.com
Hi Lisa,
I just found your site while getting my blog up and running. The post is right on time for me as I just attended a marketing seminar with my office mate’s husband.. very informative. I am all for using technology and marketing your practice. My practice is still just blossoming and my partner and I are working hard to find our niche, both in the community and online. Thanks for the thoughtful posts and opportunity to connect with other therapists.
I am a little hesitant to get on twitter so it’s interesting to hear other therapists suggesting it as a good resource. I think I am just new to the whole social networking thing altogether. I agree with Elizabeth about creating clear policy for clients. I’ve already had a client try to friend me on FB and I have found that a straight forward approach is best. When its policy then there is much less chance of hurting someone’s feellings.
I’m curious what everyone else thinks about finding balance when you have a group practice? I am much more comfortable online and having my personal life more accessible to clients than my practice partner. As the person in charge of marketing I have to work hard to strike a comfortable balance with her. any thoughts or similar experiences? I’m sure I’ll be blogging about it soon on our site.
Esther Boykin, LMFT
Hi Esther,
I’m glad you found me – and that you find Notes from a Therapist’s Chair Blog helpful. It’s interesting because this is the blog with the most interraction on my site thus far – it seems like there are quite a few therapists out there looking for places to connect with others.
I’m still contemplating exactly how to incorporate the “social networking” policy into my consent forms…I can understand the hesitation in jumping on Twitter but if you figure out how you’d like to use it, it can be a pretty powerful tool. And I think it’s just picking up speed – some people are starting to use it like a search engine in a way.
When you get your blog up and running, let me know!
Regards,
Lisa Brookes Kift, MFT
The Toolbox at LisaKiftTherapy.com
hi Lisa,
We’re just getting up off the ground but I got some posts up and would love to for you to check it out. http://www.blog.groputherapyassociates.org
looking forward to your next post… I’ve been reading the archives and really enjoying it.
thanks!