Having a good website is important, it helps you connect with people and share important information. Lots of therapists make their own websites, at least at the beginning of their careers, and it can seem daunting.
Last month I looked at improving your SEO and gave some ideas about writing website content that will help you rank better in Google searches. This time, I’m sharing some tips on what you should have on your website to make it interesting and friendly for your human visitors.
Website Design: Choose A User-Friendly Layout
The average time spent on a web page is 53 seconds (source) and you have to grab your visitor’s attention quickly if you want them to stay longer.
Choose colours and images that reflect your professionalism. Look up colour psychology if you’re stuck for ideas, and start with a colour scheme that suggests relaxation, energy, or whatever else you feel fits best with your approach.
Having said that, the decorative elements of your website matter less in terms of design than the layout and ease of navigation, which should be intuitive and user-friendly. If you’re a beginner creating your own website, you are probably working with a template. Make sure you choose one that loads each page quickly, and where information is easy to find.
Ensure your web pages load equally well on different sizes of screen, from phones to desktops and even TVs. You can check how your site looks on different devices by using free services like Website Planet.
Prioritise Contact Information
Make it easy for website visitors to get in touch with you. Display your contact information prominently, including your phone number, email address, and where you work. If you offer in-person sessions from home, you may prefer not to divulge your full address until someone has booked with you, but they will need to know roughly how far they'll have to travel if you offer in-person sessions.
Legal requirements for Websites
If you are in the UK, you will need to have a cookie policy and a Privacy (GDPR) Policy. If you live elsewhere, you’ll need to check the local requirements.
Your website template or professional body may provide templates for these but, if not, you can get free outlines using a quick Google search and then simply adapt them to your needs.
Interesting Website Content
We discussed how to write your content in some depth last month, but always remember you are writing for real people – so include information that informs and engages as well as saying how you can help. Maintain a conversational tone and ensure accuracy in your content.
A blog can be an excellent way to share valuable insights and establish yourself as an authority in your field, but it can also take a lot of time. Unless you enjoy writing and can produce content quickly, it may not be for you. If you do decide to try this, publish articles that address common mental health concerns and self-help tips.
If you use AI to help you write articles or sales pages, you should mention on the page that you have done so, and how you have used it (i.e., to provide an outline or plan, to provide the wording etc). Even if AI has written every word, is still up to you to check that the content you publish complies with copyright and other laws and regulations.
Blogs are generally read by people who are researching and are probably not yet ready to buy from you. So, they’re a slow-burn form of engagement. But they can begin to build a relationship and you can use them to encourage people to sign up for a newsletter which keeps you in touch until they are ready to buy.
If you have specific therapeutic specialisations, highlight them on your website. This helps potential clients identify whether your services fit their needs.
Using Testimonials and Reviews From Therapy Clients
Google reviews can almost certainly help your SEO since they give you credibility – what is sometimes called “social proof”. And Google tends to prioritise sites that use Google services. But Google reviews show who the poster is, so they do not protect client confidentiality. Not everyone wants to publicly announce they have seen a therapist.
Offer the opportunity to give you feedback privately, to be published on your website with just an initial or first name. Be aware that using edited or cherry-picked testimonials can come under the Advertising Standards Regulations and you need to adhere to their provisions. These include fair and balanced use, so if you have ten one-star reviews and one five-star review it would be unethical to use only the positive one.
Showcase success stories from your clients on your website if the opportunity arises but be careful to get clients’ written permission and protect their confidentiality. Faces can be obscured in "before and after" weight loss images, for example.
Check with your Supervisor or Code of Ethics before using client testimonials in any form: some professional bodies have specific guidelines about how you should do so.
Integrate Your Social Media With Your Website
Cross-reference everything.
Connect your therapy website to your social media profiles, and vice versa. Include relevant links from your website in some of your posts, especially blogs if you write them, and ensure each blog includes your contact details.
Online Appointment Booking
Online booking can be a double-edged sword for therapists. It simplifies things and allows clients to book specific times that suit both of you without playing "telephone tag". However, some therapists (including me) like to speak to clients before booking them in for therapy to ensure they are a good fit. I get around this by allowing clients the option to book a free discovery call via the website. If we decide to work together, I’ll book them in for therapy during that call.
Other Ways to Engage Website Visitors
If you really want to make your website fun and interactive, consider including:
- a quiz, perhaps about mental health myths or hypnotherapy, (services like SurveyMonkey or Jotform are free and can be set to mark submissions and give out scores automatically on submission),
- free downloads such as self-help tips, worksheets, or audios,
- games or surveys such as the lifestyle survey on Yorkshire Stress Management. You can often source these free of charge and simply plug them into your website without any coding.
These all take a bit of time to set up but, once done, require very little or no maintenance.
Creating an engaging therapy website is essential for attracting potential clients and establishing your online presence. By following these steps and consistently delivering the right content, you can connect with your audience effectively and grow your therapy practice.
Further information
This article includes a brief mention of what to do if you receive a bad review/complaint. https://hypnotherapytrainingblog.blogspot.com/2018/07/customer-care.html
There is a longer article about dealing with this in my book, The Hypnotherapist’s Companion (page 164).
Images make your web pages attractive to the eye – but make sure you’re not breaching copyright with the ones you choose. We have an article on that too, https://hypnotherapytrainingblog.blogspot.com/2017/03/copyright_20.html
Should you publish prices on your website? We look at the pros and cons at
https://hypnotherapytrainingblog.blogspot.com/2019/01/prices.html
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Author: Debbie Waller is an experienced hypnotherapist and hypnotherapy trainer. She is the author of The Hypnotherapist's Companion, Their Worlds, Your Words, and The Metaphor Toolbox, all available from Amazon or direct from the author, and a co-writer of the Hypnotherapy Handbook.
Find out more about Debbie's services on
Yorkshire Hypnotherapy Training - multi-accredited hypnotherapy practitioner training, taster days and foundation levels.
CPD Expert - accredited CPD and other therapy training (online and workshops options), expert and qualified hypnotherapy supervision
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