6 Ways Media Interviews Will Help Your Practice

Are you hesitant to respond to media interviews? Performance anxiety, lack of training, or placing little value on media interviews as a strategy for practice building may be among your reasons for shying away. You may have heard that interviews don't bring in an immediate influx of new referrals. I have been actively seeking media interviews on a regular basis for the past five years and I've never had a huge increase in new referrals as a result. However, I have seen many long-term benefits of doing media interviews, that have built my practice over time. Here are 6 ways conventional media interviews have helped grow my private-pay practice.

1) Increasing awareness of your practice and services

“If you build it, they will come” doesn’t necessarily apply to opening a private practice. Most private practitioners initially struggle to get clients in the door of their practice because few people are aware of their business. Media interviews increase the exposure of your practice and allow you to get in front of more potential clients. Continued exposure makes it more likely that potential clients will remember your name and will eventually call you if they need help.

2) Opportunity for community service and education

Media interviews provide volunteer opportunities to educate your community, increase awareness about issues that matter to you and to them. In addition to making a living doing something I love, I want to make a difference for as many people as possible and media interviews allow me to make a positive impact for people well beyond the therapy office.

3) Engender public trust and increase credibility

Television stations, radio stations, newspapers, and websites spend a lot of time connecting with their readers and viewers and building their “brand”. When you are featured in the media you get to borrow their credibility and trust as they put you in front of their audience. Regular media appearances have allowed a large number of people to hear my therapeutic philosophy, and get a feel for my approach, and see me as a resource.

4) Helps transition you from provider to "expert"

Regular media appearances help position you us as more than a potential counseling or coaching provider. Interviews allow the general public to view you as an “expert” in your field or specialty area. The role of expert adds value to you and your services and makes it more likely that clients will pay out of pocket for your services.

5) Provides potential multiple income streams

Surprisingly, some media appearances have transitioned into additional income streams. I’ve been invited to be a regular contributor on television or a paid blogger. What could be better for your practice than getting paid to educate the public and create awareness of your practice?

6) Helps provide fresh consistent content for website, blog, and social media

Media interviews help provide new content for your practice website and provides helpful resources to your social media followers. Sharing video of on-camera interviews and links to print or web interviews extend your reach beyond your location driving more traffic to your website. More traffic to your practice website means more clients for you (assuming they like what the see on your website).

So, what are you waiting for? The next time you receive an email from a news or radio producer asking for your expertise, consider saying, "yes!"

Why I Only Hire W-2 Therapists (W-2 vs. 1099 part 3)

I've noticed that private practice therapist tend to hire additional therapists as 1099 contract employees. Reasons frequently cited for choosing to hire therapists as 1099 employees is that they don't have to pay the therapists taxes. While it may be more "affordable" to hire therapists as contractors, in my experience, there are also "costs." (For an summary of the difference between W-2 and 1099 employees read part 1 in this series. To hear about my employment tax audit adventure read part 2.)

According to the IRS website, the general rule for classifying 1099 independent contractor is "if the payer has the right to control or direct only the result of the work and not what will be done and how it will be done" (italics added). It also states that an employee is not a contract employee if the services "can be controlled by an employer (what will be done and how it will be done)" and if "the employer has the legal right to control the details of how the services are performed."

In consulting with therapists around the U.S. I've heard about some of the "costs" of hiring 1099 employees. Some of the costs high turnover rates due to the part-time and often temporary nature of contract employee relationships. Some of those "costs" include lack of control over how and where therapy is done, inability to require specific paperwork, inability to require attendance at staff meetings or trainings, inability to request that therapists network and participate in community outreach to boost referrals.

Here are the four main reasons I only hire therapists as W-2 employees:

1) Overall Cohesiveness

My vision for Wasatch Family Therapy has always been to build a cohesive team with a shared long-term vision of providing excellent clinical services to clients across the lifespan from an attachment perspective, not just have a group of therapist doing any kind of therapy they choose.  Now that we have grown into a clinic of 18 therapists at 3 locations cohesiveness is even more crucial. When therapists are hired as 1099 contractors employers are not supposed to tell the contract worker how to do therapy, or make other specific requirements of the worker, such attendance at trainings.

2) Higher Level of Quality Control

If a therapist is going to work under my name and my practice name or "brand", I want to be able to have a say in how, where, and when they do the work.  I've spend over 10 years building trust, credibility, and presence in my region and I want to be able to be able provide mentoring, direction, and training in how my clinical team provides services.

3) Ability to Require Certain Activities

I want to be able to require certain activities from my team members that hiring them as 1099 workers does not allow me to do. We have streamlined forms for notes and documentation in our EHR system. I require each therapist to engage in at least one outreach or networking activity each month in order to create strong referral sources. I require attendance at two monthly staff meetings, and a certain level of professional appearance at the office.

4) Implication of Long-Term Relationship

I am not interested in hiring temporary therapists to provide services. Hiring 1099 workers generally implies a short-term relationship. I am interested in hiring therapists who have a shared vision and who I can invest in long-term, and who will invest in building the practice long-term. I want to build mutually beneficial relationships not just provide services. Hiring therapists as W-2 employees shows a greater long-term commitment to them to build their practice for the long haul. I also allows me to expect a greater commitment from them.

Pause Before Posting About Work On Social Media Pages (part 2)

Guest post by Kimberly Sandstrom, MFTI

We all have days where we need to let out a little steam about a difficult day at work. Social media is not the place to do it.

In the first post on this topic, my goal was to bring awareness to our community about the hazards of posting personally about clients. Although our clients may not see our personal posts (see Julie Hanks Digital Dual Relationship Dilemmas), our own personal communities will, and our reputation is built on that community.

While my personal profiles are private, my extended friendship community and family I am connected with on these sites, trust me and my ability to keep things confidential for their referrals What I portray on my personal and professional sites will reflect the reputation I have as a therapist.

Does this mean we cannot post anything at all about the work we do on our personal accounts? Certainly not! My heart is for fostering a safe environment for consumers so they will feel comfortable sharing with us in the intimate space of our offices, and assurance that their stories will be kept contained within the walls of our office. Here are some tips to protecting not only yourself but our therapeutic community at large when posting about your therapeutic work.

Think before you post

Ask yourself these questions: If my client saw this, would they like what I posted about them? Is this fostering a positive message about my therapeutic community? What are my motives for posting this (i.e., vent frustration, draw others to me through humor, etc.)? Am I venting my frustration in a way that protects my client and my reputation? Would it be better if I shared this with another colleague privately?

Keep your posts about work general and positive

After a recent couples intensive weekend, my co-facilitator and I were so blessed to see the positive transformation in the couples that attended our workshop. It inspired us. I posted on my personal Facebook profile, “So blessed to watch couples transform their relationships over this weekend at the couples retreat. I love my job!”  Nothing specific about what conversations took place. If one of the participants to read this, it would most likely reflect their own positive experience of the weekend. Occasionally, I have asked for permission from clients to share their inspiring story or something they have written (poem, inspiring reflection) in a blog or to post on my professional social media sites, and again, I keep the information general and positive. And I make sure it is in a place they can see this posted (even though I do not accept former or current clients on these sites—they are open to the public to view).

Develop safe relationships with like-minded colleagues in your own community

We all have funny and frustrating stories from work—no matter what profession we are in. Developing relationships with other therapists in your community can provide you with a group that follows the same values of confidentiality that you do. You can vent your day to them, share funny stories (without giving identifying information about your clients, of course!), and explore your own triggers and countertransference in confidence, instead of publicly.

Have grace with fellow clinicians who may violate this gray area

If you feel inclined, send them a private message with your concerns about their post. If it is done with a spirit of helpfulness, gentleness, and affirms their good intention, they will most likely be grateful.  If, after reading this, you realize that you may have posted something about a client that qualifies as negative or comical, have mercy on yourself! We are human, fallible and worthy of lots of grace in the uncharted territory of social media etiquette!

Kimberly Sandstrom is a Marriage & Family Therapist Intern and Relationship Educator, Supervised by Kathryn de Bruin, LMFT, working in private practice in San Diego, CA. Married for 24 years, she and her husband are raising three daughters, two of whom are now adults.  She works with couples, and families to create emotionally safe and enduring connections in their most cherished relationships.

social media image (c) CanStockPhoto

Practicing Outside The Box: Psychotherapy On The Client's Couch

Michigan therapist finds niche providing in-home psychotherapy services

Would you travel to a client's home to provide therapy? After witnessing the high no-show rates while working at community mental health centers Michigan, therapist Tomanika Witherspoon, LMSW, CEO of Growing Counseling Services, decided to do just that.

She created an "outside of the box" specialty practice by focusing on providing in-home therapy.

In Witherspoon's experience, individuals who discontinued traditional therapy cited transportation, time and family responsibilities as the biggest barriers for receiving treatment. By providing in-home therapy, Witherspoon saves her clients travel time, travel expenses and time spent in an office waiting room.

What about her own travel time and expenses? Witherspon said that she does not bill for her travel time. However, to minimize the unpaid travel time and expenses, she only sees clients within a 20-mile radius of her location.

What about safety issues? "I typically do a phone-screening to gather the client's demographic information, insurance info, and the assurance that we will have somewhere to meet privately," Witherspoon says. "Safety is generally not a concern, but if it ever becomes one, I would meet in a colleague's office."

Providing in-home therapy services is not for everyone, but Ms. Witherspoon makes it work for her and her clients.

Visit GrowingCounseling.com to find out more about Tomanika Witherspoon, LMSW's "outside the box" practice.

Have you found a creative niche, a unique office space, use non-traditional interventions, or have something that sets you apart from other private practice clinicians?  I want to hear about it! Email me with "outside the box" in the subject line.

(c) Can Stock Photo

Therapist Media Cheat Sheet: Get More Clients By Maximizing TV Interviews

While TV interviews and appearances rarely lead to an immediate increase in new clients, they do raise awareness of your private practice and your specialty areas, expose thousands of people to your practice, and set you up as a credible expert in your field. Marketing experts say that it generally takes 7 exposures to your business brand before a client will actually try your products or services. In recent posts I share how to get TV interviews and how to present your best self during interviews. Here are some tips for getting the most mileage out of interviews to build your credibility and increase referrals to your practice.

1) Be explicit about how you'd like to be introduced

Reporters aren't worried about your branding, they're concerned about their story. It is your responsibility to protect your practice name and brand by being explicit about how the interviewer should refer to you on camera. After having a few interviews where they say my practice name incorrectly, or didn't mention it at all, I've learned to clearly spell out how I want to be introduced. In email correspondence with media contact I request something like this:

Please refer to me on camera as "Therapist Julie Hanks LCSW, Director of Wasatch Family." I also request a lower-third banner (the text box graphic that pops up at the bottom of the screen during interviews) with my name, credential, practice name, and website during the interview. Here's what I ask for: "Julie Hanks LCSW, Director of Wasatch Family Therapy, WasatchFamilyTherapy.com".

2) Request a link to your website

Always request that the interviewer mention your website address during the interview and shows your website address on  a lower-third banner. You want to make it as easy as possible for potential clients to find your practice website, and ultimately, set an appointment. Additionally, if the TV station posts a web article or video online request that they post a link to your website. Having large websites link to your website improves your visibility Google searches.

3) Capture the video to post on your website

I suggest keeping an archive of all TV interviews so you can use them on your own practice website. Many TV stations post the interviews online and allow you to imbed them on your own website without uploading and converting the video. If the interview is not available online, you can request a DVD copy of the segment from the TV station.

4) Post on social media

Social media video sites, like YouTube, allow TV interviews to reach beyond the live TV viewership. I upload every TV interview to my YouTube channel and set up feeds to my websites and social media profiles and pages. The Men's Doc Will Courtenay, PhD, LCSW says that many clients have viewed his interview clips online before actually meeting with him:

Now that we can post TV interviews on websites and YouTube, they're really a great opportunity for marketing. And it's really the best kind of marketing, because the television show or news station has identified you as an expert. Today, many people search for and Google psychotherapists to see what they can find out about them before they meet with them.

Psychotherapist Terrence Alspaugh, LCPC says that YouTube videos give potential clients a feel for his style and expertise giving them the confidence to set an appointment.

I had the interview posted on YouTube with a link from my website, and that exposure has helped to attract new clients. Several prospective clients told me that they watched the YouTube clip first, and as they were favorably impressed, they contacted me about couples counseling. The interview has been watched by over 400 people, so it serves as a way for prospective clients to see me in action before meeting me.

Private practice therapist with YouTube channels

Enjoy watching these private practice therapists videos on their YouTube channels.

Dr. Will Courtenay

Eileen Kennedy Moore, PhD

Shift You Life Now Tracy Latz, M.D., M.S.

Julie de Azevedo Hanks LCSW