Clients are Looking for Therapists Online: Can They Find You?
I just did a quick search on Google’s Keyword Tool. This is a nifty tool to use when you are considering using Google Adwords to promote your website. You type in a word or phrase and Google tells you how many people are using those words in online searches for information on that topic.
In my search for search terms people use to find help in and around the internet, I discovered a HUGE discrepancy between the numbers of people looking for specific therapy/therapists and the number of therapists looking for information on how to build a web site.
Check out the numbers below. These reflect the actual numbers of a local search by these words or phrases in November 2009. “Local” means the United States.
| Search word phrase | Number of searches |
| Therapy website | 2400 |
| Counseling websites | 1000 |
| Psychologist website | 720 |
| Websites for therapists | 210 |
| Website for counselors | 58 |
Now for those looking for therapy information online:
| Search word phrase | Number of searches |
| Marriage counseling | 368,000 |
| Couple counseling | 18,100 |
| Child therapy | 49,500 |
| Child counseling | 22,200 |
| Online therapy | 74,000 |
It looks like a bit more than 4000 people are looking for information on building a website for their practice. But over 500,000 are looking for therapists online!!
Whoa!
Over half a million people need your help and expertise. Please don’t make it hard for them to find you….
Hello Susan,
I couldn’t agree more. Our online therapy site (www.etherapistsonline.com) which be brought online in 2000, has grown more each year in the number of clients we serve.
We get hundreds of “word of mouth” referrals now, which is a great indicator of how popular the therapists and the services are with clients.
Especially with today’s Gen y’ers, doing things that involve professional services online is really second nature to them, so “seeing” a therapist online is an idea that feels very natural. Look at the success of WebMD.com, LegalZoom.com, the online dating sites, to name only a few areas where online professional and serious personal contact happens.
We will continue to see growthin this area for years to come, and it is exciting to be a part of it and watch it unfold.
Great topic! Thanks for sharing.
Judy, Thanks for stopping by! The numbers of people searching for online therapy outweigh those looking for in-person treatment. Very telling of the next generation of care! Would love to have you come by and talk more to blog readers/members about etherapistonline.com. I’ll be in touch!
Hi Susan,
Very timely topic for me. My partner and I have just launched a new website, http://www.e-counselor.net and are trying to connect with people who need therapy and either can’t or don’t want to engage in traditional face to face sessions.
As Judy said, to many, seeking services online just feels natural and to others it is a matter of convenience (or a matter of necessity if there is a lack of services in the area, the person has difficulty with transportation, or the person pays out of pocket and online/phone therapy is more cost efficient).
I hope we can all make it easier for clients to find us!