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Find Your Community of Ideal Clients to Increase Referrals

If you’ve zoned in on your ideal client, it’s time to find the community that will help you get more of these clients!

In order to increase referrals from other professionals, you need to be networking with the community that serves your client population.  That’s how they’re going to learn about you and your services.  Ask yourself, “Who is my community and how can I meet them?”

work2Who are like-minded professionals who may also treat clients you want to have?  Where do these professionals work?  Are they doctors or specialists?  Are they personal trainers?  Are they social workers?  Do they belong to organizations or are they involved in committees?  Where do these professionals go for continuing education?  Where do they network?

Consider trying to speak at one of their networking events or going to a meeting to learn more about their profession.

Who else in your community does a similar job to yours?  Or are there clinicians who have the ideal job that you want to have?  Go out and meet them too!  Remember, there are more than enough clients to go around, and no one is ever in direct competition with you.  These are valuable connections who will sometimes serve you more than other professional connections.  The more you build up one another, the more you both succeed.  Get to know your colleagues, and you’ll both be sharing secrets for success and thriving.

There are various organizations for small businesses that can also help with networking and making connections.  Check out local entrepreneur groups, mentoring for small business organizations, and local Chambers of Commerce.  There also might be opportunities for networking with professionals online, such as professional groups, listservs, LinkedIn, and social media.

Learn all about mistakes that I made when starting out: 10 Mistakes Professionals Make in Private Practice. Enter your name and email below to get your copy. 

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5 Ideas for Networking to Build and Grow your Business

You might think it’s important to try to network with everyone, but quality is more important than quantity.

networking to build private practicePick your community wisely, and nourish those relationships.  After all, it really only takes a few good connections to get many clients.

Building relationships is vital in private practice.  Not only do these relationships turn into referrals, but relationships also turn into connections that support you in your journey to your long-term goals.  It’s important to be authentic and genuine with the relationships that you build!  Think about your community and your niche and what kind of relationships you find easy to form.  If you’re in the right niche, chances are that you’re passionate about the work that you do, and gravitate toward others who feel the same way.  Forming these relationships will be so rewarding to you that it won’t feel like work.

In order to nourish the relationships that you’ve built, remember to follow-up.  Many professionals meet one another at meetings and networking events, but the follow-up part is key to forming a lasting relationship.  Here are some ideas to get you started:

  1. Take a professional out for coffee or lunch.  Rotate through your connections, and spend as much time on this as it makes sense to you.  Consider these meetings as part of your job.  Make it affordable, so you can pay the bill if you’ve asked the other person out.  This is just common courtesy, and makes the other person feel appreciated.
  2. Send business cards in the mail and ask for cards back.  Sending a short note with cards is just a friendly reminder that you’re here for their clients if they need to refer.  And providing cards to referral sources means that they have something they can hand out to potential clients.  Ask for their cards back so that you’re as equally prepared.
  3. Write an email (and/or a written thank you) after meeting with someone.  This gesture will not go unnoticed!  It’s so rare to get actual mail anymore, that it’s sometimes nicer to send a printed card.
  4. Communicate through their preferred communication medium.  Does someone prefer talking on the phone, using email, text, or fax?  Keep a note about which method, and follow up using that method!  The easier it is to communicate to say “hi”, the more likely your relationship will grow.
  5. Give out holiday gifts.  It’s a nice gesture to say happy holidays once a year.  A bottle of wine or a box of chocolates is always appreciated.  If you’d rather stay away from material gestures, you could always donate to a charity in someone else’s name.  If you can’t afford to spend a lot of money, an annual holiday card is also a great idea.  However, remember that there are many holidays to consider in December!

Learn all about mistakes that I made when starting out: 10 Mistakes Professionals Make in Private Practice. Enter your name and email below.

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Top 5 Tips to Keep Clients Coming Back to your Private Practice

We’ve all been there: we feel that we have an awesome connection with a client on our end but when it comes time for the follow-up appointment, the client suddenly reschedules- or worse- doesn’t show up! Over time, I’ve learned what works and what doesn’t work with keeping clients in private practice.

how to retain clientsThe key in retaining clients for the long-term is to keep clients satisfied with the work you’re doing and to have open, non-judgmental communication. I don’t recommend to “keep clients happy” because as counselors, we know the counseling process is filled with ups and down. If a client was always happy, chances are it’s not realistic success.

Seeing a client for the long-term is not only good for business it’s good for the client! In various fields, research always shows that more treatment leads to better outcomes. So lets remember the value of long-term relationships in addition to being business-savvy private practice owners.

Here are my Top 5 tips to Keep Clients Coming Back to your Private Practice!

1. Set clear expectations up front when scheduling the appointment. Clients should know up front that the counseling process is usually over the course of at least a few months. I tell my clients that on average I see clients 6 months-1 year. This way there are no surprises!

2. Know that the counseling process is a journey. It’s filled with ups and downs and it’s impossible to make progress in a linear line. Celebrate success but also teach clients it’s normal to take 2 steps forward and then 2 steps backward. Be careful of being too much of a “cheerleader”. After all, you want clients to be honest with you when times are difficult.

3. Schedule the follow-up session at the end of the first session. This is for accountability and also to show the client that you value their progress and want to see how they are doing. I recommend to keep appointments consistent (aka “you are my Monday at 5pm client”) for many reasons.

4. Talk about open communication. If there is any tension in the room I am going to ask about it! Clients should feel like they can tell you anything- good and bad. That’s why it’s important to have a non-judgmental attitude and talk about how much you value honesty as a counselor no matter what’s going on. I also tell clients that if we’re not the right match for one another I am happy to help them find someone who is.

5. Communicate with the client’s team of professionals to reinforce your goals. If a client has a therapist, dietitian, doctor, or personal trainer to reinforce what you’ve done in your session, chances are they are going to feel even more supported. Your role in their care is also going to be reinforced as others are going to talk about how important your work is! Talking to a client’s team is also a great way to network, as well as get more referrals.

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