Back in March, I answered Patti Sayre’s question about the difference between blogging and sending newsletters. 
Here are 9 ways how blogs (and not newsletters) can help you grow your practice.
- Blogs reach potential clients and referral sources and helps them get to “know” you; newsletters get sent out to your current clients .
- Blogs reach many more individuals than just those on your mailing list.
- Blogs allow you to build and showcase your credibility and and expertise.
- Blogs provide a way for you to craft the digital footprint you want; newsletter do not.
- Blogs allow you to “tag” and “categorize” them which, in turn, allows readers to filter and access the exact information that they need from among your posts.
- Seventy-one percent of respondents in a survey by HubSpot recently said that they used a blog to help them make a purchasing decision.
- Blogs extend your reach beyond those that you already know.
- Blogs can be monetized if you wish.
- Blogs allow you to host discussions and create community.
Newsletters are great for reaching out to current clients to share new products / services that you have to offer. Likewise, they are great to keep in touch with clients that have worked with you in the past but are no longer active on your caseload. However, blogs are how you reach potential clients and referral sources . . . and how you keep the search engines interested in your website, too!
So . . . the question is still . . . . Are you using your blog successfully to feed your private practice?
Thanks for bringing up this topic again, Tamara! I’ve recently been trying to tailor my blog posts to things I’m doing in the field: i.e.: a presentation I’m doing this Friday, and writing a post today that has a similar theme and discussion. That could help attract potential clients to my work and help them get to know me in more ways than just sitting together in my office. I like your #6 as to how blogs can help clients make a “purchasing” decision — whether we like to think of it that way or not, we are in the business of trying to attract our clients’ “sales” and so marketing to them in ways that encourages them to call us is key. I try to do that in many ways, one of them being writing lots of different blogs so they can know me for a while and call when they are ready/comfortable.
Kate Daigle! Welcome back! You scared me just now so I had to run right over to your lovely blog to see if I was mistaken. (But I wasn’t.) Your blog shows off your generous spirit and your wealth of information so when you said that you are changing things up to highlight your public speaking . . . I freaked for a moment. Thought you meant that you were going to start posting only or primarily announcements about your presentations. Thankfully, when I went to your blog, I saw that was not the case. Instead, you are doing a nice job of sharing what you know about recovering from eating disorders and also sharing opportunities to get to meet you and / or hear you speak.
Lots of therapists err by throwing up a blog that screams “It’s all about ME!” And, as with all social media, that’s like shooting yourself in the foot. Social media, including blogs is just that – it’s social. I keep meaning to write a blog post about this but there’s never enough time. A good mix for self-promotional content on your blog is 1:7. For Every quality posts of content, you can get by with a self-promotional piece. And, ideally, even that self-promotional piece should contain good content.
Hey, Kate I noticed that you mentioned that you write “lots of different blogs.” Do you really have several blogs (and if so, why don’t I know about them) or did you mean to say that you write a lot of posts on your blog?
(And, congrats on your presentation! That’s so cool!)
Hi Kate,
I am new to this wonderful site, and I just wanted to let you know what a pleasure it was for me to read your blog today! You are a very inspirational woman, and you possess a very unique writing gift, I would love to read a book penned by you for sure! And you work with such an interesting population eating disorders, and overcoming it yourself, I am indeed proud of you and think you have so much to offer this world! I am starting my own private practice in a few month, I am also in Colorado, so hello neighbor! I just graduated with my masters in Marriage and family therapy and enjoying everyday of getting ready to start my private practice and I am sure I will tell you all here on this site about my adventures and it would be such a joy to uplift and share with each other! Looking forward to get to know you Kate and hope you have a great day!
Dear Tamara,
As always you write great blogs, and I already started my own blog samples and will get my we page up and running soon, and will definitely post you all a link for critiquing my juvenile web developing talents( just like you technology is not exactly my cup of tea) . Tamara you are so inspirational with all your blogs and wanted to say thank you!
Nelly, it’s a pleasure to have your voice here! I look forward to checking out your blog and helping you grow your business, too!
Hey Tamara, I love your blog and am always so inspired by your insight and expertise- you always seem to know just what topic to post! I meant that I’m finding that a way for people to connect with me and learn about my work is also through other things I’m doing in the community, and these events or happenings are also inspiring for me, so I like to write about the topics they present! I agree that too much self-promotion isn’t a good thing, and I certainly don’t try to do that (actually I really feel uncomfortable with it, which is probably why I’m challenging myself to do a bit more of it, as I feel proud of some things I’m doing!). I’ve been writing a blog for three years on a variety of topics, so am always interested in finding new ways of connecting with people. And my authentic, personal voice is always my #1 priority in my writing, as that is how I truly connect with people, myself, my work!
🙂 I feel so lucky, Kate, to have you and your expertise right in my back door. What you, I think, and most of the digital natives already know (and are teaching us digital dinosaurs) is that potential clients and referral source really can hear the difference of an authentic and generous voice even online. The significance of that, of course, is that that personal voice is what allows potential clients and referral sources to get to “know” you and your practice before they ever even pick up the phone to call you. Your authenticity online goes a long way toward building trust in your ability to help even someone who has never spoken to you.
Tamara! What you wrote to Kate, I absolutely agree with it! Kate I have never met you, I just spent a few hours reading your blogs, and you truly touched my soul! You do have a special gift not only in impeccable writing style( wish I wrote as well as you did, English is my 3 rd language), you have a spirit a very caring spirit that shines through and touches and inspires people! I just hope you always remember what a gift you have and know that your authencity truly inspires people to look deep inside and change! I will definitely refer clients dealing with eating disorders to you as I am sure you have what it takes to create a sacred space for them to heal! So looking forward to get to know you and will continue to read your blogs! Way to go Kate!!! And congrats in presentation!
Yep, Kate. That’s exactly what I meant to say! (Thanks, Nelly!)
Wow, Nelly and Tamara, I am truly touched by your words. Thank you so much for spending time on my blog, and I’m so glad that it touched you. It means so much to me. Nelly, when you start your practice (what part of Colorado are you in?), I’d be happy to meet and touch base in person! As much as I adore my online relationships, I very much enjoy connecting with others in person.
Tamara, I just want to give you a standing ovation for creating this wonderful blog, where so many people have a chance to share with each other and inspire each other! You truly are a gemstone of a woman! I have never met you, but I have such a wonderful experience with your blog, talking with you and meeting wonderful people on your blog! In regards to my private practice, I hope to start in September, and I would love to talk to you before and hopefully you will be able to be my supervisor, as I only want the best person for that job,someone I can connect both professionally and individually… BTW I absolutely love your Pinterest page and that is a new obsession of mine, as I am very visual and it is a great way to include all your professional and personal hobbies organized in one place( the OCD perfectionist in me loves it, ha ha)… I am taking DBT training the last weekend of June, so very excited! I also want to take the EMDR training in November, I love learning and I am so excited about taking the classes that would be helpful with population I am specializing at! At home I am studying the Gottman 1 and so looking forward to practice on actual couples! Also, my fiancé offered to do a web page for me, he is an IT person and after I am going to register my private practice in a couple weeks, he is going to use the name I came up with for the page! Sorry for writing so much, and my post is not too organized as I am babysitting my 2 year old nephew so my brain is all over the place! Just wanted to personally thank you and share with you! I love your page because it is such a safe environment for all of us to grow and uplift each other! Hope you enjoy your day and I will talk to you soon!
Sweet Kate! Sorry for being a little too informal with you, but hey after I read your blog, I kinda figured that you are not a snob, and not queen Elizabeth, and no need for me to bow and scrape! I live in Aurora, used to do my internship in third way center, and worked on 11th and Lincoln. Now I work in a family business, which has nothing to do with mental health, and hope to start my own practice around September, still need to find a sublease and do a lot of paperwork, but everyday I am moving a step closer towards my dream! I would absolutely love to meet with you in person, as you definitely sound like my kind of therapist and my kind of beautiful soul to share on this journey called life! Kate you are so talented, I don’t know if you writing a book, but I want to encourage you to write as your writing is so therapeutic! I would be outside standing for 24 hours waiting for you to sign my book, so I do believe in you woman! I am not sure if I can post my number and email for everyone to see, but if you don’t mind I will email you my information so that’s way you would know how to get a hold of me! Again, good luck on your presentation, and I am already cheer leading for you and I am sure Tamara is doing the same!!!! Way to go Kate!!! Go get them! Looking forward to get to know you and hope you had a good day! Later Nellie
Nelly, here’s a link to let you know how to set up a gravatar so that your tiny little picture shows up next to your comments. It’s easy and free to do. Here’s how.
Dear Tamara,
Just posted my first blog and have my page now! I would be greatly honored if you visit me and so glad I finally did it! It was quiet a journey this whole year! Hope all is well! Looking forward to see you!
Hi, Nelly! It’s so nice to meet you and find you are blogging! I can’t think of a better way than blogging to get seen and get noticed! I look forward to finding your voice in the conversations here!