Google Ads for therapists: a short guide to success

If you’re a therapist looking to fill gaps in your weekly appointments, Google Ads can be a fast, effective and lucrative way to market your services.

Client voids can be problematic for therapists. Your ability to help the existing people on your books depends on having enough bookings to operate profitably and stay in business.

That means when you have vacancies, you need an effective way to find leads quickly. That’s where healthcare lead generation comes in. Google Ads give therapists the means to soar to the top of the search results at the exact moment people are looking for the services that you provide.

Here are some tips on making Google Ads work for you and your business.

One quick thing before we start…

While we would never proclaim to be the next Jung or Freud, lead generation for therapists is a specialist area of ours. We know how to get results quickly, cost-effectively and efficiently – with an end-to-end service that pays for itself by driving revenue for your business. 

Ask for a no obligation free proposal and we will outline exactly what you can expect within three months of working with us. We may even be able to cover your ad spend.

Adbetter handled everything from creative strategy to a full funnel media buying plan across Facebook & Google Ads. They were able to design & build a full digital marketing campaign including all ads, copy & landing pages that has been delivering a consistent stream of new customers at a significantly cheaper cost than in previous testing.

Aqib Hassan, CCO, CPIC | Gwadar Click

Google Ads for therapists: why they’re a great idea

As a therapy business, you can’t rely on referrals like other businesses can. Many people are reluctant to talk about their mental health journey – and are unlikely to direct friends or family towards a therapist who they are potentially discussing very personal things with.

Google Ads gives you an easy, discrete way to connect with people expressing an interest in services that you offer. And the demand is out there – enhanced by well-publicised waiting lists for NHS services.

Here are three big reasons why we love Google Ads for therapists.

1. Vast audience reach and targeting

With 8.5 billion searches per day, Google Ads puts an unfathomably vast audience at your fingertips. But it’s not so much the size of the audience that matters. It’s the sophisticated audience targeting tools that Google gives you access to. 

Used correctly you can target the right people for your practice – whether that’s people in your region for face-to-face counselling or people further afield for remote services.

2. It’s cost-effective and accountable

Pay per click with Google is one of the most accountable forms of advertising out there. Not least because you only pay when someone clicks – and if they’re clicking there’s a good chance they’re interested in your services.

Google also makes it easy to control your spending. Impose daily, weekly or maximum budgets – and hit the pause button whenever you want to rein things in. 

Every penny is accounted for in the performance data Google gives you. So you can see exactly where your money is going.

3. Instant results

With most forms of marketing, it takes a little while to see any results. With Google Ads, the results are immediate. Armed with the right keywords and enough budget, you can fire your business straight to the top of the search results.

Google Ads for therapists: setting up for success

Getting started with Google Ads may feel a little intimidating at first. But it’s an easy, intuitive platform. And you can potentially get some results with no prior experience. 

Here are some tips on laying the groundwork for success.

Stay on the right side of the regulations

As you’d hope, there are certain regulations to follow when it comes to the promotion of mental health and counselling services.

Don’t mention addiction

In the UK, Google restricts the promotion of recovery for addiction-related conditions. And the rules can be enforced strictly. For example, if your website mentions addiction anywhere then your Google Ads may not be approved, regardless of what services they promote.

Examples of recovery-oriented addiction services include rehabilitation environments, sober living environments and crisis hotlines for drug addiction.

No triggering words or imagery

The Advertising Standards Authority states that advertisers of therapeutic services should avoid referencing mental health conditions in a way that risks causing serious or widespread offence. Your ads should also avoid triggering fear or distress in your potential clients. 

If in doubt, focus on the potential for positive outcomes or your expertise as a professional.

You may need medical qualification

Certain conditions – such as depression and OCD – are classed as medical conditions by the Advertising Standards Authority and require appropriate qualifications to treat. Without them, your ads may be banned.

There’s more guidance from the Advertising Standards Authority here and here.

What are you promoting? Who are you targeting?

Before you begin sending your ads out into the world, take a few moments to consider what you’re going to promote.

• Your therapeutic services in general
• Specific types of treatment that you provide
• Outcomes that you work on achieving with your clients
• Specific types of therapy – such as couples therapy or integrated therapy

Likewise it’s important to consider the audience groups you’re going to target with your adverts.

• Specific age groups
• People in a certain location
• People in a certain occupation

Thinking about this in advance will help you when it comes to creating your campaigns and ad groups. More on that shortly.

Know your numbers

It’s astonishing how many businesses leap into Google Ads without being on top of their numbers. Getting results requires having an idea of what the average lifetime value of your clients is, as well as your existing marketing costs and the cost per conversion.

Setting your budget for Google Ads – and knowing what to bid for certain keywords – will require a bit of experimentation at first. But being on top of your numbers from the start will help you make sensible calls from the get-go.

Make sure your website is ready

When you’re paying for the click, it only makes sense to scrutinise the onward journey that you take your leads on. And nine times out of ten, that means having a designated landing page for each type of ad you are promoting.

Yes, you can get results from just directing clicks to your homepage. But you’re going to see far better returns if you set up dedicated landing pages for the different niches you are targeting.

Landing page best practice

Landing page design is a huge subject in its own right. But here are some quick tips.

• Design and copywriting. Your landing page should feel like a continuation of the ad your visitor clicked. Your design should be optimised for mobile and feature a compelling proposition above the fold.
• Create a closed journey. Single-mindedness is a strength when it comes to landing pages. Limit navigation options and stay focused on one clear call to action.
• Gather data. The main aim of a landing page is to gather information on your lead. Create a form that allows you to start the marketing conversation. More on this shortly.
• Remember your GDPR obligations. For your forms that means having a tick box that gets people to actively opt in to your comms. Be clear about who will be contacting your lead and how they will be contacted. You must also provide a link to your privacy policy.
• Utilise social proof and trust signals. Testimonials from previous patients will go a long way to helping build credibility and trust in your company. If applicable, utilise trust signals such as industry accreditations, qualifications or awards.

Create a lead magnet

As mentioned above, the main aim of your landing page is to gather audience data and gain consent to reach out and begin the marketing conversation. Consider providing an incentive for people to complete your form – such as a free consultation or a downloadable brochure about your services.

Setting up your Ad campaigns

To kick off your Google Ads journey, you’ll need to sign up for a free account. Bonus points if you link this with other Google services like Google Analytics 4 (GA4) and Google Business Profile to consolidate data and enhance ad performance.

Then work through the following screens, step by step.

• Access the campaigns tab. Click the blue ‘+’ button to start a new campaign.
• Select your campaign goal. Obviously as this is a lead generation exercise, we’d recommend ‘Leads’ as your goal.
• Choose the search network. The Google Display Network serves ads across a vast estate of websites, apps and more. It has its purpose. But the real opportunities lie in the search network, so this is where you should place your focus.
• Create a conversion action. There are several to choose from but you’ll most likely want to go for conversion tracking. This will help you measure the performance of your ad campaigns.
• Install the tracking code. This will be emailed to you with instructions.
• Set your target locations. If you provide remote services, this is less important. But it’s essential to set a suitable radius around your town or city if you only want to see clients face to face.

Creating your ads

Set up ad groups

Rather than throwing all your eggs in one basket, it’s a good idea to experiment with different types of ads that target different types of treatment or different audiences. These should be separated into different campaigns and ad groups.

Pick the right keywords

Next it’s time to pick the keywords that you want to target. That is to say, when someone searches for a specific phrase, you can bid for your ad to be displayed. 

Think about the terms people might use to search for your services – such as “couples counselling in Manchester” or “integrated therapy in Manchester”.

Google’s free keyword planner can help you narrow your focus – and will also give you information on the type of search volumes that different keywords have.

Craft your copy

Okay, now it’s time to exercise some wordsmithery.

Google Ads comprise one to three headlines and one to two descriptions.

• 1-3x headlines (30 characters)
• 1-2x descriptions (90 characters each)

One important thing to note is that Google essentially creates your ads creative combinations for you. You feed it variations of headlines and descriptions – and it finds the best combinations for driving leads to your business.

Here are some tips for attention-grabbing ad copy:

Remember your reader

Remember there’s a real person behind every search. Speak directly to your lead using “you”-focused messaging. 

Think about what this person might be feeling. What feelings are they hoping to overcome? What outcome are they looking for? What might they be feeling apprehensive about and how can you reassure them?

Include your keywords in your copy

It’s a good idea to use the keywords you are targeting in your campaign, which will be emboldened in your ad copy. This will help improve your ad relevance which in turn will reduce your cost per click (CPC). 

Communicate with clarity

You have milliseconds to get your message across. Be clear. Stay relevant to your keywords. Write with brevity.

Don’t refer to difficulties too explicitly

You don’t want people to feel too singled out. Especially when it comes to retargeting. Learn more about Google remarketing and if it is possible for healthcare brands here.

Set your budget

Google Ads makes it easy to control your spending – allowing you to specify a daily budget that’s calculated as an average over the month.

It’s important to revisit your bidding strategy often, reviewing the cost of keywords and measuring the impact they’re having in terms of search volumes and clicks.

Tracking and optimising

Google Ads isn’t a set-and-forget thing. Success is driven by having the tenacity to regularly scrutinise your performance data. 

It’s about taking the time to investigate what’s working – and what isn’t – and then using that intel to double down on the strategies that are driving results, while pulling the ads that aren’t. 

Track, optimise, and iterate. It’s a constant cycle.

Track your leads through the funnel

Of course, it’s not just about what happens within your Google Ads environment. For the really transformative results, you need full visibility into your leads’ post-click activity. 

What are they doing after they hit your landing page? What’s the conversion rate and how long does it take for a lead to become a customer? 

This holistic tracking can be difficult to set up. But it’s the only way to get the full picture you need to make strategic decisions with confidence that they’re going to drive positive results for your business.

Let us help

We are an agency that specialises in helping businesses drive big results through pay per click platforms like Google, Facebook and Instagram. 

It’s an end-to-end service, where everything is done for you based on the strategic targets for your business, with custom reporting that shows you exactly how we are igniting revenue growth for your business.

Take a look at some case studies here. Or ask us for a no obligation proposal and we will outline what you can expect within three months of working with us. Let’s get started.

>> Healthcare PPC services for hungry businesses

You should also read:

>> Lead generation for healthcare businesses
>> How to find more healthcare leads and transform your business
>> Google ads for healthcare: 22 actionable tips for success
>> Facebook ads for healthcare: 28 tips for nailing your campaign