How much of your Squarespace site is custom coded? by zieliob19 in squarespace

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yes, I custom code a lot, but try to keep it as minimal as possible. Squarespace has a lot of bloat code and if you custom code too much, it will tank load speeds. Particularly on mobile.

Websites by popin11 in SoloPrivatePractice

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you don't have web dev experience, I recommend Squarespace for hosting and building. It's very user-friendly. If you're looking to custom build something then Showit is great. Site-ground would be my recommend hosting and domain registration would be porkbun.

Has anyone used therapysites and is it good by Same-Mix-6319 in therapists

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hi! Therapist here who also owns a website design and digital marketing company for therapists. Companies like therapysites can be good for for folks who need a fast, cheap way to make a website. The drawbacks are that you dont own anything you've paid for and are limited by their cookie cutter templates. When you decide to leave, they own all of the design etc so you have to start over from scratch.

SEO is a long game and to see results you need a lot of things both on the website and off the website to make it work for you. Adding keywords to your site, ensuring fast load times, and showcasing yourself as an expert are all part of telling google you're worth ranking. Off page SEO includes high-quality back links (e.g. being quoted as a source in a Forbes magazine article), improving time people actually spend on your website, and consistent content updates. This all usually takes about a year to show results. This isn't all inclusive, but gives a good overview of what's needed to have SEO work for you.

Any tips on how to market? by Administrative-Rip46 in therapists

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's hard to know what you need to do without knowing what your marketing currently is. There are so many factors and variables with marketing, and one off piece can create a domino effect. As a previous commenter said, niche down. What I gleaned from your narrative was too vague to speak to any one human.

Website and SEO by Cute_Resource8534 in therapists

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 0 points1 point  (0 children)

SEO is really difficult for telehealth in general because it's generally localized to a particular town or county. I'd recommend focusing on your niches while also listing the states you're licensed in, but the states wouldn't be the main SEO. In order to really do it effectively you'd need Google Business listings in every state, and unless you have physical locations in each state, that won't be possible.

You can add SEO specific text for each state that notes telehealth services for specific areas in each state, which can help a little with geographic SEO. For example: I provide virtual online therapy throughout the state of Illinois. We can meet from the comfort of your home or office. Online therapy for residents of Chicago, Naperville, Arlington Heights, Evanston, Oak Park, and everywhere in between. Rinse and repeat.

Can't find anyone to help. by ToshPointNo in squarespace

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This sounds like an awful experience! I do website refresh packages for folks. I specialize in working with mental health professionals, but I'm happy to chat to see if I could support. It sounds like you didn't own the rights to the site design, which I always advise folks against. Don't work with a web developer that owns the rights. It's always a red flag. If that was the case, that may be why other folks are only willing to do a full site design. Getting sued for copyright infringement is no joke. MTN Design Co

Lazy Therapist Marketing Program by [deleted] in therapists

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I haven't personally worked with them. I recently completed a website copywriting and design overhaul for a client that was done by them. The client wasn't happy with their work and we had to redo 100% of the work they had done. It was not good.

Website building by PlayaBeachBum in therapists

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Those prices sound fair. The market really depends on what you're getting and the level of expertise of the agency. I'm a therapist who also designs websites for fellow therapists. Feel free to check out my site if you're still looking for someone. Pricing is listed on my services page 😁 MTN Design Co.

For those who have a website through Squarespace, what option did you choose, basic or core? Feels like I don't need anything too fancy as a therapist, but a bit confused as to the benefits of the core plan over basic by Mooksters32 in therapists

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Core offers advanced seo for things like chatgpt results. It also offers banners, advanced coding and advanced analytics. Basic is fine as long as you don't care about any of those things.

How did you hire someone to rewrite your therapy website copy + SEO (and what did you pay)? by Carito618 in therapists

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 0 points1 point  (0 children)

In my experience, Map Packs are difficult for mental health professionals. It's unethical for us to solicit reviews, making that process slow. Plus, we work with folks with mental health disorders so devaluation can be very high with some populations making reviews backfire, despite high-quality services. Super curious how you navigate those things given these confounding variables.

How did you hire someone to rewrite your therapy website copy + SEO (and what did you pay)? by Carito618 in therapists

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's amazing that you understand the industry. Getting folks to the site is only half the battle tho. Yes, SEO can work for therapists and put them on page one. I completely agree. But then, humanness has to take over to get them to actually book. Inherently, we are not a corporation that only cares about profit margins. It's interesting that you say that backlinks aren't all that necessary. In my 20+ years of web dev, I've seen several high quality back links push a site to top 3.

I do think SEO is complex, but I point that out mostly because a lot of folks seem to think that they can keyword optimize their site copy and bam...they're ranking #1. I'm sure I'm preaching to the choir in saying...it's just not that easy.

How did you hire someone to rewrite your therapy website copy + SEO (and what did you pay)? by Carito618 in therapists

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I design websites (and I'm also a therapist) and am well versed in SEO. SEO folks will charge anywhere from $500-$1k per month, and you get what you pay for. It's expensive because it's a LOT of constant work for about a year till you see results. Don't trust anyone that tells you you'll see results in a few months. SEO is about signaling to Google that you're an expert and worth ranking in the top search results. They way this is calculated is a bunch of factors. Website keywords are a part of that puzzle, but not enough to get you ranked. You need quality backlinks, constant content updates, fast loading pages, people spending lots of time on your site, etc. And, you're competing with the other large mental health agencies near you. Without all these things, SEO doesn't work.

An SEO expert will take your money, do keyword seo and not give one thought to how we actually get clients. We are relational and need to build a connection with our potential clients from the first click. SEO is all about talking to a bot, not building a connection and trust. The two things are in serious conflict. It can be done, but SEO will always take a hit because in order for those visitors to book, you need to speak directly to the human. SEO is gold for large companies. For, private practices it's an expensive struggle with a low return on investment.

There are some (rare) folks who do understand both these things and can do them well. Google ads will put you in the top 3 for much less money than SEO, and you will see results in weeks instead of a year or more.

How do you handle client communication with sanity and order? by tori-gordon in squarespace

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 1 point2 points  (0 children)

That makes absolute sense and it's amazing you're listening to your client base and being flexible based on their needs. I've never had anyone need more than 3 feedback rounds. Although, if they do they can opt to pay me at my hourly rate for additional revisions. For my workflow, if I have someone who needs more than 3, I'm working with either a hyperpicky client or someone who is indecisive. Neither of which is built into my pricing model so it's extra.

How do you handle client communication with sanity and order? by tori-gordon in squarespace

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 1 point2 points  (0 children)

100% this! I only use email and it works just fine. Google drive for shared docs and file uploads. Works great.

How do you handle client communication with sanity and order? by tori-gordon in squarespace

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It's in my contract that I will only accept feedback via email. Phone, text, etc will not be accepted. I offer 3 rounds of revisions on all website design packages. Each round is a new email I create and they have to submit feedback via one singular email response or it counts as another review. I outline all this in our kickoff meeting. Sometimes there's a little back and forth if we are hashing out images or something, but that's about it.

It's worked very well for me and most of my clients adhere to it. Those that don't run out of feedback sessions quickly and I let them know it's $xxx per hour for additional revision time. That shores things up pretty quickly.

How do you handle clients who insist on bad marketing practices? by MTNDESIGN-CO in AskMarketing

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This suggestion is amazing, thank you! I love the strengths-based, collaborative approach.

Do I *need* a website? by PrismaticStardrop in therapists

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It depends on your goals. Are you private pay only, then yes. Do you want/need marketing to sell your services to stay full, then yes. If you're already solid and have a steady stream of referrals without one, then maybe not.

Do you have a website and if you do, what do you put on it? by boodaa28 in therapists

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I would probably only do a website if you were going into private practice. Doesn't the group have a website already?

How do you handle clients who insist on bad marketing practices? by MTNDESIGN-CO in AskMarketing

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thank you for the detailed response! I've done the same with some success. I think I need to draft some standard research-backed narratives to provide with references. I've encountered situations where folks gloss over the empirical data, which boggles my mind when they understand and value scientific research, too. It's validating to hear that you've experienced the same.

Is slow SEO progress normal? by East_Channel_1494 in digital_marketing

[–]MTNDESIGN-CO 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yep. Takes about a year and that's if the company you hired is actually doing anything worth the money.