Therapist Blog Challenge #9: Power of Infographics

Therapist Blog Challenge #9 Infographic

 A picture IS worth 1000 words. Find a credible infographic that is helpful to your ideal client for your next blog post.

Visually interesting and sharable infographics can provide easily digestible information for your blog readers. It's easy to find infographics on a variety of topics by doing a Google search of your area of interest and the word "infographic".

Many infographics are easily sharable with the HTML code and a copy function near the infographic. Another option for adding the infographic to your blog post is to right click and copy the "copy image location" and insert into your blog post (If you have no idea what I'm talking about contact your webmaster for help).

It is best practices to post a link back to the site where the infographic was originally posted. I've shared a few infographics below as examples that you are free to use for your blog post. Write a few sentences, embed the infographic, and you're done! This is the easiest challenge yet!

Additional reminders about the 2013 blog challenge

Write and post your blog article in the next 2 weeks. If you miss the deadline or you read this article months later, that’s OK too.

• Post a link for this blog challenge in the comment section of this blog post.

• Read, comment, and share other therapist’s articles.Tweet your post using hashtag #therapistblog and tag @julie_hanks so I can retweet it.
• Pin it on the challenge Pinterest Board. I’ve invited everyone who posted a comment on the initial blog challenge post as collaborators so you can pin onto the group board.

• Spread the word and invite mental health colleagues to join the challenge. Articles can be added anytime throughout the year.

• Write no more than 600 words, make it easy to read, use a conversational tone, and gear your articles toward your ideal client (not other professionals).

• The goal of a professional blog is to provide value to your website visitors, help them get to know your professional perspective, increase traffic to your private practice website, and build your practice.

Here are a few examples of infographics on 3 different topics. This first is from Sharecare Now and is the one and only appearance on an infographic. Feel free to use any of these for your post or search for your own!

Top 10 Online Influencers: Depression

http://www.sharecare.com/static/sharecare-now-depression-graphic

The Science of Mental Illness

Tweet Your Elevator Speech!

How's your elevator speech coming along? Are you ready to try it out in "public"? One of the most helpful ways to refine your elevator speech is to practice it and ask for feedback. Here's your social media challenge to help you get the word out about your practice message and to get feedback. Twitter Challenge

Tweet your elevator speech (in only 140 characters or less) to me @Julie_Hanks and I'll give you feedback on it. If you tag your tweet with #elevatorspeech then other twitter users can find it and give you feedback, too.

If you're not on Twitter, post your elevator speech or basic practice message as a status update on any social media site. Ask for feedback from other mental health professionals and people outside of the field on the clarity of your practice message. Here are some suggested questions.

Elevator Speech Feedback Questions

• Is my message in layman's language without "psychobabble"?
• Is my ideal client clearly identified?
• Does it focus on my ideal client's potential problem?
• Does it clearly state a benefit that my services offer?
• Is it succinct (2-3 sentences)?

I'm looking forward to reading your elevator speeches. If you're not on social media yet, feel free to post your basic message below as a comment below.

Why Therapists Need An Elevator Speech

An "elevator speech," also called a basic practice message, is a brief statement of what you do. It should take no longer than it takes to ride a few floors on an elevator and is a crucial aspect of marketing your private practice. Whenever you talk about or write about your practice, your elevator speech will help you to provide a cohesive and consistent message that attracts your ideal client and builds your private practice. Over time, your message will help you create enough awareness about your practice that people will know who you are and what you do.

The goal is to have people say, "Oh, he's the one who helps couples create closer marriages." or "She's the therapist who helps kids with attention problems find ways to succeed in school."

Unfortunately, most therapists don't have an elevator speech. Ask a therapist the simple question, "What do you do?" you'll likely get a long, jargon filled, tentative statement that might sound something like this:

"I'm a licensed professional counselor and LSAC and I work at at the Community Mental Health Center full-time in the day treatment center for A&D. Oh, and I have a private practice on the side, at night, where I see and I work with children...and some adults, to. I also like working with trauma and I'm trained in EMDR and I also use a lot of CBT. I'm on a lot of EAP panels and I see some CVR clients. I see some couples too...I like couples.

You really can't tell who he wants to see in his practice, what he does, or why anyone would go to him for therapy, right? So, here's what makes a great elevator speech.

Characteristics of an effective therapist "elevator speech"

• A few short sentences about who you are and what you do
• Uses layman’s terms (no psychobabble and professional acronyms)
• Uses positive language
• Focuses on the benefits of your services for your ideal clients (not the features of your practice or credentials your licenses, degrees, specialty areas)
• Focuses on only one aspect of your work
• Targets your ideal client
• Is memorized so you can deliver it on the spot

How To Create Your Elevator Speech

Here's a quick "fill in blank" formula to get you started on your effective elevator speech.

"I'm ___________________________________________.

I help ___________________________________________

do/understand/change/create/find ______________________

so they can  _______________________________________."

Here are some examples of my elevator speeches.

I'm therapist Julie Hanks. I help overwhelmed women find a healthy balance between caring for themselves and their family relationships so they can live fulfilling and meaningful lives.

I'm a therapist turned business consultant. I inspire therapists to build successful practices by helping them identify their passions and develop basic business skills so they can make a good living doing what they love.

During my therapy clinic staff meetings I periodically ask my therapists on the spot to give their basic message/elevator speech. One day I surprised them by asking them to give their basic message on camera for a promotional video for our website. You can watch the video here to see how they did and maybe it will spark some ideas for you.

So, now it's your turn. How do you answer the question, "So...what do you do?" Feel free to post your basic message below and I'll give you feedback!

photo credit: dfritzon