subject: Practice Marketing For Therapists: The 5 Qualities Of A Good Tag Line [print this page] A catchy tag-line can be a great answer to the question: "So, what do you do for a living?" I call this your "short answer" or your tag line. It is basically two sentences.
"I am a special kind of counselor."
"I teach/help/work with (your target market and the problem that they see themselves as having)"
Below are some proven examples:
"I teach couples how to get along better."
"I work with women who are tired of trying to be perfect."
"I help people who are afraid of going to the dentist."
"I teach singles how to find and keep a great partner."
"I help frustrated parents and teens."
Here are some best strategies that can help you create a great tag-line, but the first thing I want to suggest is that you get together with people who understand what you do, who will brainstorm together with you and who will give you honest, real-time feedback.
It starts a conversation.
The key to successfully marketing your practice is having a lot of people know what you do - and remember it when it comes time for a referral. So, when people ask you what you do for a living, it is a marketing opportunity. By sharing a quick few words that invites the other person to ask questions, you are on your way to building a new referral relationship!
It is simple to say.
Some tag lines look great on paper but don't roll off the tongue easily. For example. "I teach women how to be heard by their mates" can sound like "I help women to be hurt by their mates." Now, that can get you some really strange looks!
It uses simple language.
Are you still using "jargony" terms when you describe what you do?
I really notice this when I coach financial planners. When they use technical financial terms, I (as the listener) feel uncomfortable. Instead of increasing my faith in them ("Boy, she knows her stuff"), I feel stupid. This is not how you want someone who could be a referral source to feel.
You need to know what words to use and what words you should absolutely avoid unless you want to drive potential clients away.
It is interesting.
This is tricky. You want to encourage the person to ask you questions and maybe to tell you about their own struggle, but you don't want to be doing therapy on the spot. One therapist who said "I work with women with body image issues," found that people would act uncomfortable when she said that. She changed it to "I teach women how to feel better about their bodies" and started attracting crowds and lots of conversation!
You love to say it.
Far more important than the words themselves, I want you to love talking about what you do. I want you to light up when people ask you what you do. Have fun with it! Let your passion out!
People don't care what you do until they know what you care. So, let them see that you love what you do and they'll be more likely to ask you more about it. Far better to get connected with them than simply having a catchy phrase.
So, pick a tag line. Go test it - but test it with therapists and non-therapists and particularly people who don't know you.
