By Steph Ogura

Dec 28, 2024

You did it! You look the leap and you’re finally building your own practice!

Designing your own therapy website can feel overwhelming, but with the right steps, tools, and mindset, you can create a professional and functional site that reflects your practice. Whether you're a psychologist, therapist, or counselor, this guide will help you get started — and let you know when it’s time to bring in a professional.

Creating a website as a therapist is an exciting opportunity to showcase your expertise, values, and unique skills. While this guide walks you through the steps with some examples, enlisting the help of a professional website designer can elevate your therapy practice and save you time.

Here’s a step-by-step plan to help you build a website that truly represents your practice.

Step 1: Choose a Website Builder

Start by picking a platform to host and design your website. Popular options include:

• Squarespace: Great for therapists. It’s intuitive, offers sleek templates, and integrates seamlessly with Acuity Scheduling for client appointments.

  Shopify: A website design platform that was made for e-commerse & physical products. It’s less intuitive for design and may not be the right fit, unless you’re selling physical products too.

  Cargo: If aesthetics are your priority, Cargo has stunning, minimalist templates fit for a psychology practice.

  WordPress: A versatile platform with thousands of themes and plugins. While it has a steeper learning curve, it’s an excellent choice if you want full control over your website’s design and functionality.

Step 2: Identify Your Brand Identity & Target Audience

Your brand identity is how clients perceive you. It combines what you say (your brand voice) and how it looks (visual identity). A clear, cohesive identity builds trust and shows professionalism, and is written to resonate with your target audience.

Spend time clarifying your brand identity & target audience before you dive into design.

Brand Voice

Your brand voice is the personality of your practice, expressed through the writing style you use on your website. It’s how you communicate your values, connect with clients, and differentiate yourself.

When choosing a brand voice, think about how you want potential clients to feel when they read your website. Do you want to come across as professional and authoritative, or warm and approachable? Here are some styles to consider:

• Professional and Expert: Ideal for therapists specializing in high-stakes issues like legal evaluations or executive coaching. Example: “With over 10 years of experience, I offer evidence-based strategies to help you succeed.”

• Friendly and Approachable: Great for general therapy or working with children and families. Example: “I’m here to listen and help you find tools to thrive, no matter what life throws your way.”

• Casual and Conversational: Perfect for therapists catering to younger clients or a laid-back audience. Example: “Therapy doesn’t have to be scary — let’s just talk about what’s on your mind.”

Tips:

• Write simply and directly; avoid jargon.

• Use key phrases that resonate with your audience so they know your values (e.g., “LGBTQIA+ affirming care”, “women-owned business”).

Brand Visual Identity

Your visuals — colors, fonts, logos, and imagery — set the mood and attract the right clients.

• Colors: Blues/greens for a calming effect, or brighter/bolder colors for an energizing effect.

• Fonts: Modern sans-serif for approachability; classic serif for a professional look.

• Logo: A professional, scalable logo that reflects your specialty.

• Imagery: Authentic photos and graphics tailored to your audience.

But before you identify the specifics of the color scheme or which fonts to use, think about what kind of feeling or mood you want to create with your brand visuals. Did you want your website to look friendly and casual? Trustworthy and patient? Professional and experienced? This will help guide your design once you dive into it.

Why It Matters:
Your branding communicates your niche and values. Without it, potential clients may not know what you specialize in or how you can help, and you can get lost in a sea of cookie-cutter templates. A designer can help refine your identity and ensure everything feels cohesive.

For an example of a therapist’s website and how the brand identity can set you apart (visually and professionally!) take a look at one of my more recent works for Prunella Psychiatry, an integrative psychiatry practice focusing on AAPI clients.

Questions to Ask Yourself:

• What are my values as a therapist?

• What do I want my website to communicate?

• Who is my ideal client?

• What do my ideal clients want to know/need to know before deciding to work with me?

• How can I visually & verbally communicate my expertise?

Step 3: Gather Inspiration

Now that you have identified how you want your website to look and sound like, it’s time to look at other therapy websites for examples and inspiration.

As you look at other websites, keep in mind their branding:

• If you specialize in couples therapy, consider a design that emphasizes connection and harmony.

• For LGBTQIA+ affirming therapy, consider thoughtful ways to represent the community you serve through images and words, and communicate your genuine commitment to your values.

• For trauma recovery, consider the impact of calming tones and reassuring visuals.

Pro Tip: A designer can help you translate your inspiration into a cohesive and personalized website.

Step 4: Design Key Branding Elements

Here’s where working with an all-inclusive designer & copywriter can make all the difference:

A Designer Can Help You:

• Update or Design Your Logo: A professional logo adds credibility to your practice.

• Choose a Color Scheme: Colors evoke emotions—blues and greens are calming, while vibrant colors can feel energizing and empowering.

• Design a custom website to match your aesthetics and branding vision. You can also start with a website template by scrolling through their library.

Step 5: Write Compelling Copy

Your copywriting is where you connect with potential clients. Make sure it communicates your unique skills, values, and expertise.

Pages Every Therapist Website Needs:

1. Home Page:
This is your virtual handshake.

• Include a tagline or welcome message.

• Highlight your specialties or unique value.

2. About Page:
Share your story and qualifications.

• Explain why you became a therapist.

• Highlight your expertise, training, and certifications.

• Add a personal touch, like a short anecdote or your therapy philosophy.

3. Services Page:
Detail what you offer and who you serve.

• List your services (e.g., couples therapy, anxiety management).

• Be clear about who you work with (e.g., adults, teens, LGBTQIA+ community).

4. Contact Page:
Make it easy to connect.

• Include a contact form, phone number, and email address.

• Add your location if you see clients in person.

Step 6: Edit to Communicate Your Unique Skills

Why This Matters:

This deserves repeating — Your niche is what sets you apart. If you don’t communicate your expertise, potential clients won’t know what makes your practice special. Go back and edit your texts to make sure your unique skill set is highlighted in the messaging.

Tips for Showcasing Your Niche:

• Use your About Page to explain your approach. For example: “I specialize in trauma-informed therapy for survivors of abuse, helping them build a sense of safety and empowerment.”

• Add testimonials or case studies with client permission

Remember, if you try to appeal & talk to everyone, you end up speaking to no one. Make sure your messaging is clear!

Step 7: Work with a Designer for Finishing Touches

Even if you’ve built your site yourself, a designer & copywriter can polish it and elevate the user experience.

What a Designer Can Do:

• Optimize your layout for usability and aesthetics.

• Create custom graphics or tweak your template.

• Ensure your site is mobile-friendly.

• Update your copywriting with clear CTAs (Call-to-Actions).

Step 8: Add Functionality

Once your design and content are in place, integrate tools to make your site functional.

Recommended Features:

• Appointment Booking: Tools like Acuity Scheduling or SimplePractice streamline your workflow.

• Blogging: Use this space to share mental health tips or resources for clients.

• Contact Form: Make it easy for potential clients to reach you.

Step 9: Optimize for SEO

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) ensures clients can find you online.

Quick Tips:

• Use keyword search tools like Google Keyword Planner or Answer the Public to see what’s trending.

• Look up long-tail keywords (search phrases that are longer and therefore more specific) to find phrases that are lower competition and targeted.

• Use keywords like “therapist in [Your City]” or “couples therapy.”

• Add alt text to images to improve accessibility and SEO.

• Write meta descriptions for each page (e.g., “Licensed therapist in Denver specializing in anxiety and trauma.”).

Step 10: Launch and Promote Your Site

Before launching, test everything:

• Proofread your content.

• Test your links.

• Check the mobile version of your site.

Once live, share your site! Add it to social media, email signatures, and your Google My Business profile.

Final Thoughts

Designing your website is more than just picking colors and writing text — it’s about showcasing your unique skills and connecting with the clients who need your expertise. Whether you build it yourself or collaborate with a designer, your website should reflect your values, strengths, and what makes your practice special.

Remember: You’re not just building a website — you’re building trust.

So… should I get help?

Whether you hire help or not depends on many factors, like:

• How much you already know about the tools you might need to use (Squarespace, Google Keyword Planner, Canva)

• How experienced you are at branding (crafting a visual identity and voice)

• How quick you are at designing & building a color scheme

• Whether it’ll be cheaper to hire help

• How quickly you want your website done

Your time is valuable, especially when launching a business and there are a million things to do. If you can only devote 8 hours of work towards your private practice a week, 40 hours it might take to build a website that stands out can take 5 weeks to complete.

To decide if hiring help is cost-effective, calculate how many hours you’d spend learning tools and designing the site compared to your hourly rate (either your day job or your private client rate). Every hour saved Googling or searching for YouTube tutorials is an hour you could devote to what you’re really good at — empowering people to build a better life.

Use the calculator below to see if it’ll save you money to hire professional help!