THE TOP 5 MISTAKES

Could you be making these simple mistakes in your therapy business?

According to Forbes magazine, there a 5 fundamental mistakes most small business owners are making with their clients.

1. Not gaining accountability from the client. Well think about it are you a therapist who will offer free or heavily subsidised sessions in the hope this client will send more business your way? I call this being a “Pro-Bono-Bonehead”.Sure there are times when it might be appropriate but those who pay, pay attention! Also if you are not getting paid in advance and people aren’t showing up then they are not being accountable.
2. Working with the wrong type of client. Typically this is a person who is expecting a change from the outside and not prepared to do the work on the inside. These people are not accepting responsibility for personal change and typically have a victim mentality.Another version of this client is the bargain basement price hunter whose first question is usually, how much is the session? 
3. Not properly funding their business. Are you still working from spreadsheet and paper calendar? As a professional you need tools that cost money. They add significant value and allow you to scale to a larger business model. I hear time and time again Therapists complaining about the surcharge credit cards take. Or they feel a $30/month subscription to an online booking system is unaffordable. Really?Your business needs decent tools, online and offline and they are tax deductible, there really is no excuse.
4.  Not prioritising sales. This is a huge one with Therapists as people helpers fear the sales process. Sales gets a bad wrap but really if you are not selling you are shrinking as a business. Income is a reflection of the amount of service you are providing.You have a duty to feed your business the life blood of money.
5. Overcommitting themselves.  I’ve  been guilty of this, jumping to every client request, working weekends, late evenings, public holidays. Let me put it this way, when you make an appointment to see a medical specialist do they ask you when you are free after work?Any professional worth their salt does not allow role reversal in the therapy room. You are the prize, they have the problem, they need to fit in with your routine not the other way around.