A marketing coach for therapists isn’t the same as a business coach, even though the two get searched for interchangeably. Business coaching covers your whole practice, pricing, systems, income. Marketing coaching zeroes in on one part of that: how people actually find you and decide to book.
What a marketing coach for therapists actually does
They help you work out where your ideal clients are actually looking, what to say to them once you’re in front of them, and how to keep showing up consistently without it eating your week. For therapists specifically, that has to work within real constraints a generic marketing coach won’t know: advertising guidelines from your professional body, client confidentiality, and the fact that overly salesy language tends to repel the exact clients you want.
If you want the practical channels and a step-by-step visibility plan you can run yourself, I’ve laid that out in full in how to get more therapy clients. This post is about the different question: whether you should be doing that alone, or with someone coaching you through it.
Signs you need marketing coaching specifically
You know roughly what you should be doing, posting, networking, maybe a newsletter, but you’re inconsistent with it, or you’re doing it and nothing’s converting into bookings. That’s usually not a channel problem. It’s a message and positioning problem, and it’s hard to see clearly from inside your own business, which is exactly what a coach is there to reflect back.
If instead your problem is pricing, systems, or income beyond your client hours, that’s general business coaching territory rather than marketing specifically. It’s worth being honest with yourself about which one you actually need before you pay for either.
What to look for, and what it costs
The same rule applies as with any coach for therapists: have they actually built visibility for a therapy or wellness practice themselves, not just marketed something else and assumed it transfers. UK marketing coaching for therapists typically runs from around £100 for a single session to a few hundred pounds for a short structured programme, with group or membership-style support usually the more affordable ongoing option.
I coach marketing and visibility as part of the wider business coaching I do for therapists and wellness practitioners, built from getting my own practice from no visibility to consistent bookings myself. That practical, lived experience is the difference between advice that sounds right and advice that actually holds up once you try it on a real diary of real clients.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a free marketing coach for therapists?
Not a free ongoing coach, but there’s a lot of free groundwork worth doing first. Start with a genuinely practical, free guide before paying anyone: how to get more therapy clients walks through the three channels that actually work, free of charge. Coaching becomes worth paying for once you’ve got the basics in place and need someone reflecting back what’s not working.
Do I need a marketing coach or a business coach?
If clients aren’t finding you or aren’t converting once they do, that’s marketing. If you’re busy but not earning what you should, or you don’t have systems, that’s business coaching more broadly. Many therapists need both at different points, which is why it’s worth choosing a coach who covers both rather than switching between two. It also saves you re-explaining your practice and your goals to a second person every time something new comes up.
If you’re not sure which one you actually need, that’s a good thing to talk through in a free discovery session rather than guess.
