Creating Videos for your Therapist Website 6 things you NEED to know BEFORE you start

Videos can be a powerful way to connect with people who are potential clients. A few seconds of video gives someone a chance to get a sense of your personality, style, and warmth. You can use video on your practice website, on a variety of social media platforms, and even as part of your profile on various therapist directories.

But despite the many benefits, many people hesitate to use videos to help grow their practice. Creating a video can seem intimidating and complex . . . but it doesn’t need to be! Here are the six fundamental things that you need to do before you start creating videos!

1. Power of Video

Videos are a great way to really just show who you are. Here are 3 simple yet effective reasons why videos can be extremely beneficial:

Videos feel like a real interaction – almost like a conversation which allows your potential client to get an actual feel for you.
Videos are a great way to help your potential clients ease into the idea of really being able to talk to you and establish a sense of comfort and trust.
Videos have the ability to form a powerful, instant connection with people visiting your website.

Just imagine a client walking through your doors for the very first time already knowing that they feel comfortable and safe!

2. Talking Points

It’s all about your personality. Yes, your prospective clients are looking for an authentic voice which not only speaks to them but also showcases who you are and what you believe in. Sharing your therapeutic approach, background, interests in therapy are all great ways of establishing a connection. And there are various approaches you can take to achieve your desired goals:

Informative – Start with a series of short videos introducing yourself, your practice, the services you provide, how you like interacting with your client. Make sure you include relevant information such as your office hours, location, etc. as well.
Educational – These videos should focus on the various concepts which you’d like to share with your audience or videos answering some of the most frequently asked questions. These also tend to be more share-able and will definitely help increase your reach.

Keep them short. Keep them interesting.

3. Be You. Be Natural.

Yes, you definitely need a roadmap for what you’re going to say in your video and having a script is a great way to have all your thoughts well organized.

But maybe, instead of an exact script, try writing bullet points instead. So, when you’re finally shooting your video, it will feel more natural and help ease off some pressure. Make sure, you have that roadmap/script in place and practice with it before you hit that record button.

It will take a few (well, maybe more than a few) tries to find that sweet spot where you know exactly what to say with totally confidence and comfort, without it sounding like a rehearsed speech.

4. Lighting & Audio

Lighting could make all the difference to your overall video quality. And in this digital age, bad quality videos are a big no-no. All you need to do is make sure

Your camera is facing away from natural light. For instance, if you’re in front of a window, make sure your face is towards the window and not the camera.
You buy a ring light – you can get one easily online for around $30. Popular amongst vloggers, the ring light provides great camera lighting which aptly highlight your facial features.

Getting just a few inexpensive pieces of gear can improve your overall production quality significantly. While smartphone cameras are great to produce top quality videos, I would definitely suggest getting an external mic (condenser, lapel, etc.). You can find some great inexpensive options online.

5. Captions

Awareness and accessibility are what you showcase and provide when you include captions in your videos. According to a study done by Verizon Media, 69% of people view videos with the sound off and 80% of consumers are more likely to watch an entire video when captions are available. Taking these numbers into consideration, it is imperative you include captions in all your videos.

There are various apps such as Mixed Captions which can auto-generate captions for you. All you have to do its go through them, correct the mistakes and download the file. And it’s not expensive or complicated.

6. One Video. Multiple Platforms.

The videos which you create for your website can be shared across multiple social media platforms including YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and even LinkedIn. Just make sure you’re customizing your videos for each social media network as they have their own requirements in terms of length or aspect ratio.

The big benefit of having your video on various social media channels is getting maximum mileage for one piece of content. And also, a new avenue of discovery for your potential clientele.

Have you seen successful examples of therapists using videos on their websites? Are you planning to put any of these tips to use in creating your own videos? Leave a comment and let me know!