How To Use Humanistic Psychology to Design Your Private Practice Website
While website design may seem like the furthest thing from your area of expertise, the skills that make you a great therapist can also be used to design a hardworking website for your private practice.
In fact, the websites that most effectively send therapists highly aligned clients are the ones that utilize a Humanistic approach to design and strategy. Similar to Carl Rogers’ theory of self-actualization, your website’s ability to send you clients depends on its ability to create an environment where growth can happen.
Rogers outlines three core conditions that need to be met for a person to grow. Here’s how you can ensure your website is meeting each of these conditions:
Empathy
Communicating that you understand a client’s unique, subjective experience is key in helping them feel seen and heard. In the therapy room, this may sound like reflective statements or clarifying questions.
On a therapy website, empathy is the key to writing copy that connects. Ironically, many therapy websites feature copy that focuses heavily on the services offered, the therapist’s credentials and experience, and the methods used.
In my Website Copy Template, I explain that approaching your website copy from a place of selling yourself removes the empathy from the situation. It makes your website all about you, which doesn’t help website visitors feel seen and heard.
To lead with empathy on your website, focus on your visitor’s current experience as well as their desired experience. Not sure how to speak to all of your website visitors? Establish a niche and ideal client.
Genuineness
Rogers explains that congruence (the matching of inner experience and outer expression) builds trust in the therapeutic relationship. Being genuine and authentic with your clients helps them relax, knowing that you mean what you say.
On therapy websites, congruence, genuineness, and authenticity are everything. Since starting therapy with a new therapist is extremely vulnerable and scary for most people, it’s important to start building trust through genuineness right away.
When you practice authenticity on your website, visitors can easily decide if you’re the right therapist for them (or not). Whether or not they end up working with you, your authenticity will help them become clearer about the kind of therapist they want and need.
Obviously, genuineness and authenticity can come through in your website copy, but don’t forget about your website design. Display several professional, current pictures of you and your office, and use colors and design that actually match your personality and create the environment in which your ideal client feels safe (this is where many therapy websites miss the mark).
Unconditional Positive Regard
Genuinely caring for your clients without judgment is undoubtedly one of the biggest reasons clients keep coming back to therapy, session after session. This is the final piece of the puzzle in creating a virtual space where potential clients feel comfortable and ready to grow.
On your website, unconditional positive regard is about providing a positive experience, regardless of whether or not a website visitor ends up working with you.
Is your website easy to read and navigate? Is it mobile-friendly? Prioritizing ease of use is one of the best ways to show that you care about your visitors’ experience. Having an up-to-date, well-functioning website says, “Hey, I care about you having a good experience here. Whether or not we work together.”
Conversely, if your website doesn’t translate well to smartphones, if it uses harsh or unwelcoming colors and design, or confusing copy, your website is saying, “I don’t really care if you have a good experience here.” Even if that’s not what you mean to convey, that’s the felt sense that gets translated without words.
In addition to functionality and design, the content on your website can also communicate unconditional positive regard. Sharing relevant and helpful articles on your blog, podcast episodes, or YouTube videos created for your particular niche lets people know that you’re here to help.
Remember, if you approach your website as a way to provide a positive, transformative experience to people, regardless of whether they work with you or not, it will communicate unconditional positive regard. And website visitors will feel that.
Designing a website for your private practice really isn’t that different than holding space for your clients. There are many things you’re already doing in the therapy room to create conditions for healing; all it takes is translating these things to your website to connect with visitors on a very real, transformative level.
This is what elevates therapy websites from good to great. Therapy-seekers are looking at your website right now, wondering, “Can you help me? Do you understand my unique experience?” Using Carl Rogers’ core conditions to design your website will help your future clients feel seen and heard before they ever sit on your couch.
