Hiring Marketing Help as a Therapist: Discover What You Need at Each Stage

Running a private practice as a therapist means marketing is something you have to do but often don’t want to do – yet it’s required to attract new clients and sustain a thriving practice.

The process of marketing and hiring the right help along the way can feel like a mystery. Since marketing and sales weren’t covered in grad school, it’s understandable if you’re asking, “How do I even start with marketing?” and “How can I find the right help?”

Below, we’ll walk through the recommended stages for hiring marketing support, including estimated costs at each phase, so you can make informed decisions based on your practice’s needs.

Marketing Costs to Consider – The Five Categories Of Marketing Spend In Private Practice

In addition to hiring marketing help, there are other costs that come with marketing your practice. These can include expenses like ad spend for Google Ads, getting pictures of yourself taken, stock photos for website content, marketing software for email campaigns, and design templates for your social media posts. 

While these expenses aren’t specifically covered in the stages outlined below, they should be factored into your overall marketing budget, depending on where you are in your growth. When planning your marketing budget, consider breaking the costs into five key categories:

1. Time: This includes the time you spend building relationships in the community, attending events, and networking, as well as managing marketing contractors or employees.
2. Assets: This includes website development, branded social media templates, and other design materials that support your brand.
3. Ongoing: These are recurring costs like directory listings, professional profiles, and paid advertising efforts such as Google Ads.
4. Learning: Many therapists invest in marketing education, such as courses, coaching, or memberships, to improve their skills and knowledge. This category helps you build the capacity to manage marketing more effectively yourself or get help developing the strategy to implement.
5. Hiring: This category refers specifically to the cost of hiring marketing support, whether that’s a freelancer, an agency, or a full-time employee, to handle specific marketing tasks or strategies on your behalf.

This post focuses specifically on the Hiring category.

Stage 1: DIY Marketing (Solo Efforts, Low Investment)

Before outsourcing marketing, therapists should establish foundational strategies they can manage on their own. For many solo practitioners, this can be enough to get and stay full. If a therapist struggles to implement the foundations, the right-sized solution is typically coaching and learning rather than hiring someone to do-it-for-you. Here’s how it breaks down:

• Professional Listings – Creating a profile on Psychology Today ($29.95/month) or similar directories.
• Networking & Referrals – Building a referral network by meeting with other professionals over coffee or attending events. This is an investment of time.
• Coaching & Learning – Marketing education through courses, memberships, or coaching:
  • Online Courses or Memberships – $600 for a structured program.
  • 1-on-1 Coaching – Around $2,000 for personalized strategy and support.

Investment: $0 – $2,500/year (including coaching, courses, directory fees, coffees for people you’re networking with, networking events)

Best for: Therapists starting out or those with a caseload of 15-20 long-term clients and no plans to expand.

Stage 2: Hiring Specialists for Specific Tasks

Once a therapist has maxed out what they can do alone, they may hire professionals for specific marketing tasks, such as:

• Website Design And Maintenance – Hiring a designer for a custom site ($3,000 – $7,000 one-time fee and up to $1,500/ year ongoing).
• Ad Management – Running Google or Facebook ads ($500 – $2,000/month for ad spend + $500 – $1,500 in management fees).
• SEO Optimization – Investing in an SEO specialist ($500 – $2,000/month) to improve Google rankings.
• Social Media Management – Outsourcing content creation ($500 – $1,500/month).
• Coaching & Learning – Continue investing in ongoing learning. This can include:
  • Advanced Marketing Coaching – Around $2,000-$3,000 for personalized strategy support for more specific needs.
  • Advanced Courses & Masterminds – Higher-level programs focused on scaling marketing efforts for growth.

Investment: $2,000 – $8,000 one-time and $500 – $5,000/month

Best for: Solo therapists who are full and want to free up time, or those expanding into workshops/groups and need more inquiries. Solo practices that are in the early stages of becoming a group practice would also land here.

Stage 3: Hiring a Marketing & Sales Agency

For therapists looking to scale into a group practice or beyond a group practice into another stream of income, a full-service marketing agency can provide:

• Brand Development – Creating logos, messaging, and positioning.
• Comprehensive Digital Strategy – Managing SEO, social media, content, and ads.
• Lead Generation & Conversion Optimization – Attracting and converting website visitors into clients 
• Coaching & Learning – As part of working with an agency, therapists might also engage in higher-level strategic coaching to align their vision with their marketing. This could include:
  • Private Practice Coach or Mentor – Around $5,000 for monthly check-ins to keep the therapist on track with growth goals.

Investment: $3,000 – $15,000/month (depending on agency scope and services)

Best for: Therapists transitioning into a group practice or launching digital products that require significant marketing.

Stage 4: Hiring a Fractional CMO (Part-Time Chief Marketing Officer)

For practices generating seven figures, a fractional CMO provides strategic oversight and manages marketing people and execution. This differs from an agency in that a fractional CMO works as an embedded leader in the business, setting the vision and ensuring the right marketing strategies and right marketing people are in place.

• Developing & Overseeing Strategy – Ensuring marketing aligns with business goals.
• Managing Contractors or an Internal Team – Hiring and directing specialists.
• More Hands-On Than an Agency – Fractional CMOs typically work closely with leadership and help execute long-term growth strategies.

Investment: $5,000 – $15,000/month

Best for: Large multi-location group practices or therapists scaling multiple income streams (e.g., online courses, coaching programs) in addition to sustaining clinician caseloads.

Stage 5: Hiring an In-House Marketing Team (Rare for Private Practices)

While large healthcare organizations hire internal marketing teams, even multimillion-dollar therapy practices rarely do so due to the cost. A full team would include:

• Marketing Director ($80,000 – $150,000/year)
• Content Creator ($50,000 – $100,000/year)
• SEO/Ads Manager ($60,000 – $120,000/year)
• Social Media Manager ($40,000 – $80,000/year)

Investment: $250,000 – $500,000/year

Best for: Large-scale organizations, therapy networks, or national multi-location clinics.

Common Mistakes Therapists Make When Hiring Marketing Help

1. Skipping Strategy Before Hiring – Hiring a website designer or social media manager without a clear marketing strategy can lead to wasted money and effort. It’s understandable that therapists sometimes skip this step, as the idea of creating a strategy can feel overwhelming. In many cases, there’s a hope that simply hiring someone who “does marketing” will solve the challenge of attracting more inquiries, but without a solid plan in place, it’s harder to see the kind of lasting results you need.
2. Investing Too Soon – Many therapists jump to hiring marketing help before fully leveraging their existing strengths. Often, stage-1-level investments like building a referral network or refining your professional listings can be enough to fill your practice. It’s important to maximize these efforts first before committing to larger marketing expenses.
3. Underestimating Ongoing Costs – Marketing isn’t a one-time fix, the budget should always include ongoing costs as well as anticipation of further investment into asset refreshes and growth. Scroll up to the list of marketing spend categories to help with clarifying what to expect.
4. Not Tracking Results – Failing to track where your clients come from can make it difficult to assess what’s working. If you’re doing marketing, you need data that can help inform what to keep doing. Without tracking, you don’t know what marketing investments yield a “return on investment”, or ROI. 
5. Inconsistent Marketing – Marketing only when there’s a gap in your caseload which leads to inconsistent referrals. This “feast and famine” approach often leaves therapists scrambling to fill spots when they get too empty, rather than maintaining a steady stream of clients.
6. Not Investing Enough – Many therapists don’t invest enough in their marketing to see consistent results. In my experience, I’ve never coached a practice that is “over marketing.” Not allocating sufficient budget or time can stall growth.

Find Support Along Your Journey – Make Informed Decisions About Marketing Help

Marketing support should be hired in stages based on business needs and budget. Most solo private practices won’t need to go beyond Stage 2, while those expanding into group practice or digital products may benefit from Stage 3 or 4.

By following these recommended stages, therapists can make informed decisions about getting marketing help and scale their practices.