Finding an affordable mental health copywriter is important for growing your practice by bringing in new clients.
Affordability is important so you don’t go over your budget… as is experience in the mental health field so they can write with authority. Authority helps you get seen on Google, and helps new clients feel good booking your services (more on that later).
If you’re a mental health professional and want to grow your business, this post is for you. In this post, I’ll explain what a copywriter is and does, and show you a step-by-step process for finding one who can get you great results in an affordable way. First off…
What is a Copywriter, and Why Do They Matter?
A copywriter is someone who writes sales “copy.” Copy is any material meant to get your audience to take a specific action. This can be signing up for your email newsletter or booking a therapy session with you.
If you take it from copywriting legend Claude Hopkins (the man behind the success of Pepsodent, Bissell Sweepers, Schlitz Beer and many, many others), a copywriter is a “salesman in print.”
So, just like a face-to-face salesman is judged on how much he sales, a copywriter is judged based on how much he sales – through writing.
A copywriter has many outlets, from direct mail advertisements, to commercials, to emails, blogs, website copy, online ads and more.
It’s important for you to know that copywriting is a serious profession with a range of applications and skill levels. The bottom line: you need a copywriter who can measurably improve sales without breaking the bank.
And if you’re in the mental health field, you need a mental health copywriter.
What is a Mental Health Copywriter?
A Mental Health Copywriter is a copywriter with specialized knowledge in the mental health field. He can write intelligently about things like depression, anxiety, stress, OCD, ADHD, panic attacks, anger, rage, suicidality and more.
In addition to symptoms that your clients might be facing, a mental health copywriter can write about treatments modalities such as ACT, CBT, DBT, EMDR, Somatic Experiencing, Reclaiming Your Inner Child and more.
Here’s the scoop: Google puts mental health in the Your Money or Your Life (YMYL) category. By that they mean inaccurate content can harm readers, and potentially end in suicide or death. Due to this potential for harm, Google is very cautious about what mental health providers it ranks.
That’s why you need a mental health copywriter who can write with Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness (EAT). Otherwise, you could lose your rank and incoming clients.
What Does Affordable Mean in Relation to a Copywriter?
Theoretically, you can hire a million-dollar copywriter, but it’s highly unlikely you’d need one.
Similarly, you can hire a $15/hr copywriter online. But that risks spending money on copy that may or may not do the job. You’d probably have to do it again, leading to further spending.
The cold, hard truth is that there is no test for becoming a copywriter. Anyone can write a few emails and blogs and call himself a copywriter. It’s unfortunate, because there is serious skill and expertise involved in writing profitable promotions.
This means a poor copywriter can be a drain on your bottom line, while a professional copywriter can bring in 10x or more what he costs.
When you’re looking for an affordable mental health copywriter, remember that the point isn’t just to have something online. Whatever is written needs to have strong SEO, be compelling to your audience, and have a strong call-to-action.
So, to find an affordable mental health copywriter is a balancing act. You don’t want to be cheap because you may have to redo the same copy. And you don’t want to spend more than necessary to get a good result.
For mental health copywriting, affordable means getting copy that has at minimum a 3x return on investment. If you spend $2,000 to rewrite your entire website, you want to bring in $6,000 from it in a short time frame.
How to Find an Affordable Mental Health Copywriter
There are 6 easy steps to finding an affordable mental health copywriter. The whole process should take you under two hours. Let’s get started.
Step 1: What outcome do you want from your affordable mental health copywriter?
As mentioned before, there are a variety of tools – website copy, emails, landing pages, blogs, psychology today profiles, etc.
A good mental health copywriter will be able to pick the best tools to achieve your goals and tell you why in a concise way. If they can’t explain it simply, that’s a sign that they don’t fully understand their craft and you should find someone with more experience.
Try to write down your goals in a few bullet points to make your search easier. For example:
- I want a website that is attractive to new clients
- That ranks on the first page of Google for my area of practice and specialty
- A way to capture email addresses for email marketing efforts
- And a psychology today profile that gets 5 new patients to call me for services each month
Having this list handy will help you in selecting a mental health copywriter in step 6.
Step 2: Take Stock of Any Mental Health Copywriting You Already Have.
If you look at your current website, are the words engaging to your ideal clients? (Your mental health copywriter will be able to help determine this.) Does your voice shine through?
If you’re writing emails, what’s the open rate?
Do you have any collateral you can offer in exchange for new clients’ emails, such as a guide or e-book?
Are your blogs attracting readers?
A good mental health copywriter will ask for material like this to create a strategy. They must know where you’re at and what you’ve tried before to make sure new efforts will succeed.
- They can grow your email list by offering a free guide or e-book, then get more sales from the list via email marketing.
- If your website is getting views but you’re not seeing any impact on your bottom line, a website audit could reveal areas for improvement in your website copy.
- You need blogs that improve your rank on Google. That gives your website enough opportunity to sell your viewers.
Step 3: Search for an Affordable Mental Health Copywriter on Upwork and Fiverr.
As you may know, Upwork and Fiverr are platforms where freelancers of all types offer their services to clients.
Like with a mechanic, you get what you pay for on these platforms. But that doesn’t mean you need to pay someone $200/hr. for copywriting. If I wasn’t a copywriter myself, I would stay in the $35 – $120/hr. range if I wanted to hire someone.
To start, type “mental health copywriter” or “copywriter for therapists” into the search bar. Then glance through a couple of profiles and make note of the ones that stick out to you. They will come in handy in step 4.
Step 4: Allow Affordable Mental Health Copywriters to Come to You
Post your job on Upwork and Fiverr. Don’t worry, it’s free to post.
Next, invite those mental health copywriters who caught your attention in step 3 to bid for the job.
Have a few conversations with the people who make a bid for your job. Even if you don’t hire from this exercise, you still will have benefitted from seeing what’s out there. Your brain will start to notice patterns and separate the good from the not-so-good.
This step could be where your journey to find an affordable mental health copywriter ends. But there’s one other good source for finding mental health copywriters…
Step 5: Do a Google Search for “Mental Health Copywriter”.
If you search “Mental Health Copywriter” in Google, you’ll find some good options.
And the fact that these mental health copywriters are on page one of Google for their keywords proves that they can get you similar results.
Keep in mind that ranking in Google and being persuasive to your ideal clients are two different things. The best websites are both persuasive and rank high on Google.
Note: Some websites rank highly not for their emotional appeal, but for their direct efforts at ranking in Google. You want to rank high on google AND convert as many readers into clients as you can. So, look for a copywriter who can engage your emotions. They’ll do the same for your viewers and convert them into clients.
Step 6: Reach Out to 3 Mental Health Copywriters
By now, you’ve seen what’s out there and are ready to make an informed choice. Reach out to at least 3 mental health copywriters whose personality you like and ask how they can help you acheive your desired outcomes from step 1.
See what advice they have and ask about their availability. Look through their portfolios and tell them which pieces you liked (that will help them when writing your copy).
From there, choose a copywriter and be ready for great results.
Now You’ve Found and Affordable Mental Health Copywriter
Now you know how an affordable mental health copywriter can help you succeed in your practice. You know there is a balance between skill and affordability. But you know that cheap doesn’t mean good.
So, aim for a copywriter who can back up his hourly rate or project rate with real world results and skill. Remember: you get what you pay for. So be willing to spend a little without breaking the bank. A great website, email sequence, series of blogs, or online ads can be the difference of dozens of clients for your practice.
As always, thanks for reading this blog. Please check out my other mental health copywriting blogs and tell me what you think in the comment section below.
-Brandon
P.S. If you’re ready to hire a mental health copywriter, I can help you. Have a look at my services page and contact me. Let’s talk about your project and see how I can help you while still being affordable.
Photo credits: Pexels.com