Not every niche is a strong niche for your private practice. You might love working with a particular type of client, but that doesn't automatically mean your niche is specific enough to stand out, meaningful enough to attract the right people, or clear enough to turn website visitors into inquiries.
In this episode, Anna introduces three essential qualities of an effective therapy niche: credible, lovable, and bookable. She explains why your niche needs to establish trust, create a genuine connection with your ideal clients, and give them a clear reason to take the next step. You'll learn how to evaluate your current niche, recognize where your messaging might be falling short, and make your marketing more compelling without trying to appeal to everyone.
Here’s what you’ll learn in this episode:
1️⃣ What it means for a therapy niche to be credible—and why potential clients need to believe you're equipped to help with their specific struggles.
2️⃣ How to make your niche lovable by creating a sense of connection and helping ideal clients feel genuinely understood.
3️⃣ Why a bookable niche goes beyond attracting interest and helps potential clients recognize why they should reach out for support.
4️⃣ How to evaluate your niche using all three qualities and identify what needs to change to attract more right-fit clients.
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Hey everyone. Welcome to episode 99 of Marketing Therapy. Last one in the double digits. I'm excited about this one. I have been... Well, I've been coaching therapists on niches for over seven years now. But I've really been revisiting, reexamining the way that I coach clinicians on their niche in the last year or so.
Because it's been so clear to me as I've worked with more and more, especially in Confident Copy Live and in our done-for-you services, where I'm sitting, like, right next to people as they figure out their niches, and then of course seeing how it performs for them, I've just been seeing the way that the old way of niching, even that I taught, didn't necessarily hold up anymore, and that we need to be thinking about it a little bit differently in order to be effective today in the age of AI, in the time when people are getting more and more psycho-savvy and know what they're looking for a bit more in their therapist. All of these things have pointed to a need to revisit what actually makes a niche work right now. Because what worked four, five, six, seven years ago isn't what's working today. How do we update that? Thankfully, not much has to change.
It really is an evolution of the way that I've always considered niching. But even when I introduced the four types of niches, which if you didn't catch last week's episode, is exactly what we talked about. Even when I introduced that, that was, like, earth-shattering for a lot of people. And so I know that this updated framework that we're looking at here today and that we're gonna be talking about in a workshop next week
it's meeting the needs of today's market in a way other niching advice simply hasn't before. And, you know, one of my greatest frustrations is that clinicians open a practice, and they're told, "Pick a niche."
And they're like, "Awesome. Okay, great. I will. How?" Everyone tells you to pick a niche, and no one tells you how to. And some of the niching advice that I see out there, I mean, you've probably heard it too, like niche around what you're trained in. Like, okay, let your training direct that or follow what lights you up.
What makes you really, really excited? Go after that person. Like, yeah. Or just go where the demand is, right? Wherever people are gonna pay, especially if you're not interested in paneling. This is technically all good advice, but what I've seen and am seeing today is that each one on its own can still lead you to a niche that doesn't fill your practice, at least not with clients who actually want to be there.
So that's what today is about, the three tests that every successful therapy niche has to pass, and then we are diving really deeply into this in next week if you're listening to this in real time. Next week's free workshop called The Known Zone. This is where I'm gonna be sharing my updated approach to niching, and I'm gonna walk you through how to figure out your own known zone in order to be remembered, referred, and ultimately booked.
Okay? So yeah, the old niching advice on its own is not bad, but it is incomplete. Okay? Each one of those pieces of advice, follow what lights you up or go where the demand is, whatever, it's only checking for one thing. And I see this in therapists that come to us a lot. They have a niche that sounds great when they say it out loud, "Anna, this is the client I want to be bringing in."
A website that is even describing it well, right?
So something's working, but the caseload still isn't what they want, and a lot of times that points us to a niche issue.
When I explore those niches, I find that they're only passing one, maybe two of these three tests that we're gonna talk about here today, okay? Now, last episode, like I mentioned, we talked about the four kinds of niches, person, problem, outcome, approach.
So those four kinds of niches, those are the doors that people enter your practice through. Today is determining if that's actually work you wanna be doing at all. Okay? So the three tests that e- every successful niche needs to pass in this market: credible, lovable, bookable. Is every layer of your niche, because there are multiple layers, so starting with the four kinds that we talked about last week and then the other layers beneath it, is each layer credible, lovable and bookable? Credible, you're skilled and experienced in this. Now, this is probably the easiest one. You are not gonna go market something you can't actually do.
But we've gotta make sure that you're willing to claim expertise in this area. Okay? So that's credible, like I said, the easiest one. Lovable, you love this work. This work makes you so jazzed. You leave sessions where you're doing this work feeling totally fulfilled, like you are doing the right thing with your life.
Okay? It lights you up. You would be glad to be known for this thing. If you came to mind when people thought of this niche, you'd be thrilled. That's lovable. So that means you love it, whether clients love you is a separate conversation, okay?
This is whether it's lovable for you. And then bookable, people are looking for it. Your clients already know they need it, and it's named, this niche is named in short and searchable words, things that they would actually be typing into Google or thinking about or using in conversation. That's bookable.
And a lot of people miss that one, but we're gonna talk about that today. So credible and lovable, those start with you. Are you skilled? Do you love it? That's what we call the inside out part of your niche. Bookable is the market recognizing it. That's the outside in part.
You need both directions for your niche to work. Your niche has to be both inside out and outside in if it's going to work today. All right? If you build one from the inside out, work that you love, that you're skilled in, it is true, it lights you up, and it's invisible.
Okay? A niche that is only outside in, yeah, maybe it gets found, but it's not actually work that you enjoy. Okay? That's the risk right now of not passing all three of these tests. So what happens when one is missing? This is where I wanna get practical with you, okay? Because when you think about your niche type that we talked about last week or the other layers of your niche that we're gonna be getting into in the known zone, we have to make sure that each layer is passing credible, lovable, and bookable.
If you take away any one of those three, then you get a very specific type of problem that we're gonna look at. So as I go through these, I want you to be listening for the one that maybe sounds like your practice, okay? So scenario one, your niche is credible and bookable. Okay? You're good at it, and people are looking for it, but we're missing lovable.
You picked what was in demand because you heard that people were paying for it and what you were trained in. So on paper, a very, very smart choice. Yes, you can serve these clients, and yes, they are looking for the services you provide. I hear this one all the time from therapists who built their practice around kids and teens.
That's the most frequent one where I see credible and bookable niches missing the lovable piece.
Yes, they are good at it. They are trained in it. People, parents are searching for it. Yes, yes, yes. Check, check, check. And at some point, for whatever reason, they realize they wanna work with adults. They have built their entire reputation around this, but they're ready to pivot because their niche, even if previously it was lovable, is not anymore, and it's time to make a change.
Also, we can help with that. I do it all the time. Does that sound like you? You picked something that was in demand, and you were trained in it. It was the smart choice, but today isn't lighting you up. What happens? Well, the whole practice ends up being built around work that you want to move away from, right?
I mean, I think back to the early days of Walker Strategy Co when I offered these in-depth website audits. I mean in-depth, painstakingly in-depth, where I would analyze what was up, and I would give them this massive report. And this is before the age of AI, right? I am handwriting these hundreds and hundreds of bullets.
And I realized, wow, people loved these. They absolutely were looking for website audits. I did not like delivering them. I wanted to actually be making the changes, right? And so that's when eventually shifted into adding the design portion of our services.
I had already been writing copy. Adding on design, I was finally able to do the things I was just telling them they should do. Anyway, that's a good example of, again, something I could do, something people were looking for, but I didn't enjoy it. I came to resent it, in fact. Does that sound like you? One question I ask a lot in especially done-for-you kickoff calls, but also in Confident Copy live coaching calls and things like that too, is, "What do you want to do less of?"
Because for a lot of therapists, the answer is sitting right there in their niche. They actually wanna do less of something that they've previously niched around. And we all know if you continue down that path, like, it's headed toward burnout, right? We need that lovable piece because you need to feel fulfilled.
You need to feel deeply, deeply lit up by the work that you're doing. So full and fulfilled, two very different goals, and I want your niche to do both for you, okay? So that's what happens when you pick a niche that is credible and bookable, but missing the lovable piece. What about if your niche is credible and lovable, you can do it, you love it, but it's missing bookable?
When a clinician comes to me and says, "Anna, I am not getting any clients, and I don't know why," more often than not, they're falling into this category. You're great at the work. You love the work. Your clients have no idea they need the work, and that's a painful realization. If you heard last episode, this is the clinical version of niche that I was talking about.
Relational trauma is my favorite example. My done-for-you clients know I talk about it in every kickoff call where we are deciding on specialty pages because it's such a tangible example.
You love relational trauma. Your clients have it. You love helping them experience the light bulbs around it and heal from it. Awesome. It might be the red thread through your entire caseload. Your clients, they're not typing "relational trauma" into Google, and so if you market yourself for relational trauma, guess what?
You are going over their head. They are missing you. They are moving on. Right? They're typing "anxiety" or "people pleasing" or "codependency" or whatever the symptom of the actual trauma is. This is what happens when you niche yourself in a way that is credible and lovable, but missing bookable.
Thankfully, the fix here is quite easy. Keep the work. Change the words, right? Put it in your client's language. Because we know that if there is work that you can do and that you love, chances are there's a market for it, but we have to figure out what those clients are needing, right? That outside in part of your niche.
You've done the inside out. What's the outside in? How do we match that to language that your clients are actually using?
You can do relational trauma work all day long if you want. Do it. Love it. Absolutely. But your website, your marketing, it has to call it what the client calls it. Okay? So like I said, an easy fix, but holy cow, a common one. So if you're finding that no one is coming to you, requesting, wanting, seeking you out for your niche, we might be missing the bookable test.
All right, finally, what if your niche is lovable and bookable, but missing credible? Now, I wanna call out that this is likely very, very rare because you are not going to be marketing yourself for something that you can't do. But I do still see it come up here and there.
You found something popular that you care about or are excited about. People are searching for it. It sounds exciting. It sounds compelling. You haven't necessarily been trained in it or served many clients in it yet. So then two things happen. Your copy can't actually back it up because you haven't yet delivered on it, or it doesn't last.
So you pick something based on a trend, but it expires, right? Because the trend doesn't hold up. What are some examples of this? I wanna be careful here because I, again, don't actually think you're going out there and marketing yourself for something you ethically cannot do. But I do sometimes have conversations with clinicians where they say, "Well, I haven't really done this yet.
I'm interested in it, but I haven't really done it a lot yet." An example of this is if you're wanting to add intensives, which I think is fantastic and I think a lot of clinicians can benefit from. But we don't wanna go whole hog into a model that you're not yet super, super comfortable with. So in a case like that, I would recommend go ahead and add intensives.
Market them to your existing clients. Get a couple under your belt, and then start making some d- decisions about your overall niche as a clinician.
So it's about making sure that whatever you are basing your niche on or choosing is actually reflective of something you are comfortable claiming full expertise in. If not, it's not to say that you can't market it, especially if you're capable of delivering on it, but not letting it lead your marketing until you're at a place where you can say, "You know what?
No, I am an expert in this one thing." Okay? So that's what happens if you pass two tests but you're missing one. Can you see how each of them is a liability. Each of these opens up your practice to, quite frankly, unnecessary risk when it comes to the success of your marketing if you're not hitting all three.
When you miss lovable, it burns you out. When you miss bookable, it keeps you hidden. When you miss credible, it makes you forgettable. Okay? I want you to use these three tests as a filter before you commit to anything. Here are some gut checks you can think on. For credible, could I talk about this in a consult with real client examples and feel 100% claiming expertise?
Lovable, if this were most of my caseload a year from now, would I be happy about it? Bookable, if I Google it, do other practices or resources already exist around it? That's a good sign, by the way. When your niche passes all three of these tests, it allows you to attract the right fit clients, the ones that light you up, that make you so excited to do this job and get out of bed every morning, and it allows you at the same time to bless and release the people who are not the right fit. I just had a discussion earlier this evening, prior to pressing record, with a Confident Copy graduate of ours who operates and practices through a feminist lens, and she said she just recently had a experience with a client where she really wishes they had known that.
And it wasn't her fault, 'cause she's actually doing a really great job of communicating her approach in her copy, but these clients didn't realize when they signed up to work with her that they were sitting down with a clinician who operated from that point of view, and it meant that they weren't a good fit.
This is the beauty of your copy. Now, with that insight, she can go and update her copy and her niche to be even more reflective of the type of work that she does, so that the right fit people are like, "Holy cow, yes, I want that type of therapist," and the wrong fit people can say, "I'm not in the right place."
Amazing. Your niche must do both of those things. It must both attract right fit clients and bless and release. It should repel poor fit clients. When your niche passes all three of these tests, it's going to do that for you. Okay? Now, I mentioned that we are diving deep into this updated framework next week, November 17th, 11:00 AM Eastern.
It's called the Known Zone. We are talking about the three steps to creating a niche that makes you remembered, referred, and booked. I would love to see you there. You can jump over to walkerstrategyco.com/tkz, The Known Zone, TKZ, and drop in your name and email. If you can't join us live, although I hope you can, but if you can't, everyone who signs up will get a limited time replay.
So even if you can't make it, even if you have a client session at that time, go ahead and drop in your email so we can get that over to you as soon as we wrap up next Tuesday. Remember, the three tests, credible, lovable, bookable, these apply to every layer of your niche. This is how you know if you have picked something that is actually going to work in this market and that is actually going to sustain you from a marketing perspective, from a burnout perspective, and lead to the full feel-good caseload that I wanna see you have. Okay? Credible, lovable, bookable. Can every layer of your niche pass every one of those tests? If yes, you are onto something. If not, let's find where the breakdown is. Let's make some adjustments and then let's get to work infusing this into your marketing so people can actually experience it and say, "Holy cow, I didn't know there was a therapist who did that thing.
Holy cow, I know that's the therapist that I wanna work with. Holy cow, you're it." That's what I want for you. Hopefully, I'll see you next Tuesday, The Known Zone, walkerstrategyco.com/tkz. I'll see you then.
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About Marketing Therapy
Marketing Therapy is the podcast where therapists learn how to market their private practices without burnout, self-doubt, or sleazy tactics. Hosted by Anna Walker—marketing coach, strategist, and founder of Walker Strategy Co—each episode brings you clear, grounded advice to help you attract the right-fit, full-fee clients and grow a practice you feel proud of.
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