Favorite Logos of 2022
A recap of some of my favorite unchosen logos and submarks from 2022 branding projects including one of a geometric hummingbird logo and one for a health and wellness coach logo.
There were so many fun branding projects in 2022 and so many amazing clients! Since each branding process gets 2-3 fully designed brand identity options, not all logos make the cut. Even if they don’t become the final version of a logo design, the creation and refinement is still an important part of the process. The health and wellness coaching logo on the bottom left even got featured on designrush best-designs. And I’m still a little in love with the geometric hummingbird logo. 😍
pst…
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A Guide to SEO for Therapists
Missing out on potential leads? Learn how to improve your search engine ranking and increase traffic to your website with tailored SEO tips for therapists.
If you’re a therapist, having effective SEO can help you stand out in the crowded online marketplace and attract potential leads who are looking for services. Where do you start if you’ve never done SEO before? Optimizing your website and content with tailored SEO tips is essential if you want to improve your search engine ranking and drive more traffic to your website. If you’ve never done any SEO before, you’re in the right place - start here!
Understand Search Engine Usage and Optimization Strategies.
Start by understanding how to use search engine optimization (SEO) effectively. This includes knowing which keywords and phrases to use in your pages and blog posts to improve your visibility. You should also be familiar with common SEO practices such as optimizing page titles, meta descriptions, and the structure of URLs for maximum visibility. Furthermore, set up quality link-building campaigns on social media or other related websites to drive more traffic to your website.
Create Quality Content That Showcases Your Specialty Areas.
Publishing quality content is essential for successful SEO. Relevant keywords and content tailored to what potential clients are searching for will help to increase your visibility in search engine results. Additionally, you should tailor the content to include specialty areas that you specialize in as a therapist. This ensures that your site has more chances of appearing at the top of search engine results pages whenever someone searches for a specific condition or concern.
Clearly Define Keywords and Identify Long-Tail Keywords.
Keywords are the foundation of effective SEO, and as a therapist, you’ll need to identify words and phrases that serve as important search terms for your target audience. For example, you would be better off with a keyword like “EMDR for car accidents” rather than “EMDR therapy”. The more specific, the higher likelihood you will be seen on search results. Once you’ve done that, you can optimize content in order to rank higher on SERPs (search engine results pages). Additionally, by identifying long-tail keywords relevant to your specialty practice, you can ensure better visibility when people search for specific services or types of therapy.
Optimize your Site for Mobile Viewing.
Mobile optimization is crucial for creating a successful therapy website. So many people (and potential clients!) are using phones and tablets to browse the web and look for a therapist. To ensure that these visitors don't become frustrated with load times or the design of your website on their device, make sure that your web design is responsive (aka: it scales to a smaller screens size) and optimized for different devices. This will ensure that potential clients are able to navigate and access all relevant information quickly and easily on their device of choice!
Optimize Your Website With Structured Data, Schema Markup, and Meta Descriptions & Tags.
A little jargony… I know but stick with me! Structured data, schema markup, and meta descriptions & tags are the technical foundations of Search Engine Optimization. For example, schema markups allow you to identify your content and make it easier for search engines to accurately categorize your website when people are searching for specific topics. Similarly, optimizing your meta titles and descriptions can help potential clients quickly identify whether your website offers the services they’re looking for — making it easier for them to access valuable resources. Additionally, optimizing URLs can increase click-through rates from SERPs (search engine result pages), meaning that more people have a chance of discovering the site on Google or other popular search engines. This does start to get into the weeds and this is usually where I’d recommend chatting with a web designer who knows how to easily set these data points up for your website.
Track Results With Analytics & Use Information to Effectively Monitor Progress Over Time.
In order to track the success of your SEO efforts, you should take advantage of analytics tools such as Google Analytics. It can provide valuable insights into how visitors interact with your website and how people are finding your site in the first place. It’s important to review this data regularly, so that you can make changes to your website’s design and content based on what is actually working for you. Tracking progress over time can allow you to identify where improvements could be made, allowing you to refine marketing strategies and optimize exposure. If you’re not sure how to set up Google Analytics, your web designer can help point you in the right direction!
Don’t miss out on potential leads! You can improve your search engine ranking and increase traffic to your website with a little planning and these tailored SEO tips specifically for therapists! You’ve got this.
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How to Find Unique Stock Photos for Coaches
Are you struggling to find beautiful photos that represent your business for your website? When searching for stock photos, it can be a challenge to find photos that don’t scream “stock photo”, as well as to avoid using the same photo as every other coaching business out there. We want to help you find photos that speak to you and your brand from some of our favorite stock photo resources.
Before we share the resources, why do you even need good photos?
Photos have the ability to elevate your website design or completely distract from it - no matter how well-designed it is. As a coach, your website is often the first place potential clients turn to find out more about you. Your website should convey you, your personality, and why people should work with you. The photos you use have the ability to enforce that personality and show off who you are in a more visual way than copy can.
Before beginning your search for unique stock photos, take a moment to think about the atmosphere and style you wish to portray through them. Do you want to display a sophisticated, professional vibe? Or show off your bubbly, colorful personality? Maybe you want to display your love for nature through your photos.
Once you’ve thought through these things, you can begin your search for the best stock photos for your coaching website.
Our favorite sources for free stock photography are:
These two websites have great libraries of photos that differentiate from the often cheesy stock photos found online. They tend to have a more artful approach – perfect for finding elevated photos for your coaching website.
When searching on free stock websites, try to search outside of the obvious terms like “health coach”. You may find better results when searching other things like “woman working”, “friends coffee”, or “minimal aesthetic” that speak to your brand and the photos you are looking for.
Another great option for your website is to take a look at paid stock options. While not always necessary, it can open up a lot more options to use for banner images on your website!
A few of our favorite options for paid stock photos are:
With both free and paid stock photography, make sure to read licensing agreements thoroughly, and make sure you understand before using the images.
Get intentional with your photo choices for your website and your clients will instantly feel more attracted to your business!
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Monthly Website To-Do’s for Therapists and Coaches
You’ve worked hard over weeks, maybe even months, to get your website put together and ready for the world to see. Once it’s live, it can be easy to mark it off the to-do list and shift your focus elsewhere. However, it is important that you continue to make sure your website is healthy and well-maintained.
By making website maintenance a part of your monthly routine, you can help ensure that your website visitors have a great experience, you continue to drive traffic from search engines, and that you are consistently gaining new clients!
Remember, your website is your best marketing tool!
We’re going to provide a few simple steps you can take each month to keep your website running smoothly and effectively.
Create New Content - Why take the time and effort to add new content to your website? Search engines like Google love websites that are consistently adding new content to their website. They are far more likely to show active, updated websites in search results to users rather than websites that haven’t changed for months on end.
You don’t have to publish multiple blog posts a week in order to keep your website relevant in search results. Try to start with even just one blog post per month with relevant, SEO-friendly content. If you don’t have the time to take on blogging right now, try sharing relevant videos to your blog, creating a podcast and sharing episodes, or utilize a members area on your site.
Check forms and look for broken links - If your contact forms on your website aren’t making it to your inbox, you could be missing out on a large amount of opportunity for your business. Take a few minutes every month to do a test run on your contact forms. Those few minutes could be the difference in you getting to help a new client or not!
While you’re checking forms, take a quick swipe through your website and check all of your buttons and links to ensure they are linking to the proper pages. This may seem like a monotonous and unnecessary task but it will help users have the best experience possible.
Review your website analytics - Website analytics can provide you data on where your website traffic is coming from, how many people are visiting your site, how long they are looking at it and more. If your website is hosted on Squarespace, you can see these analytics right in your dashboard.
You can also find analytics with Google’s tools: Google Analytics, Google Search Console, and Search Console Insights.
Even just 10-15 minutes of website analysis every month can help you make sure your content is reaching the right audience, as well as inform your marketing strategy for the month ahead.
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3 Ways to Add Staff Member Bios to Your Website
One of the most important parts of your website is the About page. Your potential clients and customers want to know who you are and what your business is about. A great way to do this is by sharing your staff bios on the page and sharing a little bit about them.
We’re sharing three creative ways to add staff members bio to your website!
Image & Description
Have a lot to say about your staff? A side by side photo and description can allow for plenty of space to write out an about section or staff bio. Here’s one of our favorite examples from a dental office website design!
Stacked Descriptions
If you have quite a few staff members who need bios or shorter descriptions for your staff, try out the “Stack” photo layout. Customize the appearance in your Site Styles to change up the colors, fonts, spacing, etc. This featured layout works great for simple staff member bios or for multiple psychologists on a private practice website design.
Simple Grid
Looking to keep it simple? This option is also laid out with the “Stack” photo block but just adds names and job titles. An easy layout for private therapy practices who may be updating their staff page often! A good website design will account for the hierarchy of the staff members as well as the space needed for their bios and content.
What Every Coaching Website Needs on the Homepage
As a coach, you need a website that speaks to your audience and compels them to work with you. While it should look beautiful, you also need it to include the right content to resonate with your audience.
So, what do you actually need to include on the homepage of your coaching website?
Before you start planning out your content, it’s important that you think through a few things.
Who are you trying to reach? The age, lifestyle, interests, and beyond can affect what type of content your website should include. You’ll want to ensure you have a clearly defined audience in place before you can properly write out the content for your website.
What information do your clients usually need to know? Think through some of the most commonly asked questions you receive by potential clients. You’ll want to make this information prominent and easy to access on your website. It’ll save both of you time, as well as ease their decision process.
How can you represent your business? When planning your website content, try to express your personality and what you can do for potential clients. They want to work with a coach who is going to understand and relate to them.
Now that you’ve thought through these questions, you’re ready to start planning out your content. Here are a few important details to include on your coaching website’s homepage:
A Clear Headline – As soon as someone lands on your page, they should be able to read your headline and briefly understand what coaching services you offer and how you can help them.
Specialties/Services – No need to go into detail on your homepage, but make it clear to your audience what options you have for your coaching services. This will save them from having to hunt around your website to find these answers.
Easy Navigation – Navigation can either make or break the usability of a website. Provide a clear, easy to use menu, as well as buttons throughout the page to link to other subpages on your site.
Yourself! – A friendly photo of yourself and/or your team can help potential clients trust you more quickly, as well as establish more credibility.
Brief About Paragraph – Provide an about section to describe you, your business, and the results clients can expect to achieve when they work with you. This can link to another page for more details.
Contact Option – This can be set up in a variety of ways, but it is important to have a way for users to contact you on your homepage. It can be a brief contact form or simply a button linking to your full contact page.
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How to Choose the Right Web Design Option for Your Business
So, you’ve decided you’re ready to take the leap and start a website for your business? It can feel like a daunting decision on what to do next. Should you buy a pre-made template online or hire a designer for a fully custom website design? We’re sharing the reasons you may choose one over the other.
Your Current Budget
As you can expect, hiring a designer for a custom website is much more expensive than purchasing a template. Squarespace templates can range from as low as $97 and up to $500. Custom websites can range greatly, depending on who you work with and the customizations you require.Your Available Time
Remember…“time is money”. Is it worth it for you to have someone else do the work for you so you can focus on other aspects of your business? Templates are typically fairly simple to customize but will require more of your time than a fully customized website.
A custom website will likely take less effort on your end, but the overall process may be longer as a designer will be creating your website from scratch!Your Current and Future Goals
If you’re just getting started in your business or are working on a low budget, you may want to start out with a Squarespace template for your website. Particularly if you see yourself rebranding in the next year or two, it may not be worth it to invest in a custom website until you have a more established brand identity.
If you have an established brand and a specific look in mind for your website, you may want to opt for a custom built website. A custom website will be more tailored to your audience and help you avoid having to redo your website in another year or two as your brand evolves. Additionally, a designer can help you incorporate custom features or plugins into your website that will be specifically tailored to your business needs.
Here at June Mango, we offer both Squarespace Templates and fully customized websites through our Go Live in 5 process. Reach out to us today for more details!
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Why you need a website for your therapy private practice
A large part of running a successful private practice is having a solid marketing strategy. If users can’t find your business online, then they are far less likely to become a client of your practice.
If you run a practice that is already full or tends to get plenty of word-of-mouth clients, then continue with your current marketing strategies. However, if you are like most private therapy practices, a website will only benefit you. A custom private practice website design will give potential clients the information they need to choose a therapist that best meets their needs.
If you aren’t convinced already, here are four reasons you need a thoughtful private practice website design:
SEO - If people can’t find your practice online, then they may never know you exist. A website will “put you on the map” and allow your private practice to start showing up when potential clients search for therapists in their area.
Connect with your ideal clients - A website tells your clients who you are and what people you serve. Your website has the ability to portray the atmosphere of your practice and help ideal clients feel connected and excited about the opportunity to become a client.
Shed the mental health stigma - For years, mental health has had a negative stigma around it. However, in the past few years, people are making strides towards a more positive outlook on mental health. When it comes to your website, you have the ability to push this movement forward with your website design. Good website design can help therapy-seekers feel seen and accepted. It can take away the fear many people may have about reaching out for help. Your website is a platform for you to show who you are and help potential clients feel connected to you from the start.
Accurately reflect you and your methodology - When searching for a therapist, people take a much more personal approach than in other industries. They want to know who their therapist is, their story, and how they can help them with the struggles they are walking through. While credentials and professional experience do hold value, clients will feel most seen and heard if they know that their therapist has walked through similar trials as they have. A good private practice website design will have information about your approach, your counseling options and your therapists’ bios.
If you’re just starting your private practice, get something up online! If users can’t find your business online, then they are far less likely to become a client of your practice. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but it should generally reflect your unique approach so you can help more people! We need what you have to offer!!
You've Got This
〰️
You've Got This 〰️
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What Therapists Need to Know Before Hiring a Web Designer
When it comes to choosing a website designer for your upcoming therapy website, it’s important to ask a few questions before making your hire. While it is important that you live a designer’s style and aesthetic, it’s also just as crucial to ask a few more practical questions before hiring.
We’ll walk you through 5 questions therapists should ask before hiring a web designer!
How do you like to communicate?
Working with a team or group of people on your website can be efficient but can also cause miscommunication if not set up properly. Be sure to ask potential designers what their process is for managing the project. How will they keep you informed of deadlines? Will you do video calls, voice chats, email, or use a project management system? Who will you be communicating with?
Be sure you understand what their process looks like and ensure that will work well with your systems. If you feel strongly against working in a client’s project management system, try to find a designer that works in a platform you feel comfortable with.Who will manage your site after it’s done?
As a therapist, this is a particularly important question to ask. We understand that you are busy working with clients and may not have extra staff available to keep your website running smoothly. Check in with any potential designers on how much maintenance your website will need, if they will help with that, or if you will be able to do it yourself.How will a new website connect you with your clients?
Sure, you want a pretty website, but more than that, you should want it to connect you with your clients. Find out how your new website will connect you to your therapy clients. This may mean you need to work with a designer who has worked on therapy websites before, or in similar industries. Don’t be afraid to ask lots of questions!How do you work best? (collaboration, designer takes the reins, etc)
How involved do you want to be in the website process? If you love to see every step of the process, you may have more success working with a designer who values collaboration.
Would you rather have an initial consultation then let the designer take the reins and run with your project? Seek out a designer who values this type of work style!What pages/content do you want to showcase?
When choosing a website designer, you’ll want to make sure they work on a website platform that works for your needs. Certain website platforms work better for simple content, while more complex needs may require particular plugins that are only offered on Wordpress, for example.
Asking these questions before hiring your website designer will ensure a smooth process and better communication!
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New Work: Snow Shimazu Holistic Wellness and Yoga
New work! This lovely web launch for Snow Shimazu, a holistic health pro and yoga expert, is a great example of a light, airy website. Lots of white space (her name is Snow after all!), parallax photos and beautiful branding.
Client:
Snow Shimazu
Service:
Go Live in 5® Web Design
Design Direction:
Light, airy
#1 Goal:
New service promotion
Timeline:
5 days
URL:
snowshimazu.com
Squarespace Font Combinations for Healers
We’re providing 6 font pairings, as well as sharing the emotions/feelings they evoke. Think about who your brand is and what you want to say, then find the perfect font pairing for you!
Ready to launch your wellness and healing brand but don’t know what fonts to use? You’re not alone. It can be challenging to find a combination of fonts that speaks to you and your brand, while standing out from the sea of other healer websites.
We’re providing 6 font pairings, as well as sharing the emotions/feelings they evoke. Think about who your brand is and what you want to say, then find the perfect font pairing for you!
Orpheus & EB Garamond
Timeless
Sophisticated
Elegant
Sophisticated
Trustworthy
Quiche Sans Light & Roboto Light
Relaxed
Minimal
Soft
Approachable
Inviting
Forum & Work Sans
Modern
Friendly
Grounded
Structured
Established
Lust & Raleway
Sophisticated
Urban
Bold
Sleek
Fashion-Forward
Freight Neo Pro & Lato
Polished
Simple
Clean
Honest
Minimal
Freight Big Pro & Garamond Premier Pro
Elevated
Elegant
Timeless
High-End
Soft
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"I bought a web design template. Now what?"
So you just bought that beautiful new website template from a trusted designer and you’re ready to get to work! But now you’ve been trying to change layouts, add your own brand colors and fonts and it just doesn’t look right. It definitely doesn’t look as professional as the original template you hoped you were duplicating. So what gives?
This is so tough. And first, let me just say, it’s not your fault. It’s really hard to get a pre-made template and make it look exactly like the original design once you implement your own content. Unless you are following the design and layout exactly (meaning no changes or additions!), things can get wonky.
The problem is not you.
The problem is that you’re trying to fit yourself and your brand into something that was never made to fit your exact needs. Does that mean you have to go hire a web designer 1:1 for a custom project? Nope. That’s certainly the best way to get a custom-made website, but for those who are not ready, have a small budget or just want to do it themselves, templates are still a good option.
So what’s missing? And how can you fix it?
The problem is that you are given only one piece of the puzzle. Admittedly, it’s a really crucial piece, but it doesn’t create the whole picture. When you have a designer template, the designer has also hand-picked photos, custom color palettes, font pairings and even thought through the copy and structure of the website. BUT - they don’t give you that. And you wouldn’t want that because again, it’s not one-size-fits-all.
Imagine you want to make Molly Yeh’s Kransekake for a holiday party. You look at the photos of her beautiful cake and swoon over the idea of creating such a perfect cake. So you read her recipe and gather all of your ingredients. Only… you don’t have rosewater so you sub vanilla extract and you don’t have sprinkles but you have some sanding sugar, and you even make a paper chain to hang on it, but yours is much wider and clunkier and by the time your done, you certainly have some version of a kransekake, but it’s nothing like Molly Yeh’s.
This is exactly what happens with a web template. Because you are not a designer (or a food network star!). And that’s okay.
Just like Molly Yeh’s cake needs cute, thoughtful design touches, so does your DIY website. You need curated photos that match and work together with your brand colors and actually fit the layout of a website and also don’t look weird with text over them…. OR font pairings that feel sophisticated, but also approachable if that’s your thing. These are elements a designer knows how to find, create or curate.
The route to alleviating all this frustration is by having the proper tools and assets ready to implement into the process and project.
These elements have the ability to elevate your website design or completely unglue it - no matter how well-designed a template is. As an online business, your website is often the first place potential clients turn to find out more about you. Your website should convey you, your personality, and why people should work with you. The photos you use have the ability to enforce that personality and show off who you are in a more visual way than copy can. The layout needs to flow and work together.
Before beginning your search for the perfect web design template, get intentional with your photo choices, font pairings, and color schemes. Write your copy and then see if it will really fit in that web templates layout. Better yet, write your copy TO FIT once you’ve picked your dream template. Your website and your clients will instantly feel more attracted to your business when each element is thoughtful and carefully curated!
You can do this.
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Web Design Myth: I should appeal to everyone in order to book more clients.
When preparing to create a new website for your business, it can be easy to fall into the trap of attempting to appeal to everyone. While it’s a great idea, it just isn’t possible. Certain types of people are drawn to certain websites and designs, while other people are drawn to the total opposite.
If you try to find the “middle ground” to appeal to everyone, you end up appealing to no one! There are definitely certain overlapping elements that can appeal to multiple people, but the reality is, you’ll never have the perfect combination.
So, what’s the best way to tackle your website? Choose a niche! Think about your audience for your business/product, what they like, how they spend their time, their demographics, etc. You’ll be able to start narrowing down your audience and reaching those people more effectively.
Here are a few things to think through to appeal to your niche:
Branding – Are you offering services targeting at kids and teens? Your brand should portray a vibrant, youthful feel. Do you provide therapy to adults? You’ll want your brand to portray a trustworthy, relaxed vibe.
Your branding should directly reflect you, your audience, and your brand’s personality.
Colors – Like with your branding, your colors should also appeal to your niche audience. A bright, colorful palette would not make sense for a brand focused on therapy for grieving and loss. However, it may make sense for a young company offering virtual assistant services! Be sure your colors reflect the personality you want to give off.
Photos – Photos have the ability to quickly attract or deter your audience. If they can’t see themselves represented in your photos, they will be much quicker to try another website. If your organization is focused on diversity, your photos should reflect that! If you offer coaching for middle-aged women, your photos should show women in that demographic.
As you put together your website, be sure to provide multiple opportunities for your audience to hire you. If they’re never invited to reach out or contact you, they’ll move on and look elsewhere!
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How to Find Sophisticated Therapy Stock Photos
Did you know it takes only 50 milliseconds (0.05 seconds) for users to form an opinion about your website that determines if they stay or leave? Often, the first thing a user sees in that time is the photos on your site.
Photos have the ability to elevate your website design or completely distract from it - no matter how well-designed it is.
As a therapist, you want your clients to feel seen and comforted upon arrival to your website. They want to know that your practice provides a safe place for them to come as they are – with all of their feelings and struggles. The goal of your website photography should be to aid in portraying the atmosphere you wish to provide at your practice.
Before beginning your search for therapy stock photos, take a moment to think about the atmosphere and style you wish to portray through them. Do you want to display a cozy, nurturing environment? Or a light, inviting, and minimal space? Do you want to portray the diversity of your clients or focus on your space itself?
After you’ve thought through these things, you can begin your search for the best stock photos for your therapy website.
Our favorite sources for free stock photography are pexels.com and unsplash.com.
These two websites have great libraries of photos that differentiate from the often cheesy stock photos found online. They tend to have a more artful approach – perfect for finding sophisticated therapy photos.
When searching on free stock websites, try to search outside of the obvious terms like “therapy” and “therapist”. You may find great results when searching other things like “office”, “friends”, or “minimal”.
Another great option for your website is to take a look at paid stock options. While not always necessary, it can open up a lot more options to use for banner images on your website! A few of our favorite options for paid stock photos are:
With both free and paid stock photography, make sure to read licensing agreements thoroughly, and make sure you understand before using the images!
Get intentional with your photo choices for your website and your clients will instantly feel more attracted to your practice!
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Setting boundaries via email
Even if you love your clients, it's still super important to set up clear and simple client boundaries. This not only helps you, but is important for them as well. I promise it's helpful for everyone involved!
There are lots of emails that come through the virtual door that may test your boundaries. It can be hard to hold the limit you’ve set for yourself, especially if you really want to nail the sale or take on the opportunity. But remember that you set your boundaries for YOU. And most of the time, people respect you when you hold true to your boundaries. If they don’t, that’s their problem. Literally… you can’t solve that for them or fix their feelings.
Important! I’m not saying that you should be unkind. In fact, I find that limits, rules and boundaries are a kindness in themselves. They let people know what to expect and what won’t fly.
But since sticking to those boundaries can be hard, here are a few common ideas to help you respond thoroughly, quickly, and cheerfully to those boundary-pushing emails.
Email #1: I want a discount!
Here’s some truth talk: once you know your worth, you’ll stop discounting your prices. Only you can do the exact thing that you are offering in the exact way you’re offering it. So when someone asks for a discount, be kind but firm.
Start by sharing that you understand where they’re coming from. Having a set budget may be one of their boundaries!
Share that you can’t lower your prices. You can communicate that your prices are carefully calculated based on the process and your expertise.
Reiterate that you understand. If that means you can’t work together, no harm no foul.
Offer to refer them to someone else. This may seem counterintuitive, but people really appreciate this extra step. They probably spent a bit of time searching for someone like you to help them. They’ll leave you without working together, but may still recommend you to someone else (who CAN afford you!).
Email #2: I want extra stuff!
This may depend on the person and the project. For example, you may feel a humble request for something small is no big deal. But what if that’s the first of many requests? This can quickly spin out of control.
Again, be kind but firm. Share that, unfortunately, you just can’t offer or include that extra thing.
Offer your reasoning. This might be that it takes too much extra time, or that it’s simply not included. It can be very straightforward and simple.
Share how they can access that thing for value. In other words, if they would like to purchase the extra item, you’d be happy to share that for $$XYZ price.
Leave the ball in their court. Simply ask them to let you know if they’d like to move forward with your offer. They’ll likely decline, but if they do want to, you’re no longer giving your precious time/energy/work for free.
Email #3: I need this now!
I get these emails a lot. :) For some reason, a few people think that we are not humans but instead are some kind of creative machines that should be available at all hours of the day, any day of the week. This type of email is tricky because often the request is nice and the email conveys a real sense of need. It’s hard not to help someone in NEED! But truthfully, they probably don’t actually NEED the thing (at least not right NOW!)
Again, be kind but firm (are you sensing a theme yet?). First, acknowledge their request and that it is (or feels) urgent.
Let them know when you will tackle it. If they said they really need something fulfilled on Sunday when you don’t work weekends, let them know what your soonest availability is. A chipper, “I’d be happy to help! My next available time is Monday at…” works perfectly.
Again, confirm they want to move forward with the new arrangement. Simply ask them to let you know if that works for them.
Email #4: A complaint.
Ugh, this is a tough one. It really hits your pride and if you’re a people pleaser, it may trigger a need to “fix” it for them. But you don’t necessarily have to. This is a more nuanced email depending on the gripe, but here are a few guidelines.
Note that you understand their complaint and why they feel the need to raise it.
If you do need to make amends in some way, share how you plan to do so and what they can expect.
Let them know that their feedback is valuable. You can also share how you may incorporate their feedback into your future work, etc.
Wish them well and wrap it up.
Email #5: Waiting on payment.
Even years into business, this still happens to me occasionally. An invoice goes out, but it seems to get lost along the way. Following up with a client about money could be awkward and therefore avoided, but we all deserve to get paid! This email is actually simple and straightforward.
Keep it light. Just note that you’re checking in. Perhaps they never even received it? Or life got crazy and they plum forgot.
Offer to resend it. This is the “Let me help you help me” approach.
If you have any late fee protocols, remind them of this (and ideally send this email before they’re applied as a courtesy).
Thank them for working with you and wrap it up!
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Squarespace Font Combinations for Coaches
Selecting fonts for your coaching website can feel like a daunting task. In a sea of thousands of font options, it can be a challenge to find the perfect font pairing that expresses who you are and attract your ideal audience.
When searching for fonts for your coaching website, you’ll want to find fonts that balance each other out and work well for readability. You want them to express who you are and attract new clients to your business.
Below are 5 selected font pairings for coaches from Google Fonts and Adobe's Type Kit. All of these fonts can be found within your Squarespace account - no need for custom code!
1) Moret & DM Sans
Moret is a sophisticated yet playful font for your website. It provides a professional and established look while still allowing for your brand’s personality to shine through. Pair this font with a simple serif font like DM Sans for the perfect duo.
2) Bebas Neue & Raleway
Looking for a bold and eye-catching font for your website? Bebas Neue is perfect for you. This font is sure to catch your reader’s attention as soon as they land on your site. Pair it with a thin serif like Raleway for your body copy and subheadings.
3) Tenor Sans & Cormorant Garamond
This font pairing is perfect for those wanting a balance of modern and sophisticated style. The pairing of the bold, uppercase headings with the soft serif font provides the perfect balance.
4) DM Serif & Brandon Grotesque
Want your brand to portray your fun personality? This font pairing is bold, and pairs perfectly with bright, colorful branding.
5) Amethyst & Soria
Bold, sophisticated, classy. These fonts are perfect for those in the health and wellness industry. They’ll make your audience feel both relaxed and recognize you as the true professional.
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Essential Tips for Creating a Successful Private Practice Website Design
Build an effective website for your private practice - find out how! This guide contains valuable advice for creating a website that meets all necessary requirements, helps you grow your business and attract new clients to your private practice!
A professional private practice website is an essential part of attracting new clients and building relationships with existing ones. In today's digital world, it is important to design a website that provides an exceptional user experience and highlights the services you provide. Follow this guide to learn the key elements of creating a successful, customer-friendly private practice website.
Understand Your Goals and Focus on User Experience.
When designing a website for your private practice, you should first consider your goals. Think about the types of clients you want to attract, and focus on providing an exceptional user experience. Your website is like your online office; it should reflect what a client would feel if they stepped into your office for an IRL session. Make sure the navigation is intuitive and every page loads quickly. Consider adding customer reviews, engaging visuals, and informative content that positions you as an authority in your field. Above all else, remember to prioritize customer needs and keep the design simple yet effective!
Craft an Eye-Catching Home Page Design that Fits Your Practice’s Brand.
The homepage of your website should be the most compelling page as it’s the first page visitors will see. Make sure to create an eye-catching yet professional design by using visuals and concise descriptions that stay true to your practice’s branding. Keep in mind that the homepage should provide a brief overview of what you specialize in and how you can help potential clients, so make sure all elements are branded and organized for maximum impact. Additionally, add calls-to-action to help direct visitors through the website. (A call-to-action is a fancy word for a button, link or ‘next step’ for the person visiting your website).
Be Clear About Your Services, Fees and Contact Information.
Key pillars for a successful private practice website include displaying your services, contact information, fees and scheduling capabilities in a clear and concise manner. This will allow visitors to get the answers to questions they may have about your practice as soon as possible. Additionally, consider integrating with third-party platforms to allow for easy appointment booking on the same page. Lastly, make sure any important contact information is visible and easily accessible from any page on the website
Optimize your Site for Mobile Viewing.
Mobile optimization is crucial for creating a successful private practice website. Many potential clients are likely to access your site from mobile devices such as iPads, iPhones, Android phones and tablets. To ensure that these visitors don't become frustrated with load times or the design of your website on their device, make sure that your template is responsive and optimized for different screen sizes. This will ensure that visitors are able to navigate and access all relevant information quickly and easily on their device of choice.
Make Sure the Site is Secure and Accessible to All Users.
Private practice websites must be secure for potential clients to use — after all, there are likely sensitive topics discussed on your site, and so it's important that all information shared is kept private between the clinician and client. Also, ensure that all aspects of the website are accessible to visitors. For example, make sure images have descriptive alt text for those who can't see them; links don’t just indicate “click here” but rather say what they go to; and visitors with motor difficulties can access content without relying on a mouse. (You can pop over to this post for more on this topic!). This way you can broaden the scope of your reach and attract more different types of patients.
Attracting new clients to your private practice is easy if you prioritize their user experience! You’ve got this.
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Merakai Life Brand Design
A sacred geometry logo design with phases of the moon.
Project RECAP
Merakai Life creates custom mala experiences and provides spiritual & practical guidance for clients who are highly sensitive, entrepreneurial women grappling with their spirituality often feeling anxious & overwhelmed. They reframe their anxieties and leave them feeling inspired with practical tools to implement. It's about more than just the beads, it's about what the beads are a vehicle for: transformation and connection.
This brand was not interested in a trendy, “light”-oriented design. They aren't afraid of shadows or darkness in their work, and so wanted a natural, textured feel to the designs. Sacred geometry was also really important as well as the phases of the moon. In using an earthy metallic copper, we sort of show how Merakai “reflects” what the client is experiencing and transmutes the light into the mala experiences that are then created for each client.
Keeping Up Your SEO
SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is basically the process of maximizing your website’s ranking and visibility when searched via Google or other popular search engines. While SEO can be a complicated topic, and the true algorithm for optimization is unknown, there are a few simple steps that you can take to ensure that your website is set up for success in the search engine world.
SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is basically the process of maximizing your website’s ranking and visibility when searched via Google or other popular search engines. While SEO can be a complicated topic, and the true algorithm for optimization is unknown, there are a few simple steps that you can take to ensure that your website is set up for success in the search engine world.
One of the biggest, and most helpful, is starting (or keeping up) a blog.
How a blog can help with your SEO
SEO picks up and catalogs the words on your website, so writing content that is ‘SEO Rich’ or is typically searched by the public, is essential in boosting your website rank. Keywords (or better yet, keyphrases) are truly the answer to this process. Include them in your title, description and throughout your blog.
Images are also a great way to add an extra amount of SEO by customizing the file name and ensuring that the images you choose to include in your post are both good quality and formatted correctly.
Most big website builders such as Squarespace give you ample opportunities to include SEO boosting material such as blog tags, headlines, etc. Make sure to utilize all these options in one way or another to make the most out of your blog and get as much traffic as possible. An example of this from my own site would be something like “holistic-web-designer.png”.
Developing a blog content calendar
Now that we’ve covered the importance of the blog, you might be wondering how on earth to keep a blog up - especially if your business isn’t something that requires one. But not to fear, creating a blog content calendar requires time and effort, but will take the stress off of curating content every single day.
When developing your content, think of your ideal client, questions they may have or any pain points in their lives that they need to have addressed. This is your chance to talk to them fully, uninterrupted and as persuasively as you wish. Bear in mind that this is YOUR content - say what you want to your ideal customers and build the personality in your business.
After you develop a few blog content ideas start to write them down in a list format one after the other until you have roughly enough ideas to fill up at least a month or so!
Grab a blank calendar
To start with the planning side, determine how often you want to be blogging. Is it every other day? Once a week? Maybe just once a month? It’s all up to you. Once you figure that out, begin to fill relevant blog topics into each slot.
Doing the work
Now that you have all the pre-planning out of the way, all that’s left is to start writing!
Drafting and outlining your posts can help you remember to include the keywords needed for optimal SEO as well as stay on topic throughout the entire writing process.
After the blogs are written and ready to be posted, do some research to determine what time would be best to schedule each one and set them to go live at that specific time. Promote your posts on social media with graphics, quotes or stats to advertise each one.
Keeping up a blog is a commitment and takes time and effort if you want to truly make a good one, but the payoff at the end of the day makes it an essential online business builder as it increases SEO, boosts awareness and gives you a chance to speak into your clients in a different way!
Be patient
A common misconception about SEO is that it will boost your ranking overnight. Nope. Building up your Google results takes T-I-M-E. Sometimes it can even take up to a year. Don’t get discouraged! Just keep plugging away and you WILL see results. Just keep in mind that SEO isn’t some magic bullet, but more like another tool in your marketing toolbox.
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Create an Engaging About Page
So you’ve created your About page and it’s almost ready to go! Now you’re ready to put the pixel-perfect cherry on top with three final easy-to-implement tips that will improve your About page TODAY!
01. ADD YOUR PHOTO!
You may feel self-conscious about sharing your photo, and I get it. That one angle makes your hair look funny or you’re waiting to lose weight…okay well A) you are b-e-a-u-tiful girl and life is short! and B) add your photo anyway. People buy from people. They want to see WHO YOU ARE. And the only way they can do that is to see your smiling (*keyword*) face on your website. In an ideal world, this photo wouldn’t be a selfie, but work with whatcha got. If you want to add more than one photo, go for it!!
02. ADD SOCIAL PROOF
Social proof is a fancy term for sharing that you’re legit. People want to know that others have worked with you and liked the process. Social proof can come in lots of forms so here’s a quick list below:
Testimonials
Web/blog features
Podcast features
Media badges
Awards
These are just some common ones, but you can add any of these! This is a great way to share that you, sista, are the SH!T without writing about it in your text.
03. THIS IS MOST IMPORTANT!
OK, now that you’ve set up the greatest About page on the World Wide Web, please do this one last thing: Add a clear call-to-action! This can be a button or a link or a place to join your newsletter. Whatever it is, just make sure you tell your audience what you want them to do next. Often, this is some sort of link to your offerings page (Services, Shop, etc). Just don’t leave them hangin’.
NOT TOO HARD RIGHT?
These tips are totally doable, so go do them! And when you’re done, share your about pages with me! I’d love to meet you.