EMBRACING THE DYNAMIC NATURE OF NICHING | EP 122
As the saying goes; “the only constant thing is change”, and it’s true for Canadian private practices too. Sometimes you will set up a system that works well, but after months or years the practice has changed, and so the systems need to be updated.
Or, the offering that you used to love doing with your clients is no longer something that used to light your spark – because you’ve most likely changed as a person and a therapist along the way – so you decide to change it up.
The point is that niching can be a great way to build your business, but it can also be necessary to change your niche over time. It’s something that I have experienced as well, so listen in on this episode if you’re searching for some guidance!
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In This Episode
- Why niching is important
- How to niche
- My experience with niching
Why niching is important
If you want a further, more in-depth episode into niching in Canadian private practice, I recommend that you listen to my previous episode on this topic! However, for a short recap, niching is important because it:
- Helps you to stand out from the crowd
‘If there are hundreds of counsellors in your area and you’re looking for somebody who can help you with anxiety, are you more likely to choose somebody that is just a general therapist, or somebody that specifically niches in helping with anxiety?’ – Julia Smith
- Helps you to focus on the issues that you are passionate about serving
‘Sometimes therapists may think, “Well, if I just generalize [and serve] everything, I’ll get full quicker!”, but that’s usually not the case … If you go into private practice focusing on your passions and specializations, you may be more likely to get full quicker!’ – Julia Smith
How to niche
Some of the factors that you can keep in mind when you are figuring out your niche may include:
- The size of the population of this niche
- What you like working with clients through
- What you are qualified to do
‘If you want to learn more about specifically why niching is important and how to do it, again, go listen to episode 13 or join the free e-course, or purchase the workbook because I go into a lot more detail in those!’ – Julia Smith
My experience with niching
- Private Practice
With my website: I actually had a little mis-step with niching in my own private practice this past year! When I was redoing my website, I hired a website developer to give it a full make-over, as well as a copy editor. Overall, I realized that I had become way too excited about all the possibilities with the new website and adding services. I hadn’t niched down enough, which made it overwhelming for a potential client to browse through.
‘In my mind I was thinking, “Well, I’m growing this private practice so it’s okay to have a lot of specializations … We’ll get noticed more!” I think sometimes, even when you know better, you can get caught up in things and get really excited about the creative process … [But] you can get lost in it, and that’s definitely what happened to me.’ – Julia Smith
In the end, I reduced the specialty pages on the menu so that they only relate to our main private practice focuses.
- Fearless Practice
With my consulting: over five years ago I started my private practice consultation because I couldn’t find any in Canada.
‘All the information I could find at that time was based off of therapists in the states, which was helpful but there were a lot of things that they couldn’t help with, because I was in Canada.’ – Julia Smith
So, I started Fearless Practice to help other Canadian counsellors get the help that they needed with their private practices. Over the years, I created the workbook about how to start an online Canadian private practice, as well as scripts to send clients, private practice paperwork, an e-course, and more!
‘But as I continued to create these things, my consulting became irrelevant, because it’s all in the workbook! As well as with the podcast … There have been so many episodes where I have interviewed other Canadian counsellors … There’s just so much information that I have now on my website for Canadian counsellors, where you don’t have to pay extra to have a one-on-one with me.’ – Julia Smith
Additionally, I nowadays direct people to take courses from LinkedIn and Google since they offer insightful and helpful courses for therapists to take. So, my consulting days have changed, and I niched down – again! I now focus specifically on helping Canadian private practice owners recover from burnout by helping them to restructure their practice so that it suits their needs and desires.
Connect With Me
Resources Mentioned and Useful Links:
Ep 121: Mila Arsenijevic: Balancing Growth in a Canadian Private Practice | EP 121
Learn more about the tools and deals that I love and use for my Canadian private practice
Article: How to Set Up a Canadian Private Practice Website
Sign up for my free e-course on How to Start an Online Canadian Private Practice
Listen to my previous episode on niching, why it is important, and how to do it!
Jane App (use code FEARLESS for one month free)
Rate, review, and subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon, and TuneIn
About Julia
Julia Smith, MEd, RCT, CCC is a registered Counselling Therapist who owns a group private practice in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She is also the owner of Fearless Practice Consulting and hosts the Fearless Practice podcast. Through the Fearless Practice podcast, she provides invaluable insights and practical advice on starting and growing a successful Canadian private practice. Julia’s wealth of knowledge also extends beyond the podcast, as she provides personalized one-on-one consulting to therapists who are feeling burnt out and overwhelmed with their solo or group private practices. With Julia’s expertise, therapists can confidently navigate the complexities of owning a private practice and find work life – balance.
Julia also has written articles for the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy association. You can learn more at www.ccpa-accp.ca/blog/.
