If you are considering "going online," there are a few things you will need to do first:

1. Practice your "elevator conversation." How do you briefly describe your practice to potential clients? Clients who look for you online will want to know what sets you apart from other therapists-and they'll want to know quickly. Write out a 2-3 paragraph description of how you work best.

2. Determine how much you want to spend. As you will see, some online tools can be utilized at no cost (other than time). Others can run into the thousands of dollars. Your budget should always be something you control. If you decide in advance how much you're willing to spend, no one will be able to pressure you into spending too much.

3. Determine your policies for online contacts. How often do you check your email? If you check it once a week or less, you may not want to offer your email address as a way for potential clients to reach you. If you do list your address online, how long will you give yourself to respond to inquiries? Some other questions to decide in advance include: Will you list your fees online? Will you offer a free initial consultation? Will you allow clients to reschedule an appointment via email, or will they need to call? Answering these questions in advance will save you headaches later.

4. Have a photo you can use. No matter what online presence you design, potential clients will feel safer and more connected to you when they can see what you look like. Digital photos are best, but even a good print can be added to your online presence fairly easily.

5. Know how much you want to control. Some therapists want complete control over anything that bears their name, and understandably so. What you gain in control, however, you may lose in time-maintaining a web site, directory listings, and online ads on your own can eat up valuable hours out of every week. Figure out what you want to do on your own, and what you're comfortable handing off or hiring out.

6. Have the right equipment for the task. In most cases, this just means having, and regularly checking, an email address. You can, of course, have a worthwhile online presence even without an email address-as long as you have a phone number or some other easy way for clients to reach you. If you want to take on tasks such as designing your own web site, you will need special software. If you do choose to allow clients to contact you by email, consider whether you have email access at your office-if you do not, it may be beneficial to find a way to get it.

7. Explore. By seeing what other therapists have done to market themselves in your area, you will learn a lot about what you want to do (and not do). If you are considering building a web site, check out the sites of some therapists you know who are online. If you're thinking about online ads, do a few searches to see whose sites come up and what their ads say.

8. Enjoy the process. For many therapists, going online can be stressful precisely because it is new and often unfamiliar territory. But you are not likely to make choices that cannot be undone, and anything you do in the direction of going online will help potential clients find you. You're working to make your practice a success-enjoy the ride! Once you've accomplished these tasks, it's time to start weighing the options-there are many ways to go online, and you want what will work best for your practice.

If you are a therapist and interested in building a private practice through online marketing, we want to help you. We can help you build a website and get online. Visit http://www.TherapyMarketing.net for more FREE marketing tips.

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