WP108 | 7 Tips for Attracting Faith-based Clients with Chad Potts, MA, BCPC
In this episode of the Wise Practice Podcast, Chad Potts offers valuable insights for faith-based counselors looking to grow their practices while staying true to their spiritual mission. From emphasizing the unique integration of faith and spirituality in your counseling approach to building a strong online presence, Chad shares practical strategies to attract and retain clients. He highlights the importance of offering free resources, networking within faith communities, and providing complimentary consultations to ensure clients feel comfortable and well-matched. Chad’s advice is especially helpful for those seeking to expand their practice with authenticity, community connection, and purpose.
1. Emphasize Your Unique Faith-Based Approach
The first step Chad emphasizes is embracing the uniqueness of your practice. Every counseling organization has a distinctive way of integrating faith, scripture, and spirituality into their services, and this should be communicated clearly to clients. Chad highlights the importance of transparency from the start, incorporating these elements into intake forms and initial sessions so clients know what to expect. This not only helps set expectations but also encourages open dialogue about faith-based integration. Clients are more likely to feel comfortable and prepared when they know your stance on spirituality from the outset.
2. Build a Strong Online Presence
A well-crafted online presence is vital for reaching potential clients. Chad advises regularly reviewing and updating your website to ensure it reflects who you are and how you operate. He notes that personal, vulnerable counselor bios can resonate deeply with potential clients, helping them choose a counselor they feel connected to before even stepping into the office. Also, keeping your website fresh and up-to-date is important for SEO optimization, ensuring that search engines view your site as active and relevant.
While social media might not directly generate a large number of clients, Chad explains that it’s a powerful tool for building community awareness. People who come across your posts are more likely to recommend your services to others in need, even if they don't make an immediate appointment. Social media allows you to stay top-of-mind, increasing the chances of offline referrals through word of mouth.
3. Offer Free Resources & Content
Chad emphasizes the importance of offering free resources and content, such as downloadable guides, eBooks, webinars, workshops, or email newsletters. He notes that newsletters, which his team sends monthly or bimonthly, serve as consistent touchpoints with clients, supporters, and those interested in their services. Even if people aren't immediately seeking services, these communications keep the organization top of mind for when they do need help or can refer others.
Chad encourages therapists to lean into their strengths when producing content. For those who enjoy writing or teaching, creating guides or running workshops can be rewarding. However, he advises practitioners to prioritize what aligns with their abilities and set aside more challenging tasks for later.
4. Network Within Faith Communities
Faith-based practices can benefit greatly from partnering with local churches and faith communities. Chad recommends reaching out to churches, starting with those in your network, to offer presentations or workshops for youth groups or parent meetings. Churches are often looking for support, especially for mental health challenges faced by their members, making them a valuable referral source for faith-based counselors.
5. Provide Complimentary Consultations
Chad highlights the value of offering complimentary consultations, noting that while not many clients take advantage of them, they serve an important purpose. These consultations allow therapists to introduce themselves, understand the client's needs, and assess whether they are the best fit for the client. In group practices, this step can help direct clients to the right counselor before scheduling a full session, saving time for both the client and the practice. Although many clients go straight to booking, offering this option can streamline the process and enhance client satisfaction.
6. Develop Referral Programs
Referrals are a powerful way to grow your practice, whether they come from churches, businesses, or other counselors. Chad shares that partnering with businesses, which may offer counseling as part of their employee benefits, can be particularly fruitful. He also stresses the importance of building a strong referral network with other therapists who specialize in different areas, enabling you to refer clients out confidently and receive clients in return.
7. Publish and Speak on Relevant Topics
If writing or public speaking is within your skill set, Chad encourages leaning into these strengths. Contributing blog posts to other organizations' websites, writing for magazines, or even public speaking engagements are all ways to increase your visibility and establish yourself as an expert in your niche. This can be especially beneficial if your practice focuses on a specific area of mental health that may not be widely represented.
Show Sponsor The 5 Systems Every Practice Needs
In graduate school, most of us were trained to be amazing clinicians but not business owners. In this era of technological advancement, running a successful private practice demands more than just clinical expertise. The average private practice owner spends hours researching and experimenting with the best systems for their practice such as which EHR to use or email platform. We have much to consider when selecting tools for our business, beyond just efficiency.
The great news is we have done the work to find the best systems for you, saving you time and money. David Sturgess and Whitney Owens will be hosting a webinar on The 5 Systems Every Practice Owner needs. We will break down the components of each one addressing efficiency, ease of use, cost, confidentiality, and more. Make sure to join us on Thursday, December 5th at 1:00EST.
To register for this webinar, head to wisepracticeconsulting.com/events. And don’t worry, if you cannot join us live, all registered participants will receive the recording afterwards.
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[00:00:00] Whitney Owens: Hi, I'm Whitney Owens. I'm a group practice owner and faith based practice consultant, and I'm here to tell you that you can have it all. Want to grow your practice? Want to grow your faith? Want to enjoy your life outside of work? You've come to the right place. Each week on the Wise Practice Podcast, I will give you the action steps.
To have a successful faith based practice while also having a good time. Now, let's get started.
[00:00:27] Jingle: Well, she grows your practice. She don't play. She does business with a twist of faith. It's Whitney Owens and the Wise Practice Podcast. Whitney Owens and Wise Practice
[00:00:42] Whitney Owens: Podcast. Hello, and thank you for being with me today on the Wise Practice Podcast.
This is a great interview. I interviewed Chad Potts who owns a non profit group practice, and it is located in the Gwinnett County, kind of Atlanta area. And I've known Chad for a couple years. We actually haven't met in person yet, hopefully we will at some point. But it's so fascinating how God will bring people into your life that come at the right time in the right way for whatever reason that he has in store, you know, and So sometimes difficult moments in our lives can really lead to some amazing relationships.
And so you never know what's going to happen when you get out there or you choose to meet somebody. I know sometimes we have fear of attending events or reaching out to people we don't know, but you just never know. And so Chad is one of those. When I was a consultant with Practice the Practice years back, Chad was a follower and through that found that I was a consultant for faith based therapists.
And so he personally reached out to me. We started connecting. It was great because he's doing some really good work in the state of Georgia. And so we've been able to communicate since then. And sadly, at the time, I had the other podcast at that time, the faith and practice podcast, and I interviewed him for the podcast.
I had about three interviews that never aired. Because I left and no longer had access to those and so I reached back out to him and was like, you got so much to offer, dude. Can you please come on my other podcast? And he so graciously did, you know, I think I had been on someone's show and then never aired it.
I don't know how I would feel. So I was really grateful. And, and it just really speaks to this idea that, like, you can have a situation in your life. Where maybe things don't go the way you want them to, maybe it's a struggle, but really God can bring some cool relationships through that. And I'm really glad to have met Chad, and I hope to continue to have more partnerships with him in the future.
So that is my background story on how Chad Potts and I met. virtually, hopefully in person. So anyway, he's going to walk through how to attract faith based clients in your practice. And this is such an important question that comes up. We're also going to chat a little bit about what that means for clients.
Like, are they going to turn away? Are they going to be scared that you all market as faith based? Should you market as faith based? So we're going to cover all that today in this podcast interview. So you are in for a real treat. And if you like the show, go take a second to rate and review the show, share it with your friends.
If you have other faith based therapists that would benefit from knowing seven ways to attract faith based clients, please copy this link. It takes two seconds. Text them the interview and say, Hey. Here's a cool show because it's going to help you with your faith based practice. That's what we're here to do.
So with no further delay, here is Chad Potts talking about the seven ways to attract faith based clients.
Hello, and I'm so glad you're here hanging out with me and my new friend, or I shouldn't say new friend. I've known Chad for a little bit of time, but we're just reconnecting after some time. But this is Chad Potts with us here today. So I invited him on the show. He's a wealth of knowledge. He, alongside his wife Heidi, co founded Freedom Path Counseling.
It's a non profit faith based organization dedicated to providing compassionate care in the metro Atlanta community and beyond. With a strong background in mental health, including work in an adolescent psychiatric hospital and leadership of a local depression and bipolar support group alliance chapter, Chad is committed to reducing stigma and raising awareness about mental health issues.
He holds a degree in Christian counseling. He's a board certified pastoral counselor and is currently pursuing a PhD. Chad and Heidi launched Freedom Path Counseling in 2018, driven by their passion to bring healing and restoration to those in need. Welcome to the show, Chad.
[00:04:42] Chad Potts: Thanks so much, Whitney. I appreciate you having me here.
[00:04:45] Whitney Owens: Yeah, I didn't know you were working on your PhD. What are you getting that in?
[00:04:48] Chad Potts: It's also, it's in psychology and Christian counseling. It's a mix of both. It's something that I've been, you know, wanting to do for a long time and have been working on over the last year or two.
[00:04:58] Whitney Owens: Yeah, where are you getting that?
[00:05:00] Chad Potts: I'm doing it through a small organization or a small university called Aiden University, which basically integrates both the biblical side and the clinical side. So it just gives me a more rounded approach to being able to serve the community.
[00:05:14] Whitney Owens: That's awesome. Yeah, and that's a little what my school was like, you know, I went to Richmond right there.
Yes. I'm very, very familiar with
[00:05:21] Chad Potts: them.
[00:05:22] Whitney Owens: Yeah. So we have biblical courses theology alongside our clinical courses. It was really great. So awesome. Well, I'm so glad you're here. You have, you know, even we were getting on. It was like, there's so much we could talk about that counselors have questions on. But I was really excited about the idea of talking about how do we attract faith based clients?
So before we kind of jump into that, though, can you talk a little bit about your counseling practice, the types of clients you work with, um, kind of your niche before we kind of go into that?
[00:05:50] Chad Potts: Sure, I'd be glad to. So Freedom Path started out really small. It was just me, actually, and my wife, Heidi, kind of assisting me part time.
And it has really grown over the last six years, um, to a place now where we have 13, uh, counselors on staff, uh, providing a variety of different services. So we really can see a number of, of different types of people and, and different types of areas to serve. We do individual, the typical individual counseling with, you know, typical topics like anxiety, depression, a lot of situational topics, premarital marriage counseling.
We have someone that who focuses on addiction and we have art therapy for children. Starting at age five, which has been just a real blessing to be able to offer, as you know, you know, depending on the age of the client and, um, they're just have their personality sometimes just sitting and having dialogue doesn't work for everyone.
So really being able to engage in an active way and work through challenges with art and creativity has been a really neat offering we've had.
[00:06:51] Whitney Owens: Oh, I love that. Okay. And it's, it's a Christian based practice, correct? Nonprofit.
[00:06:56] Chad Potts: Yes, we are. We're a nonprofit. We are a Christian based practice. We started off solely doing pastoral biblical counseling.
And then we slowly over time have developed to where we have two tracks now. So we have our pastoral biblical track, and then we have our integrated clinical track. So really we're able to kind of align people when they come into their specific needs. And also we, we. We're very focused on serving the community as a whole.
So you don't have to have a faith background to come to us. It does inform our worldview, but we are willing and able to serve anybody based on their needs.
[00:07:32] Whitney Owens: Okay. Now I'm just curious, what percentage of your clients would you say are Christian background?
[00:07:38] Chad Potts: Gosh, it's hard to know. We do collect information in our intake forms, but it's not required to put that information in there.
If I just had to take a. A wild guess. I would say probably 70 to 75 percent have some sort of faith background, but that could be anything from, you know, my family was of the Christian faith when we were growing up to we're actively involved on a week to week basis with our local church. So really, as a wide gamut of folks.
[00:08:08] Whitney Owens: Yeah. Okay. This is all great information. All right. So now we're going to go into, you've got this amazing flyer that you have generously shared with me. So this is going to be in the show notes for you guys. So you can grab it with probably more details. It's nice to have things in front, but let's kind of walk through the, you've got seven steps for attracting fake based clients in your practice.
So let's walk through this together.
[00:08:29] Chad Potts: Awesome. Yeah, we'll get started. And I tried to lay this out in a way that was easy to digest and the listeners will get a chance to obviously view this and, and be able to, you know, take it in for themselves. But I will emphasize that not every step works for every practice and not every step is used at every point along the way.
We have certainly used certain steps at different points and maybe not at other points. So I like to put that out there that your practice is unique. Thank you. So utilize this that in the best way, that's going to fit your uniqueness. And that's really the step first, the first step in there is emphasize your unique face faith based approach.
And that's really important to look at how you operate and what, what might work best for your organization. So really talk about, you know, how you integrate scripture and spirituality, highlighting, you know, some of those counseling principles and with clarity. I think that's really important. We tend to share a little bit about who we are and how we operate.
In our intake forms. So before people come in, they already have an idea of, okay, this is this is what I can expect. And they can also formulate questions based on that, because we're very intentional at the first session, but asking, you know, what are your questions about how we operate and the types of services we have?
So making that clear for people tends to really help, you know, you know, get in the right path with with the process.
[00:09:50] Whitney Owens: I love that. Yeah, I have a couple of thoughts here. One is a story that was shared with me. This was on social media, but it really spoke to me. It was a person who went to therapy who was not a believer, you know, and not of the Christian faith.
And she went to go see a therapist and there was Christian stuff all over the room. Like, he's staring at you while you're talking to your therapist and the therapist within the 1st, 15 minutes was talking about Christianity and the client was like, I had no idea, you know, so it's kind of the opposite, but she was like, really jaded.
Like, this should have been told to me when I signed up, but this was the perspective I was going to get. And so it's kind of the opposite. Like, we need to inform clients. You know, of our background, if it's going to be a part of the sessions. And I love that that's kind of a part of what y'all are doing on the front end.
[00:10:39] Chad Potts: Absolutely. And we do have some of those themes, like you mentioned, whether it's, you know, scripture references on a plaque or something on the wall or cross hanging that sort of thing, but we, we were very intentional about, you know, putting who we are in our material. So whether you're on our website. Or you're picking up some reference materials.
It's very clear that we are a Christian counseling organization, but then we also, through our intake form and our website, talk about how we do not have expectations for you and we will not try to push our beliefs on you, but we are available if you'd want to talk about those types of things. And in that first session, you know, from the intake, you know, note, we can look and or the intake form, we can look and see, okay, what's this person's background, do they want this to be part of their time with us?
[00:11:23] Whitney Owens: That's great. Yeah, so this is a question I get from a lot of practice owners. Do you think that turns away clients because you're overt about your stance on your faith?
[00:11:35] Chad Potts: It's a good question. I don't have any data on that. We also share about who we are when people call in for that like kind of initial getting information on the phone or email in.
So I am not aware that anyone has said, you know, I'm not interested in coming there because of that. I imagine that that that is a possibility, you know, but the way we operate. And I think along with where we operate, we tend to stay really busy. So I wouldn't I don't get too focused on. You know, what, what might not, who might not be coming, you know, I, I think we can really focus on who's the, who's the best fit in both directions.
Right. If they fit with us, we fit with them because we want that, that relationship to, to be beneficial. Right. So
[00:12:21] Whitney Owens: I agree with you. And I think people are often worried about clients being turned away that we just kind of go to that mindset of, Oh, well, if I talk about my faith, I'm going to turn people away.
You know, that's not always the case and you're going to attract your ideal client, which is where we're all going to do some of our best work.
[00:12:40] Chad Potts: Absolutely.
[00:12:41] Whitney Owens: Absolutely. All right. What's our 2nd 1 there?
[00:12:44] Chad Potts: All right, let's leave a 2nd. So the 2nd is building a strong online presence. This 1 is very important and it's it's it's.
I believe, but they're, you know, when people are getting started or if they're just trying to, you know, maybe do a tune up over time, if they're like us and, you know, or just moving and shaking, you know, sometimes you've got to go back and, and, and look at what you've done and figure out, okay, could this be improved or did we miss something where we could add on, do we have a little more time now where we can enhance how we present ourselves, but, you know, just at a basic level, You know, making sure your website's user friendly, that you're talking about your services, that if you are a faith based organization, that you're expressing that on there, showing your counselors and their bios.
That's one thing about us. Our counselors have been really vulnerable in their bios, not by request. They've been vulnerable because they want it to be known who they are and how they operate, and that has been actually a benefit will often get clients calling and say, I read so and so's profile, and I really resonated with some things they've been through that they shared.
I think I'd like to come see that person, you know, so it's that's one of those things where sometimes that self disclosure, it's uh, is it too much? Is it too little? But I think, you know, for the most part, people have appreciated a little bit of vulnerability and it makes us seem more like real people, you know, just like them.
[00:14:08] Whitney Owens: I appreciate you saying that. Yeah. And really, we get trained and we share things with our clients to their benefit. If it's benefiting the client, it's okay. And so it sounds like these are benefiting the client. It's not something they're actually, you know, crying about and need help with necessarily, or very much, you know, it's something they've dealt with and can use that as a powerful tool politically.
[00:14:31] Chad Potts: Absolutely. Yeah,
[00:14:33] Whitney Owens: I really I'm going to be taking that tidbit and reading our bios again.
[00:14:38] Chad Potts: Yes. And I go through from time to time and kind of think about them and see how we might update them. And that's a big thing, you know, for SEO optimization along with your online presence. You know, it's good to have a lot of content and relevant content, but Google also wants to see changes.
Right. They, they don't want to see stagnation. So it's important from time to time just to review. Do I need to tweak things here or there? And with the resources we have today, uh, like AI, you can get support in tweaking what's already written and it can look completely different, right? But still be the same content.
So there are ways to go about making these changes that are, um, time and labor intensive.
[00:15:19] Jingle: So just something
[00:15:20] Chad Potts: to consider there with the, with the optimization. And then I think social media, you know, love it or hate it. People do use it. And I think they, they are going to, it's going to be beneficial to you.
And here's what someone told me a long time ago that I've found to be true. I'm going to get, you're probably going to get a very small percentage of your clients through social media in terms of them clicking on an ad or a post and then making an appointment. But what you will do through social media is you will become known in the community, and then those people that know you when they're hearing of a friend of theirs that needs support, they're remembering that they saw you online or that they follow your page, and they're sharing offline.
Hey, have you tried this place? You know, I've been following them, and I really love what they put out, so it's a good way to think about it, because I think sometimes people get into the social part, and they're looking at conversion like you would with a website, and you just can't do that. You're right, or it'll tell you that it's not worth it if you look at it from that perspective in reality, it's really just expanding who you are to a broader audience who now will share about you to their their friends and connections.
So I think it is really important to do social media if you can.
[00:16:32] Whitney Owens: Yeah, I think everything you're saying is spot on and really good reminders. So,
[00:16:37] Chad Potts: yeah, awesome. The next one I have on here is offering free resources and content. So that's, you know, downloadable guides, ebooks. Um, if you do teaching or presentations, you know, those webinars or workshops, I think those can be really helpful.
Um, or, and then email newsletters. I can say that we've done email newsletters. Um, From the beginning and we try to send one out every month or every other month that really sometimes it's just time limited time dictates a little bit of that, but it's a touch point with those that are interested in what you do, whether that's someone who has has been a client or someone who's been a supporter or someone who's just interested again.
You know, there's a lot of people out there that are looking for information. They might not necessarily be looking for a service when they are looking for a service or they know someone that is again, you're on their mind,
[00:17:31] Jingle: right?
[00:17:31] Chad Potts: Because you're having those touch points with them. So I think the emails are an easier way to get started.
Obviously, if you're writing guides and books and teaching, that's a little more labor intensive. But I know there are, there are therapists out there that they love to do that. So, you know, I say you lean in to where your strengths are at, and if you love to write and you love to put things together, then, then do it.
And if it's harder to do one of the other ones, put it on the back burner, you know, choose the ones where you're going to be more, you to align more with your skillset, I think, initially.
[00:18:04] Whitney Owens: Yeah, you know, I found an interesting statistic not too long ago that was super helpful for me. It said, you know, an average click rate.
So that's when someone reads your email and clicks your links. For those of you that don't have an email list yet. So the average is 3 to 5%. So 3 to 5%, if you can get that many click in your link within your emails, you're doing good. For social media, it's a 0. 05%.
[00:18:32] Chad Potts: I'm not surprised. That sounds about right.
[00:18:35] Whitney Owens: Yeah. And I just feel like so many people spend so much more time on social media than they do their email. Like, I can tell you so many practice owners are like, yeah, I have a social media account. And I'm like, well, what about your email list? No, I don't have that. I'm like, you're, you're losing here, you know, on so much more that you could have.
[00:18:52] Chad Potts: Yeah, I think that's interesting about the email list is there's so many different ways to go about collecting, you know, people to sign up to getting subscribers, you know, whether you're offering a place in a pop up on your website or posting about it, but you can also, you know, can also present that to clients if they want to be part of it now.
Actually maintaining their records and and making sure that there's privacy set up. That's that's a little bit of a different conversation, but you can talk to them about it. I don't I don't suggest just sending things, you know, if if they're not interested. But what I have found is, you know, people tend to opt out of emails.
They don't want so As you're building maybe your network with people, you know, maybe people in your community that aren't clients and they're friends, you know, like you and I, right? I'm on your list and you get my email and right. And if you didn't want it, you'd let me know and you'd you'd opt out of it.
So until I get that, I just kind of keep on moving forward. So I think sometimes there's just some hesitation about how to get started. What will people think? And no, I think people will let you know what they think.
[00:19:56] Whitney Owens: Yeah, definitely all important stuff. So what's number four? We all number four.
[00:20:02] Chad Potts: Yeah. So now for we're talking about networking.
So networking this specifically, I'm talking about churches and faith communities. I mean, networking in general is important, but if you are a faith based practice. People of faith typically are connected with a community or a church. So it's important to talk to those, you know, maybe churches in your network.
Sometimes it's easiest to start with the church you already go to if you have a church home. Not always, but, but sometimes. So seeing how you can partner with them, whether that's offering to come in and maybe do a presentation with, with knowing just the challenges that people face today, specifically young people.
You know, it's not, it's not too unheard of to, to come in and be able to speak to a youth group. For 15 or 20 minutes, you know, or parents. That's another great one. Offering to do a parent group where the parents of the teenagers or young people can come in and you can speak with them. Some churches have their own newsletters, their own emails, their own bulletins.
Maybe they'd be willing to put your information in there. What I found in our area, we're in Gwinnett County, which is only the second county in Georgia that has over a million residents now. So it's very You know, populated. We found that it's, you know, it's really important to look at the local churches because they are actively looking for partners, right?
We have several networking groups within our area that specifically all they do is connect counselors and therapists to churches. So, Yeah. So the churches are looking for support, you know, the pastors there, depending on the size of the church, you know, they, they need support. They're doing the best they can, but they want support as well.
So don't be too hesitant in reaching out in whatever way that might be, because chances are they're looking for you and need you.
[00:21:44] Whitney Owens: 100%, I even say that faith based therapist or not faith based therapist, like pastors are constantly looking for counselors to refer to and need that support. And, and, you know, you're kind of talking about that educational value.
Like, pastors sometimes don't know when to refer.
[00:22:00] Chad Potts: Absolutely helpful for
[00:22:01] Whitney Owens: us to be that resource to say, Hey, you know, I think it's time to refer this client out. Like, pastoral counseling is great, but there's some things that need a clinical approach and we have to help them see that and vice versa. So, like, if you're not well versed in theology, you know, there can be times clients have questions that we've got to refer back to the pastors.
[00:22:20] Chad Potts: Sure. Absolutely. Yep. Good point. Good point. So let's see, beyond that, let's see what's next here. Complimentary consultations. I imagine people do this or some people do this to some degree. I know if you're on Psychology Today, there's an option to to click a box that you know will, that you offer, uh, a complimentary consultation.
We, we do offer this. Interesting enough, not a lot of people take us up on it. Most people just go ahead and schedule. But from time to time, people do request. And I like doing them because you get a chance to share a little bit about who you are. You get to hear their needs. And sometimes, especially if you're in a group practice, you may find that, hey, I'm not the best fit for this.
Right. We have someone else who would could better serve you. And we're taking out that step on the front end versus them coming in and sitting with me or another counselor for an hour and then realizing, Hey, I think someone else is better. Now we've figured that out before they ever got in the door.
[00:23:18] Whitney Owens: Yeah, yeah, there's people kind of run the gamut on this, right? Cause some people really do enjoy that aspect. And my practice, I was finding it exhausting.
[00:23:28] Chad Potts: Where are you? Yeah.
[00:23:29] Whitney Owens: Oh yeah. And so we started letting the admin kind of do it and we do offer it. If a client requests it for sure. We still do consult calls.
Cause I think those are important. If a client is needing that, but yeah, we have also kind of found the same thing, like use it when someone needs it, but oftentimes they do want to just schedule because You know, that full intake is important. It takes a while to like really get to know a client.
[00:23:53] Chad Potts: Absolutely. And I think this is, you know, kind of what mentioning, I mentioned the first, you know, depending on where you are and what stage of your practice, this might be more relevant. Like when you're getting started, you're trying to attract clients in general. You could use this in your social media presentation, on your website, and it's just maybe a a way that you could get creative.
Get going a little quicker, you know, to build up. And then you might not need to do that later on down the road.
[00:24:19] Whitney Owens: Such a good point. Yeah, I did those a lot at the beginning and it was super helpful.
[00:24:25] Chad Potts: Cool. Well, let's see, developing referral programs would be the kind of the sixth area that I'm talking about here.
And this is, this is, can be broad, right? So referrals can be broad depending on the type of work you do and the area you're in. So we talked a little bit about churches and how they could refer to you, but you could also work with businesses And organizations, we've actually been able to do that work with a number of businesses who want counseling to be part of the benefit that they provide.
If you think about like chaplains, like corporate chaplains of America, they're very well known and businesses can set up where they come in, you know, once a month and they're available. It's kind of like that, but they can, you know, if a, if a employee presents, you know, they're struggling, they can, they can send them over and cover a number of sessions on their behalf.
So we found that to be of interest and then, you know, networking with other counselors is obviously very important, you know, with so many different specialties out there. This way you get an opportunity to one be on the receiving end for clients that do align. Right with you. But also you have trusted referring referring partners in your network to send people to when you can't help.
And that is a lifesaver. No one likes, you know, trying to run around and figure out who to refer someone to at the last minute, you know, to be able to hand them a sheet and say, Hey, these three would be great, right? Call any call all of them, right? And they could help with this specific area that we're not able to support you in.
[00:25:56] Whitney Owens: Yeah, oh, gosh, I mean, people come to me all the time asking for therapist referrals, and I'm like, I know these, but I don't know these, or yeah, it's a constant trying to connect with more therapists and have more knowledge. And even as I heard you talk about the relationship with agencies and organizations, it's almost like you create an EAP, like a, like a mini assistance program for those employees.
That's really great.
[00:26:19] Chad Potts: Absolutely. It really, it really does operate like that. And I think that's becoming more, there's more of interest there. And as, as mental health is more understood and more widely accepted that, that this is something that's important, you know, as there's more, the stigma is reduced and it becomes just a general understanding.
This is an important thing. It gets looked at like going to the doctor or going to the dentist, going to the chiropractor, those sort of things. So I think as that, as that happens, then, you know, businesses. When specific or they tend to want to offer that because they know that if their employees are dealing with these, you know, situations that are affecting their ability to work, it costs the business money.
Right.
[00:27:00] Jingle: And if they,
[00:27:01] Chad Potts: if it doesn't work out, right, it costs more money to replace the position. So it makes sense to be able to support their employees beyond just wanting to do, do right and do well by their employees.
[00:27:12] Whitney Owens: Yeah, I'm so glad that you said that I'm sitting here going. Yep. That is how it is. Yeah.
All right. So now we're at the last 1 there
[00:27:22] Chad Potts: last 1. Yep. It's publishing or speaking on relevant. topics. We talked a little bit about this earlier. If you have that, that mindset and desire, but that could be anything from, you know, blog posts to magazines asking to post on be like a guest writer on other websites, you know, for maybe an organization that doesn't offer your service, you know, that sort of things it this, I think this is especially helpful if you're in a very specific niche.
You know, and there's just not a lot of people doing what you're doing. You could probably find other counseling agencies that won't, won't, you know, will allow you to, to be part of posting maybe in their blogs or whatnot, because you're not stepping on any toes by doing that. So, and then public speaking, you know, whether, however you can get out in front of people, if that's something that fits with, you know, with kind of within your wheelhouse and you're comfortable with,
[00:28:11] Whitney Owens: I think it's definitely a
[00:28:11] Chad Potts: benefit.
Yeah,
[00:28:13] Whitney Owens: yeah, we do that a lot here. Our presence has grown. We have more and more people reaching out. We want to network with you. We want you to speak at this thing. We have to now be particular about where we go, because we can't do it all. You know, so a lot of my therapist, I've got them doing it, you know, going out and doing the speaking and connections and.
Training, so it's been really great. I actually love public speaking. I mean, you could just give me and it's and I'll get up and talk for an hour. Hey, so I really do enjoy public speaking a lot. And there have been some gigs that it really is helpful and others that it's not in fact, we've started charging.
We usually did the 1st, free for an organization if they reach out, especially, like, get this a lot with schools, or they want us to speak at their chapel service, come do a training for their, um. For their staff or church wants to training, like, usually the 1st ones on the house, like, we, you know, but if they ask multiple times, we have to start charging a board because we have to put a lot of time and energy into it.
You know,
[00:29:10] Chad Potts: absolutely. I get that completely,
[00:29:13] Whitney Owens: but it's so great and you meet a lot of people and it only gets easier. I think the more you do it. So
[00:29:18] Chad Potts: I think that's true. Yeah, that's true. I feel the more I do it. I do feel. More comfortable, although we talked a little bit before we came online here, and it's not my, you know, it's not my favorite thing to do, but I can and will do it, you know, from time to time.
So, but I do encourage people to try to align, um, the, the things that they're choosing to step into, whether it's, you know, how they offer services or how they go about. Right. Getting clients and attracting clients. You know, it's, it's always going to be easier to focus on where your strengths are at. To begin with, we certainly have to go outside of our comfort zone from time to time.
That is important, of course. But let's start with, you know, where, where your strengths are at.
[00:30:00] Whitney Owens: I hear, I hear you saying that throughout the interview and it's so important. You're going to get burned out. If you don't,
[00:30:06] Chad Potts: it's true. You can get burned out. If you do, let's be honest, it's going to take a lot longer, right.
If you're working within your strengths,
[00:30:14] Whitney Owens: that's right. That's right. And I think one thing you could probably attest to this as the group practice center is hiring people that have different strengths than we do. And so we have this well rounded team that we can all help each other out and the different things that come up.
[00:30:27] Chad Potts: Yeah. Yeah. So it's, it's so invaluable.
[00:30:30] Whitney Owens: Well, Chad, this has been awesome. I'm looking forward to airing this interview because I think you brought so much knowledge to the table. That's really going to help this audience and even me. So I'm looking forward to this episode going out. Anything else that you wanted to mention or how can people get in touch with you?
[00:30:46] Chad Potts: Yeah, well, we have my information in the show notes or a way for them to contact me. Okay, that'd be great. You know, we're Freedom Path Counseling. And we're located in Lawrenceville, Georgia. You can Google us and find us easily or look for the information that Whitney will put in. Um, I will mention 1 other thing real quick that I didn't get a chance to mention to you earlier.
We have just launched another organization that it's right on that. We're right on the cusp of getting launched, which is Georgia Psychological Services. And this is going to step out beyond traditional therapy and counseling and work more with things like psychiatric medication management, psychological evaluations and 1 area that I'm really excited about is executive executive functioning skills groups.
So we're get those what we're starting at initially. So those those skills like planning an organization, time management, problem solving, working memory, those types of areas that people struggle in specifically for teenagers and young adults is where we're going to start. So really excited about that getting off the ground here in the next couple of months with services.
[00:31:50] Whitney Owens: That's great. So is that part of Freedom Path or is that a separate entity?
[00:31:54] Chad Potts: It's going to be a separate entity because the services are so different. Although, it will, we will, we'll be in the same physical building. So you won't have to go to a different location to find us. We'll still be in the same building.
We have a wonderful space, which is, which is just a blessing.
[00:32:10] Whitney Owens: That is such a gift that you're going to be able to do that. I'm so happy for you guys. Yeah. And for the clients really.
[00:32:16] Chad Potts: Yes, that's, that's the, that's what it's for. You know, we, you know, this is just one area that we refer out for so much and, and you've probably found, I imagine this to be true.
Sometimes it can take. You know, weeks or months to get in to see someone, you know, for an assessment for medication or someone who needs to have just moved and they need, they're trying to find a new provider or especially does a psychological evaluations working with young people in the school system and that sort of thing.
We get a lot of requests for it and we're overloading our, our partners. It seems like, so we're just taking this as an area that's need and we're going to try to try to fill it. That's great.
[00:32:53] Whitney Owens: Well, Chad, thank you so much for your time today and everything you put together. Again, we will have that PDF on the several ways to attract bait based clients in the show notes.
So it's been really great hanging out with you.
[00:33:07] Jingle: So click on follow and leave a review and keep on loving this work we do with Whitney Owens and the Wise Practice Podcast. Whitney Owens and the Wise Practice Podcast.
[00:33:25] Whitney Owens: Special thanks to Marty Altman for the music in this podcast. The wise practice podcast is part of the site craft podcast network, a collaboration of independent podcasters focused on helping people live more meaningful and productive lives to learn more about the other amazing podcasts in the network head on over to site craft network dot com.
The wise practice podcast represents the opinions of Whitney Owens and her guests. This podcast is for educational purposes only, and the content should not be taken as legal advice. If you have legal questions, please consult an attorney.
