Amazing Headlines Explained by a Mental Health Blog Writer
Your website headline is more powerful than you might think.
A strong headline gives your readers a reason to stick around and learn more about how you can help them. A weak headline is reason enough for your readers to “bounce” off your page, looking for help elsewhere.
Keeping readers on your website is critical for selling your products and services. This article will teach you everything you need to know about headlines. You’ll learn why headlines are important, what makes a great headline, why the headline is effective at keeping people engaged, and how to write one yourself.
Why are Headlines Important for Therapists?
For starters, your website headline is worth 80% of the entire project. But don’t believe me. Take it from marketing legend David Ogilvy (who sold his ad agency for $864 Million in 1984):
“On average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy. When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar.”
So if you spent $500 on your home page, $400 of it was for your headline. Don’t waste it!
Your website headline has 3 important tasks:
Grab the attention of people on your website
Show them a benefit they’ll get when working with you
Draw them further down your website
Your headline can also be used to boost your SEO (how well your website ranks in Google). All that’s needed is for the prime real estate of your website - the headline - to include a “keyword” that you’re targeting.
An example of this could be “therapist in Houston,” “Portland EMDR,” or “parenting therapy NYC.”
Some websites opt to use a keyword in their headline while others avoid it. After all, it can be clunky to fit a keyword into your headline. More on SEO and keywords here.
Okay, now you know the 3 things every website headline must do, plus one option to add keywords. We’ll talk about checking these boxes in a moment. But first, let’s address a common headline I see therapists use…
Kryptonite for Private Practice Therapy Websites
I see this headline on a significant number of therapy websites, and it always makes my marketer’s brain cringe:
“Welcome! We’re So Glad You’re Here!”
What I like about this headline: It’s warm and well-intentioned.
What I don’t like about this headline: It doesn’t grab attention, show a benefit, or draw your reader further down the page. Plus, the focus is on you when it should be on the reader.
So, in short, it doesn’t check any of the 3 boxes that your headline must check to be effective. Not to mention it’s overused, if not as the main headline, then as the "about" section headline.
Instead, make sure your headline is either beneficial or inspirational.
That’s an easy way to make sure it connects with your readers (and increases the chances they’ll book your services).
Before we get into some juicy examples of great headlines for therapists, there’s something else your headline needs. Often, a headline alone isn’t enough, so you’ll need to follow it up.
How to Follow Up Your Headline
There are two ways to follow up your headline. Follow-up is important for keeping people hooked, explaining things that may be implied in your headline, and transitioning into the body of your website copy.
Here are two ways to follow up on your headline:
Bullet Points — great for short and punchy benefits to get your readers excited to work with you
One or Two Short Paragraphs — great for breaking down your complex specialties in easy-to-understand language
Whichever you choose will depend on your practice’s needs and personality. The important thing to know is that without a follow-up on your headline, some readers could be discouraged from reading on. You need to make it easy for them to keep reading.
There is one thing that I recommend ALL websites have immediately after their headline and supporting copy: Calls-to-Action.
Calls-to-Action (CTAs) are great for a number of reasons:
Some portion of people are ready to reach out off the bat. Make it easy for them by having a button like “services,” “contact,” or “schedule a consultation now.”
Marketers know that giving people multiple chances to sign up increases the likelihood that they will. Having your first CTA button right under the headline is only one of many, and increases your chance of making conversions.
You can specify them to your needs. Your CTA can be to your "about" page, your contact page, your major product or service, or anything you want readers to do or see.
Armed with this knowledge, you know that your website headline should be supported by some copy and CTAs.
Now, let’s get into 3 examples below.
3 Examples of a Great Therapist Website Headlines
This headline with supporting copy from Ginger M. Sullivan checks a lot of boxes.
It catches attention, offers many benefits, and reassures readers they’ve found their solution.
On its own, the headline “Want More?” isn’t enough. So, Ginger wisely clarified what she means with the two sentences beneath: “More connection, vitality, depth or satisfaction? You’ve come to the right place.”
The picture of a happy couple walking in the park makes it clear that this is therapy to have better relationships with others.
Overall, this is a strong opener for the website. It grips readers, shows them benefits, and gives them reasons to keep scrolling down.
Plus, the Call to Action provides an easy way for interested clients to contact Ginger. Well done.
This is another great example of a website headline from Therapist of Color Collaborative. I can almost hear their target audience breathing a sigh of relief when they read this headline.
To make it even better, their supporting copy drives a few points home: you’ll feel deeply connected, safe, and confident enough to ask for the help you deserve. RE: you’ll feel SEEN and HEARD.
Rounding it out with a CTA makes for an effective headline and follow-up to their website.
They didn’t target any keywords with this headline, but they can build their SEO in other ways.
This headline is from Someone.Health works well by speaking to people’s feelings of urgency around finding help.
Put yourself in the shoes of someone seeking therapy, perhaps for the first time. You’re not feeling great, and want relief like yesterday.
Then you read this headline. “Wait, I can talk to someone today?”
To make it even more effective, they come across as easy to work with and accessible in the supporting copy.
Finally, they offer not one, but two ways to get in contact with them. They make it easy for clients to get started with them, which undoubtedly increases their sales.
Runner’s Up:
This list wouldn’t be complete without a few runners-up to learn from. So, in the spirit of learning from others, here are two more website headlines that don’t quite do a good job.
I like this headline because they tried to include a benefit: grow into the person you want to be.
What I don’t like about it is that it’s not obvious how they help. “What is somatic therapy?” A lot of clients may not know, and confusion is bad for getting new clients.
They target the keyword “somatic therapy,” yet this too could be improved by targeting a more specific keyword. “Somatic Therapy NYC” would be much more helpful for their SEO.
I think the supporting copy and the call-to-action are great. It’s just the headline that needs work. Otherwise, this could’ve been an amazing headline and follow-up.
This inspirational headline from Crosswinds Counseling has a lot of promise.
If it was followed up with supporting copy, it would be really strong. On its own, the headline isn’t enough. Readers don’t have any real idea of what’s being offered, and a portion of them will leave the site to look elsewhere.
The #1 thing this headline needs is clarity. Who is it for? How do they help? Why should I work with them?
They did add 3 calls-to-action which was smart. We want to make it easy for new clients to work with us.
How to write your own headline
If you’d like to write your own headline and supporting copy, here’s a simple process you can use.
Step One: Understand your ideal client
Think of your ideal client. Then, list a few of the major benefits they get when working with you. This can include developing healthy habits, overcoming anxiety, navigating relationships better, and more.
Then, think more deeply about what they’re really saying here. Most people don’t actually want better habits or to overcome anxiety. What they really want is to feel in control of their direction in life, and to feel confident and calm, respectively.
Completing this step will make everything else easier, so be sure to do it.
Step Two: With your ideal client in mind, write 25 headlines without stopping, editing, or judging them.
Quickly getting 25 headlines onto paper will give your brain a chance to cover all the bases. Think about the benefits that clients get when they work with you, and start jotting down ideas.
“Give your brain a hug”
“Feel at peace with your parents”
“Release anger for good”
“Have a health relationship with food”
“Stop feeling guilty today. Therapy for childhood conditioning in LA.”
“Build a more fulfilling life with Houston Therapy”
If you have some keywords that you’re targeting, see what you can come up with to include them in your headline.
“NYC Couples Therapy to get back on track”
“Orlando Therapy Helping Teens Beat Anxiety”
“Perfectionism Counseling to Find Good Enough”
“Ketamine for Depression to Feel Like Yourself Again”
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If you can combine a keyword with an emotionally compelling benefit, you’ll do very well.
In one live example, coach Tyler Ellis uses the headline “100+ Ways to Stop Panic Attacks and Anxiety.”
This headline includes the keywords that people are searching for “stop panic attacks” and “stop panic attacks and anxiety.”
Consider using a keyword to get all the Google ranking help it provides.
Step Three: Take a break, then eliminate 15 headlines
Now that you’ve come up with 25 headlines, take a break.
Give your brain time to forget what you wrote down. This will be important for seeing your headlines with a fresh pair of eyes.
After an hour or two, take another look at your headlines. Eliminate 15 that you feel won’t be a great fit for your clients' needs or your personality.
Now, you should have 10 headlines left. From here, simply pick the best one to use as your main headline.
For best results, have a trusted friend look at your headlines. Have them read through the eyes of your ideal client and give feedback. If they are your ideal client, even better.
At the end of this step, you should’ve chosen your #1 headline.
Now, what should you do about the other 9?
Step Four: Repurpose Your Headlines
You still have the rest of your site to write after your headline section.
So, use the other top headlines you wrote as section headings.
This will spice things up and keep your ideal client engaged.
It’ll also make your website more compelling to read, leading to more services booked.
Step Five: Finalize with Supporting Copy and CTA
Now, you have your headline. Let’s bring this thing full circle with your supporting copy.
If your headline makes a clear statement, add to it bullet points that drive benefits home.
If your headline is more inspirational or implies benefits, paint a fuller picture in 1-2 short paragraphs. This will give your reader context for what you can do for them.
Lastly, add 1-2 buttons for a CTA. The two I recommend most often are “Services” and “Contact.” You can also use “About Me/Us” if your story is known to connect with clients.
Once you’ve done these 5 steps, you’ll have a website headline section that does a great job of connecting with clients and showing them why they want to partner with you.
Plus, this section sets the tone for the rest of your website, making it much easier to write.
Putting it all together
Once you’ve completed these 5 steps, you’ll have a headline, supporting copy, CTAs, and extra headlines to repurpose. Put the first 3 together and you have a strong opener for your website.
It will grab attention, show numerous benefits, and keep readers scrolling down the page or reaching out for your services.
conclusion
In this article, you learned why your therapist website headline section is so important.
We covered a few good examples to draw inspiration from. And we looked at two that didn’t quite hit the mark.
You now know that with an optimized website headline, you’ll keep readers on your site, show them reasons they’ll benefit from working with you, and continue scrolling your site.
This all provides you with better chances of selling your services and filling your caseload with great-fit clients.
So, write a killer headline section today, and reap the benefits for as long as your site is up and running!
Brandon Grill is a copywriter for mental health professionals. When he’s not connecting professionals with perfect-fit clients, you can find him running, playing with his nephews and niece, or listening to 70s music. Learn more about Brandon at bgcopywriter.com
