Effective marketing tactics for mental health services

The patient journey in physical healthcare is often fairly straightforward: If you break your arm, you might do a quick online search to find a provider in your insurance network that’s close by, schedule an appointment, and get care fairly quickly. 

In mental healthcare, the pathway is more complex. Persistent stigmas around mental health often prevent people from seeking treatment. The first step isn’t to actually seek care; often people try to self-correct without asking for help. And frequently, it’s not the person in need who looks for assistance; it’s a family member. 

4 Marketing tactics for mental healthcare 

Marketing efforts for mental healthcare providers need to map the flow of seeking care and to structure content to meet people where they are. Here are four things to consider.

Empathetic content

We’ve written extensively about the power of educational content in healthcare marketing, and it’s especially true in the mental health field. People need help understanding what they’re experiencing, when to seek help, and what that might look like. They need reassurance that they’ll be treated with compassion and that they can get better. Trust is a core value of healthcare, and it’s essential in mental health awareness and treatment. 

Recognizing that people are hesitant, your marketing messages should be uplifting, positive, calming, empathetic, and non-judgmental. It’s important that prospective patients or clients know that you understand their lives and concerns. 

Our longtime client Citizen Advocates, which delivers vital mental health, addiction recovery, Intellectual & developmental disabilities, and myriad support services in Northern New York, shares content across their website that emphasizes how well they understand the lives of the people they care for. The program pages, for example, reinforce their collaborative, compassionate approach. 

When we worked with Citizen Advocates on a strategic rebranding, one of the biggest goals was to elevate the presence and perception of an organization that had worked quietly under the radar for years. In fact, lack of awareness is often the biggest obstacle for mental health organizations — the community simply doesn’t know who they are and all that they offer. Building a library of educational content helps people discover options and gain reassurance that you can help them. 

Social media presence

In social media settings, conversations about mental health are happening all the time. Social channels are ideal for reaching those in your community who are struggling but don’t know where to turn. Citizen Advocates, for example, shares on Facebook a mix of encouragement (like self-care reminders), information (locations, services, hours), practical tips, employee spotlights, and features on their programs and services. With a steady flow of helpful, upbeat content, you’re likely to reach someone with just the right message at just the right time to turn their situation around.

Patient stories

It may be difficult for someone facing a mental health challenge to envision what their life would be like with treatment. Patient stories are powerful testimonials that offer hope. Another example from Citizen Advocates: stories like this one that incorporate comments from a client and their care team and show what success looks like. The key, of course, is sharing these stories with respect and dignity. 

Community connections

If the community is unfamiliar with your organization’s work, then professionals who could refer patients to you might be, as well. An awareness campaign targeting general practitioners or specialists can lead to patient referrals, as many people first go to their family doctor before seeking mental health services. Offer free mental health workshops or seminars to local communities, regional government groups, and businesses. Participating in or sponsoring mental health awareness events or charity runs can raise visibility for your practice while also showing your commitment to the cause. 

For nonprofit mental healthcare providers, small practices, and even units within medical networks, budget is often the biggest roadblock for marketers. Especially when state and federal grant funding and Medicare and Medicaid support are at risk, marketing might seem like a “nice-to-have” business activity. But people need care more than ever. And if your team is challenged to do more with less, we can be a skilled and committed partner — so you reach and help as many people as possible. Let’s talk about what you need.