Directories From a Client and Practitioner Vantage Point – Ursula Wood
Directories, there are so many. Some are extensive much like the Yellow Pages, with a list of businesses from A-Z. Others are more industry-related, such as Counselling, Yoga, Holistic Therapy, Mental health, and so on.
When it comes to talking on the topic of health and wellness directories, I can share my experience from both a personal and practitioner perspective. Both are equally important. Let’s start with my personal perspective. This takes the viewpoint of a customer looking for your services.
What Starts the Search as A Client
It is some time ago now, but there was a time when I was on my knees looking for a way back to sanity. While working as a newly qualified nurse at a demanding respite unit, I quickly lost my work-life balance. With no other options to keep my feelings of despair at bay, I visited my doctor. I was diagnosed with anxiety and mild depression and offered medication to help. I accepted the medication, but some months later I had an adverse reaction to the prescribed drug. With my GP unable to offer any other options after the incident, I was left to fend for myself.
This was very scary. Once I got over the belief that I was doomed and would never be ‘fixed’. I decided to start looking into whether there were other options outside of the GP services. Now, this is where directories began to make an appearance in my life as a prospective client.
Finding Directories as a Client
I started looking on the internet. You could say, Google became my best friend. To begin with, I didn’t know what words to place into a search to return results. These are the type of words that would assist any potential client with any therapy, practice, class, etc that could help. How do you know what to put into google when you’re not aware of what therapies or practices are out there?! If you’ve not heard of Reiki or Access Bars, you’re not about to search for them. That was my first hurdle.
Once I realised that putting the word holistic or complementary therapy would helpfully introduce me to ‘some’ treatments and therapies I’d never heard of, I officially started my search. It was overwhelming though, there were so much and so many websites. At this point, directories began to pop up in the searches. The directories I found quickly reassured me, especially where they were regulated. They gave me the impression they were safe and encouraged me to delve into them more.
From the directories, I began to determine which of these new therapies (to me) could help with my condition. Once I knew the type of therapy would be of benefit, I was able to quickly search for practitioners in my area from one easy space. Read their bios, services, and reviews, look at their photos, and determine quickly who I’d like to reach out to.
I trust my personal experience has given you some insight into the client’s ‘search for wellness support’ journey. How they might lack awareness of what therapies are out there and which practices help with what conditions. Along with the overwhelm of having to find a trustworthy practitioner that best suits them. It’s not easy when you don’t know who or what can help. But directories are a go-to for prospective clients, as they can help make the searching phase simpler.
Directories from a Business Perspective
So, I’ve shared from a personal perspective the value of directories, let’s move on to a business perspective. A few years back now, I gave up my advocacy support role in exchange for self-employment as a coaching practitioner. I threw myself into the business world, quite naively now I look back. I didn’t know much about business presence, branding, marketing, or business in general.
That said, I remembered the importance of directories from my own experience. So, I ensured I was on a coaching directory relevant to my area of expertise. It helped me demonstrate that I was legitimate, and part of a governing body, and directed people to my website. Along with others, I have spoken to who have been on directories, I was fortunate to get interested through this method. If you’re not in the know about directories, here are some other amazing benefits to you as a practitioner.
The Benefits of Directories
Ranking & traffic – Directories can do a fabulous job of boosting your own website ranking and delivering more visitors to your site. Also called Search Engine Optimisation (SEO). Mainly because internet searches like Google or Yahoo sit up and listen when your website is linked to a trustworthy site. Some directories are ranked so high because of their trustworthiness such as Google my business, LinkedIn, Yelp, etc.
Found more easily – I know we’ve touched on this in my personal experience. But it is worth repeating. If your business is in a directory, you are automatically making your business more accessible and easier to find.
Increase business awareness – the more relevant directories you are on, the more you are increasing your brand presence. If I’m searching a few directories and you pop up in all of them, who’s going to get remembered? You!
Give clients a preview – directories deliver the opportunity for you to provide clients with a bite-size snapshot of what you do and can offer. Unlike having to look at 100+ individual websites. Directories are palatable to the overwhelmed searcher. Provide them with a link to discover more about you and your business should they wish.
I trust my personal and business perspective has been of benefit and hopefully encouraged you to explore listing yourself on some directories that are relevant to you.
Full disclosure, I co-founded what to some is viewed as a directory (it’s a bit more than that too), it’s called Wellbeing Umbrella. It connects people to a world full of wellness choices and variety, through our Wellbeing Platform, Wellness Events, and collaboration. It was born out of the personal experience I shared prior.
I felt there was a need for more awareness and an easier way for people to search for health and wellness support when they needed it most.
Hopefully, my passion for making it easier for people to find you have inspired you to consider being on at least one of many directories.
Author: Ursula Wood – Wellbeing Umbrella
If you’d like to learn more about Wellbeing Umbrella and its mission to support well-being businesses to work together to reach the people who need them most, you can do so HERE.
Author BIO
After a shared mutual frustration with the ‘one-size-fits-all’ health and wellness approach. Ursula, with her co-founder Alexis, makes up the motivated force behind Wellbeing Umbrella. A wellness movement that brings like-minded wellbeing business folk together to increase the awareness and accessibility of the varied wellbeing treatments and solutions on offer to people within the U.K.
They actively do this by providing free no one-size-fits-all wellness events and an online well-being platform that makes searching for wellness support easier. Plus, raise funds for those less able to access wellness support.
