While insurance companies take care of the majority of  client referrals for insurance-based practices, marketing a cash-pay only private practice is a different ball game! Generating your own leads can be a challenge, and we want to give you the basics to get started.

Today, Julie is joined by Whitney Owens, a Licensed Professional Counselor and Private Practice Consultant in Savannah, Georgia. In addition to running her practice, she offers individual and group consulting through Practice of the Practice. Whitney places a special emphasis on helping clinicians start and grow faith-based practices. She hosts a podcast to help faith-based practice owners called the Faith in Practice Podcast!

Episode Highlights:

• Draw your clients in with an eye-catching website
  • Focus on your SEO (Search Engine Optimization), hire a professional to make sure your website has an eye-catching look, make sure you clearly explain that you are cash-pay only on your website (not on the home page
• SEO Conversion
  • Make sure to utilize your SEO on whichever website platform you use in order to generate organic leads
  • Online reviews help boost SEO conversion - reach out to friends, family, and neighbors to leave you positive and genuine reviews in order to build up your SEO. Then, continue to ask your clients to write reviews towards the end of their sessions.
• Referral relationships are important
  • Take time to attend functions to meet people
  • Invite potential referral partners out for coffee
  • Continue to reach out to prospective referral sources
  • Consistency is key!
• Phone Services
  • Make sure you have someone who can consistently answer the phones and turn those calls into clients
  • Ensure your staff knows how to discuss being cash-pay only - they should be knowledgeable in explaining why you are cash-pay only, superbills, and how out of network benefits work
• How much should someone spend on marketing?
  • This depends on how you are trying to grow
  • SEO and website optimization is a great investment
  • Focus more on creating genuine connections with referral sources rather than trying to run ads all over the place
• Make sure to measure your marketing
  • Track metrics to know where your leads are coming from and what areas of your marketing are most effective - intake calls, Google searches, doctors referrals, etc.
  • KPIs (Key Performance Indicators)
    • Google Analytics
    • Social Media (Facebook & Instagram offer metrics)
    • Email Tracking

Links & Resources:
Water's Edge Counseling
Practice Of The Practice - Whitney Owens
Practice Of The Practice - Group Practice Boss
Faith In Practice Podcast
Clockwork by Mike Michalowicz
GreenOak Accounting
Therapy For Your Money Podcast

2021 started off with an administration change, which (potentially) means new tax policies! While there haven't been any policies put into effect as of yet, we wanted to make sure our listeners are prepared for changes that may come. From estate tax, income tax, and more, we've got everything you need to know in this episode.

(As of recording & uploading in February 2021, none of these changes are official. These are changes we are anticipating based on the Biden administration's tax proposals. Some of these changes may be retroactive, and could be applied beginning in January 2021.)

Episode Highlights:

• Capital Gains Tax Rates
  • There are currently three capital gain tax rates- 0%, 15%, and 20%. The new administration is considering increasing the capital gains rate for high income individuals making over $1,000,000/year.
• Income Tax Rates
  • The U.S. has a progressive tax bracket, meaning we have brackets between 10% and 37%, so your income threshold will depend on your income as well as your filing status (single, head of household, etc.). One proposed change is to increase the top bracket to 39.6% or add a whole other tax bracket on top of the 37% bracket.
• FICA - Social Security
  • When you have employees, the employer pays and the employee has withheld 6.2% of their wages. There is currently a cap at $137,700. The proposed tax plan would increase that cap to $400,000.
• Pass Through Income
  • There are proposed changes for the QBI deduction. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 allows eligible self-employed and small-business owners to deduct up to 20% of their qualified business income on their taxes. Under the new administrations, the proposed change would phase out section 199A of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
• Estate Tax
  • Estate Tax in the United States is a tax on the transfer of the estate of a deceased person. As of now, current law has estate tax set at 40%, and the proposed changes would increase this to 45%. There are some exclusions to this, and the proposal would also reduce those exclusions. It is best to consult an estate attorney for these instances.

Links & Resources:
GreenOak Accounting
Therapy For Your Money Podcast

There are a number of financial hurdles you could face when transitioning from a solo to a group practice, and we're here to break them down for you! On this episode, we are joined by Alison Pidgeon to discuss the ins and outs of growing your team, handling compensation, and how to troubleshoot some problems before you even face them.

Alison Pidgeon is a licensed professional counselor and the owner of Move Forward Counseling. She is also a business consultant for Practice of the Practice, a community that helps therapists start, scale, and succeed in starting their own private practice. Alison finds passion in empowering private practice owners to achieve their dreams of being their own boss!

Episode Highlights:

• Main Challenges You May Face While Transitioning From Solo to Group
  • Adjusting to the increase in transactions being processed in your accounts
  • Understanding the logistics around compensation
  • Contractors vs. Employees
  • Full Time Vs. Part Time
  • What payroll software/system to use
  • How/When to offer benefits to team members
• The first step to transitioning is having an established accounting software (such as QuickBooks Online) to ensure your business and personal finances are separate and organized
• Make sure you have a savings account of at least 3 months of expenses in order to give yourself some wiggle room while adjusting to hiring and adding compensation to your practice
• As you grow, make sure to monitor your schedule closely in order to plan ahead when hiring - you need to consider filtering through candidates, interviewing, credentialing, and building the new hire's schedule when gauging a timeline for bringing on new clinicians
• If you are looking to transition to a group practice in order to remove yourself from the clinical side of your business, it is recommended to slowly start reducing your clinical hours over time - this can take about a year or more!
  • It is easier to do this over time as your case load will dwindle down naturally, rather than try to move your clients around to your new clinicians

Links & Resources
Alison Pidgeon
Move Forward Virtual Assistants
Practice of the Practice
Group Practice Boss
Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
GreenOak Accounting
Therapy For Your Money Podcast

Financial planning and life planning go hand in hand, which is why we wanted to break down the basics of life planning with our guest, David Frank! Lining up your life values with a financial plan can set you up for a successful future and give you peace of mind.

Today, we are joined by financial life planner David Frank! David is the owner of Turning Point Financial Life Planning located in California and works specifically with therapists in private practice. He strives to bring therapists and private practice owners a plan of action to meet their goals and help them lead more authentic lives.

Episode Highlights:

• Life planning = Financial planning
  • Life planners help make sure you are spending/saving money based on your values
  • They also help you adjust over time as your values may change or your focus may shift from spending to saving depending on your business stage
• How Life Planning Works
  • First, you have a discussion about what you value and create an emotional map of what matters
  • Then, you take that emotional map and plan to reach an overall financial goal
  • Once you have your goal set, you then take the numbers and metrics you need to track in order to reach that goal
• David's 3 Phases
  • Exploration - This is an open discussion about what is important to the client. He will provide some exercises to dive deeper into the client's overall values and what path they would like to take.
  • Vision - David will review the exercises and focus on a more specific vision of the future and plan out in detail how to get there.
  • Obstacles - After making a plan on how to reach the client's future vision, he sits down with them and assess the obstacles they may run into in order to prepare the client to encounter them and solidify a plan of action.
• There is a difference between an Accountant and a Financial Planner. They do work closely together, but an Accountant focuses more on the immediate financial health of the business, while a Financial Planner handles the long-term goals and health of your finances.
  
  
• 4 Components of Financial Life
  • Business Cash Flow
  • Personal Cash Flow
  • Investments & Savings / Retirement
  • Risk Management & Estate Planning / Insurance

Links & Resources:
Turning Point Financial Life Planning
Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
The Tim Ferriss Show - Episode #430
GreenOak Accounting
Therapy For Your Money Podcast

Adding groups into your private practice may seem intimidating or impossible, but in this week's episode, we make it easy! Julie sits down with Carrie Haynes, the genius behind The Art of Groups, and talks all about when it's a good time to implement groups into your practice, how to manage compensation of clinicians while adding groups, and some tips & tricks she's learned along the way!

Carrie Haynes is a Licensed Professional Counselor who has been practicing for over 10 years. She is a specialist in group therapy, and has led numerous therapy groups, workshops, and retreats. She is also a faculty member at Colorado State University and teaches courses in group therapy!

Episode Highlights:

• One of the many ways you can diversify the services your practices offers is by implementing group therapy
• Groups are a great way to increase your capacity to serve more clients, while offering an affordable solution for the client and a profitable service for your business
• Group therapy services can be the main source of a client's treatment, or it can be an additional treatment used alongside individual therapy work, making group therapy very versatile in a number of situations
• Getting started:
  • You can expand your service offerings to include groups once you have around 10+ clients
  •  You want to create the groups based on looking at your existing clients that have similar needs and taking on new clients that could also participate in the groups
  • Ask yourself, "What are the common themes we are seeing in our clients and what expertise can we offer them?"
• Dedicate one of your clinicians as the Group Coordinator
  • This is not a position that you need to hire full-time for
  • They will delegate a few administrative hours per week/month to create groups, schedule them, spread the message to clients about group offerings, and follow up once everything is up and running to make sure things are running smoothly or adjust as needed
• How long should you run your groups?
  • The standard timeline of a group therapy service is around 12-16 weeks
  • This timeframe gives clients enough time to get to know other group members in a comfortable setting while also giving you enough time to see if you are enjoying the group work, if the group is effective, and deciding if you need to extend/shorten the group timeframe in the future

Links & Resources:
Carrie Haynes
The Art Of Groups - Website
The Art of Groups - Podcast
The Life Coach School Podcast
GreenOak Accounting
Therapy For Your Money Podcast

If you are wondering if it's time to shift your private practice to a non-profit, or if you're interested in adding a non-profit arm to your business, check out today's episode featuring Tosha Anderson! She and Julie chat all about non-profits in private practice from compliance to compensation. Tosha also mentions some great resources for when you are looking to get started!

Tosha Anderson is the founder of The Charity CFO, an accounting firm that specializing in working with non-profits across the United States. She has years of experience as an auditor, non-profit board member, and a consultant. Tosha enjoys sharing her knowledge and experience with non-profits of all sizes to help them better understand their finances and set them up for success!

Episode Highlights:

• When does it make sense to start a non-profit?
  • When you want to create some kind of foundation to help your audience
  • When you are looking for funding from specific sources that only offer support to non-profits (family foundations, some government entities, etc.)
• Compensation
  • When you become a non-profit, you have to consult with your board about your compensation and any raises or bonuses you may receive
  • Bonuses are sometimes frowned upon in the non-profit community, so take that into consideration if you plan on expanding your services or generating additional sources of income, you may not always be able to reap the financial benefits of doing so
  • Your personal income becomes public knowledge when you have a non-profit, be aware that people will be able to comment or scrutinize your pay
• Compliance
  • Annual Compliance
    • Generally, every state requires you register as a non-profit but the federal government is who decides if you are a tax exempt entity
    • You are required to file an annual tax return regardless of if you have made money or if your non-profit is even active
  • Maintenance Compliance
    • You are responsible for maintaining your board, meeting funder's requirements (trainings, reporting, etc.), and meticulous recordkeeping
    • It is recommended that you seek professional accounting services when you run a non-profit in order to manage your books as efficiently and accurately as possible
• Audits
  • Audits are unique by state. Some states require audits while others don't.
  • Non-profits are required to pay for their own independent auditor. Keep that extra expense in mind when starting your non-profit.

Links & Resources:
Tosha Anderson - The Charity CFO
The Charity CFO Facebook
Passion to Execution by Lyn Scott
The EMyth by Michael E. Gerber
Atomic Habits by James Clear
GreenOak Accounting
Therapy For Your Money Podcast

Are you looking for some ideas of ways you can grow your private practice outside of regular clinical work? You're in luck! This week, Julie sits down with Katie Vernoy of Therapy Reimagined to talk about alternate revenues streams for you to incorporate into your own business!

Katie Vernoy is a therapist, coach, consultant, and co-founder of Therapy Reimagined! She is also the co-host of The Modern Therapist Survival Guide Podcast, a podcast created to teach therapists how to approach their roles in a modern age. She believes in empowering private practice owners to create businesses that they can healthily sustain and happily enjoy.

Episode Highlights:

• If private practice isn't quite enough to fulfill your business needs, there are many different options to explore to expand your brand
• Consulting - non-profit support, business mentoring, peer coaching, career advancement, etc.
• Networking - find support within your community, and learn ways you can help peers and colleagues as well
• Pricing - research to time and resources you will be utilizing in order to determine a ballpark price to start, don't be afraid to adjust as you go!
• Different options to expand your business & increase revenue:
  • Podcasting
  • Writing a book
  • Training seminars
  • Online webinars & courses
  • Create a conference
• Recognize & adjust how you focus your attention to avoid burnout or distractions - set aside specific time to work on each aspect to stay organized and meet deadlines/goals with multiple facets of the businesses working

Links & Resources:
Katie Vernoy
The Modern Therapist Survival Guide
Therapy Reimagined
When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing by Daniel H. Pink
GreenOak Accounting
Therapy For Your Money Podcast

Register for our FREE Live Profit First Webinar on Dec. 18th, at 1 PM EST - CLICK HERE!

Growing from a solo practice to a group practice doesn't have to be a challenge! This week, Julie breaks down common financial hurdles that most therapists encounter when growing their private practice, and different ways you can avoid them to make your transition easy.

Episode Highlights:

• Hiring: Your first hire is critical! You are setting the stage for all future hires
• Compensation: This will become the highest expense of your practice once you transition into a group. Setting up compensation correctly can make or break the business
• Take a look at your numbers and ratios (expenses based on your income) in order to hire at a proper compensation rate
• Make a Plan: Roughly calculating where you want to see your business financially in the future can help determine compensation rates that will help your business flourish
• Benefits: Slowly grows over time - you won't start out offering full benefits but will be able to make a plan to add vacation time, health insurance, etc. over time

Links & Resources:
Gusto
GreenOak Accounting
Therapy For Your Money Podcast

"The goal of your business is always profitability, but the purpose of your business is to help people and impact the community." -Kasey Compton

Register for our FREE Live Profit First Webinar on Dec. 18th, at 1 PM EST - CLICK HERE!

Automating financial systems in your business is necessary in order to thrive! This week, we chat with Kasey Compton of Consult with Kasey and talk all things automation and systems. We cover systems to make your billing, payroll, accounting, and so much more a breeze.

(HINT: Make sure to listen to the full episode for the secret code to access Kasey's mentorship program!)

Episode Highlights:

• Change Over Time : Keep track of the systems you are using as your business grows and changes over time (you can use Google Docs for example)
• Growth: As your business expands, make sure to create systems in the beginning that can make transitions easier in the future
• Communication: Applying automatic systems will show you what areas of your business need attention at a specific time (hiring, target marketing, expansion, etc.)
• Data-Drive Decisions: Instead of making decisions for your business based on feeling, make sure you have data and numbers to make those decisions confidently
• The Order to Automate: The systems you implement will vary based on your business needs
  • Marketing systems - generating leads and clients
  • Billing systems - filing claims and making sure your business is bringing in money
  • Onboarding systems - hiring your team and expanding your business

Links & Resources:
Kasey Compton
Consult with Kasey
Mindsight Partners
Zapier
Profit First
Fix This Next
The Goal by Eliyahu Goldratt
GreenOak Accounting
Therapy For Your Money Podcast