Starting the process of therapy can be really overwhelming. If you can make your potential client feel at ease with a professional, simple and easy onboarding process that gives them confidence then, in my six years of experience working with therapists, I have found that there is a higher client retention rate. Clients are coming to their first sessions and they are staying longer. It can also help you to set expectations and put in your boundaries up front.

For you, as the therapist, creating a formal onboarding process means that it is a repeatable process which you can have automations for. Then, even if you aren’t taking on new clients regularly, you would still be able to follow the same process and know exactly what you are going to do to onboard the client.

So, what is onboarding?

If you're in Private Practice you will already be onboarding clients in one way or another. If you don't have a formal process then are all your new clients getting the same first impression of your Practice?

Onboarding is the process of taking someone all the way from inquiry to becoming a client. Think of this process as setting the tone for all your ongoing interactions with your client.

Before you create your onboarding process there are some key decisions you need to make.  Below are some of the policies and procedures you need to think about before creating an onboarding process.

The questions you need to ask yourself

To get started answer these ten questions which will help you create a smooth onboarding process:

What is your cancellation policy or your no show policy?
How would you like to be communicated with outside of sessions?
Can clients reschedule sessions?
Do you have a reduced fee program for someone that can’t pay your full rate?
How would you like your clients to pay you?
Are they paying by session or on a month by month basis?
What happens if someone doesn’t pay?
Will you be accepting third party payments from parents or guarantors?
Do you accept medical insurance and how will you obtain the provider details from your clients?
How are you sending clients their appointments and paperwork?

1. Enquiry

How are you getting those enquiries? I recommend that all enquiries come through to your email so you have everything in one place. If you’re getting DMs or text messages it’s really easy to lose track of who has enquired and what information you’ve given them. So however the enquiry arrives, move them to email.

2. The Intro Call

Sometimes called a screening call. This is a good idea to see if you are a good fit for them and whether they are a good fit for your practice. A free 15 minute call is usual.

3. Welcome Email

This is going to contain all of the important information that your clients are going to need to know before their first session.  
I recommend that this contains:

Confirmation of their first session including date, time and address

Your invoicing process including how and when you expect to be paid

Links to your paperwork or details of how this will be sent

```
Your cancellation policy
```

How and when they can contact you outside of sessions

Although I recommend putting all this information in your actual paperwork, I would add it to your welcome email as well, just because it’s much more likely that they are going to read this email in full. Rather than just getting some paperwork, signing it and not really reading it.

Have you ever just ticked yes to the terms and conditions without reading them in full? Of course you have.

4. Session Bookings

Sending clients their appointment details can not only reduce anxiety for them but it can also increase the likelihood of them showing up. I'd recommend using Google Calendar and syncing with Zoom if you work online. Clients will then get an invite to the session, a link and they can easily add the session to their own calendar.

If you do see clients face to face you can add the location so they can easily find it on Google Maps or just have it to hand in their email or on their calendar.

If you’d like to watch how to set this up check out this video.

5. Sending Paperwork

I always recommend sending it electronically and there's a few ways you can do this. You want to make it as easy as possible for the client to complete.

The first is just having a word document or a google doc that you can send and they can fill in online.  This might be the easiest way but I personally don’t think it’s the most professional.

The second way is to create a Google form that you can simply send in a link, so that they can complete it online. This is really simple and easy to update if you make any changes to your paperwork in the future.

The third is using an e-signature platform like Signable, so that you can both send the paperwork to them to complete and they can sign electronically.  I love Signable because it has a pay as you go option which is perfect for a therapist in private practice.  I do have a video all about Signable which you can find HERE.

I recommend asking for it to be completed before the session so you don’t waste your valuable time together in the session itself.

6. Storing Data

Google Workspace is perfect for this as you can create client files and upload copies of the paperwork directly to them, so you’ll always know where it is. And most importantly it's secure. You can have a client master list which is a log of all your clients, from enquiries, your waiting list, current clients and also past clients. I have a video explaining what the client master list is HERE and a free TEMPLATE for you.

Conclusion

It is clear why the the onboarding process is one of the most important administrative things you can do in your practice. Not only does it give the client confidence that they are being taken care of and that there are no surprises, but it also sets the tone for how the two of you will work together.

By answering these questions and making these decisions you’ve already created a good vision of what your practice will look like.

If you’d like to think about your own Practice Workflow and Onboarding procedure in more depth you can download my free Private Practice Workflow resource.

Creating a Smooth Onboarding Process