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Mental Health Recruitment: The Role of Marketing in Growing Your Therapy Team

Creating a work-life balance isn’t a new thing. And it could honestly go without saying that many people are desperately trying to find this balance – and they have been for a while.

Just like the great resignation that we saw occur during 2020 when the pandemic caused many people to rethink their lives – and their jobs – mental health practitioners today are looking for a company that speaks to their core values, and for a place to work where they’re going to feel comfortable and valued. Essentially, today’s job candidates in the mental health space are on the hunt for much more than a “job.”

With so many people looking for more than a paycheck, creative and forward-thinking marketing is critical today for meeting the recruitment challenges in mental health. And while it’s safe to say that incentives such as profit sharing, health benefits, and a modest 401K are nice to place on the table, job candidates are looking for a deeper connection to what they do and with the companies they choose to work for.

Through a combination of creative marketing and truly understanding the desires and needs of your target candidates, you can fill your empty positions with quality job candidates who will likely enjoy their work and what your company can offer. And studies have proven that if your company culture meets their needs, they even might stick around for a while.

Could Your Mental Health Practice Benefit from Recruitment Marketing? Reach out to Beacon Media + Marketing today and schedule a free consultation.

Unique Recruitment Challenges for Mental Health Providers

Recruitment in the mental health space has become much more challenging today than it ever has been. And this is primarily because the number of available positions is disproportionately higher than the number of qualified candidates. Essentially, there just aren’t enough therapists to go around – and this can make recruitment especially difficult.

Between a large number of in-house positions without remote or telehealth options and the high burnout rate among many therapists, retention of qualified therapists has also become a big challenge in the mental health space. But this is where the role of marketing can be a game-changer when it comes to mental health recruitment.

Quality messaging and focusing your marketing efforts where they can be the most effective is just the beginning of your marketing journey when attempting to boost candidate engagement. However, just the bare tip of this iceberg won’t get the job done entirely.

How important is Company Culture Messaging in Recruitment?

In the same way that sales practices have transformed over the last decade with the influx of digital marketing, everyone wants to research online before they decide if they’re going to do business with you or not. And the same transition has crossed over into recruiting. People want to research a prospective employer or company thoroughly before they decide if they want to work for you or not.

Consider the questions that today’s job candidates are asking about your company before they make their decision:

  • How do they treat their staff?
  • Is this a place where I’m going to be cared about?
  • Will I be just another number?
  • What is it really like to work there?

If you want your recruitment efforts to be successful, all of this need-to-know information needs to be put out in online marketing. While the website is the core of this marketing strategy, and a website should contain plentiful information about your team, values, and culture, you also have to be able to showcase these same elements on social channels and show prospective employees who you really are in a genuine framework.

At the end of the day, you can claim to have the greatest company culture in the world, but if it’s not genuine and you can’t showcase it, people will pick up on it and likely look elsewhere for employment.

Additionally, mental health companies that are showcasing their culture online are actually attracting 80 percent more applicants than those who do not. And these companies actually have a 50 percent higher retention rate as well. So, they’re not just attracting more people, they’re keeping people longer than their direct competitors who forego highlighting their company culture online.

Making Your Company Culture Shine

Make Your Therapy Culture Shine Infographic

Company culture is a primary attractor that job candidates are looking for as we head into 2023. And in order to highlight your company culture, you have to talk about your internal culture online through all of the same channels that you’re using to attract clients – blogging, video, social media, ads, and the like. Basically, your internal culture needs to become part of your messaging to the world. And by doing so, you’re going to have a better chance of attracting the right people who want what your culture offers.

In order to highlight your company culture, you need to clearly understand what your ideal job candidates are looking for beyond the obvious – like having a day off on occasion and a boss that doesn’t take advantage of those who passionately go above and beyond in their work. And a few examples of an attractive company culture might include:

  • Flexibility – hybrid/remote options, 4-day workweeks, PTO
  • Human qualities – respect and understanding
  • Accountability – including both staff and leadership
  • Empathy – understanding what a therapist does and working to provide the best environment for both clients and employees.

Many businesses have attempted to commoditize mental health, and this can make the process of providing care feel mechanical for both the practitioner and the patient. Essentially, where there is a lack of understanding between the investors and the people actually providing the service, there will be a company culture that repels rather than attracts applicants.

Trends in Mental Health Recruitment

Today, job applicants are wearing their detective hats. They’re looking under every rock for the finest details about your company and what you could offer them. And with all of the information and insider reviews proliferating online such as on sites like Indeed and Glassdoor, you have to paint a truly genuine and inviting picture of your company if you hope for anyone to apply.

Basically, you can spend millions of dollars on ads for recruitment, but if you don’t showcase your culture and show that you’re different – that you can provide a good experience for a potential employee – it’s going to be a very expensive endeavor and not as effective.

De-Siloing HR from marketing

Most businesses see HR and marketing as completely separate fields. But people are not siloed anymore. And for a recruitment campaign to be successful, the full force of marketing needs to be utilized to develop a complete strategy for recruitment instead of having HR only utilize marketing for bits and pieces of your hiring efforts.

Quality marketing highlights your culture, speaks about what makes your company different, and actually develops the strategy around the target candidates you’re looking to hire. This process will also target what job candidates actually care about and what they’re looking for. And if successful, you’re likely going to see 80 percent more applicants, and 50 percent better retention.

It may seem simple, but by using the same strategic skills that you use to bring on new clients as you would get new employees, you’ll find that more qualified applicants will be curious to see what you really have to offer.

Scale Your Recruitment Program with Beacon Media + Marketing

Building a recruitment strategy that gets you the people you’re looking for isn’t an impossible dream. And just like you’re looking for the best applicants, there are many qualified candidates in the mental health space that are looking for you – as long as you can offer and highlight a culture that offers a better quality of life.

With our team of creatives, social media experts, and marketing professionals, here at Beacon Media + Marketing, we will go to work for you and scale your recruitment efforts and get you the results you’re looking for.

Are you ready to scale your recruitment program with strategic marketing? Reach out to Beacon Media + Marketing today and schedule a free consultation.

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