Guide

The therapist website checklist.

Twelve things we check on every therapy practice website we build or review. Use it on your current site — or as a brief if you're starting from scratch.

Most therapy websites aren't broken — they're vague. They describe a practice without ever telling a nervous person who this is for, what a session costs, or what happens after they reach out. This checklist is ordered the way a visitor experiences your site, so you can work down it in an afternoon.

  1. 01

    A home page that names who you help

    Not "welcome to my practice" — the concern, the people and the place. "Therapy for anxiety and burnout in Hamilton" tells a visitor and a search engine the same thing in one line.

  2. 02

    One obvious next step on every page

    Book a consult, send a message, or read what the first session is like. If a page ends without a next step, the visitor's next step becomes leaving.

  3. 03

    A page per specialty, not one long list

    Anxiety, trauma, couples, grief — each deserves its own page in your own words. This is where most therapist websites gain their search traffic.

  4. 04

    An about page written like a person

    Your training matters, but so does what a session with you actually feels like. Lead with the human part and put credentials underneath.

  5. 05

    A real photo of you

    One warm, current photo outperforms any stock image of a couch. Clients are deciding whether they can talk to you.

  6. 06

    Fees and coverage stated plainly

    Session fee, sliding scale if you offer one, whether you provide receipts for insurance, and what cancellation looks like. Silence on fees is the most common reason people don't enquire.

  7. 07

    Intake and consent forms on the site

    Collect what you actually need before session one, with clear consent language, and have it arrive somewhere you'll see it.

  8. 08

    Booking that doesn't need an email thread

    Let people pick a consult time against your live calendar. Confirmations and reminders should send themselves.

  9. 09

    A first-session page

    What happens, how long, virtual or in person, what to bring, what you'll ask. This page quietly removes most of the fear that stops a booking.

  10. 10

    Accessibility that isn't an afterthought

    Readable type sizes, real colour contrast, keyboard-friendly forms, alt text on images. Many of your clients need this and all of them benefit.

  11. 11

    Speed on a phone, on data

    Compressed images, no heavy sliders, no autoplaying video. Most therapy searches happen on a phone.

  12. 12

    Local SEO groundwork

    A page title and description per page, your city named in real sentences, a Google Business Profile if you see clients in person, and structured data describing your practice.

Want this handled for you?

We build every item on this list into the websites we design for therapists and counselling practices across Canada.

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