Your private practice website design is often the first impression potential clients have when they’re thinking about working with you. It’s where they go to learn more about who you are, what you offer, and how your services can help them – and sometimes, it’s even where they’ll grab a free resource before deciding to book a session with you.
Private practice clinicians often know the importance of having a website, but too often they’ll unintentionally design a website that confuses, overwhelms, or even turns away their audience – aka their potential clients.
The good news though is that most private practice website design mistakes are easily fixable and once you know what to look for, you can create a site that feels professional, trustworthy, and aligned with your clinical values.
So, keep reading to make sure that you aren’t making one of the 7 most common private practice website design mistakes – and if you are, you can learn how to avoid them!
Private Practice Website Design Mistakes To Avoid
Your Homepage Tries To Say Too Much
When it comes to website design, it’s tempting to try to put everything on your homepage – who you are, what you do, your credentials, backstory, blog, and more.
But that is simply not the goal of a homepage. Your website home page should give people a solid idea of who you are, what you do, and briefly explain how you can help, but then strategically guide your website visitors to other pages on your site.
A cluttered homepage can make people click away quickly because they can’t find what they need fast enough.
THE FIX:
Start thinking of your homepage like the welcome mat of your website by using simple and clear sections like:
- A headline that speaks directly to your ideal client’s needs
- A short paragraph that introduces your practice and philosophy
- A clear call to action (like “Book a Consultation” or “Learn More About Services”)
- A few inviting visuals that show your space or brand aesthetic
This will give them all the information they need and guide them to the next best spot without overwhelming them along the way.
Your Website Lacks Clear Navigation
Speaking of guiding your website visitors to other areas of your website, a common private practice website design mistake is lacking clear navigation.
Your visitors need to be able to clearly find what they’re looking for, whether that be your services page, about page, or your contact form. If they can’t find those things within a matter of seconds, they won’t stay long!
THE FIX:
Keep your main navigation simple with ideally 5–6 top-level links max. A good starting structure for most private practices are:
- Home
- About
- Services
- Blog or Resources
- Contact
Within your “Services” page, you can add subpages for specific offerings, like couples therapy, EMDR, or coaching.
Remember, when it comes to the navigation of your private practice website, we’re going for clarity here – not cuteness!
You’re Using Stock Photos That Don’t Reflect Your Practice
If there’s one thing that people are craving now more than ever in the age of AI and the digital world, it’s real human connection, which means your brand has to be crafted in a way that delivers that through every touchpoint.
While stock photos can be helpful to use throughout your website, you never want to use ones that create a brand disconnect.
For example, if you want to convey to your potential clients that your practice is warm and inviting, but your website is full of overly posed models or sterile office spaces, it can turn potential clients away.
THE FIX:
To avoid creating a brand disconnect through the imagery on your website, use photos that feel authentic, calming, and reflective of your brand personality.
Ideally, you would have some brand photos, but even if you can’t invest in a full brand shoot quite yet, try to use:
- Lifestyle imagery that feels real instead of staged (Dupe Photos is a great source for this!)
- Photos of your actual space, team, or community (even if they’re taken by you!)
- Consistent tones and colors that match your branding
Overall, visual consistency helps clients feel a sense of familiarity before they even reach out, which is a key part of building trust online!
Your Brand Doesn’t Feel Cohesive
Along the same lines of using off-brand photos on your website, the colors, fonts, and tone that you use throughout your website makes up your entire brand identity and you want all of those things to feel cohesive.
Unfortunately this is a big mistake we see with private practice website design and it matters much more than you may think!
THE FIX:
Stick to a consistent visual identity and tone of voice across your website. For example, if your brand palette is soft neutrals and calming blues, don’t throw in something random, like a bright red or neon green. Use your colors consistently for headers, buttons, and background elements!
Similarly, if your website copy is warm, supportive, and conversational, make sure that your blog posts, service descriptions, and even button text match that tone. This consistency helps clients instantly recognize your practice and builds trust before they even reach out.
And don’t forget to carry over your brand guidelines to social media as well – while it might seem like your website and other platforms are separate, you ALWAYS want your brand to feel cohesive so that your audience is never confused.
We see this disconnect happening often with clients, which is why we created a Brand Guidelines for Instagram freebie that you can grab here!
If you need more help creating a brand and web design that reflects your values as a private practice clinician while connecting deeply with your ideal clients, click here to view our brand and web design services!
Your Copy Is Written for You, Not Your Clients
Listen, we know you’re proud of your title and your expertise, but something to remember is that your clients don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.
And filling your website copy with all sorts of technical jargon, credentials, or therapeutic frameworks doesn’t convey to your potential clients that you care about them.
THE FIX:
Write your website copy in a way that mirrors how your ideal client speaks about their struggles and goals. Instead of focusing on private practice modalities, focus on the transformation that your clients will experience:
- What will clients feel after working with you?
- What changes can they expect to see in their daily life?
- How will their experience in your care feel different?
And if writing isn’t your thing, we highly recommend working with a professional website copywriter and designer who understands the mental health field, so they can help you translate your expertise into messaging that resonates.
You’re Ignoring SEO Best Practices
This one is HUGE for private practices and it’s something we’re super passionate about here at Studio Adagio, because you can have the most beautiful website out there, but it won’t help your practice grow if no one can find it.
SEO (search engine optimization) ensures your private practice website shows up when people search for services like yours in your area.
And no, simply having a website doesn’t guarantee that it’s an optimized one. There are certain strategies that you want to implement to ensure that your private practice is getting found.
THE FIX:
Optimizing your website for SEO involves different things for different people, but generally speaking, you can start with a few strategies:
- Use keywords like “[your specialty] therapist in [your city]” naturally throughout your pages (this is a big one to improve your local SEO)
- Add meta titles and descriptions to each page
- Make sure your website loads quickly and is mobile-friendly
- Write blog posts that answer common client questions or share insights from your niche
The best part of focusing on SEO is that it doesn’t just improve your search result rankings for the time being – it builds long-term visibility and credibility for your practice.
If you’re in search of hands-on help with optimizing your private practice website, Studio Adagio offers SEO strategies designed specifically for private practice clinicians OR you can click here to read more of our blogs about SEO specifically.
You’re Not Guiding Visitors Toward a Clear Next Step
Every page on your website should have a specific purpose, whether it’s encouraging visitors to schedule a consultation, read a blog post, or join your email list.
It’s your job to ensure that your website visitors know exactly what to do next, but without clear calls to action (CTA), people might land on one of your pages, read the content, and then go on their merry way.
THE FIX:
Add at least one intentional CTA per page that aligns with your goals. To do this well, for every page of your website, simply ask yourself: “What’s the next best action I want someone to take from here?”
For example, if someone is on your Home page, you might want to guide them to your About page to learn more about you. From there, you may want to guide them to your Service page that describes everything you offer more in depth. And from there, your goal might be for them to book a call.
But remember: it’s common for most website pages to have more than one CTA throughout the page. While the ultimate goal of your Home page might be for a website visitor to navigate to learn more about you, you might also have a section that guides them to download a free resource or read your blog.
It all depends on the structure and copy of your private practice website and CTA placement is ultimately rooted in website design strategy, which is why we highly recommend working with a professional to help you make these decisions without playing the guessing game.
Studio Adagio Specializes in Private Practice Website Design
Overall, your private practice website design is incredibly important and avoiding these common mistakes can ensure that your website is most effective for attracting new leads and gaining new clients.
Whether you are brand new to private practice or a fully-seasoned private practice with multiple practitioners, we’d love to work together!
At Studio Adagio, we offer Brand Design, Web Design, and SEO strategy services for private practice clinicians that actually work, so you can focus on the work that matters most.
