Whether you intend to use traditional therapy as 25 percent or 75 percent of your practice pie, it’s a smart move to identify what non-traditional services you could add to the mix of streams of income for yourself.

N + P + F = SUCCESS

There are three steps to developing a psychology-based, non-traditional service line that will have great value and impact.

The simple three-step formula to creating a new income-producing service is:

Niche + Problem + Format = Service

If your mission is to positively impact other people, this formula will do it. Let’s look more closely.

1. Pick a Niche Market.

It could be divorced parents, ACOA Adults, breast-cancer patients, ADHD executives, children of divorce, attorneys, clergy swamped with congregational people problems or smokers who want to quit.

You can take your services to the workplace and target stressed workers, downsizing companies, businesses in change or troubled employees and departments.

Many more possibilities are possible.

2. Identify a specific problem or challenge that’s happening in that niche market.

It could be managing stress, self-management, conflict, interpersonal skills, changing culture within a company, work-life balance, co-parenting or dissatisfaction with life, relationships or career.

There’s a multitude of possibilities.

How can you help meet the felt needs and address the urgent concerns of your niche market?

Decide on a service or set of services you can offer that will help the niche market with its challenges in an effective way.

To get ideas for this service, research the literature on what may be an effective treatment. Obtain training and supervision as needed. Are there any programs or approaches that you can adapt?

3. Choose the format to deliver your solution.

This is the packaging that your solution will come in.

Packaging is important.

After you have identified a solution for your niche market’s felt needs, I suggest you develop it into a step-by-step program.

Clients understand products easier than services, which are less tangible.

An example of a mental health package or product is a stress-management program with:

• A set of curriculum
• A workbook
• A fixed price

Have a process that you deliver. Let your prospective clients know you have as plan and a process to help them.

This gives you more credibility and the potential client hope that it will be beneficial. The process description answers the questions about how you help people and what you would do with them in therapy

Example:
Niche: Divorced parents
Problem: Collaboration with ex on parenting; high conflict in communication
Format: 10 co-parenting sessions organized around a five-step process
Equals: A marketable income stream

Ask yourself: For what services will people feel a need and be willing to pay for out of pocket?

Article Source: http://www.articleset.com