It’s happened to all of us, you might have had a couple sessions with a client and then POOF! You never hear from them again. You start to wonder, “Is it me? Am I doing something wrong?” And you wish you could just knock on their door and ask “Whhhyyy!?” Luckily, there are ways to improve your retention rates!
The Obvious Importance of Keeping Clients
In private practice, it is important to keep clients and build good therapeutic alliances because:
- We want to help clients with their problems.
- You’ll make more money (this is a business).
- If they have a good experience, they might refer others to you.
How To Keep More Clients
For the past couple of years, I have been using a simple rating scale with clients each session that helps track our progress and their experience in counselling. The best part about this rating scale is that the client rates you! It takes two to tango, so space needs to be given for the client to voice their concerns about the session, your approach, and you as a counsellor. For me, using this scale has opened up space for conversations with clients who felt comfortable enough to discuss our sessions and what they wanted to change. Instead of losing clients, I keep them, as we work through the issues. Of course, with these rating scales, you also learn what clients are enjoying about sessions too! It’s really a win/win, I become a better counsellor and they get the help they want 🙂
Free Rating Scale
Check out the free rating scale here (for one provider).
Until next time,
Julia
About Julia
Julia owns Insight Mental Health Counselling in Halifax, Nova Scotia. As a counsellor who practices Narrative Therapy, she realizes the importance of collaborating with clients and honoring their perspectives. Rating scales allow Julia to give clients the best experience possible.
