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Contents:
1. A Common Problem for Many Professionals
2. Time – The Biggest Headache
3. Everything Gets More Complicated Every Day
4. Costs That Hit You When You Least Expect
5. What Do Others Say? You’re Not The Only One Struggling
6. What Can You Actually Do? Here Are Some Simple Solutions
7. What Really Works? Let’s Talk About Different Fields
8. What Do We Do Now? Let’s Get Things Moving
I was in my office when I received an email from Natalia, a psychotherapist with over 10 years of experience. She was frustrated and tired of everything related to online promotion. It made me smile because it felt like reading the emails I receive weekly from doctors, lawyers, consultants, and other professionals. They all say the same thing: “I want to focus on my work, not become a marketing expert!“
And to be honest, I understand them perfectly. They all entered their fields to help people, not to spend hours thinking about what to post on Instagram.
A Common Problem for Many Professionals
This challenge isn’t specific to psychotherapists. I see the same frustrations with:
- Dentists with their own practice
- Independent nutritionists
- Coaches and trainers
- Financial consultants
- Therapists and holistic practitioners
- Freelance architects and designers
- Fitness and yoga instructors
- Accountants with their own office
They all have something in common: they’re excellent in their field but struggle with marketing and online promotion.
Time – The Biggest Headache
“I don’t have the time, energy, or patience to invest 2 hours a day in promotion, posting on dozens of social networks,” Natalia told me, visibly frustrated. And she’s right.
Let’s see how a normal day looks in a professional’s life:
- Clients take up almost all your day – you have consultations or sessions from 9 to 5. Between them, you answer phones and emails. At the end of the day, you also complete necessary documentation. When do you find time to post?
- You need to stay up-to-date with everything new in your field – you read specialized articles, attend courses and conferences, maybe you even teach. You’re not going to fall behind with industry news just to learn how to make a Reel on Instagram.
- Administrative work also eats up your time – invoices to make, documents to send to accounting, supply management, appointments to handle. The only time you think about Facebook is when you see the notification that “you haven’t posted in a while”.
- You want a personal life too – maybe you have family, maybe you want to exercise, see friends, or simply relax after a long day. But you sit on the couch with your phone in hand thinking “I should post something…”
And when you finally find a free hour to deal with social media, you’re already so tired that all you can do is scroll through the feed and give a few likes.
As one of my clients said: “I’ve reached the point where I worry more about not having posted for a week than not having been to the gym for a month“. And that says a lot about the pressure we all feel to be present and active online.
Everything Gets More Complicated Every Day
“I’m not good at this, I don’t know where to start, and I honestly don’t know what to do to promote my small business.“, explained Eugene, a very good financial consultant.
Just when you think you’ve understood how Facebook works, something new appears. It’s like trying to learn to ride a bike, but someone keeps changing the rules while you’re riding:
- Facebook suddenly decides to show your posts to only 2-3% of followers unless you pay. You don’t know why, but that’s how it is – either you pay or you post for nothing.
- You’ve just gotten used to Facebook, and everyone tells you that you need to be on Instagram. You go there and discover you need to take professional photos. Then TikTok appears, where apparently you need to dance to be visible. And as if that wasn’t enough, a new platform appears every year.
- Before, it was enough to write a text and add a photo. Now you need to make short videos for Reels, long videos for YouTube, Stories that disappear in 24 hours, carousel posts on LinkedIn… and the list goes on.
- And as if that wasn’t enough, what works on Instagram doesn’t work on Facebook, what works on LinkedIn doesn’t work on TikTok. You have to adapt everything for each platform. It’s like cooking the same dish in 5 different ways because each guest has different preferences.
Costs That Hit You When You Least Expect
“I’ve put money into Facebook promotion, but the benefits are zero. I probably didn’t do it right.“, explained Daria, a dentist. And she’s not the only one who’s been through this.
When you start with online promotion, it seems simple: take some photos, write a text, share. But wait until you see what else awaits you:
- Time – the most painful cost. You spend 2 hours taking a decent photo, another hour writing the perfect text, then you see it didn’t turn out well and start over. Time during which you could have seen 3-4 patients.
- Equipment – your 3-year-old phone takes “yellowish” photos? Too bad. Now you need a new one with a good camera. Maybe some lights. And a tripod. And maybe a microphone, because there’s background noise. And that’s how several thousand lei add up.
- Software – want to edit photos? Subscription. Want to schedule posts? Another subscription. Want to make a nice logo? Another subscription. At the end of the month, you look at the bill and wonder how so much money added up.
- Paid ads – you put 50 euros on Facebook and hope clients will come. But they don’t. Then you learn that you should have set the targeting differently. Or that the text wasn’t good. Or that the image didn’t follow some rule. And you put another 50 euros. And so on.
- Specialists – when you realize you don’t have time to do all this yourself, you start looking for help. And you discover that a good specialist costs money. A cheap one can cost you even more through their mistakes.
The worst part is that these costs come one by one, when you least expect them. It’s like buying a car and discovering afterward that you also need insurance, gas, maintenance, and so on.
What Do Others Say? You’re Not The Only One Struggling
I looked to see if only my clients complain about online promotion or if it’s a wider problem. And guess what? A recent Harvard Business Review study shows that almost all small entrepreneurs face the same problems:
- 6 out of 10 entrepreneurs feel overwhelmed by digital marketing. It’s like trying to learn to juggle while riding a bike – too many things to do at once.
- Almost half spend at least 2 hours per day on social media. Think about it – that’s 10 hours per week, or better said 40 hours per month! It’s practically a part-time job in itself.
- 3 out of 4 entrepreneurs have the feeling they’re “missing something” – that others know a secret they don’t know, that they’re not using the platforms properly, that they could do more but don’t know exactly what.
- over 80% would prefer to focus on their main work rather than deal with marketing. As a dentist client once told me: “I want to fix teeth, not be an influencer!“
So next time you feel frustrated that “everyone else is doing better than you” on social media, remember: they probably feel the same way. We’re all in the same boat.
What Can You Actually Do? Here Are Some Simple Solutions
1. Less, but Better
Stop stressing about being everywhere. Better do good work in one place:
- Find out where your clients are. If you have a dental office, probably Facebook and Google are enough. If you’re a business coach, focus on LinkedIn. Don’t waste time on TikTok if your clients are 45-year-old corporate professionals.
- Don’t compare yourself with others who post 3 times a day on 5 platforms. Better make 2-3 good posts per week in one place.
- Set a simple routine: for example, post about your services on Monday, give a useful tip on Wednesday, share a success story on Friday.
2. Let Technology Work for You
There are many tools that can help you:
- Instead of posting every day, use tools that schedule posts. Spend 2 hours on Monday and schedule everything for next week.
- Set up automatic responses for frequent questions. “What’s your schedule?”, “What services do you offer?”, “What are the prices?” – all can receive automatic responses.
- Create a “library” of texts and images to reuse. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel every time.
3. Ask for Help When Needed
You don’t have to do everything alone:
- Maybe you have a student who knows social media and is looking for a part-time job?
- For paid campaigns, better pay a specialist. It’s cheaper than throwing money on poorly made ads.
- A virtual assistant can take over repetitive tasks – responding to messages, scheduling, document organization.
4. Be Smart with Money
Start small, grow smart:
- Start with 50-100€ on Facebook or Google. See what works and what doesn’t.
- When you find something that works (for example, an ad that brings clients), repeat and optimize.
- Don’t be cheap with tools that actually help you save time. If a 10€/month subscription saves you 2 hours per week, it’s worth every penny.
Experience tip: Start with one of these solutions and implement it well before moving to the next. Better do one thing right than do everything halfway.
What Really Works? Let’s Talk About Different Fields
From what I’ve seen with my clients in recent years, each field has its own “recipe” that works. Let’s take them one by one:
If you have a medical office or are a therapist:
- Google Ads works surprisingly well – Think logically: when you have a medical problem, the first thing you do is search on Google “dentist Bucharest” or “therapist near me”. With 300-500€ (yes, it’s quite a lot but it might be worth the investment) per month you can consistently receive new appointments.
- Reviews are pure gold – Ask your satisfied patients to leave you a review on Google or specialized platforms. I have a dentist client who receives 3-4 new patients per week just from positive reviews.
- Don’t forget about current patients – Send them a monthly email with health tips or office news. It’s easier to keep an old patient than to find a new one.
For coaches and trainers:
- LinkedIn is the new networking cafe – Forget about general motivational posts. Share concrete success cases, give practical advice, engage in relevant discussions.
- Webinars still work – But you need to offer real value, not just sell. A coach client does a free 45-minute webinar monthly and consistently converts 15-20% of participants into paying clients.
- Create content that solves problems – A good blog article or useful YouTube video can bring clients for years. I have a trainer client who still receives contacts from a video made 2 years ago.
For consultants and freelancers:
- Case studies are the best advertising – Don’t just say “I’m an expert in
What Do We Do Now? Let’s Get Things Moving
I know that everything I’ve told you until now might seem overwhelming. But remember one important thing: you’re not the only one struggling with this. Just yesterday I was talking with a coach who was complaining that “everyone else seems to know what they’re doing on social media, only I’m struggling”. Guess what? “Everyone else” is struggling too, they just don’t say it.
What to do concretely starting tomorrow:
- Start with baby steps You don’t have to conquer the internet in a week. Maybe this week you just make a plan. Next week you write your first article. Then you learn to take better photos. Step by step, no pressure.
- Stop looking at multinational companies When you see perfect ads from big companies, remember: they have entire teams working on them. They have photographers, designers, copywriters, and huge budgets. You don’t have to compete with them. You have another advantage: you’re real, authentic, and close to your clients.
- Measure what works, abandon what doesn’t Instead of throwing money in all directions, keep track:
- Where do most clients come from?
- Which posts get the most reactions?
- What type of content seems to interest people? Focus on what works and abandon without regrets what doesn’t give results.
- Ask for help when you get stuck You don’t have to be an expert in everything. When you feel overwhelmed:
- Maybe it’s time to work with a specialist
- Maybe you can find someone to manage your social media
- Maybe you can do a service exchange with someone else in the field
The Most Important Thing:
Don’t forget why you started this business. Your goal isn’t to become an influencer or digital marketing expert. Your goal is to help your clients with your excellent services. Everything related to promotion should help you do that better, not eat up all your time and energy.
Do you have stories about online promotion too? I’d love to hear your experiences in the comments. What do you find most difficult? What solutions have you found? Or maybe you need advice for a specific problem? I’m here to help!
PS: If you want to discuss your specific marketing challenges in more detail, give me a sign. Sometimes, a 30-minute discussion can save months of trial and error.
