You probably don’t need another marketing idea

4min read · September 2026

When your diary isn’t as full as you’d like it to be, it’s very easy to assume you have a marketing problem.

So you start looking for marketing ideas.

Maybe you need to post more often on Instagram. Maybe you should finally start that email list. Perhaps you need a lead magnet, a new treatment, a special offer or a better website.

Or maybe you just need to be more consistent.

There is certainly no shortage of people on the internet willing to tell you what you should be doing.

But before you add another thing to your list, there’s a much more useful question to ask:

Do you actually know what isn’t working?

“‘I need more clients’ tells you the outcome you want. It doesn’t tell you where the problem is.”

More marketing isn't always the answer

Imagine a therapist who decides Instagram is the problem.

They’re not getting enough bookings, they haven’t posted consistently for a while, and they keep seeing advice about how important social media is for growing a business.

So they commit to posting three times a week. They spend hours in Canva. They make educational posts. They share quotes. They try Reels because apparently Reels are important. They worry about hooks and hashtags and whether they should be showing their face more.

A month later, they’re exhausted. And their diary looks pretty much the same.

It would be very easy at this point to decide that Instagram “doesn’t work”. But Instagram might never have been the problem.

- Perhaps plenty of people are already finding their website through Google, but the website doesn't make it particularly clear who their treatments are for.

- Perhaps people are visiting the booking page but there are so many treatment options that they don’t know which one to choose.

- Perhaps existing clients love their treatments but are leaving without rebooking.

- Perhaps they have a database full of previous clients who haven't heard from them for two years.

- Perhaps enquiries come in regularly, but the way they're being handled isn't converting enough of them into bookings.

Those are five very different business problems.

And none of them are solved by making another Instagram post.

This is where business advice gets noisy

One of the hardest things about running your own therapy business is that most business advice isn't necessarily wrong.

Email marketing can work.

Instagram can work.

Google can work.

Networking can work.

Offers can work.

Paid advertising can work.

Asking clients to rebook can work.

The problem is trying to work out which of those things matters for your business right now.

Because when you’re exposed to enough advice, every new idea can start to feel urgent.

Someone explains why every therapist needs an email list, so you start researching email platforms.

Then you hear someone talking about Google Business Profiles and realise you haven't touched yours for six months.

Then you see a Reel about passive income and wonder whether you should create an online course.

Meanwhile, the actual thing stopping your business from growing might be sitting untouched.

This is why I think one of the most useful business skills you can develop is not learning how to do more marketing.

It’s learning how to diagnose before you act.

Start with the gap

Instead of asking:

“What should I be doing to market my business?”

try asking:

“Where is the gap between what is happening now and what I want to happen?”

If you want more bookings, for example, start looking at the journey someone takes before they become a client.

Are enough people discovering you in the first place?

If they find you, do they understand quickly what you do and who you help?

Is there enough information for them to feel confident booking?

Is the booking process straightforward?

Are new clients coming once and disappearing?

Are existing clients being given a reason or opportunity to return?

Do people enquire but then not book?

You don't need complicated analytics to start noticing some of this.

Sometimes you just need to stop doing long enough to look at what's actually happening.

The answer might be surprisingly small

There’s another reason I think this matters.

When we're worried about our businesses, we tend to look for big solutions.

A new website.

A complete rebrand.

A new treatment.

A new social media strategy.

But sometimes the thing that makes the biggest difference is much less exciting.

It might be changing the first paragraph on your website so people immediately understand what you offer.

It might be following up with previous clients.

It might be making your booking button considerably easier to find.

It might be removing three treatments that nobody books.

It might be asking every suitable client whether they'd like to book their next appointment before they leave.

None of those things make particularly impressive Instagram content about growing a business.

But that doesn't matter.

The aim isn't to look busy.

The aim is to build a business that works.

You don't need to do everything

I think therapists are particularly vulnerable to the feeling that they're somehow behind.

You’re treating clients, doing laundry, answering messages, keeping notes, managing bookings, buying supplies, doing accounts and trying to remember to post something online occasionally.

Then you open Instagram and somebody tells you there are another seven things you should be doing to grow your business.

Of course that feels overwhelming.

But a good business strategy shouldn't simply give you more things to do.

Quite often, it should give you permission to stop doing things.

To ignore something for now.

To decide that a particular platform isn't a priority.

To focus on one problem long enough to actually solve it.

And then move on to the next one.

Before you look for another idea...

If you've been consuming lots of business or marketing advice lately, try resisting the urge to implement the next thing you find.

Instead, take a proper look at your own business.

What do you actually want to improve?

What evidence do you have about why it isn't happening already?

Where does the client journey seem to be breaking down?

And what is the smallest useful thing you could change to test whether you're right?

You might still decide that you need to improve your Instagram, start an email list or build a new website.

But you'll be doing it because you've identified a reason for it.

Not because somebody on the internet told you that you should.

And that is a very different way to run a business.

Not sure where the gap is in yours?

That’s one of the reasons I created the Therapy Business Reset.

It helps you step back from all the things you could be doing, look properly at where your therapy business is now, and work out what actually deserves your attention next.

Because sometimes you don't need another idea.

You need clarity on the ones you've already got.

Ready to take a clearer look at your own business?

Take the free Therapy Business Reset to see what’s working, what might need some attention — and where I’d suggest focusing next.

Take The Therapy Business Reset Quiz for Free

<h2>What is Therapist Collective Co?</h2>

<p>Therapist Collective Co is a business education and support

platform created specifically for massage therapists and

bodyworkers in the UK. Founded by Rachel, a qualified massage

therapist, tutor and examiner, it provides practical business

tools, frameworks and resources to help therapists build

sustainable, profitable practices.</p>

<h2>What is the Massage Therapist Business Health Check?</h2>

<p>The Massage Therapist Business Health Check is a free

assessment tool that helps massage therapists identify the

strengths and weaknesses in their business across five key

areas: Clarity, Communication, Confidence, Consistency and

Sustainability. It takes approximately 10 to 15 minutes to

complete and provides personalised recommendations on what

to prioritise next.</p>

<h2>Who is Rachel at Therapist Collective Co?</h2>

<p>Rachel is a massage therapist, business educator, tutor and

examiner with extensive experience in both clinical practice

and therapist education. She runs a fully booked massage

clinic, tutors on the Level 3 Diploma in Therapeutic Massage

at the School of Bodywork, and develops business education

programmes specifically for massage therapists.</p>

<h2>What business support is available for massage therapists?</h2>

<p>Therapist Collective Co offers a range of business support

for massage therapists including a free Business Health Check,

the Therapy Business Framework course, one-to-one business

mentoring, and practical workshops covering pricing, marketing,

client retention and sustainable business growth.</p>

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