SEO vs Google Ads for Private Therapy Practices

Private practices do not need every marketing channel at once. They need the next purchase that matches capacity, budget, website readiness, and timing. This guide compares SEO and Google Ads for therapists using Kavana’s approved CAD offers - without rank guarantees or invented cost-per-lead promises.

Quick comparison

Question	Lean SEO	Lean Google Ads
Goal	Durable discovery in search / Maps (where eligible)	Faster inquiry volume from people searching now
Cash needed	Management fee	Management fee plus Google ad spend
Typical fit	Building a foundation; lower monthly media budget	Open capacity; ready landing page; media budget available
Dependency	Content, reviews, site quality, competition	Tracking, landing page, policy-compliant ads, spend

Approved pricing (CAD)

SEO

From SEO for therapists / Local SEO:

• $449/mo - single location
• $749/mo - multi-location or multi-practitioner

Google Ads management

From Google Ads for therapists:

• Starter - $499/mo management, ad spend up to $2,000
• Growth - $799/mo, ad spend $2,001–$6,000
• Scale - 12% of total monthly ad spend at $6,001+
• Setup - $999 one-time
• Minimum term - 3 months, then month-to-month
• Recommended minimum ad spend - $1,000/mo (below that, SEO is often a better first spend)

Ad spend is billed by Google separately from the management fee.

Decision guide

Choose SEO-first when:

• Your calendar is mostly full and you want compounding visibility
• You cannot comfortably fund both management and meaningful ad spend
• You are willing to invest in service/clinician pages and listings over months

Choose Ads-first when:

• You have open consult slots now
• The site (or a landing page) can convert an inquiry
• You can fund management + media for at least the three-month minimum

Fix the website first when:

• Visitors cannot tell who you help or how to book
• Forms break on mobile
• You are about to scale paid traffic into a dead end

See website design for therapists and the therapist website cost guide.

How to measure (without fooling yourself)

• Track inquiries (forms, calls, booking clicks) in the channels you control
• Track booked consults and paying clients in your practice systems
• Do not treat a calendar widget opening as a confirmed booking
• Do not treat a free website audit request as a customer

Practical sequences

1. New practice, no site - book a discovery call → website → then SEO and/or Ads.
2. Existing weak site - free video audit (within one week) → conversion fixes → SEO or Ads.
3. Strong site, empty slots, budget ready - Ads with tracking, keep SEO light or parallel.
4. Strong site, patient capacity - SEO foundation; add Ads only for specific programs or seasonal capacity.

Related pages

• Marketing for therapists
• SEO for therapists
• Google Ads for therapists
• Pricing
• Case studies (anonymous before/after only)