The therapist website checklist
Seven short checks for your therapy practice website.
Each page asks one question about your website and takes about five to ten minutes. Each one starts from what we found in our audits and AI tests from August to October 2026.
Open your website alongside this page. Use another tab or device. A few checks need a computer or your website person.
Choose what you can confirm. Yes, Not yet, or Not sure. Not sure lets you ask us about that check.
Keep something useful. See your next steps here, print them, or request an emailed copy. Come back when something changes.
Seven short checks
Start with the one that worries you.
Each page asks one question about your website. Your answers carry across all seven in this browser, so you can come back for the next one.
- First impressions
Is your site clearly for them? Can they see you?
7 checks · About 10 minutes - Fees
Can a private-pay client understand what it costs?
6 checks · About 10 minutes - People and trust
Can someone picture working with you?
5 checks · About 5 minutes - Getting in touch
Does getting in touch actually work?
8 checks · About 10 minutes - Access and ownership
Can people use your site, and can you keep it?
6 checks · About 10 minutes - Google
Can Google show you to people who don't know you?
8 checks · About 10 minutes - AI answers
Can ChatGPT describe your practice correctly?
6 checks · About 10 minutes - Do them all
All 46 checks in one walk-through.
Seven sections, saved as you go
Section 1 of 7
Is your site clearly for them? Can they see you?
Start with your homepage, then open your service, About, and location pages. Read as someone meeting your practice for the first time.
Why this matters and an example
A visitor needs enough information to decide whether to keep reading.
Example: Therapy for adults navigating anxiety and major life changes.
If not yet: Name the people you work with and the concerns you help them address in your opening sentence.
A focused edit
Why this matters
An unfamiliar treatment name alone gives someone little help choosing a service.
If not yet: For each main service, describe who it helps and what working together can involve. Explain unfamiliar terms.
Some writing or checking
Why this matters
Someone who is ready to act needs a clear route to you.
If not yet: Place a clearly named inquiry link near the opening and after the main homepage content.
A focused edit
Why this matters
Clear scope helps someone decide whether your practice is a practical fit.
If not yet: Name the age groups and concerns you work with. Explain relevant service limits in welcoming, plain language.
Some writing or checking
Why this matters
A list of biographies can leave people unsure which person to approach.
If not yet: Give each clinician a clear focus and inquiry route, or explain how your practice matches new clients.
Some writing or checking
Why this matters
People need to assess the journey and know how arrival details will reach them.
If not yet: State the area you serve and how to find the office. Add useful arrival or access details for your location.
A focused edit
Why this matters
Someone seeking online care needs to know whether your practice can serve them where they are.
If not yet: Ask the treating clinician to confirm the permitted locations, then publish them beside the online-session information.
A focused edit
Section 2 of 7
Can a private-pay client understand what it costs?
Open your fees page, your booking screen, and your main directory profile side by side. Use the facts that apply to your practice.
Why this matters
Clear costs help people assess affordability before sharing their circumstances.
If not yet: Publish the relevant fee or range, session length, and what changes the price. Explain any sliding-scale process.
A focused edit
Why this matters and an example
People weigh the full cost before they write, and scattered details read as uncertainty.
Example: Sessions are 50 minutes and $180. We are out of network with all insurers, and we can give you a monthly superbill to submit for possible reimbursement.
If not yet: Gather the fee, session length, payment options, and any insurance or reduced-fee details on one page. Link to it from each service page.
Some writing or checking
Why this matters
People need to understand the payment process before deciding to contact you.
If not yet: State your accepted payment arrangements and where people can check their own coverage. Avoid implying reimbursement is guaranteed.
A focused edit
Why this matters
Clear expectations help someone decide whether to book the call.
If not yet: Explain its purpose, length, and price wherever someone books. Make clear whether it is a consultation or a therapy session.
A focused edit
Why this matters
Conflicting prices make it hard to know which information is current.
If not yet: Choose the current payment information with your practice, then correct each conflicting page or profile.
A focused edit
Why this matters
Different offers for the same call create avoidable uncertainty.
If not yet: Correct conflicting call details on the site, scheduler, and profiles. Remove offers you no longer provide.
A focused edit
Section 3 of 7
Can someone picture working with you?
Read the clinician information and the claims the site makes. Choose Not sure when a fact needs confirmation.
Why this matters
A recognizable person makes the introduction more concrete.
If not yet: Add a current, clearly visible photo beside the relevant clinician's information.
Some writing or checking
Why this matters
Someone choosing a therapist needs a sense of the working relationship.
If not yet: Add a short explanation of the clinician's approach, using language a first-time client would understand.
Some writing or checking
Why this matters
Knowing what comes next can reduce avoidable uncertainty about getting started.
If not yet: Describe the first session in a few plain sentences, including any preparation the client needs.
Some writing or checking
Why this matters
Accurate professional information helps visitors understand who provides the service.
If not yet: Have each clinician review their published professional information. Explain unfamiliar abbreviations and correct outdated details.
Some writing or checking
Why this matters
A claim should be accurate enough for the practice to stand behind it.
If not yet: Have the responsible clinician review unsupported claims and outcome promises. Check any testimonial use against the rules that apply to the practice.
Some writing or checking
Section 4 of 7
Does getting in touch actually work?
Walk through the contact route on your own site. Use clearly labeled test details, and avoid booking a real appointment.
Why this matters
A broken or misleading link can stop an inquiry before it begins.
If not yet: Correct the broken or misleading destination, then test the same route on your phone.
A focused edit
Why this matters
A successful-looking form can still fail to deliver a message.
If not yet: Trace a labeled test from the form to the receiving inbox. Ask your website person to repair delivery if it fails.
Help from your website person
Why this matters
After reaching out, people need to know what will happen and whether to wait.
If not yet: State the reply window your practice can maintain and who will respond. Repeat it in the confirmation.
A focused edit
Why this matters
Unnecessary questions add work before someone has spoken to the practice.
If not yet: Remove or make optional any field that is unnecessary for the first reply.
Some writing or checking
Why this matters
A general business inquiry form is a poor place to request detailed clinical information.
If not yet: Remove requests for detailed clinical information from the general inquiry form. Direct intake through the practice's reviewed clinical process.
Help from your website person
Why this matters
A failed form or inaccessible scheduler should not leave someone with no route to the practice.
If not yet: Publish an alternative contact method beside the main one. Check that the practice monitors it.
A focused edit
Why this matters
Without confirmation, someone may wonder whether to submit again.
If not yet: Add a clear success message and next steps. If you also send an email, make its instructions agree.
Help from your website person
Why this matters
A visitor should understand whether they can start now or need to ask about a wait.
If not yet: Add a current availability note or explain how to ask. Assign someone to keep any published status current.
A focused edit
Section 5 of 7
Can people use your site, and can you keep it?
Some checks need a computer or help from your website person. Not sure gives you a useful question to take to them.
Why this matters
Small screens and enlarged text should still leave people able to read and make contact.
If not yet: Record the page and device where content becomes unusable. Ask your website person to fix and retest it.
Help from your website person
Why this matters
Some visitors navigate without a mouse or touchscreen.
If not yet: Record any control you cannot reach, see, or use with a keyboard. Ask your website person to correct it.
Help from your website person
W3C's first accessibility checksWhy this matters
A security warning can stop someone before they reach the practice.
If not yet: Ask your website person to check the security certificate and that every page opens with HTTPS. Retest the main pages afterward.
Help from your website person
Why this matters
Visitors should be able to understand what happens to information they submit.
If not yet: Have the responsible person review the notice against your actual forms and connected services, then correct any mismatch.
Some writing or checking
Why this matters
Losing domain access can disrupt the website and email tied to it.
If not yet: Check the owner, renewal arrangements, and recovery contact. Arrange practice-controlled access if someone else currently holds it.
Some writing or checking
Why this matters
Current details are easier to maintain when responsibility and access are clear.
If not yet: Confirm the practice's access, recovery route, and update contact. Document how content can be recovered if the provider changes.
Some writing or checking
Section 6 of 7
Can Google show you to people who don't know you?
Open Search Console if you have it, and your main service page. Some checks need your website person, and Not sure gives you a question to take to them.
Why this matters
Search Console is Google's free record of the searches that show your site and how often people click.
If not yet: Ask whoever built your site whether Search Console is set up, and to add the practice's Google account as an owner. If it isn't, set it up and confirm you own the site.
Help from your website person
Google on Search Console owners and usersWhy this matters
An accidental setting can keep a public page out of search even when the page works for you.
If not yet: Ask your website person to review the settings that hide pages from search. Keep private and unfinished pages protected.
Help from your website person
Google on hiding pages from searchWhy this matters
Descriptive titles help people recognize pages in browser tabs and search results.
If not yet: Write a distinct, descriptive title for each main page. Include the practice name where helpful.
A focused edit
Why this matters and an example
Google shows pages. A service without its own page is hard to show to someone searching for it.
Example: Tab title: EMDR Therapy in Denver | [Practice name]. First sentence: EMDR therapy for adults in Denver and online across Colorado.
If not yet: Create or rename a page for each service you most want to grow. Name the service in the page's title and first sentence.
Some writing or checking
Google on page titlesWhy this matters
When a page has two addresses, Google chooses one to show. It may choose the copy you don't use.
If not yet: Ask your website person to remove leftover copies, or to send them to the main address with a redirect. A copy that already points Google to the main page can stay.
Help from your website person
Google on duplicate addressesWhy this matters
Google reads the phone version of a page. Some builders, including Wix, can hide desktop text on phones and show phone-only text in its place.
If not yet: Note each section where the words differ, then update the phone view, or ask your website person to. Recheck the phone view after every wording change.
Some writing or checking
Google on reading the phone version firstWhy this matters
Control of the profile lets you correct information people see before reaching your site.
If not yet: Confirm eligibility first. If eligible, claim or recover management access using Google's official process.
Some writing or checking
Google's eligibility guidanceWhy this matters
Outdated contact details can send someone to the wrong place.
If not yet: Update the original profile or listing that contains the old details. Keep a list of anything you cannot edit.
Some writing or checking
Section 7 of 7
Can ChatGPT describe your practice correctly?
Open ChatGPT or Gemini, your main directory profile, and your homepage. Answers change from one try to the next, so treat each one as a sample.
Why this matters
Assistants repeat what they find, and sometimes mix practices up. A wrong detail often points to a source you can fix.
If not yet: Note each wrong or missing detail. Find where it comes from, often an old profile or page, and correct it there.
Some writing or checking
Why this matters and an example
A site that states the details as plainly as a directory profile gives an assistant a reason to cite the site.
Example: I see adults in person in Arlington and online across Virginia and Maryland. Sessions are $180, private pay, with superbills for out-of-network benefits. I help with anxiety, burnout, and life transitions.
If not yet: Write three or four plain sentences: where you work, in person or online, how clients pay, what you help with, and who you serve. Place them near the top of your homepage or About page.
Some writing or checking
Why this matters
In our tests, AI assistants often cited directory listings and repeated their words. A profile that matches your site gives them one consistent set of facts.
If not yet: Rewrite the profile's first sentences to state where you work, how clients pay, what you help with, and who you serve. Use the same facts as your site.
A focused edit
Why this matters
A visitor arriving for an advertised service needs to find that service on your site.
If not yet: Remove outdated services from your active profiles and link visitors to the relevant current service information.
A focused edit
Why this matters and an example
AI search tools generally cite only pages they can read. Some switches that block AI training also block tools that read pages to answer questions.
Example: Where to look, checked October 3, 2026. Squarespace: Settings, then Crawlers, “Block known artificial intelligence crawlers.” Wix has no AI switch; its rules for these tools are in SEO & GEO, Tools and settings, Robots.txt Editor. WordPress.com: Settings, then Reading, “Prevent third-party sharing.” Self-hosted WordPress: your SEO plugin's bot settings. Google Search Console: Settings, then Search generative AI. Cloudflare, if your site uses it: AI Crawl Control. Its Block setting for training now also stops Google and Bing search.
If not yet: Decide with your website person which AI tools may read your public pages. Some companies, such as OpenAI, let you allow their search tool and block training.
Help from your website person
OpenAI on its search and training toolsWhy this matters
Bing Webmaster Tools is Microsoft's free service for site owners. It shows when Copilot and Bing's AI answers cite your pages.
If not yet: Sign in to Bing Webmaster Tools and import your site from Google Search Console, or verify it another way Bing offers.
A focused edit
Bing's AI Performance report
A copy to work through
Prefer paper and a pen?
The free workbook includes every check, how to verify it, and a worksheet for your first changes. Use it yourself or with your website person.
The website check workbook
Print it, mark your answers, and choose what comes next.
Download the free PDFThe free audit
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Request the free auditYour checklist answers are not sent with an audit request.Before you wonder
A few useful answers.
Which check should I start with?
Start with the one that worries you. Each check stands on its own, and your answers carry across all seven in this browser.
How are my results calculated?
Yes counts as in place. Not yet creates a possible change. Not sure creates a verification task. Explained exceptions are excluded. Unanswered checks stay visible. Your first actions reflect access, contact, and decision information.
Is this a professional audit?
This is a self-assessment based on your answers. The free credibility audit adds a person's review of your website, with evidence behind the recommended fixes. Neither result predicts inquiries or certifies compliance.
Where are my answers saved?
Progress stays in this browser, across all seven checks. If you request an emailed result, your email address and answers are sent to our delivery service. Requesting a workbook sends only your email address. Neither request subscribes you to marketing.
What happens when I ask about a check?
We receive your question, the check it is about, your email address, and any website you add. We use them to reply, and we reuse your question only if you say we may. We'll reply by email within 3 business days. Asking does not subscribe you to marketing.
Can I use it without giving my email?
Yes. Use the checklist, read your results, and print or save them without an email address. You can also download the blank workbook directly.
What if I cannot check something?
Choose Not sure. You can ask us about that check, and your results list it as something to verify with your website person.
Does a weak result mean I need a new website?
No. The result identifies things to check or change. Many involve existing copy, contact settings, or public details. It does not decide whether a rebuild is appropriate.
Reviewed October 3, 2026. These checks cover common website decisions, basic access, and the basics of Google and AI answers. They are not a full accessibility, security, legal, or clinical review.