How To Start Marriage Counseling Business
Marriage counseling refers to a type of psychotherapy directed at an individual but particularly a couple (married or unmarried) aimed at resolving relationship problems. Usually, two people are expected to attend counseling sessions where a psychiatric therapist attempts to resolve specific issues arising from their relationship.
Marriage counseling invariably is for a short period usually a few sessions to resolve the case in question, but it could take longer than two sessions, and so every marital issue is different. To establish the teething troubles the couple is going through, the marriage counselor poses pertinent questions such as the couple’s roles, beliefs, mode of behavior, and rules guiding them, if any. The counseling session usually begins when the couple makes an appointment, either both of them or one of them. During the session, they talk about the good and ugly side of their relationship. The therapist on his/her part analyses and evaluates their submission and together work to help the couple understand how them both contribute to the problems in the relationship. With this realization, the couple will be advised to change their interaction with each other in an attempt to resolve the current and future issues that can arise. In some cases, the session will last for much longer in which case each of the partners would be asked to write out the behavioral pattern each would like the other to avoid.
Marriage counseling session doesn’t have to be done with both couples present, it could be one who is aggrieved or suffering from emotional imbalance or just want to improve on the relationship. On the other hand, the two partners can jointly seek therapy because the case in point affects both such as behavioral problems in which one partner is consistently drinking or smoking. In some instances, couples who are about to get married can also seek to be counseled on the intricacies of married life. It is possible also for a married couple who is getting devoiced or already devoiced to see help to resolve their differences particularly where children and assets to be shared are involved.
A married couple in a relationship can be having a wonderful experience if you happen to have the right person as a partner. Some people in a relationship could also be enjoying their marriage not because they are meant for each other but because one partner or both partners realize that there is no winner or loser in a marriage that is heading for divorce. Other couples could be experiencing difficulties in their marriage not because they didn’t love each other at the outset but because they find it difficult to manage their differences.
The truth about life is that no matter who your partner is, the wrong or right person, you are bound to disagree sometimes in a relationship. Principally, it is for this reason, couples seek for assistance from a marriage counselor. If you enjoy giving people who have been emotionally hurt workable advice, being caring, amiable to be with and other similar traits, marriage counseling is for you. The only hiccup though might be if you don’t have the basic formal education and experience. But education and experience can be acquired over time if you seriously desire to be a marriage counselor. So if you are ready to go into this noble and profitable profession, be wise and take the bull by the horn. Shall we then journey together to learn how you should go about this business and be successful. But first of all, let us see the importance of marriage counseling.
The Importance of Marriage Counseling
Many a time couples fail to realize that for marriage to work requires hard work and commitment. Some couples, after the pleasurable honeymoon period only begin to recognize that they are not after all well-suited for each other as they had previously believed they were. Or they begin to experience problems which they previously ignored when they were in courtship. Or again the couple is unable to stomach some flimsy actions or even tolerate the hiccups of a relationship when it comes to looking after the children. These problems are normal and going for counseling will certainly strengthen and at the same time save the couple from emotional agony.
Marriage counseling is important for addressing marital concerns because:
- The marriage counselor works to bring the couples together and help them give attention to their family matters.
- The counselor mediates between the spouses and attempts to speak sense into them about having effective communication and gives them insight on which way forward particularly where the couple is unsure which way to go. For instance, a couple who is not speaking to the other for an unfounded reason of the other cheating on him maybe counseled to be a man and take charge of his family instead of adopting the behavioral pattern of a timid and insecure guy.
- With the help of the counselor, the couple can identify the source and cause of their woes and with time can work to change their behavioral pattern that brings misery to their home.
- When couples fail to communicate effectively because of some underlying hiccups within the relationship, their ability to share feelings and needs is undermined. The services of a marriage counselor can change things here.
- Counselling can also help couples begin to change their bad habit which irritates the other partner. For instance, if you have a partner who speaks uncontrollably or who shuns the other at the slightest mistake, or who doesn’t trust the other partner, problems are bound to occur always. If the aggrieved couple out of fear of the unknown or just reluctant to face the issues squarely, the marriage counselor can serve as a platform to handle the issues involved.
As an aspiring marriage counselor, you would be curious to know all that the marriage counselor does as a therapist when he/she handles a couple’s complaint. The following are just a few of the functions of a marriage counselor.
Every marriage has its depressing moments, and when the couple stops communicating with each other, myriads of woes can envelop the couple’s reasoning faculty: the feeling of mistrust, doubt, and indignation can overcloud the atmosphere. Couples are urged in such a situation to reach out to the marriage counselor for possible help. Never be in a hurry and settle for any marriage counselor, but go for a certified counselor. A certified marriage counselor is the one who has the relevant academic qualification up to a master’s degree level and is recognized by the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (formally the American Association of Marriage Counsellors).
- Counsels Individual and Couples: The marriage counselor plays the role of mediating between the couples to work out a possible solution to their problems.
- The marriage counselor prescribes a solution even in a situation that appears out of control. The marriage counselor recommends appropriate actions in situations he/she cannot handle the case. For instance, in a situation involving mental derailment as a result of drug or alcohol abuse, the counselor can refer the case to a qualified medical practitioner
- Provision of enabling environment: The primary duty of a marriage counselor is to provide couples with an environment where they can talk frankly and openly about the source of their woes and find a common ground for resolving issues that is tearing them apart. The counselor has to maintain an even playing field in which each partner can talk freely without the fear of being bullied or one partner dominating the discussion.
- Listens and Suggests: Marriage counselors are primarily trained to be an independent and impartial mediator on issues involving couples in a relationship. The counselor duty is to help couples talk to each other in such a way that positive results are achieved in a relationship. For instance, a marriage counselor might suggest to a nagging woman to politely speak to her husband about keeping the toilet clean after using it than to go about shouting and scolding her husband.
- Echo’s the Obvious: Oftentimes, marriages break down when a family is pursuing individual goals instead of mutually beneficial goals. If the marriage counselor finds out that this is the cause of the problem, has it as a duty to call a spade a spade. If he/she fails to emphasize the fact that the mutually beneficial goal should be their superordinate goal, then he/she has failed in his/her duty. He/she is duty-bound to state the obvious and tell the couple in the faces that they must give each other attention first and respect the matter affecting them both.
How To Start Marriage Counseling Business
Industry Overview
Feasibility Studies And Market Research
Marriage Counseling Business Areas Of Specialization
Challenges You Are Likely To Face When Starting A Marriage Counselling Business
Professional Certification Is Needed To Run A Marriage Counseling Business
The Service Delivery Process Of A Marriage Counseling Company
Create Marketing Strategies
Legal Documents You Would Need To Run A Marriage Counseling Company
Conclusion:
Industry Overview
The marriage Counseling industry has been growing steadily over the years despite the adverse economic conditions of the past few years. A recent report published by IBISWorld revealed that the Marriage Counselling sector of the Psychologists and Social Workers industry is yet to show a high level of concentration in the US economy, and no single firm is dominating the market.
The industry however makes a significant contribution to the US economy to the tune of $15 billion every year from over 141,495 licensed Marriage Counsellors, Psychologists, and Social Workers up and down the US. Experts voiced out their opinion and concluded that the industry would grow at a rate of 3.4% annually between 2011 and 2016. The industry is said to employ over 231,393 people and no single practicing counselor is employing more than five people on average.
The need for marriage counselors has not gone down even amid a relatively not so good economy, and indeed the demand for those professionals thrives in a bad economy.
Feasibility Studies and Market Research
Demographics and Psychographics
The market for those seeking marriage counseling is all-embracing and so far you are into a relationship, married or unmarried, you are a possible candidate for counseling. So the composition of the market is not restricted to a particular segment in terms of age or gender though people of legal age and into a relationship are more likely to need to consult a marriage counselor.
Marriage Counseling Business Areas of Specialization
The marriage counseling business is a specialist area but within it, there are many sub-areas you can acquire wider knowledge to stand you in good stead if you decide to be in this noble profession. These sub-areas include the following:
- Spiritual Counseling
- Coaching
- Counseling on Education
- Coaching on Disability Learning
- Private Issues Counseling
- Gay/Lesbian marriage counseling
Since marriage counseling has many aspects you can choose from, it makes business sense to choose an aspect or better still, to become a general practitioner (GP)and master all. The advantage of having an idea about everything is that it stands you out in the competitive market.
Challenges you are Likely to face when Starting a Marriage Counselling Business
If you make up your mind to go into the marriage counseling business and set it up, you are likely to face some challenges and if you work assiduously and show passion in your determination to excel, you will be able to find your feet soon after launching your business. Such challenges include the presence of well-established players in the counseling business dishing out the same, if not better services. To win the competition game, you must offer something unique and be seen to be over and above the industry standard.
You will also likely encounter some other hiccups such as adverse government policies, more competitors entering the market in your area; also the global economic meltdown which directly affects consumers’ purchasing power biting harder. Consequently, you will hardly change the painted gloomy environment but to work diligently in the hope that better days are to come.
Professional certification is needed to run a marriage counseling business
Besides the excellent services you might be providing for your clients, you need to have professional certification to boost your credibility. It is also important that senior members of your staff should as well be professionally qualified. If you want to make your mark in the marriage counseling industry, you must work towards acquiring most of the recognized certifications needed in your area of specialization. Getting all the important certification will pay you in the long run because you will always be exchanging ideas with learned colleagues as well as referring clients in situations you lack the expertise to satisfy the needs of your clients.
The following are some of the professional certifications you are urged to acquire to run your marriage counseling company, in addition to a master degree
Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT)
Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC)
Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC)
Licensed Clinical Psychologist (LCP)
Gottman Certified Couples Therapist
Possession of the above professional certifications is essential but the requirements of the professional body for an annual update by attending mandatory continuing education must also be met. Besides, almost all the states in the US make it compulsory for marriage counselors to renew their licenses yearly by studying additional courses, attending workshops, and/or attending professional continuing education.
The Service Delivery Process of a Marriage Counseling Company
As you prepare to go into the marriage counseling business, you should design your services to have additional benefits so that you will be able to attract and retain clients. For instance, you must be able to listen and be patient with your clients, picture, analyze and evaluate situations, ask relevant questions, consider the atmosphere at the point of giving your advice. Always see your clients by appointment to avoid distractions. In situations you are unable to offer useful advice, don’t pretend you have all the knowledge, but apologize in the circumstance and bow out. If possible refer your client to a more competent marriage counselor. In that way, your clients would have high regard for your services and be ready to patronize your business in a more appropriate time.
Since you don’t have the monopoly of knowledge, you can make do with a qualified assistant who is vast in another area of marriage counseling so that you can complement each other and the question of referring your client to other counselors should not arise.
Moreover, you must ensure you provide excellent service and that your clients are satisfied with your personalized service. Oftentimes, find out in the course of counseling if your client requires further information or clarification before ending the session.
Always display excellent communication skills and interpersonal relationships when interacting with your clients and avoid charging your client for every service you provide especially at the start-up period. Make your service affordable and if possible apply a discriminating pricing strategy (pricing based on certain criteria, such as social class ranking or place of abode of your client)
To be among the few excellent marriage counseling practice around, you must craft a name for your brand as a marriage counseling company by sharpening your interpersonal communication skills and give your clients reasons to believe in you and come back. You would have to prove your worth as a skilled counselor over and over again before you can hope to be recognized and people give you their trust. You must do what others are not yet doing in terms of giving clients your time and prepare to offer introductory sessions free of charge until clients will have confidence in your practice.
So, as you prepare to craft your marketing strategies, you must work on creating a compelling personal and business profile. Though your professional qualifications and business experience are important, you must also show in clear terms what you have been able to achieve in the past in the area of offering marriage counseling services. This is likely to boost your credibility when sourcing for marriage counseling services as potential clients would always ask why they should patronize your services. The following are some of the marketing strategies to adopt to win a place in the market:
Print flyers and have them distributed to all possible target areas such as corporate organizations, small scale businesses, households, and other places events are taking place. Don’t underestimate any event to distribute flyers because you can never tell where your potential clients will come from.
Advertise your practice on women and men magazines, local radios, newspapers, and TV stations
List your marriage counseling business on local directories- online and offline, especially the yellow pages.
If you have carved your niches, work with each of your market segment budgets by creating different packages for different client categories
Promote your marriage counseling business on social media and the internet.
Partner with competitors for possible referrals in cases they cannot handle.
Legal documents you would need to run a marriage counseling company
In any business you go into, it is very important to have the necessary legal documentation before you take-off. You will not be allowed to carry on your business in the United States without obtaining the relevant documentation, including licenses and permits. If you fail to procure the right documentation and set out to run your business, the full weight of the law will be against you.
The following are some of the legal documents that you should acquire before you can legally run your own marriage counseling company in the US
Certificate of Incorporation – this is evidence that your marriage counseling business is duly registered
Business License and Certification – this shows you are licensed to practice as a qualified marriage counselor.
Business Plan – this shows you the roadmap to your business success as well as attracts prospective investors and financiers.
Operating Agreement for LLCs – this shows the relationship between your firm and the outside world.
Insurance Policy – here you enter all manners of insurance to cover you and your employees against liability arising from clients acting on your advice and incurring a liability.
Consulting contract documents – this is the template of your business agreement form.
Employment Agreement (offer letters) – this concerns the letter of employment when staff is employed.
VAT Registration – this is the requirements of the Inland Revenue Service on Value Added Tax.
Federal tax identification number – this is a special requirement when you begin to hire staff
Conclusion:
Marriage counseling is the provision of a service and therefore extra work is required to convert the service intangibility into what prospective clients can see and touch (tangibility). The service of a marriage counselor needs conversion to make it easier for the couple (prospective client) to make a choice.
- Physical evidence – Some services have a tangible aspect to them which can provide some physical evidence to the potential client about the quality of service on offer. The waiting room or reception area of a marriage counselor’s office gives an initial impression of the quality of the service he/she provides. Perceptions formed by these physical attributes are particularly important because they are often the only impression that the client can easily gain about the service.
- Processes — Clients are often involved in the process of delivering a service because they are present when the service is provided and an integral part of it. As clients visit the marriage counselor’s office, the process itself takes on a marketing significance. A happy experience at the marriage counselor office often matters as much as the quality of the service informing the perceptions and future choices of the client. The way the service is delivered can become as important as the outcome.
You should please take note as a prospective marriage counselor!
