Hypnotherapy Testimonials
Referring back to a couple of my articles last week, I would like to re-visit the issue of hypnotherapist and psychotherapists using testimonials to market their practices. I can say in a nutshell that in my view, and that of many other professional bodies, that the use of testimonials is poor practice at best and fraud at worst.
For many years, I have argued against their use as they are basically useless for a person to make a determination about a therapist. Just because Ms A from Manchester says that Therapist B helped her, does not mean that Client C will get the same effects. Therapy is a personal process and no two people are alike and just because one person benefits, there is no guarantee that this will mean another will.
Also, testimonials are subjective. What therapist in the world would be likely to provide negative feedback about their work. In round numbers, 0. Additionally, the very nature of testimonials are open to re-drafting or even the therapist creating their own and attributing them to non-existent clients.
I know I have been criticised for my position on this in the past, but the final argument I make against testimonials is that they are a breach of confidence. People should know that, with very little exception, the relationship between client and therapist will be kept confidential. Testimonials are an affront to that and I strongly urge people looking for therapy to disregard and ignore testimonials and for them to do their homework in finding an ethical practitioner.
