VentureWise
Start with the End in Mind
VentureWise helps forward-thinking behavioral and mental health organizations grow and scale their operations for enhanced profitability and sustainable growth. This plan outlines a roadmap to reach $5M in annual revenue by onboarding 100 clients in the first 12 months.

by Shawnee Mercier

The Challenge Scaling Behavioral Health Organizations
The Challenge
Scaling behavioral and mental health organizations requires more than acquiring physical space, licenses, and contracts with major payors. Success in this industry demands a deep understanding of healthcare dynamics, evolving revenue models, staffing complexities, and the challenging regulatory landscape. However, many practice leaders and business owners start with a "build it and they will come" approach, not fully realizing or appreciating the multifaceted challenges involved in scaling the organization effectively or for positioning it for acquisition, or a seamless transition to the next generation.
VentureWise Solution
VentureWise helps forward-thinking behavioral and mental health organizations grow and scale their operations by offering comprehensive service and technology solutions to optimize their marketing strategies and maximize outreach efforts for enhanced profitability and sustainable growth. Instead of going wide, we go deep by providing a tailored suite of products for retargeting, re-engagement, and lead generation blended with complimentary services including growth consulting, referral partnership development, alumni program development, and network marketing to give select organizations the edge in client acquisition and retention.
Behavioral and Mental Health Industry Trends
1
Growth in Telehealth and Digital Services
The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the adoption of telehealth and digital platforms, creating more demand for integrated services in mental health and behavioral health spaces.
2
Patient Retention and Relapse Prevention Focus
Facilities are increasingly looking for solutions to keep clients engaged post-treatment, especially alumni programs for recovery coaching and ongoing support.
3
Brand Differentiation and High Competition
As more Behavioral Health facilities expand, they struggle to differentiate their brand in an increasingly competitive market. This creates a demand for higher-quality services, strategic network development, and innovative tech solutions.
4
Digital Marketing in BH
Google, Facebook, and LinkedIn ads are powerful tools, but they are costly and compliance and data privacy (e.g., HIPAA) are essential considerations. Many BH organizations need help optimizing and scaling digital marketing and outreach campaigns to drive patient acquisition.
A Comprehensive Approach to Service Delivery

4

Digital Marketing
  • PPC ad optimization (Google, Facebook, LinkedIn): Optimize paid ad campaigns across Google, Facebook, and LinkedIn to maximize reach and conversions.
  • Social media management and content creation: Develop and manage engaging content across social media platforms to build brand awareness and client engagement.
  • SEO and website optimization: Improve search engine rankings and enhance website performance for better visibility and user experience.
  • Branding and web development: Build a cohesive brand identity and professional web presence to attract and retain clients.
Retargeting and Reactivation
  • Retargeting: Re-engage leads that haven't converted by leveraging enriched data without spending more on ads
  • Reactivation: White-labeled marketing & outreach platform with a customized alumni engagement model to keep clients connected post-treatment.
Business Development and Outreach
  • Business and Network Development: Establish the right networks to optimize business development opportunities.
  • Community Outreach and Education: Drive growth by educating and engaging communities on the benefits of unique value proposition of our network.
  • Partnership Strategy and Growth Consulting: Provide expert guidance on partnership strategies to accelerate business growth.
4
Acquisition and Exit
Expert Exit Consulting: Partnerships with leading M&A firms for exit consulting to ensure proper valuations.
Acquisition and Transition Planning: Partnerships with leading M&A firms to help navigate acquisition and transition planning.
Maximizing Value: Work with industry leaders to position each organization for maximum value in a competitive behavioral health marketplace.
Unique Value Proposition (UVP)
VentureWise provides a specialized SaaS platform that is uniquely customized for behavioral health and mental health organizations, integrating HIPAA-compliant digital marketing, outreach, re-engagement, and re-activation solutions. Our all-in-one platform helps small to medium sized behavioral and mental health facilities and practitioners, such as psychiatrists and outpatient centers, effectively reactivate former clients, improve retention, and expand their reach. With powerful marketing automations, seamless integrations, and a white-label solution for continuous recovery coaching, VentureWise empowers leading organizations to lead the market by increasing patient acquisition, retaining clients long-term with value add solutions, and scale their operations with minimal overhead and no additional ad cost.
Key Differentiators
  • HIPAA-Compliant Re-Engagement: Tools that help facilities re-engage former patients in a compliant and meaningful way, which most smaller practices struggle to do effectively.
  • Scalable Growth Support: From digital marketing to partnership strategy, our platform and service enables BH organizations to attract new clients and build strong referral networks without needing to hire additional in-house expertise.
  • Industry Experience: Our team brings decades of industry expertise in behavioral health, healthcare, health-tech executing scalable growth strategies. We understand the gaps and challenges in the admission process in the admissions and outreach process and have created tools to help organizations reach prospective and former patients in a compliant, meaningful way.
  • M&A Consulting and Staffing Partnerships: When the time is right, VentureWise partners with leading M&A firms to help facilitate clients are well informed, ensuring smoother transitions and maximized value.
ScaleSuite: Unique Value Proposition
All-in-One Platform
Facilities no longer need to juggle multiple vendors or platforms for their lead generation, digital marketing, campaign management, re-engagement, and alumni management needs. ScaleSuite integrates everything into one streamlined, HIPAA-compliant platform.
Cost Efficiency for Smaller to Medium Sized Practices
ScaleSuite is priced with smaller to medium sized organizations in mind, providing powerful tools at a fraction of the cost of relying solely on Google ads or hiring a team of in-house marketers, freeing up investment where it counts - delivering quality care.
Reactivation Focus
Few solutions specifically target re-engagement with former patients, an area where many facilities struggle due to the intense resource requirements. The platform's alumni app, retargeting features, and powered reactivation tool make it easy to reach out to potential clients and alumni when they need it the most.
White-Label Branding
Our proprietary software can be fully white-labeled, allowing facilities and practices to enhance their brand while offering value-added services (like recovery coaching) without needing to develop and manage their own solution.
Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) for ScaleSuite: Small to Medium Sized Organizations
Profile: Outpatient clinics and smaller to medium sized addiction recovery centers with limited marketing budgets and outreach resources.
Pain Points:
  • Struggle with reactivating former clients after treatment.
  • Limited outreach capabilities and marketing expertise.
  • Difficulty maintaining ongoing relationships with alumni post-care.
  • Lack of in-house resources for digital marketing, branding, and business development.
Needs:
  • A scalable, easy-to-use platform that helps automate reactivation, client engagement, outreach, and marketing automation.
  • Cost-effective solutions for managing digital marketing (PPC, retargeting, social media, content).
  • Tools to stay connected with alumni, providing ongoing coaching and support without requiring significant investment.
  • Potential for exit strategies as their organizations grow.
Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) for ScaleSuite: Psychiatrists, Psychologists, and Solo Mental Health Practices
Profile: Independent psychiatrists, psychologists, or therapists who manage their own practice but lack the resources to effectively reactivate former clients or scale their services.
Pain Points:
  • Difficulty managing patient follow-ups and retention without a dedicated marketing or admin team.
  • Limited ability or financial resources to market services online and attract new clients.
  • Inconsistent revenue due to the lack of a sustainable pipeline of patients.
Needs:
  • Automated reactivation tools to bring back former clients for follow-up care or additional services.
  • A simple and effective digital marketing solution that drives new leads without spending more on ads.
  • Cost-effective solutions that don't require hiring a large team or making significant financial commitments.
SaaS Pricing Strategy
Tiered Pricing Model
Basic Tier
$1,200/month: Access to the SaaS with basic integrations.
*Annual commitment, billed monthly or quarterly w/a discount.
Pro Tier
$1,700/month: SaaS plus additional integrations and white-label app.
*Annual commitment, billed monthly or quarterly w/a discount.
Premium Tier
$2,500/month: Full SaaS, app, plus advanced reporting, analytics, and custom workflows.
*Annual commitment, billed monthly or quarterly w/a discount.
Value Based Pricing for Growth Consulting Services
For behavioral health clients, offering growth, marketing, and network development services as an add-on is essential for maximizing value. The pricing for these services could be structured as:
Retainer-Based Pricing:
  • Retainer Fees: $5,000 - $10,000/month depending on the scope of work. BH clients often require continuous strategy refinement, so recurring retainers are common.
  • Minimum Contract Length: 6–12-month minimums to give strategies time to mature.
  • Performance-Based Bonuses: Include a bonus structure based on key performance indicators (KPIs) such as growth metrics, referral partnerships, or reduction in costs.
Pricing Strategy Based on Service Packages
Basic Package
$5,000/month baseline (Growth strategy, marketing analytics, SEM campaigns)
Pro Package
$7,500/month baseline (Add business development, network development)
Premium Package
$10,000/month baseline (Full-service growth strategy, partnerships, and marketing with dedicated account management)
Revenue Breakdown to Reach $5M in Annual Revenue
SaaS Revenue
  • Basic Tier: $1,200/month = $14,400/year per client.
  • Pro Tier: $1,700/month = $20,400/year per client.
  • Premium Tier: $2,500/month = $30,000/year per client.
Percentage of Client Distribution by Tier
Estimated percentage of small, medium, large organizations, and solo practitioners that would purchase each tier based on their size and needs.
  • Solo Practitioners: Likely to choose the Basic Tier (85%) or Pro Tier (15%) as they have limited budgets and require straightforward integrations without advanced features.
  • Small Organizations: 60% are likely to purchase the Basic Tier. 30% may opt for the Pro Tier for additional functionality. 10% may choose the Premium Tier for more advanced needs.
  • Medium-Sized Organizations: 40% may go for the Basic Tier. 35% may select the Pro Tier for more integrations and white-label options. 25% may prefer the Premium Tier with full reporting and analytics.
  • Large Organizations: This segment is not our primary focus, but we estimate 30% are likely to purchase the Pro Tier. 70% will likely choose the Premium Tier for advanced features, full customization, and comprehensive workflows.
Client Mix and Revenue Calculation
Assuming a mix of clients for Basic, Pro, and Premium subscriptions, as well as the standalone white-label app and custom features.
Example Mix and Revenue Calculation
Revenue Target: $5M/year
SaaS-Only Clients (50 Clients)
Assuming we onboard 50 SaaS-only clients and distribute them across the tiers:
  • 50% on Basic: 25 clients x $14,400 = $360,000
  • 30% on Pro: 15 clients x $20,400 = $306,000
  • 20% on Premium: 10 clients x $30,000 = $300,000
Total SaaS-Only Revenue: $966,000
SaaS + Marketing Clients (50 Clients)
Assume we onboard 50 clients take a mix of SaaS and marketing services.
SaaS Revenue:
  • Basic SaaS: 25 clients x $14,400 = $360,000
  • Pro SaaS: 15 clients x $20,400 = $306,000
  • Premium SaaS: 10 clients x $30,000 = $300,000
Total SaaS Revenue for SaaS Clients: $966,000
Service Retainers:
  • Basic Retainer: 25 clients x $60,000 = $1,500,000
  • Pro Retainer: 15 clients x $90,000 = $1,350,000
  • Premium Retainer: 10 clients x $120,000 = $1,200,000
Total Service Revenue for SaaS + Marketing Clients: $4,050,000
Total Revenue Calculation:
  • SaaS-Only Revenue: $966,000
  • SaaS + Service Revenue: $4,050,000
  • Total Annual Revenue: $5,016,000
Commission Structures for Partners
Partners who help sell the SaaS and services or make referrals can receive residual commission in line with industry standards with competitive multi-year commission agreements on SaaS sales for founding partners.
Commission Structure for SaaS:
  • Industry Standard Commission Rate: 20% on SaaS sales, for the first 12m.
  • Bonus for Multi-Year Deals: Reduced but longer payouts for long-term agreements (24+ months).
Service Sales Commission:
  • Industry Standard Retainer Sales: 10% on services.
  • Bonus for Large Deals: Higher percentages (up to 15%) for high-value retainers ($10k/mo and up) or long-term agreements (12+ months).
Commission Structure and Profit Distribution
General Assumptions:
  • 15% commission on all sales.
  • 50-70% reinvested into the company for growth, development, and overhead.
Breakdown:
  • Partner Commissions: 15% x $5,016,000 = $752,400/year
Feasibility of 100 Clients in Year 1
Number of Behavioral Health (BH) and Mental Health (MH) Organizations and Solo Practitioners
California:
  • BH and MH Organizations: Approximately 2,000-3,000
  • Solo Practitioners: Approximately 50,000-60,000
United States:
  • BH and MH Organizations: Approximately 14,000-15,000
  • Solo Practitioners: Approximately 400,000-500,000
Securing 100 clients represents about 0.025% of the total number of organizations and practitioners in the U.S. market, which is highly feasible if you target the right segments with compelling value propositions.
Market Demand and Competitors Scaling in Similar Markets
Market Demand:
  • Increasing Demand for Digital Solutions: BH and MH facilities are increasingly adopting digital marketing, telehealth, and alumni re-engagement solutions due to the growing demand for mental health services and the shift to digital care post-COVID-19.
  • Retention Needs: Many facilities and solo practitioners struggle with patient retention and alumni reactivation, which positions your SaaS platform and services as essential tools.
  • Telehealth Expansion: Telehealth is becoming more ingrained in the industry, increasing the demand for digital solutions that align with telehealth practices and remote care.
Competitors Scaling in Similar Markets:
  • C4 Consulting: A growth consultancy firm that serves BH organizations, grew quickly by offering a combination of digital marketing and business strategy services.
  • WebPT: A SaaS platform originally designed for physical therapy practices, scaled rapidly in its first few years, reaching 50,000+ customers.
  • SimplePractice: A SaaS platform focused on small private practices, including therapists and counselors, now serves over 140,000 practitioners.
Factors Contributing to Feasibility of 100 Clients
  • Fragmented Market: The BH and MH market is highly fragmented, with many smaller and medium-sized facilities and solo practitioners, making it easier to onboard multiple clients.
  • Pain Points: This platform addresses key pain points (patient reactivation, alumni engagement, scalable marketing) that are widely felt across the industry.
  • Niche Positioning: VentureWise's niche focus on BH and MH organizations, combined with the specialized SaaS and reactivation tools, creates a unique selling proposition, helping to attract clients quickly.
  • Growing Industry: The mental health industry is growing rapidly due to increased awareness and investment in mental health services. As more organizations look for scalable digital solutions, VentureWise can capitalize on this demand.
Marketing and Sales Strategy
  • Targeted outreach to BH organizations through industry conferences, webinars, and direct outreach.
  • Build strategic partnerships with health tech platforms and service providers.
  • Build strategic relationships with key industry influencers and associations.
  • Create a content marketing plan focused on thought leadership in the BH industry.
Growth Strategy:
  • Focus on building case studies from early clients, especially showcasing the effectiveness of the alumni app for client retention.
  • Scale through partnerships with other related health solutions, offering SmartSuite as a white-label product to reach more facilities.
  • Leverage referral networks and align with firms with complimentary services and products for joint ventures (M&A firms, associations, etc).
GTM Roadmap: Month-by-Month Client Onboarding Plan
1
Months 1-2: Initial Setup & Ramp-Up
Focus: Build marketing funnels, solidify partnerships, finalize SaaS platform and service offerings. Goal: Bring in early adopters to refine processes and gather case studies. Onboarding Target: Month 1: 3 clients, Month 2: 5 clients, Cumulative: 8 clients (about $400K in annual revenue)
2
Months 3-4: Establish Presence
Focus: Begin scaling up outreach efforts and sales with Berkeley and additional sales reps. Implement digital marketing campaigns, start attending industry events and networking. Goal: Double the client base while optimizing service delivery. Onboarding Target: Month 3: 6 clients, Month 4: 8 clients, Cumulative: 22 clients (about $1.1M in annual revenue)
3
Months 5-6: Early Scale Phase
Focus: Ramp up lead generation via partnerships, digital marketing, and direct outreach. Leverage referrals from early clients and use case studies for credibility. Goal: Increase onboarding pace and establish predictable monthly growth. Onboarding Target: Month 5: 10 clients, Month 6: 12 clients, Cumulative: 44 clients (about $2.2M in annual revenue)
4
Months 7-8: Mid-Year Acceleration
Focus: Push for larger contracts and upsell current clients to higher tiers. Target more medium and larger BH organizations for bigger service packages. Goal: Continue increasing onboarding numbers as marketing and sales efforts mature. Onboarding Target: Month 7: 12 clients, Month 8: 12 clients, Cumulative: 68 clients (about $3.4M in annual revenue)
5
Months 9-10: Consistent Growth
Focus: Maintain steady growth in client onboarding while continuing to optimize internal processes. Begin considering new market segments or additional offerings to boost revenue. Goal: Onboard at a steady pace to ensure service delivery quality while managing existing clients effectively. Onboarding Target: Month 9: 10 clients, Month 10: 8 clients, Cumulative: 86 clients (about $4.3M in annual revenue)
6
Months 11-12: Final Push
Focus: Push to reach 100 clients through targeted outreach, high-ticket client acquisition, and finalizing deals in the pipeline. Goal: Reach $5M in annual revenue with a diversified client base. Onboarding Target: Month 11: 8 clients, Month 12: 6 clients, Cumulative: 100 clients (about $5M in annual revenue)
GTM Roadmap: Month-by-Month Client Onboarding Plan
Months 1-2 are slower as we ramp up operations, marketing, and sales efforts. By the end of Month 3, we should start seeing consistent growth as sales and marketing strategies take hold. Months 5-6 are critical for scaling, as we'll need to secure more medium and large clients to ensure revenue targets are on track. Months 9-12 are about maintaining momentum and closing deals to hit our final target.
This roadmap is feasible if we stay on track with outreach, sales, and client delivery, and continue to refine processes and marketing efforts as we grow.
Next Steps ~
I'm looking forward to partnering with you to positively impact the industry while leveraging our combined expertise to realize both our short and long term revenue goals and vision for the future. Next steps are to outline a contract that memorializes the terms we agreed to.
Discuss Next Steps

by Shawnee Mercier