Quick Overview
GoHighLevel, now usually called HighLevel, is a general-purpose marketing platform that you set up yourself. PractitionerPro is a complete practice system built on that platform for natural health practitioners. With HighLevel on its own, you receive powerful tools and an empty account, and you design the website, the client journey, the emails and the set-up. With PractitionerPro, the strategy, website, words, client journeys, set-up and support are done with you and for you. You can buy the platform. PractitionerPro gives you the system.
You have read that PractitionerPro is powered by HighLevel. So you looked it up.
And there it is: a sign-up page. You could have your own account in a few minutes.
So the question is a fair one. Why would you use PractitionerPro instead of buying GoHighLevel yourself?
I would rather answer that openly than have you wonder. Here is the honest comparison, including when buying it yourself is the right choice.
What is GoHighLevel?
GoHighLevel, now usually called HighLevel, is an all-in-one sales and marketing platform. It is designed mainly for marketing agencies, who can put their own name on it and provide it to their clients. It brings contacts, websites, email, text messages, booking calendars, automation, review requests and courses into one place.
It is a very good platform. That is why we chose it.
It is also a general-purpose one. The same software is used by many different kinds of service businesses, consultants and marketing agencies. It does not arrive knowing anything about a natural health practice, your clients, or the advertising rules you work within.
What is PractitionerPro?
PractitionerPro is a practice-growth system for natural health practitioners, built on HighLevel's technology. It includes the strategy, the website, the writing, the client journeys, the set-up and the ongoing support, so you receive a working system instead of software to configure.
Our main offer is the Practice Growth System. It is the same technology you would get from HighLevel, already shaped around how a natural health practice attracts, welcomes and looks after clients.
What is the difference between PractitionerPro and GoHighLevel?
The difference is who does the designing and building. With GoHighLevel on its own, you do. With PractitionerPro, a team that works only with natural health practitioners does it with you. You can buy the platform. PractitionerPro gives you the system.
| GoHighLevel on its own | PractitionerPro |
|---|---|
| A general-purpose marketing platform | Configured specifically for natural health practitioners |
| You design the system yourself | The system is designed around a practitioner's client journey |
| You plan and write your own website | A practitioner-focused website, planned and written with you |
| You build the automations yourself | The core client journeys are planned and set up for you |
| You decide how contacts are organised | Contacts organised around how people find, book and return to a practice |
| You write your own emails and messages | Messages written in your voice and checked against advertising rules |
| You work out how everything connects | Website, bookings, guide, newsletters and programs connected from day one |
| Software support | Practitioner-focused guidance, onboarding and a community |
The platform, or the system?
The platform
You build it yourself
The system
Built with you, ready to use
What do you actually have on day one?
On day one with GoHighLevel you have a login and an empty account. On day one with PractitionerPro you have a Blueprint session booked and a team beginning to build. The gap between those two starting points is where most of the time and effort goes.
Here is an illustrative example. Picture a practitioner who signs up to HighLevel on a quiet Sunday afternoon.
The account opens. The menu is long and the screens are empty. Before anything can work, there are decisions to make:
- Which pages does my website need, and what should each one say?
- What should happen when someone sends an enquiry?
- What do my welcome emails say, and how many should there be?
- How do my booking calendar, reminders and website fit together?
- How do I ask for reviews in a way that sits within advertising rules?
- How do I record consent before I email or text anyone?
- How do I move my existing email list across safely?
None of these is a software question. They are strategy, writing and compliance questions, and the software is waiting for the answers.
Some practitioners enjoy working through that list. Many get partway, run out of evenings, and end up paying for a platform they are not using.
Day one with an empty platform
Seven decisions the software is waiting for
Which pages, and what do they say?
What happens after an enquiry?
What do the welcome emails say?
How do booking and reminders connect?
How are reviews requested?
How is consent recorded?
How does the email list move across?
These are strategy questions, not software questions.
The gap between being a skilled practitioner and running a thriving practice isn't about natural talent. It's about learnable systems. That's what I'm passionate about teaching.
What does PractitionerPro add on top of the platform?
PractitionerPro adds six things the platform does not include: a strategy session, a website planned and written for you, connected client journeys, a check against advertising rules, hands-on set-up, and ongoing support from people who know natural health practices.
1. Strategy before software
Everything starts with a live Blueprint session. We capture your story, the clients you most want to work with, your services and your voice. Your Google Business Profile is aligned to match.
2. A website planned and written for you
You receive a full website with dedicated service pages, written in your voice. You approve every word before it goes live.
3. Client journeys that are already connected
Your website, bookings, reminders, free guide, welcome emails and program are set up to work together from day one, so each step hands on to the next.
4. A check against advertising rules
Every page and message is checked against health advertising rules before launch. A general-purpose platform has no way of knowing those rules exist.
5. Set-up and moving across done for you
We build it, connect it and test it. Your mailing list is moved across with each person's consent status kept. Your practice management software stays as it is, and your clinical notes and client health records stay there too.
6. Support after launch
An onboarding session, email support, a review call with me about 90 days after launch, and membership of the Thriving Practitioners community while you are with us.
What PractitionerPro adds to the platform
The platform (HighLevel technology)
1. Strategy before software
2. A website planned and written for you
3. Connected client journeys
4. A check against advertising rules
5. Set-up and moving across
6. Support after launch
Curious what your own gap looks like?
Our free Marketing Gap Calculator gives you a quick picture of the bookings your practice may be missing when follow-up relies on memory. It takes a couple of minutes.
When does buying GoHighLevel yourself make sense?
Buying GoHighLevel directly makes sense if you enjoy technology, have time set aside to learn it, and are confident planning your own website, writing your own messages and checking your own compliance. It can also suit a practice that already has a marketing person to build and maintain it.
I would rather you chose well than chose us. If building systems is something you enjoy, you may be very happy doing this yourself.
There is also a middle path. DIY PractitionerPro gives you the platform with practitioner templates, a first-steps guide and the Thriving Practitioners community, and you do the building. It suits practitioners who are comfortable with technology and want a head start.
When is PractitionerPro the better fit?
PractitionerPro is the better fit when you want the result, not the project. If you would rather spend your time with clients than learning software, and you want your website, words and client journeys done properly the first time, it is designed for you.
- You want a finished, connected system, not another tool to set up.
- You are not confident with technology, or simply do not want to be.
- You want your words written for you, in your voice.
- You want someone who understands health advertising rules to check everything.
- You want support from people who know natural health practices, not a general help desk.
Just as we treat the whole person in natural health, we need to approach practice growth holistically, combining heart-centred values with smart technology and proven business principles.
Is PractitionerPro just GoHighLevel with a different name?
No. PractitionerPro runs on HighLevel's technology under its own name, which is exactly how HighLevel is designed to be used by specialist providers. The name on the login is the smallest part of the difference. The value is in everything built around the technology for your practice.
HighLevel openly invites agencies to offer the platform under their own brand. It is a normal and well-established arrangement, and I think you deserve to know about it.
What matters is what you receive. A login gives you access. PractitionerPro gives you a website, a client journey and a team. You do not need another piece of software. You need a practice-growth system that has already been designed around how natural health practitioners work.
How do you decide which is right for your practice?
Answer five honest questions about your time, your confidence with technology and how you want to spend your week. If most of your answers point to "I would rather not build this myself", PractitionerPro is the better fit.
Take ten minutes this week and answer these honestly:
- 1
Time. Do I have several free hours a week, for a couple of months, to learn and build a new platform?
- 2
Confidence. Am I comfortable building web pages and automations myself?
- 3
Words. Do I want to write my own website, guide and welcome emails?
- 4
Rules. Am I confident checking my own marketing against health advertising rules?
- 5
Upkeep. When something stops working, do I want to be the person who fixes it?
| Question | My honest answer |
|---|---|
| 1. Time | |
| 2. Confidence | |
| 3. Words | |
| 4. Rules | |
| 5. Upkeep |
Mostly yes? Building it yourself may suit you well. Mostly no? Then what you need is the finished system, and that is what we do.
Build it yourself, or have it built?
Time: do I have hours each week to build?
Confidence: am I comfortable with the technology?
Words: do I want to write it all myself?
Rules: can I check my own compliance?
Upkeep: do I want to fix it when it breaks?
Frequently asked questions
Can I see how PractitionerPro is configured for a practice like mine?
Yes. Book a Free Practice Review. I look at your website and Google Business Profile before we talk, then show you how PractitionerPro would be set up for a practice like yours. It is a relaxed 30-minute conversation with no obligation. You can also see live practitioner websites in our work.
Is it cheaper to buy GoHighLevel directly?
The software on its own may cost less each month, but you are comparing two different things. With GoHighLevel you are paying for tools and supplying the strategy, website, writing and set-up yourself. With PractitionerPro those are included. The fair comparison is the software plus the value of your own time.
Do I need to learn GoHighLevel to use PractitionerPro?
No. Your system is built for you, and you are shown around it in a one-to-one onboarding session after launch. Day to day you use one login to see enquiries, bookings and messages. You do not need to know how it was built.
Does PractitionerPro replace my practice management software?
No. Your practice management software stays as it is, and your clinical notes and client health records stay in it. PractitionerPro looks after your website, enquiries, bookings, newsletters, follow-up and programs.
What happens to my content if I leave PractitionerPro?
Your website needs an active PractitionerPro subscription to stay live. If you leave, the copy, guide, newsletters and images you own are handed over to you.
Could I start with GoHighLevel and move to PractitionerPro later?
You could. In practice it usually means building twice, because the website, messages and client journeys are created fresh from your Blueprint session. If you are unsure, the Free Practice Review is a good place to talk it through before you commit to either.
Would you like to see how it would look for your practice?
If you are weighing up the two, I am happy to walk you through it and give you a straight answer, even if that answer is to build it yourself.
Book a Free Practice Review
See how PractitionerPro can simplify your practice marketing system. I will look at your website and Google Business Profile before we speak, then we will look at how PractitionerPro would be configured for your practice and whether it is the right fit.
It is free, it is friendly, and there is no obligation.
Warmly,
James BurginFounder, PractitionerPro and Thriving Practitioners. Former naturopath, clinic owner and creator of Metaphysical SEO.
About The Author
James Burgin
Founder, PractitionerPro and Thriving Practitioners
James is a naturopath turned digital marketer with 35+ years helping natural health practitioners get found by the people they trained to help. He founded Thriving Practitioners, a community and education platform for practitioners across Australia and New Zealand, and PractitionerPro, the practice growth platform built by practitioners, for practitioners. He lives in Bondi, Sydney.
