Startup’s new location: Mental Health Match, a startup that helps people find the right therapist, has moved from Houston to Portland, Ore.
The platform: Mental Health Match uses an online matching tool to guide users through the process of selecting a therapist. More information is provided about potential caregivers when they are identified as a match.
The idea: Founder and CEO Ryan Schwartz came up with the idea while looking for a therapist for the first time, after the death of his mother. Sitting across the table from a friend who was swiping on a dating app, he thought, “What if we could match with a therapist like we match with a romantic partner?”
Surge in need: With the COVID-19 pandemic and social isolation taking a toll on people’s mental health, a variety of startups and health care providers are rolling out tools and services to address issues related to anxiety, depression and more.
Monetization and traction: Since 2019, Mental Health Match has matched more than 60,000 people with a therapist, and has therapists in all 50 states. They currently have 2,000 therapists on the platform with 119 total paying customers (30% trial conversion rate). Therapists pay a monthly subscription to be part of the service.
Funding: With three employees as well as contractors/consultants, the startup has raised $1 million in seed financing.
Last word: “We’re all struggling to make sense of our rapidly changing world, and a good therapist is one of the most helpful resources available,” Schwartz told KOIN’s “Am Extra” in Portland. “As more and more people realize it’s time to talk with a trained professional, our matching tool makes it more possible for Oregonians to find the provider that they will trust and connect with from the very first moment.”
