October 20th, 2007 Julie Onofrio
The thing I like most about SBI! is that they always are having sales on their websites. This gives users a break when starting their site so they can get it at a reduced cost while starting their business or taking their current business online. Buy one SBI! for $299 US and get the second one for $100. You can use the second one, share it or keep it for later.
The thing you need to understand is that SBI! isn’t just a webhosting company. It is hard for people to really get what it is. It took me a few years actually of constantly reading the action guide and working on my site www.massagetherapycareers.com. I now get it after a summer of working on my site, I can now be found on page two of Google for the keyword “massage therapy” which I never thought in a million years I would even come close to that. My non-sbi site www.thebodyworker.com has been online since 1999 and ranks well for other words such as ’swedish massage’, ‘massage jobs’, but never came close to the top for ‘massage therapy’. That site is over 900 pages and gets 2000 people a day. www.massagetherapycareers.com is only about 200-250 pages or so (I better go count now) and it will soon be number one on page one of Google I am sure. That actually brings a whole new light to my site. I am now creating the largest Free online directory of massage schools that users can actually rate with their comments! This will be really big in helping sort out and helping potential students make more informed decisions about their massage careers….
This site just keeps getting bigger and bigger and taking different turns than I ever really expected. It is all because SBI! shows me the way!
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September 28th, 2007 Julie Onofrio
How do you find a good massage therapist - one that meets your needs for comfort, personality, philosophy and technique?
With so many variables and so many different needs, it can be like looking for a needle in the haystack.
- Get a referral from friends or family members.
- Get a referral from your physician or other health care provider.
- Look online by searching for ‘massage, your city on Google. While this may seem risky you should be able to tell by the quality of their site and by the fact that it is even being found by Google.
- Check with one of the professional associations directories
ABMP, AMTA or IMA. While this is not a guarantee of service or reliablity or professionalism, it does indicate that the massage therapist made the extra effort to get found through their professional association.
But then once you find one how do you know if they are a match for you? How do you know when you are getting a good massage or working with a good massage therapist?
…..You will just feel good. You will also feel comfortable with the therapist.
Some organizations will tell you to ask questions like:
- How long have you been doing massage?
- What are your credentials?
- What is your experience?
- What training have you had?
Most of these things don’t really matter when it comes down to it. Licensing and certification will not guarantee that the massage therapist will be a match for your needs. It may help you to feel better to know this information before going in which can be helpful, but just keep in mind that newly licensed massage therapists can be just as effective as people who have been in the field for awhile.
Part of getting a good massage is also about knowing what you like and being able to ask for it. So many people assume that massage therapists are supposed to know where and how much it hurts or how they feel and they think they should just put up with whatever the massage therapist is doing. While massage therapists can often feel tight areas they can not tell how it feels to you.
A great massage therapist will be able to work with you to get that information and feedback from you so they can adjust their pressure or technique to your comfort level or the level you need. A great massage therapist will explain to you before hand either through their writings on their website or when you call or visit in person, just what their philosophy on healing and massage is. That way you can see if their ideas and what they value match yours. Having a support team of like minded individuals is important on the road to healing. A survey done by the Eldon Taylor author of ‘Choices and Illusions’ found that “The physicians attitude was the most important factor in determining whether the patient lived or died”. (While massage therapists don’t often work with that extreme of an example - the jist of what he is saying I think is that a positive attitude is most important in the healing process and having someone who supports your process is really helpful.)
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September 12th, 2007 Julie Onofrio
From NCBTMB
Posted in Massage, NCBTMB by Massage Nerd on the August 16th, 2007
Dear Colleagues, Do You Recognize this Document? Can this document be improved? In an effort to improve the NCBTMB Candidate Handbook and application process, we are asking for feedback from school personnel who are familiar with this document. To participate, download Version 7.1 of this handbook which is located on the NCBTMB website (www.ncbtmb.com). Once you have located the areas in the Candidate Handbook that you wish to comment on, click on the link below. http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=1UIaFf1QuP3Od7MmDmiwUg_3d_3d This link will take you to the “Call for Comments Survey” where you can navigate the handbook page by page inputting comments as you go. You may also leave and return to the survey as needed. When you are finished, the survey results will be automatically sent back to us. Your comments will help us to revise the handbook and facilitate the application process. Your students will appreciate the changes you help us make. Thank you in advance for your participation. If you have any questions, please contact Elaine Calenda, School Outreach Advisory Panel chair at ecalenda@bcmt.org or call: 800-442-5131. Thanks! School Outreach National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork 1901 S. Meyers Road, Suite 240 Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181-5243 Email: schooloutreach@ncbtmb.com
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September 4th, 2007 Julie Onofrio
In my last post I touched on how defining massage affects the profession and how we are perceived by the general public. Learning to communicate what we do is the core of creating a successful practice and creating a image for the massage profession.
The way deep tissue massage is defined and experienced by others is one of the best examples.
A few months ago I called to make an appointment at a local spa for a relaxation massage. They asked what kind of massage I wanted and I said I just wanted a really firm relaxation massage. I didn’t want any painful deep tissue techniques. The receptionist said what I was looking for was their special signature massage which included some kind of warm eye mask being applied. I said that sounded fine. When I got there for the massage, the therapists touch was so light I could hardly feel her touch on my skin and she wasn’t engaging the tissue in anyway to create the relaxation I needed. I asked her if she could apply more pressure. She said that would be the deep tissue technique - but she wouldn’t have time to do the eye mask part. I said that was fine. She then proceeded to just do the same thing. She never asked -”Is this enough pressure? Is this what you were looking for?” To make things worse I was so disappointed when I left and when I went to pay for the session, no one asked how my massage was. By that time I was so frustrated I just left thinking I would never go back to that place. But I got home and was still thinking about it and I thought that they just don’t know how to communicate what they are offering or what their therapists are trying to do. I emailed them and I ended up getting a free massage and went in with another therapist and had a great deep relaxation massage - what they think and call deep tissue massage on their menu of services even.
My definition of deep tissue massage comes from 8 years or so in structural integration training with the Zentherapy Institute and going through Rolfing and Hellerwork sessions. Now that in my mind is deep tissue. The deeper muscles of the body are accessed sometimes with a fair amount of pain.
So how we define what we do affects every client and potential client. What do they think they will be getting? What do they want as far as a massage? What has their previous massage experiences been? What do they have in their experience to compare to the session I am giving them? I always ask people what types of massage they have had and try to get an idea of what the pressure feels like to them. Even then we are faced with them being unable to verbalize just what it is that they want for whatever reason - their not wanting to hurt our feelings, their thinking that we know best what ‘they’ should be getting, their lack of experience in getting massage to be able to compare it to other sessions so they know just what they want.
All of these things come into play when trying to build a massage practice and most do not even know how what they do and how they communicate what they do will affect everyone - not just their session with their current client.
I have an exercise I like to tell massage therapists to do who I am working with in peer supervision - go out and search out a new massage therapist online or from the phone book or from getting a referral and actually go and get a massage -even a few massages. This is a great exercise for keeping you in touch with just what it is that you do and learning to provide the service that clients need.
And then there is the what if you don’t do deep tissue or don’t do the deep tissue that hurts and someone is asking you to do that? This is where screening people on the phone and providing enough information on your website comes in handy. If someone gets as far as your table thinking that they want a really deep tissue session and you just don’t do that for whatever reason ( not enough training, don’t define deep tissue as painful, not enough strength or size to work on a larger body) you are faced with having to say “I am sorry. I am not able to do that” and let them leave your table without paying or without doing any work which is a waste of your appointment times. Learning how to describe what you do so that a potential client can figure out if your service will be a match for what you need is also the basis for creating a ‘website that works’ and is all laid out in the free Site Build It! Action Guide.and also in the free Service Sellers Masters Course from SBI!
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August 6th, 2007 Julie Onofrio
If you haven’t already found this site it’s about time you were introduced to Ryan Hoyme of www.massagenerd.com
I asked Ryan to write an article for me on male issues in the massage profession when I first started my website. I had created a link to contact him and this is what became of it all. The replies to his article are listed on his site now www.massagenerd.com
I was just researching more on making squidoo lenses and somehow got to an article about Ryan and how he is making money with his massage videos.
His site is also an incredible resource if you are in massage school or starting/building a practice. He doesn’t use google ads but uses other sources of pay per click along with his videos to make money with his website and creations.
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