Archive for Resources

Educating Massage Clients – types of massage

March 21, 2010 Julie Onofrio Massage Websites, News, Resources

One of  the most common questions I get from  massage clients are about the various types of massage that are out there.  In this arena I think massage therapists have what is called “The Curse of Knowledge” by Chip and Dan Heath in their book Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die
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Once we know something, we find it hard to imagine what it was like not to know it. Our knowledge has “cursed” us. And it becomes difficult for us to share our knowledge with others, because we can’t readily re-create our listeners’ state of mind.

Clients know very little about the different types of massage or about how the body works for that matter.  All they know really is that they are in pain or under stress or whatever their reason is for calling you and coming to you.  You have to assume that they don’t know anything.  They don’t know why they should use different types of massage or when.  They don’t know the history of them and how they evolved.

Should they care?  Not really when you think about it.  All they care about is how YOUR massage feels and if it is right for them.  The many misconceptions about different methods lead to making uninformed decisions.

With the rise of franchises who focus on mainly Swedish and deep tissue massage, teaching clients about different types of massage can be to your advantage and the profession in general.   Specializing in a specific area can also be helpful in building your business.  The goal is to differentiate yourself from those franchises and show value for what you do and the various types of massage.   (See article on “Franchises and Their Impact on the Massage Profession from Massage and Bodywork Magazine )

So that is why I am creating the most indepth section on the different types of massage and I am actually doing it on two different sites – one on www.massage-career-guides.com  as a general resource for people who are becoming massage therapists and the general public.  My other list will be on my new site -www.massageceguide.com  that will be geared toward massage therapists wanting to increase their skills and value as a massage therapist.

So what does all this have to do with you?   I am looking for people who want to add their articles and information on the specific type of massage that you do or know about.  Writing about it and seeing many different people’s perspectives on the different types of massage and getting that info out there will help in the process of building our profession and keeping the Franchises from taking over.   When you do write an article on one of my sites, I will create a link to your site which is a very valuable part of getting traffic to your site.  The search engines track the number of links going into your site and rate your popularity and will rank your site higher in the search engines when you have more links.  You website has a higher chance of getting listed on the top of the first page of results (which is your goal in having a website!)   Since my sites are highly optimized already and receive good rankings, it will also help many readers and searchers who are looking for info on different types of massage and will help to continue to educate people about the value of massage.

When you write an article you don’t have to be writing for a textbook.  You are writing for an audience (online searchers) who have a very short attention span.   Write just the way you would talk to someone about what type of massage that you do.   Tell people about why you learned it, why you do it, what it means to YOU! and your clients.   I don’t want the same ‘rote’ descriptions that are seen on the many directories and books on the different types of massage.

To add your listing all you need to do is fill out the form that is on each page about the different types of massage. I don’t have all of the types listed yet but am working on it.  If there is a type that you do that is not listed let me know and I can add it.  If you are a teacher of something specific I will be creating new sections at www.massageceguide.com in the near future so stay tuned to get your articles and teacher profiles listed there. (This site is still in the early stages so bear with me!)


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Trends in Massage Education

December 5, 2009 Julie Onofrio Continuing Ed, News, Resources

I just received an email from Massage Magazine announcing their release of a new special supplement to their magazine called “Trends in Massage Education” that you can read online in full.  I was actually excited to take a look at this thinking that they were finally going to talk about something real in the massage profession.  I was very disappointed because it was just really a big advertisement for various products and classes.

Maybe it is me being in the profession for so long and having read so many articles and magazines and online articles but I think there is a real need for real information to be communicated between schools, massage products, continuing education providers and massage therapists.

My biggest thing is Does it Work? and how do you make it work or will it help a massage therapist to be more successful.

Out of all of these products and continuing education providers and products – how do you (the massage therapist) know what will help you the most in building a successful career in massage?

So there was page after page of products/services/ce classes and a separate page written by someone from the company promoting the product or whatever.  The main questions they asked were:

  • How can learning to use your product or service increase a massage therapists income?
  • What should massage therapists teach their clients about?
  • What should massage therapists focus their continuing education on?
  • Describe why learning about self care is important for massage therapists.

I think all of the answers really missed the boats.  They were all thinking about how they could promote their classes.  They were thinking more about what is in it for them rather than thinking from a massage therapists perspective.  To a hammer – everything looks like a nail!

Back in the mid 90′s I spent 5 years in a CE intensive training and thousands of dollars.  After investing all of that time and money, I left with a skill that I eventually had to give up because it was too painful for people to go through.  It became too painful for me to even receive and I found other ways to deal with my own physical challenges that were less painful.  There was so much politics in the organization that taught me I was also left with a bad taste as far as CE in massage was concerned.  There was no support for marketing or presenting the work to potential clients.  That is what is lacking in most massage ce classes!

With all the various products and techniques there wasn’t any mention of business classes or website building classes.  There was only one I think that talked about creating presence in your practice.  There wasn’t any classes on ethics or supervision which is of course my hammer.

I see the future trend in the massage profession to go beyond techniques and turn to focus on the development of the massage therapist and working on their underlying issues around money and success and helping.   How could this help massage therapists make more money?   By becoming clearer about who you are and what you want, it provides the motivation and clear desire for getting what you want – success in the form of a rewarding career working with people and enough money to take nice vacations and retire when you want to!

All of the techniques will only get you so far.  If you don’t have the support in the way of a supervisor to take your work beyond techniques themselves and to get the support you need to build the confidence in asking for $85 an hour and more  so that you can  get a regular massage every week for self care and whatever else you need – what good is knowing the best way to release fascia or whatever is the latest technique.

Continuing education is the way to taking the massage profession a step further since the initial 500 hours of training for most is only just the beginning.  Knowing what products work and what ones don’t is also the goal of my website at www.massage-career-guides.com which is expanding to include many sections where you can rate and review products.

What do you want to know about a ce class or product?  What is most important when it comes down to choosing a class or product?

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