I was just watching todays “Meet the Press” which had a panel of experts speaking about the troubled economy. With a 6.7% unemployment rate which means 10.3 million people out of work, our role as a massage therapist becomes even more important in dealing with the stress and fallout from all of this in the years to come. We all know how much stress damages immune systems, leaves people feeling uncentered and depressed, damages the heart and brain as well as relationships with others. The obvious place it shows up is of course in more physical pain and injuries – muscle spasms, strains and sprains, repetitive strain syndromes, back and neck pain. Now more than ever the massage profession needs to get the word out to the world that it can be a different way and that people can come through these troubled times and actually flourish.
The first part though is being financially stable as a massage therapist and being able to continue providing massage services to people. Keeping a steady flow of clients coming into your massage practice is a process of doing something everyday to build your practice and keep clients coming back. There are a few ways to do that. Getting people to refer people to your massage business is something that usually works well. All of your current clients could be referring all of their family members, co-workers and friends in for massage. Networking with Doctors, other alternative health care providers and local businesses can also be beneficial.
The basis for building clientelle is building trust with people. You can do that on the table when working with people and when marketing your business. That’s what I like having websites for – educating people and building trust with clients and potential clients. When people do a search for ‘massage, your city’ and they find your website there will already be a certain level of trust because they found you on their own not by some advertisement or sales pitch. People feel more empowered when they find you that way. Having a well designed site is the first step in educating people about massage and what it can do for others. Many sites are just a basic calling card type of site with about 8 pages of info and includes just the basics – prices, services, location, contact info and such. While the site might look nice it doesn’t offer any real information to engage readers into becoming clients. Setting yourself apart from other massage therapists by creating a site filled with content will give you the edge over others in your area who are also doing massage.
While this is good for your massage business it is also an important part of continuing to educate the world about massage and touch. A recent comment by someone who doesn’t like massage because just the act of having to set up an appointment is too stressful reminds me that even though I know massage isn’t for everyone – it really should be. When I first started out in this profession I often thought about if every person in the world got a massage twice a week or at least once a week or even every day like the late Bob Hope used to do – there would be world peace! How is it that people still have such outdated views about massage and what it can or can’t do? We are getting more research which some people just need to get over their old beliefs and views of massage but what is it that puts such fear into people about getting a massage or even getting regular massage? I know it is also about our patterns of bonding and relating that were formed at a very early age as well as a bundle of other personal issues. It is a strange thing when you really think about it – doing massage and providing a therapeutic container for healing those old wounds when it is something our parents and providers should have provided for free a long time ago.
It is because of the lack of education about massage.
One way to address the issues is to start thinking about what solution you provide for clients and potential clients? What is it that massage really does? I recently had a client with a few hernitated discs in his neck and an incredible amout of neck pain who after a few months of treatment said his pain was almost gone but he didn’t plan on being a nicer, more relaxed person. While his job is still stressful, he is nicer to people at work and his personal relationships improved. I can’t tell you the number of clients that I have had who after a series of massage sessions ended up quitting their dead end jobs and going on to start their own businesses and find other more fulfilling work. And what about the client who had a headache every day for about a year – yes that is right- and she did everything- massage, acupunture, chiropractic etc and drugs and then she came in one day and said that she had quit her job and they suddenly disappeared. Now I can’t of course directly equate massage with her quitting but when people do feel better in their bodies and feel better about themselves they are able to make leaps in their careers and other areas of their life. How does one explain that to a client or potential client?
This is the stuff that I think should be in massage therapists websites and marketing materials. It is what Site Build it! teaches and promotes as their basic premise. C – T – P – M Create in demand Content, Attract targeted traffic (people who are already looking for massage), Presell (or build trust) with those visitors so they will make the call so you can make money (Monetize). Your website can also make you money while you are at the office doing massage by writing enough content that it gets other people who don’t really want massage but are looking for information. You can also sell massage related tools and books and other things and make money through that all while you are doing a massage or sleeping.
So yes this website thing has become a passion for me. I was thinking as I watched msnbc on line this morning and every segment was cut by a advertisement for Boeing that the ad should be from the massage profession. I would love to see the three big massage associations make a commercial and air it on someplace like that or even national TV. But until then the best we have is continuing to get the word out and educate people through sharing our stories through websites and other ways.
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Hi Julie,
Another great article. Keep it up, please.
@Quitting Job Because of Massage: This is not exactly what you described, but close …
When I first started doing Structural Bodywork back in 1982, one of my first Clients (we’ll call him *D*) had a VERY forward neck & head posture, which in my experience (and as Janet Travell states in her popular Trigger Point Manuals) more-often-than-not comes from over-shortened abdominal muscles and depressed rib cage (NOT *tight pectorals* or *weak back or neck muscles*).
Yet D’s neck & head was not responding to that approach. So I did a whole session JUST on his anterior neck, especially SCM, and the suboccipitals. His neck and head straightened right up to perfectly vertical by the end of the session! Even I was amazed. D walked around in astonishment for a long time, marveling at how he felt. He could not believe how different it made him feel and how his viewpoint had changed. He was looking OUT at the world rather than up at the word. (This was really interesting because D was already a very tall guy.)
Anyway, when I returned the following week, D said he had been fired from his well-paying corporate job. He went on to tell me how he went to work the day after our neck & head straightening session and his boss, whom he usually just went along with to get along with, said or did something D did not like. So, feeling and seeing differently than his old self, D told his boss what he REALLY thought, instead of his usual submissive posture. By the end of the week, top management had decided that D had to go, so he did.
In discussing this with me, D said the only thing he could blame it on was me and that session that brought his head up high and back where it belonged. He said it changed the way he felt about himself As A Person, and even how he was acting. Pride and dignity were more real for him. … So for the first time, he stood his ground. And he got fired! Way to go D!
Fortunately, D had been wise and saved his money. He took a year to research, interview and find a new job that he REALLY wanted, with much higher pay at a huge agency, and got very active in the community in the meantime. He then quit that job and started his own business with his wife as his partner.
Now, unfortunately, this kind of dramatic story does not happen for me every day. Or even every month. But they do happen.
It is important to not underestimate the possibilities that could occur, the results that could happen, in just doing the job of helping people to Feel, Relax, Lengthen & Balance their muscles and structures. You, the Massage and Bodywork Therapist, never know when YOU will be the one factor that radically transforms a person’s life. The rest of the time, the small but important changes that most people get are more than enough to make it worth their while, and yours too!
Take Care,
David Scott Lynn
I just took a look at your website and it could really be doing a lot better. First your name is really poorly chosen. No one searches for essential living. You domain name should reflect what it is that you do- what solution you provide and where you do it if that is applicable.
You would be better off with a name like massage-music.com ( I think that is taken but something similar.)
You don’t have where you are located anywhere on the site.
There is tons more you could be doing and writing about to promote your classes and services. My first thought was there were too many services to choose from or the way the layout of services is too much. What if I just wanted a massage?
While you do use your keywords in the file names – couples massage is a very broad term. You could provide more information and get traffic from those keywords but I think you want more local customer to find you. Add the city or town or area you live in if you want local traffic and clients.
Let me know if you want more help with your site.
Julie
Hi Julie!
Thank you so much for sharing your insights. Our websites have increased our business by over 50% the first year we published them online. Building a site that allows a potential client to get to know you is a key investment for any Massage Therapist. If you can get an audio clip or video about yourself this really helps to connect with people. A spa that I contract with was shooting an infomercial, I was at the right place at the right time and did a 7 minute impromptu interview on Massage. It’s been almost a year since then, and I still get bookings because they saw the video and liked my approach.
Revenue generators:
Word of Mouth
Website
Fundraising Events
Local Ads (published media)