Category: COVID-19 Massage Safety/Making Money

What is the first thing you should do to sure-up your customer base during the phase-in?

Not this.  

Glad to be back on your table, Mark!

Glad you’re here, Marvin. By the way, there’s a helluva lot of laundry to do now and I have to space clients out and I have no idea if there’s going to be another shutdown so I’m going to need to charge you another $5/hour. So, how’s Keisha doing? (Raising your price happens in a month or so.)

The first thing you need to do is to have and execute the best Covid-19 safety policy in town.

I see you nodding off. Preventing sickness and death is sooooo April, especially since you simply have to assume that you’re helping to prevent the spread of Covid-19, and you can’t actually see the impact of your safety measures on the health of you and your clients.

But here’s the thing, most clients will assume that your safety measures are helping, too.

And that is a huge psychological comfort for your regulars, especially those who are on the fence about coming in.

Granted, some of your massage junkie clients won’t care how safe or unsafe you are.

And some regulars may even put up a fight.

I anticipate a couple of scraps with old-time clients who think they’ve earned special privileges.

Oh, come on, Mark, you don’t have to wear a mask with me!

Actually, I do. It’s mandated.  (By the way, if I were in a state where it wasn’t mandated, I would lie and said it was. Or I would say it was mandated by the state massage board. Or I would just say that it’s my policy to ensure everyone’s safety.)

Really?! You have to check my temperature?

My bad, Tom, I forgot that you don’t care if you get me sick.

Sorry, I meant to say…

It’s for everybody’s safety. I check my temperature, too.

(Eye roll from Tom.)

And that’s when I hit him with that’s it’s going to cost him 5 dollars more an hour.

Haha.

Besides keeping clients, a kick-ass, Covid-19 safety protocol can be great advertising, too.

When potential clients hit my website I want them to know that we’re taking their safety more seriously than any other outfit in town.

I’m not going to overwhelm website visitors with policy. I’m going to point out key safety features we’re employing, like forehead temperature checks, masks, disinfecting and limiting the number of people we have in the office at one time.

And I’m going to give them clear direction on how the appointment will go down so that there is no confusion or ambiguity in their minds.

Basically, I’m addressing these barriers that may be preventing that person from calling:

(1) Is massage safe?

(2) Is this place safe?

(3) How safe is this place compared to other places?  

Now the last thing I need to need to connect all the dots with my safety advertising strategy is to tie it into my Google My Business (GMB) page.

Massage Safety on Your GMB Page

For those of you who are not familiar with GMB, it’s what shows up in a local search.

Search Google for “pizza near me”.

What comes up are three businesses in a box, in this case, pizza shops that are near you.

That’s GMB, also known as a local search.

Now replace “pizza near me” with “massage near me.”

That’s when you come up (if you’re Googling near your office).

In order to access your GMB page (where you write and change things), you need to have claimed your business.

If you haven’t claimed your business, go here. Do the few steps necessary to claim your business.

Once you do or if you already have access to your GMB page, sign in and look at the tabs on the left. Click on Posts.

• 

Now, look at the post tab in the top-middle of the page. See the Covid-19 Update? Click on that.

• 

It’s for Covid-19 work status (as in, when will you be back to work), but I also add our Covid-19 safety information—masks, temperature checks, disinfecting, and limited contact with people in the office—here, too.

You could also write your safety info post in the Update tab.

But if you write the post in the Covid-19 Update tab, that post will become sticky and always be the first post the viewer sees.

Boom. You’re done.

You’ve optimized your safety message on your website and GMB page. By the way, here’s my GMB page.

Lastly, I’ve also texted my regulars to let them know how I plan on keeping them safe, and I’m going to send out a safety email to our email list as well spread the word on our Facebook page.

For our full safety plan check out: Covid-19 Safety and Operations Plan.

Okay, hands in.

Let’s keep ‘em safe as possible.

Ethically it’s a no-bainer.

And for advertising it’s a no-brainer, too.

Next we need to get more reviews before we raise our price to cover increased overhead.

That’s in the next post.

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If you’re going to open up your massage business during the Covid-19 phase-in you must accept the fact that you can reduce risk, but not eliminate it.

To completely eliminate the risk of spreading and/or contracting Covid-19 you and your client would need to stay home.

That’s a tough massage to do.

So, what kind of risk are we accepting?

Well, we can’t social distance to do our job. So, not being able to social distance increases our risk of getting and/or transmitting Covid-19.

Here are some other things: In the US, in general (I know that each area can be different), we don’t have reliable and adequate Covid-19 and antibody testing.

We don’t smart test.

We don’t have comprehensive contact tracing systems in place.

And we we’re waiting for valuable pieces of information that could inform our decision-making, like do antibodies equal immunity? (No human fault here; that information takes time.)

I’d say going back to work now means we’re accepting a fair amount of risk.

Okay, so what can we do to make our actual work area and how we (and our clients) operate in that work area less risky?

Simple: No one breathes in the massage room.

Okay, probably a little too draconian.

The answer is to institute a best practices approach.

We’re going to get our information for best practices from 3 resources: (1) State, (2) CDC, and (3) OSHA.

Here are the links to those resources:

State Massage Therapy Guidelines

For state recommendations/requirements you’ll need to go to your state massage board website or state website.

OSHA Massage Therapy Guidelines

For OSHA guidelines download this guide (page 14 for preparing the workplace and use of PPE: https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3990.pdf

CDC Massage Therapy Guidelines

For CDC guidelines go here: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/reopen-guidance.html

Yeah, that’s some pretty dry stuff–and my brain doesn’t work well with dry. I need to see what the actual experience would be like. So, I created a Covid-19 Massage Therapy Guidelines – Safety and Operations resource from a practical standpoint. It starts with the client parking in our  parking lot.

Here it is:

Covid-19 Massage Therapy Guidelines

Safety and Operations

1. Client parks.

2. If the massage room is ready for the client, then the client can come in. If not, the client waits in her car until the massage therapist tells her that it’s okay to come in via text or the massage therapist (with mask on) goes out and gets the client.

3. Client walks in the building front door. Disinfectant wipes are outside the door so the client can use a wipe for a barrier.

4. Bathroom door is open if client has to use the bathroom before the massage. Disinfectant wipes are in the bathroom and a CDC hand washing poster is on the wall.

5. Client walks into the office (office door is open), goes through the waiting room and into the massage room. The massage room now serves as the waiting room.

6. The intake is done in the massage room.

Option #1: Paper Intake—Verbal

Both client and massage therapist have masks on. The massage therapist has the paper intake form and reads the questions and writes the answers. The massage therapist gives the client a pen to sign intake (consent and office policy information). The pen is put in a container by the client to be disinfected later.

Option #2:  Paper Intake—Client Fills Out Paper Intake

The client fills out the paper intake and signs it. The massage therapist is holding an open file folder (with the client’s name on it) and asks the client to put the intake form in the folder. The pen the client was using goes into a container next to her chair to be disinfected later. There’s another container next to the client’s chair for her to put the clipboard in which will also be disinfected after the massage.

The massage therapist has a separate clipboard with paper where she’ll write her session notes. She can look at the intake in the folder without touching the intake while writing notes on the separate piece of paper. (This approach would require a one-page intake form.)

The note paper does not go into the folder until after the session is over. Once it’s in the folder it can be stapled to the intake after 24 hours.

Option #3: Paper Intake—Client Prints Out Intake And Brings It In

The client prints out the intake from a link on our website. She fills it out and brings it with her to the appointment. In the massage room during the intake, the client hands the massage therapist the intake. The massage therapist has disposable gloves on.

After the massage therapists finishes the intake the pen goes into a receptacle for disinfecting later. The massage therapist then takes one glove off and disposes of it in a trash can. With the ungloved hand she picks up a folder and with the gloved-hand places the intake in the folder. She then carefully takes off the remaining glove by reaching inside the glove to pull off the glove so that it’s inside-out. She disposes of the glove in the trash can.

Any post-massage notes are written on a piece of paper and inserted in the folder. Intake and paper can be stapled together 24 hours later.

Option #4: Electronic Intake.

Intake is done electronically before session or on client’s smart phone in the massage room before the massage. The massage therapist does notes on her smart phone.

Here are four systems that meet HIPPA requirements and would do the job:

(1) IntakeQ ($50/month per one person): https://intakeq.com/pricing

(2) MassageBook ($25/month, unlimited people): https://www.massagebook.com/marketing/pricing/

(3) ClinicSense ($30/month, one practitioner): https://clinicsense.com/pricing/

(4) GoCanvus ($45/month): https://www.gocanvas.com/show_pricing_plans

7. The massage is done with appropriate PPE. Both massage therapist and client have face masks on. When the client is face down a cloth droplet shield can replace the use of a face mask.

8. When the massage is done the massage therapist leaves  the room by using a paper towel or tissue barrier between her hands and doorknobs. After the therapist washes her hands she goes back into the massage room does a wrap-up,  reschedules the client if needed and takes the payment. Both massage therapist and client have face masks on.

9. The payment transactions is contactless via a chip reader that plugs into a smart phone (or the payment was done already online).

10. The client leaves only having to push open the building front door. There are disinfectant wipes next to the door so that client can use one as a barrier if she so chooses.

Disinfecting Between Clients

Massage Room

Dirty laundry: Face cradle cover goes on top of dirty sheets on the massage table. Dirty sheets are bundled by pulling up from each corner and rolled in. Dirty sheets are put in a laundry receptacle that has a lid.

Disinfecting: All surfaces are wiped down with disinfectant wipes, including door knobs and anything the client or therapist may have touched during the session.

Bathroom

Disinfecting: All surfaces that may have been touched are wiped down with disinfectant wipes.

Hallway and Doors

Disinfecting: All surfaces that may have been touched are wiped down with disinfectant wipes.

Massage Therapist

PPE: Face mask is put in the laundry receptacle. New face mask is used for the next client.

Time Between Clients

30 to 45 minutes between clients will be allotted to disinfect office and prepare the room for the next client.

Massage Room Safety Strategies and Modifications

Trash cans now have a lid and foot pedal.

Disinfectant wipes are next to the client’s chair as well as on the end table counter for the massage therapist.

Additional Safety Measures

We will use a forehead temperature scanner for both the client and the massage therapist before the massage starts.

Okay, so that’s my Covid-19 Massage Therapy Guidelines: Safety and Operations Plan. It’s a living document. As new information and guidance comes along, it will be amended accordingly.

Stay safe. Be healthy. And if you want to get my latest info for free, sign up below:-)

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