Make the Most of Massage

Category: Start/Grow Massage Business (0 – 30K)

  • Why Can’t I Get More Massage Clients?

    Why Can’t I Get More Massage Clients?

    No massage clients today?

    I’m thinking your inner dialogue might sound like this:

    I stink.

    I better take another corrective massage seminar STAT!

    But wait, my clients love me.

    Well, then they should come back more often, damn it.

    I should tell them to come back more often…or force them to and make them buy a membership.

    Yuck.

    Okay, I guess there just aren’t enough massage clients out there.

    But Massage Envy is killing it…

    Right, BUT they don’t do Exoskeletal Bilateral Symmetry Massage. And if I get that certification, clients will be beating down my door!

    Do yourself a favor: Put your Mastercard away.

    There’s only one thing you need to do to get more massage clients.

    You need to market.

    The problem is you don’t want to market.

    I get it.

    I avoided marketing for long time.

    I believed in build it and they will come. In other words, do a good job and your business will grow.

    To some extent that’s true, but if you want predictable income and don’t ever market, it will be more like build it and they will come in dribs and drabs as you look for a second job.

    More Than Just Building It

    You have to market.

    But you don’t have to sell your soul.

    Will you be uncomfortable at times?

    Probably.

    But your soul stays with you.

    And you won’t have to go into debt.

    Okay, so what’s the catch, Mark?                                       

    No catch.

    Just work.

    The work is to get people talking about you.

    If people know you and are talking about you, you’re going to build a healthy business.

    My Triple Referral

    A while back I got a call from a competitive triathlete.

    Interestingly, she didn’t call me after talking to her running coach friend who told her to go see me.

    She also didn’t pick up the phone when another friend sang my praises.

    Do you know when she called me?

    After her chiropractor gave her my card.

    Omg, Mark, you must have every certification in the world to have that many people referring to you!

    I don’t.

    I’m just a decent massage therapist—like you.

    I get referrals because I know how to get my name out there.

    How to Get Your Name Out There

    Getting known takes some time.

    You can speed up the process by doing these 3 things.

    1. Follow up with each client.

    Nothing says you care more than checking up on clients, especially new clients. Caring is not only the right thing to do, it’s the bitcoin of relationship currency.

    Put your time into strong relationships with your clients and the dividends will be plenty of referrals.

    2. Follow up with the client’s health practitioner.

    If your client is coming to you for a particular issue and is seeing or has seen other health practitioners for the same issue, contact the other health practitioners so that you can coordinate efforts.

    Connecting with other health practitioners leads to massive name spreading. Here’s how I do that.

    3. Market your hands-on massage.

    I’ve said it a bazillion times, now a bazillion and one: Advertise with your hands.

    It’s free and simple.

    The person gets on your table (or chair). You make him feel better. You hand him your card. Bam!

    Let the name spreading begin. (Only good name spreading.)

    So, what do you think?

    Marketing is not that scary when you keep it about what you do day in and day out—massaging people.

    Massage Clients Fast Track

    Just (1) follow up with your clients, (2) talk to their PTs and doctors, and (3) get your hands on people so that they can experience your work.

    Need More Help Getting Clients?

    If you’re just starting your business and/or making less than 30K a year, go here: Jumpstart.

    If you need to take a paying-the-bills massage business to a making-the-money-you-want massage business, go here: Accelerator.

    Want to get my latest article?

    Join my email group. I’ll send you my latest stuff about making more money, building a massage practice and staying out of pain.

    It’s free.

    Sign up below:-)

  • Why Your Massage Practice is Meh

    Why Your Massage Practice is Meh

    The key to building a massage business is to actually build it.

    I should know. I spent many years thinking I was building a practice when I was simply living off referrals from a few key clients.

    Eventually, my referral sources dried up, and it was sink or swim time for Markie.

    That’s when I discovered something really important about business: Either go all in, or go home.

    Going all in is critical because it will afford you the time to work on all the things you need to do to make your business succeed.

    Many Hats Challenge

    But going all in can be a challenging, especially if you wear many hats like me (massage therapist, business owner, CE teacher and writer).

    At first, it seems like the “many hats” strategy provides a level of income security. If one job goes, you still have the other ones to support you.

    But the reality is unless each job is set up to produce extra income on demand, you don’t have security.

    For example, if your $1000 a week massage therapist job suddenly goes south because you injure yourself, it’s unlikely that your $50 a week daycare worker gig is going to replace your massage income.

    Building a Massage Business Detour

    Years ago when my practice took a hit, I threw myself into generating more money through my side jobs (personal trainer and writer) and a vicious cycle started.

    I spent a lot of time working the side jobs that didn’t generate as much as I was making as an MT, and my massage business (where I should have been throwing my attention) shrunk even more.

    If having “many hats” is preventing you from going all in with your massage business, I’ve got a pill that can help you out.

    Alright, I’m lying. No pill. But I do have something else.

    It’s self-interrogation.

    Yeah, I know, it’s not a whole lot of fun.

    Here, I’ll make it easier by going first.

    “Mark, good, ole buddy, why do you wear so many hats?”

    Because that’s who I am.  

    I feel my best when I have multiple things going on.

    And I don’t like being boxed in.

    Are you trying to box me in?!

    (Long, contemplative look from internal interrogator.)

    “Anything else?”

    Well, yeah, if I go all in I could fail. That gets me nervous.

    And there’s the thing about competition. I really don’t have to compete with others if I’m only half-way into massage.

    Not to mention that I’d have to sell myself (my soul) if I went all in. (No you don’t.)

    Oh, and once I’m all in, I could get stuck in something I don’t want to do.

    Sure enough when I did my own self-interrogation, I started to see a pattern,

    I was emotionally comfortable having many hats. And when the going got tough with my massage business, I’d throw myself into writing or personal training.

    Later, recognizing this pattern was enough to keep me on track when I wanted to diverge from working on my massage business.

    And getting small wins, like  more clients walking through my door, made me want to stay all in.

    Building a Massage Business Bonus

    At the end of the day, going all in with building a massage practice, netted me more than a massage practice.

    It gave me confidence.

    Oh, and remember that fear of getting stuck?

    It went away because I had the confidence to try other things, like developing and teaching CE classes.

    I also didn’t have to give up being me.

    Hell, I even added more jobs, like Make the Most of Massage.

    The difference between me then and now is that now I recognize when the other jobs are distracting me from growing my massage business.

    Building a Massage Business Quick Notes

    If you’re business is floundering because you’re not all in, try some self-interrogation.

    You may find that one reason you have a lot of things going on is so that you don’t have to commit to going all in with your massage business.

    Once you commit to building your massage practice, you’ll begin to recognize the times when you’re avoiding massage business projects because they’re unpleasant.

    I ain’t going to lie–the costs for going all in are blood, sweat and tears.

    However, the rewards are a productive massage business, confidence and opportunities to build other businesses.

    P.S. When I opened my first office, I knew a massage husband and wife duo. They opened up a massage practice in a high rent district and tried to make it as a wellness center.

    It failed.

    Damn, Mark, why are you telling me this when I was getting pumped about starting (growing) my practice?

    Here’s why. Their business didn’t fail because they hadn’t gone all in.

    They had.

    Their business failed because they started off too big. They had too much rent to cover.

    Being “all in” is important to building a massage business.

    A good business plan is, too.

    Can’t get beyond 30K?

    If you need to take a meh massage business to the next level, then this course will finish the job for you: Accelerator.

  • How NOT to be a Massage Expert (and be Very Successful)

    How NOT to be a Massage Expert (and be Very Successful)

    True or false: You have to be a massage expert to be successful in massage?

    My guess is that you said false.

    But does your answer match what you’re actually doing in your work life right now?

    In other words, have you stalled with starting a business, growing your business or adding an extra stream of income because you don’t know enough, because you’re not an expert?

    If so, waiting to become an expert could actually be a way to avoid moving forward with something.

    I get it.

    I was an expert at avoiding the next uncomfortable step to increasing my income.

    I can’t open my own neuromuscular massage business until I’m as good as Paul St. John.

    I can’t teach CE courses until I command the classroom like Professor John Keating in Dead Poets Society.

    I can’t become a writer until I win the Hemingway Award.

    And the list goes on…

    Granted, you need some knowledge and skills to deliver a good service or to create a decent product. But you don’t need to be an expert.

    You simply need to be competent.

    Massage Competent Versus Massage Expert

    Competence is the ability to do something successfully or efficiently.

    Having expertise means you have a comprehensive and authoritative knowledge/skill in a particular area.

    Immediately you can see an advantage of competence over expertise: time. You can become competent faster than you can become an expert.

    Competence has a huge psychological advantage, too.

    When I say “expert” what do you think?

    I think: How will I know when I’m an expert? That makes becoming an expert seems like a never-ending deal.

    Now what do you think when you hear the word “competence”?

    I think: Oh, hells yeah, I’m going to get me some competence and then some!

    Fortunately for me, I had a friend who helped me understand the value of approaching business (and life) from a competency perspective.

    Tigers, Stripes and Behavior Change

    My friend Bill Hass was a corporate psychologist. He and his team utilized emotional competence as a strategy in their business coaching program.

    Here’s a piece of research they did: Tigers, Stripes and Behavior Change.

    My favorite tiger.

    Whenever Bill and I had lunch together, we’d talk about emotional competence. One day, I decided to apply what we talked about to my personal life.

    My Emotional Competence Experiment

    So I worked towards emotional competence in my marriage, and here are 3 things that I noticed:

    1. There was no barrier to entry.

    Becoming competent was not an intimidating proposition. In fact, it made me want to get on it right away because I couldn’t stand the thought of being incompetent!

    1. When I screwed up, I didn’t want to quit because the goal—to become emotional competent—still seemed reachable. I just needed to make an adjustment or two.
    2. Once I got a quick win, I became confident that I could get more wins quickly.

    Massage Expert Challenge

    Next, I applied the competence model to my massage life. Interestingly, when I did, I not only gained competency in certain areas, I also started to recognize when I was already massage competent in something but was holding back because I wasn’t a massage expert.

    For instance, a while back I wanted to develop a niche market with runners, but the core of my massage work over the years had been backs and necks.

    Damn, I thought, I need to become a massage expert with running injuries.

    But wait, I was already competent with working on legs. I had worked on tons of runners, cyclists and triathletes over the years.

    Being an expert was an excuse. So I went out into the running world, drummed up business and refined my knowledge base as I went along.

    Competent to Start a Business

    If you’re thinking about opening a massage business and are wondering if you’re actually a competent massage therapist, ask yourself these questions:

    1. Do I have repeat business?
    2. Do my current clients refer to me?
    3. Do I convert some first-time customers into regular clients?

    If you answered yes to all the questions, congrats. Move onto this step: How to Get Massage Clients: Referrals.

    If you need to tweak some things about your massage read this: How to Stand Out From the Crowd.

    Competent to Grow Your Business

    If you’re floundering with growing your business because you’re not a massage expert, ask yourself these questions:

    1. Can I make a client feel relaxed?
    2. In general, are most clients in less pain after I work on them?

    If you answered yes to both questions, get out there and start marketing! This will help: Two Tips (Not 10) To Get More Clients.

    If you need to work on competence, check out this article: How to Get Good at Pain Relief Massage.

    Get Competent

    Ready to get competent?!

    Not a great rallying call, I know.

    But here’s the deal: You’re going to sit and rot in your chair if you’re waiting to become a massage expert before you make a move.

    If you’re not competent, get competent.

    Then market your competency.

    And refine your skills and grow your knowledge base as you go along.

    Email Group

    If you haven’t heard, I have an email group. It’s free (and you can unsubscribe anytime). Sign up below and I’ll direct you to the information that you’ll need to get you moving in the right direction:-)

    Get It Done Online, CEU Courses

    If you’re ready to start a massage business or take a meh massage business to the next level, then I have two courses  that can help you out.

    If you’re starting a massage business, this course will give you everything you need to know to launch and take your massage business to 30K: Jumpstart. (And it’s free.)

    If you need to take a meh massage business to beyond paying the bills, then this course will finish the job for you: Accelerator.

  • How to Stand out From the Crowd

    How to Stand out From the Crowd

    There’s a way to stand out from the crowd without having to learn a specialty massage or spend any money. But you’ll need to do something that most MTs won’t do or don’t like doing. You’ll need to do precise massage.

    “Precise” massage?

    Dude, you mean “detail” massage.

    Nope, I mean precise massage.

    Detail/focus work is when you comprehensively address a client’s area(s) of concern.

    For example, Ashyra comes in with tight shoulders. If I’m doing detail work, I’m going to work her traps, levator scapulaes and cervical erectors at the origins, insertions, etc.

    With precise massage, I’m going to zero in on areas, but I’m not going to be as thorough as I would be with detail/focus massage. Also, many of the areas that I zero in on won’t be the client’s areas of concern.

    For example, Mohamed wants a relaxation massage. He mentions that he has a sore neck and achy feet.

    I massage his neck and find tightness around C2. I spend a little time addressing that area. Then I work down his back.

    At about L2 I find tightntess. Even though this is a non-issue area for Mohamed, I spend 15 to 30 seconds working that area.

    By the time I’m done the massage, I may have zeroed in on 50 spots.

    Value of Precise Massage

    Precise massage makes money.

    About 50% of the massages that I do in a week involve precise work exclusively. Another 25% is a mix between precise and detail massage. While the remaining 25% is pure detail work.

    Here’s why I think my clients love precise massage.

    1. It’s relaxing.
    2. As with the case of detail massage, precise massage can provide pain relief.
    3. Clients discover new things about their bodies.

    “Never knew my hammies hurt there.”

    1. You show that client you care when you highlight tight and/or pain areas.
    2. You demonstrate thoroughness.
    3. You gain competency points with your clients because you’re finding all the owies.

    Easy to Get Started

    The beauty of doing precise massage is that there’s virtually no barrier to entry.

    Here’s what I mean. For detail work you need to know anatomy.

    Not so with precise work. You just need to be able to find the tight spots.

    Since you already know how to look for tight spots, there’s really no learning curve. You just need to look for tight spots more often than you normally do.

    By the way, if finding tight spots is not a slam dunk for you, don’t sweat it. My hands were like stone when I first started massage. Can you say “worst palpator ever”? Here’s how I got better: How to Palpate Without Palpating.

    Will it Kill My Hands?

    Okay, are your hands curled in the fetal position at the thought of having to press on a lot of tight spots?

    Don’t worry. Your hands are going to be fine. Promise.

    Here’s why. You’re going to use massage tools and combine body parts.

    Quite frankly, this is the secret sauce. Once you get these two skills under your belt, you can rely on precise massage as your main money-maker from here on out.

    To learn about using massage tools, start with this: Why You’re Not Using Your Massage Tool.

    For combining body parts, check out this video: How to Combine Body Parts

    One More Thing: Angle of Pressure

    Once you get the searching and pressing down, you can add in pressing from different angles.

    When I first started massage, I’d “stand on” a tight spot. Well, not literally, but that’s what it felt like to clients—so I’ve been told. Oops.

    Later I learned that clients really liked it when I changed up the angle of my pressure.

    So, for example, instead of always coming straight down on a tight spot, I’d experiment with a 45 degree angle.

    Changing the angle of pressure helped me to NOT overwork a spot. It was also good when straight down pressure was too intense.

    In a Nutshell

    Here’s what the whole shebang looks like in 3 steps.

    1. Always search for tight spots and tender areas when doing a massage.
    2. Use massage tools and combination body parts for the tight/tender spots.
    3. Approach tight/tender areas from different angles.

    A Free Signature Massage

    If specializing in a massage modality is where your passion lies, by all means, go for it. But if you’re just looking to stand out from the competition, invest your time in precise massage.

    It won’t cost you a penny.

    And if you use massage tools and combine body parts, you won’t burn out your hands.

    Massage Tools Online CEU Class

    If you want to get serious about using massage tools to deliver focused pressure and set yourself apart from the crowd, I have an online, home-study CEU course for you.

    It’s my bread-and-vegan butter live course that will get you comfortable with using massage tools, even in a relaxation massage.

    You can check it out here: How to Use Massage Tools (Fearlessly and Effectively).