What Factors Should I Consider When Creating My Marketing Plan
When setting out your marketing plan, there are some questions you need to ask yourself.
The first is what product or service do I want to promote? How can this benefit the customer? Will it solve a problem or fulfill a desire they have expressed before? What does the competition look like in terms of prices, quality, functionality, how are they marketing?
The second thing would be who is my target audience? Who am I trying to reach with this message, product, or service?
What kind of language do they use? How can you create a relationship with them through your messaging that appeals to their lifestyle and values so that when they hear about the services offered by your massage therapy business it resonates on an emotional level as well as seeming logical from a rational standpoint?
Best Ideas For Marketing Your Massage Therapy Business
For any massage business, promotion is important to getting new clients. There are many marketing ideas that can be implemented for your massage therapy business, but we have narrowed down the list to 10 tried and true marketing ideas for your massage business.
These marketing strategies can be implemented using online marketing or at the parlor and you dont need any prior experience!
How To Brand Your Massage Business
Another thing to consider is your massage business brand. Your brand is what differentiates you from your competition. A brand is not just your business name or logo. It is the core values that you exhibit through your business. As a massage entrepreneur, you are your brand. Not only who you are now, but who you strive to be.
Your brand is your promise to you clients. All of your client interactions should reflect your brand. Strive for consistency, genuineness and transparency in your brand. This consistency builds trust, which is a key component of building a thriving business.
When building your massage business brand, consider the following:
- What is the personality of your practice?
- How would you describe your style?
- Whats the tone in your communications with your clients?
Why should clients choose you?
Of course your family and friends think youre special. But why should a client? What is it about what your business that makes you stand out? What makes you different and better than your competition?
Think about it. Most massage chains offer convenient scheduling, low cost, clean and aesthetically appealing treatment rooms, and a consistently good customer experience. Their customers would only switch to your practice if they see that you can offer something better.
You may not like massage chains because they dont pay the therapists well, or for some other reason. But that isnt a big enough concern for most customers to affect their decision on where to go.
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Massage Therapists Automatically Know Whats Wrong With Your Body They Can Diagnose By Feel
- Therapists do have the ability to identify some of your physical concerns however, you will still need to communicate what you feel so they can focus on that.
- Also, if something really hurts, its important to tell them: while they can sense where problems are located, they have no ability to feel the intensity of your discomfort.
Network And Become Active In Your Local Community
Massage therapy is an inherently localized business. Nearly all your clients will come from within a ten mile radius. A massage therapist who is known by more people gets more clients than one who isnt. Networking in your local community goes a long way in putting your name out there. Attend housing association meetings, track meets, high school games, charity events, and the like. Move around and talk to people.
In social situations, What do you do? is bound to come up. I am a massage therapist, is the logical answer. The other person might mention their job and youll spend some time chit chatting about both your professions. You educate the person on the benefits of massages and conclude with a smooth, You should come in for a massage some time. Consider including a friends and family discount to sweeten the deal.
You should also consider setting up a stall or offering massage coupons at an athletic event like a track meet or softball game. Free massages for the winners and discounted ones for the fans. This approach also gives you the benefit of publicity.
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Can Massage Help Cancer Patients
With appropriate precautions, massage therapy can be part of supportive care for cancer patients who would like to try it however, the evidence that it can relieve pain and anxiety is not strong.
- Massage therapy, with or without aromatherapy has been used to attempt to relieve pain, anxiety, and other symptoms in people with cancer. A 2016 evaluation of 19 studies of massage for cancer patients found some evidence that massage might help with pain and anxiety, but the quality of the evidence was very low , and findings were not consistent.
- Clinical practice guidelines for the care of breast cancer patients include massage as one of several approaches that may be helpful for stress reduction, anxiety, depression, fatigue, and quality of life. Clinical practice guidelines for the care of lung cancer patients suggest that massage therapy could be added as part of supportive care in patients whose anxiety or pain is not adequately controlled by usual care.
- Massage therapists may need to modify their usual techniques when working with cancer patients for example, they may have to use less pressure than usual in areas that are sensitive because of cancer or cancer treatments.
Who Are Your Potential Clients
As somebody searching for sports massage marketing ideas, youre obviously well aware that the benefits of sports massage include: reducing muscle tension, swelling, and fatigue, as well as preventing injury, and even preparing for peak performance.
With this knowledge, identify the types of people that could benefit from sports massage therapy.
That includes professional athletes, bodybuilders, and boxers, but the benefits can also apply to a more casual athlete, like regular gym-goers or somebody who enjoys running on their weekend.
You need to decide – who do you want your clients to be?
Its good to start by evaluating the demand in your area, try to find a gap in the market, and research your competitors to see if theres something you have to offer that they dont.
From there, you should create your branding and messaging around your findings. That way, youll be able to properly target an appropriate audience
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Finding A Massage Therapist For Erectile Dysfunction
Although it may be tempting, internet videos for do-it-yourself prostatic massage likely will not be very helpful for your purposes.
If youre working with a urologist, family health practitioner, or sexual health expert already, ask them to help you locate a prostatic massage practitioner.
Some doctors who specialize in ED treatment may have a practitioner on staff or have one they can recommend to you. Some doctors may even perform prostatic massage themselves.
Make sure that the person you select is trained specifically for prostatic massage. A general massage therapist usually is not capable of performing this specialized type of medical treatment.
Much like other types of massage, prostatic massage is designed to massage the tissues in and around your groin, gently but firmly. Depending on your symptoms, you may need more frequent treatments or a longer treatment period.
In a , men underwent a massage treatment three to four times per week for at least 4 weeks. Prostate massage was shown to be effective as a treatment for prostatitis, one physical cause of ED.
Research is still limited on the effectiveness of prostate massage for ED itself.
How To Get Massage Therapist Jobs In Canada
assage Therapy can help you relax, alleviate stress, improve circulation, flush out toxins, and boost your immunity. That means reduced discomfort in your body and more opportunities for a comfortable lifestyle.
Your health will always be taken care of with your love for yourself. Having said that, there has been positive growth in massage therapist jobs in Canada over the past few years. The profession of Registered Massage Therapists is becoming popular with its recognition as an integral part of the health care services for rehabilitation and care.
According to Alis Alberta, employment prospects for Massage Therapists look bright in the future. Massage Therapists’ occupational group is projected to have an above-average annual growth of 3.3 percent from 2019 to 2023. Job opportunities will arise not only due to employee turnover, but approximately 225 new positions are likely to be available each year within this occupational group.
To become a Massage Therapist in Alberta, you need to enroll yourself in a certified Massage Therapy Online Progam to gain meaningful knowledge and skills to enhance your employability. Itâs high in demand profession with a current average salary of $33.61 per hour for Registered Massage Therapists.
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Con: It Can Take Up Your Time
A good massage session takes anywhere from 60 to 90 minutes, sometimes longer! You need to have time in your day to set aside for the appointment. Keep in mind, you canât multitask during a massage. You need to be still and focused for the whole session!
Those who work during the day can schedule an appointment for evening hours, but those tend to be pricier than appointments that are available earlier. Another thing to consider is that youâll often still be charged even if you miss your appointment. If your schedule is a bit all over the place right now, you might need to find an alternate form of stress relief!
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Sports Massage Marketing Ideas
With all the foundation out the way, here are 10 actionable tips & ideas that you can use in your sports massage marketing:
1 Connect with Gyms & Personal Trainers
As a sports massage therapist youre probably only working with athletes or even the more casual weekend warriors. These people can be found day in and day out in gyms in your local area. Feel free to reach out to these gyms to see if they have a massage therapist on staff. Or, see if you can gain permission to set up a table or chair.
Sometimes youll find that you have a hard time connecting with gyms. While they may already have a therapists or spa nearby, its not a complete loss. This is where you may want to take the route of connecting directly with independent personal trainers.
You can create a win-win situation where people working with personal trainers can help achieve their goals by also adding Massage into their program. Talk with the trainers about how you can set up a mutually beneficial referral program.
2 Connect with other Bodyworkers & wellness professionals
Depending on the kind of athlete you may be working with. They might be working with other wellness professionals to achieve their goals. The obvious ones are people like chiropractors, but you may be able to connect with other types of healers, counselors, or even the other massage therapist.
3 Host An Event or Workshop
Pro Tip:Collect contact info from all the attendees so you can follow up with them at a later time.
8 Use Video
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What Are Some Low Cost Marketing Ideas To Build My Massage Practice
This marketing guide has focused on low cost low cost marketing strategies. When people are in the early stages of starting a business, then usually have more time and less money. These resources will reverse as your business grows. So when you are just starting to build your massage practice, you need to get out there. Be face to face with potential clients. The more you can meet new potential clients in your target market and get your hands on them the faster your business will grow.
Optimize Your Business Online
Another no-cost way to market your business online is to utilize search engine optimization so that your clients can easily find your website when searching for massage therapists in your area.
This involves making sure it contains keywords that people would likely use when looking for your type of services.
The easier you make it for your clients to find you online, the more your business will benefit.
Most of the free website platforms help with this, so check out their site builders or call their customer service department if you arent sure where to look.
Make sure you have a verified and optimized , Kane says.
Your business appears in the knowledge panel whenever someone searches for your brand, he adds. Additionally, Google just recently introduced a Book Online call-to-action button that can be applied right to your spas Google My Business listing.
Questions to ask yourself: Is your website and/or blog SEO optimized? Have you verified your Google My Business listing?
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How To Get Repeat Business With A Client Retention Strategy
When you do start building up your clientele, you need to know how to keep clients and earn referrals. Ive grouped keeping clients and getting referrals together in this section because you achieve both of these goals the same way.
Its been said that it is six to seven times more expensive to attract a new customer than it is to keep an existing one. Also, your probability of selling to an existing customer is much greater than selling to a new customer. So it makes sense that a business owner should work as hard to keep a customer as they do to find a new one.
Pro tip: Market to your best clients first.
Your ability to market and promote yourself can get clients in the door. But to get repeat business and referrals from your massage clients, youve got to be the best massage therapist around. This is where your ability to deliver an outstanding massage and client experience really matter.
Your marketing strategy should include your client retention strategy. It is MUCH easier to grow a massage business by encouraging repeat business than it is to continuously have to keep getting new clients.
It is six to seven times more expensive to attract a new customer than it is to keep an existing one.
One way to create a raving fan is to solve their problem. When I was in massage school I naively asked my instructor, Once we fix the clients problem, wont they leave us because they dont need us any more? His response was:
Keep Those Massage Marketing Ideas Coming
Now that you know some of the best ways to market your massage therapy business, its time for you to get out there and start implementing them! As a small business owner, it would be irresponsible for you not be looking into new marketing ideas in order to surprise and delight your current audience.
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Keep Plenty Of Business Cards On Hand
Business cards are a necessary part of any business and an easy way to connect with potential clients. Keep some on hand when youre out and about, and make sure referring medical professionals have plenty to share with patients.
You can design and order business cards from Vistaprint or Office Depot OfficeMax. AMTA members receive discounts at each store.
Establish Your Unique Brand And Target Your Ideal Clientele
When starting a massage business you should prioritize your branding and specific niche to appeal to your ideal clients. Elements of your brand include not only your core wellness services, but also your logo, personality, tone of voice and personal story. Its really important to find your niche and ideal demographic first, and then create your marketing plan. You should take time to learn how to effectively market to your audience in a way that connects their needs with the services you offer, which will help convert them to customers.
Rebecca Bossick, Founder and Specialist Physiotherapist of Physio LDN in London, explains how she built her therapy services and the most effective marketing strategies for doing so.
I knew that in order to build Physio LDN I needed to fully understand my target audience and find my niche. In previous employments, I had specialized in elite sports physiotherapy so it was an obvious choice. I worked closely with an up-and-coming graphic designer to work on a logo that fit my brand identity and ideal client base. I knew I wanted to be a slick, modern brand with a modern take on traditional physio services such as prehab, rehab and massage, she says. The biggest learning curve has been understanding that Physio LDN doesnt need to cater to everyone, its okay to have a niche and stick to what youre best at.
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Send Out A Promotional Offer
When youre starting out, sending out a discount code or a coupon through your email list or social media can establish you in the area and attract clients. You could use a service like Groupon, but make sure you have enough staff to cover the influx of business, or people could end up having a bad experience with your business.
Start smaller with targeted coupons and promotional offers to attract customers at a rate that wont overwhelm you.
Barter To Better Your Content
Dont know the first thing about video editing? Dont have the gift for gab? Dont sweat it! Massage therapy is both a treatment and a treat, so finding someone who will share their videography expertise or writing skills in exchange for a relaxing therapeutic massage shouldnt be too hard.
Most first impressions these days happen online, so its important to put your best foot forward. Bartering is a good way to free up some cash for necessary-yet-worthy investments, like a top-notch website.
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