Massage Business Basics

Selling massage gift certificates can help to get you new clients as well as providing a influx of cash especially though holidays like Christmas, Mother’s Day and Father’s Day.

There are some things that you need to know about selling gift certificates that can help you take advantage of the holidays to help build your massage business.

The first thing you need to know about selling gift certificates is that you have to know what the gift certificate laws are in your state from the National State Legislators.   The thing you need to figure out is what expiration date can you have and what happens to the gift certificate when no one claims them.  There are a few state laws that said the GC became the property of the state after a certain time.  That is why you need to keep up on the laws regarding Gift Certificates and Gift Cards.  If you have any questions, be sure to contact your state Attorney General’s office.

After you have figured out your legal obligations, the next thing is to get a GC printed or find a company to buy them from.   ABMP has some free ones available in the members only section. (Not sure about AMTA but they might too.) You will also want to have your GC available for people to purchase online.  You can add them to your own website or use one of the many services to sell them for you.  There are a few companies that will also promote your gift certificates to stores that they are associated with like www.spaboom.com, www.thegiftcardcafe.com and www.spafinder.com.  Be sure to have all of your contact information on your GC and have a space for the recipients name and givers name and the service they are buying.  Have your website address.

You will also need some kind of system to track the sales of GC to make sure people don’t try to use them twice or do something like that. (I have never had a problem.)  You will also need to figure out how to keep your income balanced when you sell a lot of GC at one time like Christmas.  You will be getting quite a bit of money coming in and you will be having to do the massages during the next year which means you won’t get income then.  Putting the GC funds in an account where you can then pay yourself (or employee) when the Gift is actually used can help.  It will also take time away from your schedule later when the gifts are used so you have to take that into consideration.

Some of the other things you will need to do is figure out how to promote and sell gift certificates to your clients.  Here are some ideas:

• Have a display set up in your office in the massage room or lobby.
• Have signs up in other local businesses near you or in health clubs or health food stores.
• Ask clients when they get a massage if they have family members who might like a massage gift certificate.
• Be talking to your current clients about the gift certificates.
• If you can’t have an expiration date on the gift certificate/card, consider using terminology that helps recipients remember to use them like for best results use before July 4 or something like that.
• Try different promotions like buy 2 get 1/2 hour free or something like that.  Be careful with discounts and BYGO offers!  You may be overwhelmed with them in the new year! (if you bill insurance and are offering clients a discount, you have to offer it to the insurance companies too.)
• Create an OFFER on Facebook.
• Set a goal for how many you would like to sell for a specific holiday and work to achieve that.
• Find other health care providers that may be interested in selling your gift certificates offering them a fee to do so.
• Have an affiliate program set up on your website so that others can link to and promote your GC and get paid a referral fee for a sale.
• Use Google Adwords to advertise your business and Gift Certificates
• Use your Google Local or Yahoo Local listing to offer coupons for buying gift certificates
• Make it easy for people to buy and receive the GC.  You can do that through your website or GC service and mail them directly or have them be able to print out a GC on their own to give at the last minute
• Give regular clients a stack of GC to use and give to people when they want and just send them a bill when the GC is redeemed.
• Try selling smaller time frames like the 1/2 hour massage to make it more affordable.
• Give a very special discounted rate to your current clients and set up rules like they discounted gift can be only used by first time clients.
• Sell Gift packages like buy 5 or 10 and get one free or save a significant amount.
• Send letters to doctors offices, lawyers that you work with or other businesses that you work with as they might be interested in buying them for their office.  (I once had an office of lawyers who offered their employees a choice of gifts and I got myself on the list of options.  I also had a few business owners just buy a series for everyone in their office = Big $$$)
• Send letters out to your mailing list or email list to tell them about buying GC and try different offers.  Send more than once! Send until you get the results you want testing various offers. (But don’t make them sick of you!)
• Tell all your regular clients about GC when they come in.  They usually love to refer people to you and will like to give them to their friends as gifts.
• Create a special offer for people but for order for them to get it they have to give you their email address or sign up on your Facebook Fan Page (or something like that.)
• Use Facebook and Twitter to promote Gift Certificates
• Try all of these things again.  That is one of the biggest things with MT  – they think that just because they tried it once and it didn’t get any clients that it won’t work.  Just change the offer or change the wording a little until it does work.
• Create a couples massage class and sell them through gift certificates.
• Run a groupon offer.

Another thing to remember is that many or even most gift certificates are not redeemed leaving you with the cash.  That can be good because you have the cash but it can also be detrimental because you lost the chance of getting a new regular client.  It may also be a problem if the law in your state says that you have to turn the GC over to the state after a certain period of time.   Create a follow up plan to contact the people who got the gift certificates.  You will need to track who is getting them from whom.  Sometimes whoever bought them might ask you if so and so came in and used their gift certificate. You can’t give out that information because of HIPAA and other privacy laws.

Also be careful about contacting the recipient and not letting the person who bought them know that the person did or didn’t come in.   It is important to protect people’s privacy even though they may be the one who bought the gift in the first place.   You will have to decide when and how it is best to contact people.

When the gift certificates start being redeemed make sure you have a system to educate clients and work with them during the session to help them see the results of massage to turn them into a regular massage client.  Your website is one way to do that by writing about what solutions you provide.  Many people do not realize that massage can be helpful for things like carpal tunnel or back pain or injuries.  Have a plan to convert GC clients into regular clients.  Keep track of who is buying the certificates and if you can who will be receiving them so you can call or send reminder cards for them to come in and get their massage.

To set up your website to sell gifts you can just use Paypal.  You will need a business account so that you can create a buy now button.  They take you through the steps of creating the button and you can select custom directions so people can leave their address so that you can mail them out.  If you want to be able to have the printed out directly I recommend that you use www.thegiftcardcafe.com. They are easy to use and implement into your website.  Just sign up and follow the step by step directions.  You only pay when someone orders a GC.

Another idea is to honor other people’s gift certificates especially when/if they are expired because you can convert them into a repeat client. Have a plan to create a repeat client out of every gift certificate redeemer.  There are many ways to do that like getting a new client packet of info together and giving it to them.  You could put articles about massage or your most recent newsletter in it.  You can also buy little gifts like a small aromatherapy oil, soap or even just plain massage lotion.  Follow up every appointment with a call, email or card and recap their session saying what areas you found were tight and what areas still need work.  Talk about what solution you provide.  Tell them what other conditions or diseases you work with.  It also helps to have your intake skills down and ask the right questions so that you can get the client engaged in their massage as well as work with them to show them the results of the massage.  Ask them about pain levels and restrictions of movement.  Show them afterward how things have improved or ask them to show you.

Many people also buy gifts for other people when they really need the massage.  You can do something like add an expiration date on the GC and then say if the person they give it to doesn’t redeem it by then, it will go back to the person who bought it.

Creating Regular Clients from Gift Certificate Sales

After the gift certificate is redeemed, you now also have the opportunity to get a regular client out of the offer.   The way to do that is just the same really as working with any other client.  Start with doing a thorough intake and understand their needs.  Make sure you explain what you do and how it can help them.  Find out if the ever get regular massage so you know what you are working with.  If they have gotten regular massage, ask them if they are now and if they aren’t – why have they stopped.  You can use this information to plan your session and follow up. Work with them during the massage to help them get a new awareness of just how the stress and tightness are affecting them in daily life.

The Downside of Selling Gift Certificates

Personally, I am not pushing Gift Certificates much at all these days.  I have been listed on a large law firms Gift List that got me hundreds of gift certificate sales many years ago.  I have sold gift certificates to owners of small law firms for them to give to all their employees.   I have sold many over the last 30 years but frankly I am done with them.

So often the people buying the gift is really the person who wants the massage.  That means a slew of unhappy people getting a massage when they would rather have the money or something else. So many gift certificates go unused because of that.  Yes, you get to keep the money, but the client never comes in for the massage – I just don’t feel right about that.  I know it is just the way business is done etc, but it just doesn’t sit well with me.  I wait all year for the client to come in and they usually scramble to get in at the last minute before the gift certificate expires and then are frustrated when they can’t.

It is also hard to keep the money paid for the certificates in a separate account so it feels like I am doing a massage for free when they actually come in later.  I know that may seem silly, but that’s just me of course.

I have had so many unhappy people on the massage table through the years also because of people giving the wrong gifts. These people also hardly ever become regular clients which is another reason for wanting to sell gift certificates.

It must just be me .  Bahh humbug me.

 

 

Here are some other articles on selling massage gift certificates:

There are literally tons of opportunities for selling and promoting gift certificates especially for Christmas.  What is your goal?  How will you get there?  What have you done that you have found works?  Share your comments!

(originally posted in 2010 – updated 11/21/2016, updated 11/10/2018)

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Setting your massage fees is one of the most basic things yet the most complicated.  You want to set your fees low enough so that you will get a steady stream of clients but not too high that you are not affordable by most people.  You also want to be able to make a living, pay your bills and stay in business.

Setting fees brings up so many unconscious beliefs and thoughts because of all of the things that we have been taught about money.  Money is the one place in the world where we project all of our beliefs about our self worth and value.  Money is the one thing that everyone in the world has to deal with.

I was talking to a friend of mine who asked me if I knew any cheap massage therapists. She had been going to someone who was charging about $40-$50 an hour. That person apparently went out of business and had to go back into the corporate world to make a living. So was charging less than the national average of $65 a wise thing to do?

Many think that charging less will get them more clients. They start out charging less for their services because they think that they are right out of massage school and not very good so they need to charge less and attract more clients. While they may not be as experienced the value of massage is really relative to each clients perspective and may not have anything to do with how good of a massage therapist you are.

Charging less in the beginning may be a good incentive for people to come in. I recommend that as soon as your schedule is full to start charging more. Yes you may loose clients but the bottom line is that you need to be making enough to support yourself and your family. As you get busier you can be choosier about who you work on taking clients who pay you more.

Some areas of the country where the cost of living is less may have lower fees for massage therapy services.

One of the common things I hear massage therapists say is that they want to make their massage available to everyone so they set their rates really low thinking that is what will happen.  It is scary to charge what you think is a lot especially in the beginning.  Being available to everyone is a nice thought but sorry to say it just doesn’t work that way.   If you are independently wealthy, don’t need to make a living, don’t care about having money for retirement, nice vacations and such things then you probably can charge low fees.  I also realize that just saying low fees is not very exact because everyone has their own idea of low fees.  By low fees I am meaning less than the going rate in your area just for purposes of this article.

Your massage fees will reflect how you value yourself and your time.  It is really the time that you are getting paid for.  The caring that you give is actually Free and just comes with the massage.   Massage therapists can get this confused easily thinking that they should not charge much because the work is so caring.   Your time is what matters.   It is time away from your family and life.   Yes massage isn’t such an awful thing to be doing as far as work goes and being away from your family and rest of your life.  I think the problem often becomes when you think that massage is your life that charging for your time becomes more difficult.

The thing is that there is no right or wrong massage fee.  It is only a matter of figuring out what is right for you right now in this time in your life.  Here are some things to consider when setting your massage fees:

• Call as many other massage therapists as you can or research online what other massage therapists are charging in your area.
• Create a list of all of your business expenses.
• Create a list of all of your personal needs that need to be covered as part of your salary or draw from your business.
• Create a list of your dreams like vacations, travel, houses, cars.  This isn’t about being material.  It is OK to have desires for things.  It is when they become more important than everything else that you get into difficulties.
• Figure out how many clients you need at week at what rate to get what you need to make.

If you are just starting out setting your fees below the average will not necessarily get you the clients that you need.  It has much more to do with than just price.   What people want is the best massage ever.  What people want is a solution to their problem (whatever that really is).

You can create special introductory offers for a limited time to get people in the door to try your massage services.  After that you will need to have an effective follow up in place and also have created trust with your intake and your massage so that people will want to come back in and send in all of their friends.

When I first started out, I took over a practice in a health club from a guy who was charging a ridiculously low rate – something like $35 for an hour and even for 1989, that was unreasonably low.  I immediately raised it to $45 and worked to get new clients.  Each time I got to a place where my schedule was pretty full, I would raise the rates again.  My accountant even advised me not to raise my rates because he thought I would lose too many people.  The thing is that every time I raised my rates, I would lose a few people but I would also get new clients paying the higher rates making my income gradually increase each time!

When you charge more than the average there is also another concept going on.  People will perceive you to be a better massage therapist!

People who are only looking for the cheapest massage are looking for just that.  They may not have ever had a massage that really makes a difference.  you would also be surprised at the number of people who do have a lot of money who look for deals and cheaper services.

I have outlined some things to consider when setting your fees:

• You will only be able to do a certain number of massages a day/week physically, mentally and emotionally. Most massage therapists do about 20 hours of massage a week. Some are able to do more. Since you are only able to do so many massages, you need to charge more to make a decent living.
• What is the value of a massage? What does it mean to people to be able to come in and get relief for their pain or problem? What is the value of providing regular weekly massage to someone and helping them heal their attachment, security and self-esteem issues?  People will only pay you what they think you/massage is worth.  The most difficult challenge in this business is teaching and showing the value of this work.
• What amount do you need to charge so that you do not feel resentful of the massage client? I have heard many stories of massage therapists feeling resentful and yes even to the extent that the person wanted to apply more pressure to the massage client than they could stand. While this is not a usual thing for a massage therapist it may arise when you feel resentful.
• Charge enough so that you are not expecting a tip. Some people will tip, some won’t. Depending on tips for income is not very helpful financially. If someone does tip think of it as a bonus not an essential part of your income.

So how are you going to set your fees?  If you have set your fees already, how did you come to what you are charging?   After reading this it are you re-evaluating what you do charge?

Also after setting your fees there is the next part of setting your cancellation and no show policies AND enforcing them!

Nina McIntosh in her book The The Educated Heart: Professional Boundaries for Massage Therapists, Bodyworkers, and Movement Teachers (LWW In Touch Series) says this about setting fees:

Your rates affect what both clients and colleagues will think of you. If you charge more than the norm, some clients may be put off, while others may think you must be offering something special for the extra charge. If you charge less than the going rate, some clients will be attracted to the bargain but may not value the work as much….

The amount you charge also affects how you feel about your work. Make sure that your fees are fair to you and that they take into account all of your expenses. Charge enough so that you won’t resent your clients. Also, make sure you don’t feel as if you are overcharging. If you are not comfortable with your fees, clients will sense it and feel uncomfortable too.

Resources for getting over issues with money:

The Meaning of Money

Climbing out of the Money Fog

The Caring Business – How to make money and still care

This really could be called: Why Massage Therapists Earn Less.  This is the book that started me on my path of healing my issues around money.  It isn’t about creating a budget – it is about figuring out what you NEED to make to live comfortably and then figure out how to start making this. This book explains our love/hate relationship with money and why many choose to live in what Mikelann Valterra calls “Noble Poverty”.   It changes the motivation to make money to focusing on making more rather than living with a budget which is restrictive and comes from a place of lack.

Karen McCall is Mikelann Valterra’s Mentor and now partner in business, developing proprietary software for tracking money in a way that shows you how your money can really work for you and how to get a better handle on your income and expenses so you have money left at the end.  It is not about budgeting, but about planning and figuring out how to make what you need and end the noble poverty.

The subject of accepting tips as a massage therapist seems to come up often on the many discussion boards and Facebook.

Should you accept tips as a massage therapist?

Some say Yes and some of course say No.  Which is best for you and your business will depend on your own values and needs but it is important to also look at your relationship with money.  Money is always such a hot topic for massage therapists I think mainly because they struggle to make money for the most part.   Money is the one thing that EVERYONE has in common.  It is where we project our own feelings of self worth and acceptance.  The meaning we give money comes from our early lives and watching our early caregivers talk or NOT talk about money.  We project all our meanings onto money when money in fact really means nothing.  It really isn’t worth anything.  It is just a math problem to figure out for your self so that you have money or you don’t.

Tipping in history was a way to show gratitude and ensure future service.   With massage that may or may not apply.  When people are there on vacation, they won’t be coming back.   Tipping is more common in the restaurant industry where servers are often paid less than minimum wage.  Their livelihood depends on their level of service.  Higher end restaurants with higher priced food items will of course make a server more since people tip on the amount of the bill.

Tipping can also be a sign of transference on the clients part.  They feel better because of your work – or so they think.  They want to give you more and they want to please you.  Some may even want preferential service like being able to get in for a massage even though your schedule is full or they may want something like extra time or extra care.   There probably is some transference going on in the process of tipping for every client.  The thing is how you handle your boundaries around your services and let them know that the tip is for saying thank you and not preferential treatment.  You can do that through setting your hours and keeping them , keeping on time with your sessions and staying true to your values.

The case for NO Tipping:

• We are medical professionals.  Doctors and dentists don’t accept tips.
• It makes clients uncomfortable.   They don’t know whether to tip or not or how much to tip and they don’t want you to feel slighted if they don’t tip because they just might not have enough cash or something like that.
• It makes you uncomfortable as the massage therapist.
• You are the owner of the business and charge top dollar for your massage.  (The average rate for a massage is about $64 last I heard.) Charging above that sets you apart from all of the low cost massage places.   Clients should not have to tip on top of higher fees.
• Tips are spiritually degrading. (From one of my Facebook discussions on tipping.)

This argument that we are medical professionals is futile.  Yes, Some massage therapists are medical professionals and many states license massage therapists as medical professionals, but the thing is that we don’t get paid like doctors or dentists.  The insurance companies also pay them and they charge $300 for a 10 minute visit.  Until we are paid that rate, then you can’t really compare massage therapists to doctors or dentists.  I often thing that maybe we should start moving towards a tipping your doctor policy and wonder if they would finally get it.   Some massage therapists are not medically oriented – they are more service oriented and work in a spa or resort.   People who are employed at franchises depend on tips and their jobs pay so low with the idea that they will be paid a fair wage in tips.

Tips don’t have any meaning except for Thank You and Make sure I get that service again in the future.  Money does not have anything to do with spirituality or being a good person.  Money is just a way to take care of yourself and your family.

The case for tipping:

• Tips are the way people who work at franchises, bump up their income to something almost reasonable.
• Tips are just a way the client has of telling you they appreciate your services.
• Massage is a service industry and people like to reward good service.

How to set your own tipping policy:

Whether you want to accept tips is totally up to you and how you want to run your business.

Tipping should never be expected.  If it gets to the point that you do feel resentful if you are not tipped, it may be time to raise your rated in general.

If your work depends on tips, having a clear policy posted in public can help reduce the uncomfortableness of the whole process.  Having envelopes at the front desk or in the massage room or letting clients tip on the credit card, can also ease the situation.

In some ways, the whole tipping issue may be adding to the lack of clarity of our role in the massage profession.  People don’t know when or who to tip and it adds many awkward moments to many massages.  I hope one day that we can be all on the same page and be paid well enough by the insurance companies, employers and charge enough in our private massage practices so that tipping will be forgotten.

Looking at the reasons why tipping makes you uncomfortable, can be a clue to many other beliefs about money.  Start with going through this money autobiography to start taking a deeper look at the things you project onto money or the lack of money.

Should you expect a tip as a massage therapist?

The other part of the tipping discussion is around the many massage therapists who complain on Facebook groups that they were not tipped.  This is a whole other issue.  Expecting a tip could and being disappointed when you don’t get the tip, is often a sign that you are feeling resentful of what you are charging or what you are being paid.  If you are expecting a tip – you are not charging enough or being paid enough.  Raise your rates or ask for a raise.

Tips should not be expected.   Tips are a show of appreciation and may be dependent on the level of service provided or just as an extra thanks or maybe dependent on how much cash they have in their wallet.  Whatever the case, if you are expecting a tip and don’t get it AND let it influence your work, there may be other issues at hand.   Consider finding a supervision group or support