Massage Therapist Income - Grab The 80% You May Be Missing!

How is your massage therapist income growing? Are YOU letting 80% of it slip through the cracks because of three simple things that you are NOT doing on a regular basis?

Does it feel like you are stealing from yourself and hurting your massage therapist/client relationship all at the same time?

Here is a phrase you MUST memorize and keep firmly in mind:

The money is in the follow-up!

That little phrase is a direct quote from a self-made multi-millionaire. He bends over backwards to make sure every prospective client and client was followed up with tender loving care.

Yes, I'm sure you've heard this all before.

Let me break this down so you can actually begin to start using this process, as it's vital to making the most massage therapist income with your massage business.

If you're wondering where I got the 80% figure I used in the headline for this blog post, I got it from him. He wasn't speaking to be quoted publicly in a blog when he told me, but I'm sure he won't mind my sharing with you this statistic he shared with me:

"You make, on the average, only 20% of the massage therapist income you could from a client when you perform your first massage".

The remaining 80% of the massage therapist income comes from following up with each client!

Unless you've been living under a rock, I'm sure this is not the first time you've heard information like this!

But most massage marketing experts who speak of this leave it to you to figure out what to do and how to do it.

I'd like to do better than that.

In the old days (like 20 or 30 years ago), follow-up could be very time-consuming.

Handwritten notes and individually typed letters could take up a good portion of your day – or someone else's, if you had help.

Please keep in mind that hand-written messages are still my preferred method of follow-up. Yet, with the Internet expanding at an ever-increasing pace, I'll add another option for follow-up below.

These days, programs like sendoutcards.com and email auto-responders make it much easier to follow up. With a little bit of extra effort, you can personalize automated messages – including the person's name and what massage package they purchased from you.

A well-written auto-responder message can create trust and loyalty, and keep your clients buying again and again.

So what to do and how to do it?

First of all, here's a no-brainer. (And yet, if that's so, there must be a lot of people in business out there with no brains – because a lot of people don't even take this simple step!)

So this first step is, send a thank-you email when somebody purchases a massage from you. Thank your client for their purchase. Tell them what it is they just bought, and remind them of the benefits of massage they will enjoy. And most important, tell them how to contact your massage business if they have a question or a concern.

This point is crucial. You must have a responsive customer service operation (whether that's one person active on the phone or email, or a set of full time employees dedicated to customer service, if you have a larger business). If you don't have it, you are setting yourself up to lose your share of the 80% of the massage therapist income.

The second thing you can do is send a "consumption" email.

A consumption email is fairly straightforward. It contains 4 points:

• Bring up a question on the mind of a lot of your clients
• Give a surprise answer which doesn't fully answer the question...
• Then give the real answer to the question, and...
• Drive home the key benefit you just illustrated.

I'll give you an example.

As a client, if you were to buy the Spring-Time Weeding, Mulching & Mowing Massage package, you would find it is filled with massage modalities and essential oils to suit your needs, paraffin wraps, hot towels, etc., etc.

As the massage therapist, you can chart their posture, work on their lower back, shoulders, arms and hands from all of the gardening that every homeowner goes through at this time of year. You don't have to actually create a new massage technique. Just piece together some of the techniques that you already know and market it toward a specific group of people.

Here's an example of a consumption email you could send out that would go something like this:

Subject: Spring Cleaning Backaches...MASSAGE needed?!?!?

Body of Message: Dear (enter clients name)

How goes the spring time lawn mowing, mulching and garden work? Are you praying for a massage yet?

I suppose you could just stop your vigorous activities to relieve the sore muscles and pain. But is that REALLY going to happen?? We must do what we need to, regardless of how long it takes to complete our spring time chores.

And you know what?

Everyone's back is hurting because of these spring-time activities (including mine). Holy smokes, are my back, hands and arms aching! My girlfriend Angela and I just finished mowing the lawn, cleaning out the spa AND planted a half acre garden! (Well, it's not that big, but it sure feels like it!)

If you are in the same situation as I am (with all the spring yard-work,) give me a call right now!

You DO remember our last massage session, right?

How relaxed you felt, all your sore muscles getting the attention they deserved. (You can add more benefits of your massage session or package here, depending on your target market and what massage modality you are performing. Remember though, be creative in explaining benefits, not features!)

Now, end with your contact information.

You see how that approach to a consumption email is a lot more engaging than simply giving the client instructions for, or a "gentle reminder" about, scheduling another massage with you?

You should have a whole series of consumption emails. People really appreciate it.

Now, the third thing you can do is let your clients know when you have a special offer going on, and give them an even better deal than people who aren't clients. Successful massage therapists do this all the time, and it adds greatly to their massage therapist income.

That means you need to know what your clients want more of. (What type of massage they want, what related products they purchase at your spa, etc., etc.) Talk to them. Survey them. Ask them.

But don't stop there.

Once you know, focus on this massage modality and get more of those popular products!

Then make an attractive offer so your clients feel good about buying from you and your massage business.

Guess what?

A lot of them will!

In summary, here are three ways to capture follow-up business from your clients:

• Send a personalized thank-you message, and include customer service contact information.
• Send "consumption" emails telling your clients how to use what you sold them.
• Find out what your clients want more of... and offer it to them!

Do those three things to get your share of the 80% of the massage therapist income. Wouldn't it be great to start now?

Your client retention and massage therapist income will skyrocket!

That way, instead of April being a painful month due to spring cleaning as well as it being the month taxes are due, it could eventually become known in your business as the month that started the most enjoyable increase in massage therapist income, ever!

Kris