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Massage Therapy Marketing Your Business

Like most professions, if you're a massage therapist, a lot of your business comes from word-of-mouth and referrals from customers. A lot of this type of "advertisement" happens naturally. If you give customers great massages, they'll want to tell all of their friends to come to you.

“Let's face it, if marketing was easy we would all be flooded with clients. But with these tips you can get more success for your marketing efforts.” (about me)

If you want to market yourself, however, you'll need to work a little harder to become well known in your community. Here are some tried and true techniques for bringing clients to your door. And you can share your own techniques below.

Be a Show Off

You've got a great skill, but nothing communicates that better than a demonstration. So get yourself in front of a group, any group, and show them your techniques. Start by explaining what a typical massage session is like then briefly demonstrate your techniques on a volunteer.

If you do this someplace like a health club with a massage room available, offer to do short sample massages. If you have a chair, chair massage is a easy way to demonstrate to the receiver but also all the spectators.

Getting in front of a group like this won't guarantee you new clients but it is amazing how just one new contact can open a flood gate of activity for your business. You never know what is going to work so put it out of your head and be a good ambassador for massage.

You might also do lectures and demonstrations at churches, corporations or social groups. Some examples of this might be the Rotary club, local women's groups, or Toastmasters, for example. These groups usually welcome speakers from outside their circle. It's a bonus if one of their members recommends you as well. And remember you are the expert! Even if you don't feel like a massage expert, chances are that you know a lot more than anybody else in the room.

Give Away Freebies for New Clients

One way to drum up business for yourself is to offer free introductory massages for certain individuals, especially those you want to cultivate as a contact. Great examples are doctors, community leaders or just anybody in the community that you respect. Once they believe in what you do, they can be an excellent referral source. Whether they're already friends or you want to introduce yourself specifically to try to establish them as referral source, offering a complementary massage to your contact is a great way to garner new business. It is a lot easier for them to refer work to you if they have experienced the quality of your service first hand.

And when you do get a new client through a referral, offer a free massage to the person who is helping your business grow. Everybody loves to be rewarded.

Join Local Business Organizations
like the Chamber of Commerce

Use Chair Massage to Attract Attention

If you go out to people's places of business and offer free or nominal-fee brief massages, this is an excellent way to promote your business. One way to do so is to go to a shopping mall or to set up on the side of a sporting event and give massages at the end of it. Offer brief chair massages on volunteers. Have a tip jar nearby or ask for a small donation to your favorite charity. Always make sure you give away a business card to anybody who even looks your way. Some people may not be bold enough to come forward and get a massage but they may call you back days later.

What is your Best Massage Marketing Tip?

How do you get massage clients? Share what works with others by submitting a comment below.

See what other massage therapists are saying about their best marketing strategies. You can read each tip, rate them and submit your own comments.

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