There have been many psychiatrists and family counselors on the Talking Head Circuit of news and talk shows lately. They are all discussing the economy and its effects on us and our families.

One of them brought up an interesting point: Even people who aren’t directly affected are exhibiting signs of anxiety.

Well that got my attention so I did a little surfing. Here’s a selective list of physical signs of anxiety and depression.

Restless
Lack of focus
Edgy
No interest
No energy
Can’t sleep
Can’t make decisions
Make mountains out of molehills

A lot of marketing is about showing people how your service is necessary. These are all words/phrases you can use as you market your massage / bodywork practice. The nice thing is (if “nice” can be said here) that you can use these phrases without ever once mentioning (DUM dum dum duuuum) “The Economy”.

How you use these depends, of course, on what your marketing plan is and who you are trying to attract. For most of the phrases, the potential “hooks” are obvious:

Go from restless to restful
Bring your day/week/life into focus
Smooth out the rough edges
Stop living on the edge
The best/easiest decision you can make this week
Turn your mountains into molehills in under an hour

Welcome to my 30 second brainstorm.

If you plan to run ads in newspapers (paper or online) make sure you get placed in sections appropriate to your targeted audience.

And while I’m thinking about it, if you do run media ads, take a look at specific, local journals (if you haven’t already). Most areas have some sort of business journal. Out here we have a popular, locally owned pet supply store and a farm supply store that each have their own newsletters. If those aren’t targeted audiences, I don’t know what is.

And obviously these would work in a postcard mailing or letter, too.

As you compose your client communications, focus on the solutions your work will provide.

Keep your heads up, folks. You really can help your community.

All my best,
Eileen