Part of keeping your practice alive is reaching out to your clients — both current and prospective. Since you’ve got to market to your massage clients anyway, you may as well be effective.

Last week I talked about how sending a message at a time when your clients weren’t in the mind-space to pay attention isn’t as effective as choosing a time your clients are ready to listen to you.

Now I’m going to give you some tips on how to get time on your side.

To kick it off, a refresher on three basics:

1. It is generally understood that clients need to hear about a special or new service at least three times before they “hear” your message. In practice, it’s closer to seven-to-ten times.

2. An acceptable lead time for a small business’s marketing effort (grand openings, new therapist, Christmas) is three months.

3. The rate of positive response goes up considerably if your marketing message is delivered in at least three different forms (postcard, flyer, newsletter, email, phone call, business card, conversation, signage, presentation, word-of-mouth, etc.).

I’m bringing up all of this now especially because … well … I hate to say it … but … Christmas is coming.

Starting your massage gift certificate marketing in October isn’t going to be as effective as starting your campaign in September.

Next week you’ll get a step-by-step sample campaign. Until then, consider this:

Don’t Waste Major Amounts of Time on Minor Things.
This is the second best piece of advice you’re going to read today. There’s something to be said for doing it right the first time. BUT, you do have to strike while the iron is hot.
If you’re going to mail postcards to 500 people, you could spend hours picking and choosing and agonizing. Hey! It’s a postcard already. Pick a good one that you know your clients will like and get on with it. It’s more important that the card gets to your clients with the Right Message at the Right Time.

Test, test, test. And then test some more.
When do you get the best response to your e/mailings? When you know this answer, and you act on it, you get a better response.
Do 80% of your respondents contact you within three days of receiving your postcard? A week?
Do you get better response to your emails sent out on Tuesday morning? Sunday evening?
Do your professional clients respond best to messages they receive during the beginning of the week? How about your retired clients?
Since you’re going to send out e/mailings anyway, test to discover when the e/mailings are the most effective. Take notes. When you launch the big campaign (Christmas) you’re going to get a better return.

Pay Attention to the Calendar.
The calendar is your friend. Pay attention to it. Make it work for you.
Market with it (back to school, long weekends) or market around it (no one does anything week of July 4th).
Calendars can be a source of inspiration for “reasons to celebrate”: full moon, Cara Barton’s birthday, Diwali. St Sebastian is the patron saint of cranky children, you know …
Understand that decisions requiring deep thought rarely get made in August or December. So …
Doing any co-marketing for Christmas, Valentine’s Day, Tax day or Mothers’ Day? Look at your calendar. Then flip back three months (see “basic” #2) and see what kind of time you really have.

Don’t wait for a Great Idea. Good Ideas are just as profitable.
This is the first best piece of advice you’re going to read today.
The most helpful lesson I’ve learned in business is that your customers don’t know what you meant to do. They don’t know what could have been.
I’m telling you as a professional customer: I don’t need sparkles and a mariachi band to influence me to call you. A clear message delivered to me on a Tuesday or a Saturday will do. Thanks.

Next week.
How to apply all of the above to your Christmas gift certificate marketing.

All my best,
Eileen