In her Women in Bodywork Business blog, Ruth Werner reflected on the results of the 2010 AMTA Massage Profession Research report. She began by sharing the primary reasons surveyed clients gave for receiving their last massage:

• Pampering/ just to feel good/ special indulgence              17%
• Relaxation/ stress reduction                                                   32%
• Medical reasons (including injury, spasm, pain relief)      32%

“In an apparent contradiction,” Ruth writes, “on p. 13 the answer to the question, “Where did you get your last massage?” was most often—and by quite a wide margin—in a spa setting.” She concludes that “massage therapists in spas, cruise ships, franchises and salons are daily dealing with clients who are looking for a health care consultant more than a pampering provider.”

What Can MTs Do?

Ruth suggests that clients need more education. You might well ask what massage therapists can do about this. How will clients know they will get as much or more benefit from seeing you at home 5 times a year, say, than they will on that one cruise-to-Bermuda massage? Or if you are that cruise or spa massage therapist, how do you gently educate your clients that they may get much more pain relief from a second, follow-up appointment with you?

Talking and Listening = Marketing

It can be  frustrating. While everyone knows that people are still seeking massage, are they getting the best that bodywork can offer? Folks, this takes us right back to marketing. Or, if you don’t like that word, just call it talking — and listening. Talking to friends, family, clients. Listening to their concerns, and thinking about how can you help them. Talking about what approaches you can offer, what conditions you can you help, what you specialize in.

Whether you call it marketing or talking, it means connecting gently and meaningfully with individuals, giving presentations, and offering simple, to-the-point written materials that answer questions and speak to people’s specific concerns.