What do thank you notes do for your massage marketing? How should you write one, anyway? Cindy O. Asks Eileen.

“I have a question about Thank You cards. I am trying to build my new massage practice and I would like to send Thank You cards to my new clients, but don’t know how to word it.
Thank you so much,
Cindy”

I love thank you cards. Cards, postcards, notes, whatever. They are a great way to show clients your dedication to their health and willingness to go the extra mile.

They also may be the only handwritten note your client gets all month. Don’t tell me there isn’t a good vibe pay-off there.

A simple formula to follow:

“Something Your Massage Clients Want to Hear: Thank you, thank you, thank you” continues »

“Lib” from the UK asked a good question on the Ask Eileen page:

“Hi Eileen,
In the UK, schools run pamper nights to bring the ladies in and make money for the school. The night consists of [a] retail stall as well as a range massage therapy: massage, reflexology, etc.
Having done this occasionally, the question is, why don’t we get business from the night? (I’ve tried special vouchers.) Any ideas?”

Well, Lib, without knowing any details, my first thoughts are: 1) The ladies coming to your pamper nights don’t understand the value of what you are offer and 2) whatever you’re doing for follow-up contact isn’t teaching them the value of what your school/students offer.

“Make Spa Nights Pay off: Why Make Massage Marketing Efforts if You Don’t Get Clients?” continues »

I got a really good question on the Ask Eileen page today. Brenda is a new therapist and needs your input. She’s moving to a new town and gets to decide between two opportunities.

Here’s what Brenda has to say:

I have been a massage therapist in KY for about 8 months and have a good job at a Day Spa here. I am moving to another city and just went to 2 interviews at the different Aveda salon and spas. My questions follow:

1. It’s a smaller business which is established in their hair and nail offered me the better commission. The only con at this place is that they have never had massage therapist before so they are planning to put a massage room at the basement in a small corner and no warranty how many massages I would get per week. They said tipping is usually good but no hourly pay.

“Chosing Where to Work in a New Town: Brenda asks Eileen” continues »

Joel from Bodywork Dynamics in the UK sent in a series of questions to the Ask Eileen page. If you’d like to read Joel’s entire entry, scroll to the bottom of Ask Eileen and see where Joel has been and where he is going.

Folks, Joel is asking for your input, so belly up to the comment box and give the fellow your thoughts.

Defining Your Niche
“So I started [building] my own site (just one of the skills I’ve picked up) and hit my first wall because I would like to do so much; how do I define my niche? I am qualified to teach yoga, martial arts, tai chi and shiatsu.”

“Joel Asks You … and Eileen: A new guy builds a website” continues »

Beth King is a massage therapist in rural-ish Missouri. She is also an entertaining massage marketing question-asker. Here’s part of an email she sent recently:

… howdaheck do I phrase a letter — “HiYa Doc, lemme tell you how wonderful I am!” just doesn’t sound like it would get the results I want.  Though laughter is good for you, they say!”

People struggle with phrasing letters. It’s dicey. You want to show your personality yet be clearly professional.

When you write an introductory letter to a member of the medical profession, you are often asking for a favor — for their time, for their support, for their faith in you.

“Introducing Yourself to Medical and Wellness Practices: A Review of Business Mastery Supplemental Software” continues »

I got a question this week on the Ask Eileen page from a long-time reader/commentor, Fran D.

Fran is an energetic and forward-thinking person. Over the last two years she has been in transition. Surgery slowed her practice down, then she was working hard to find a place where she could run her practice her way. Last I heard from Fran she found a spot close to home and seemed excited about the future.

I bet most of you are, have been, or will be where Fran is right now. Here is her question. If you have any insight for her, please leave a comment.:

“How do you know when to step back?

I feel like I am drowning sometimes with constantly trying to get my weekly book filled. I always manage to average the same amount of appointments per month which cover expenses with little else left.

““I feel like I’m drowning …”: Overwhelmed with marketing your massage practice” continues »

This week I got a serious request for some input on the “Ask Eileen” page. It reads:

“I have just recently moved from Chicago to Cape Cod, MA, and accepted a job at a spa/gym. The space and business is new to the owners of the spa. They have two other locations on the cape. I have been hired to be the massage therapist/marketing person.

We have tried numerous marketing ideas. Some examples:
Spring stimulus package for $99.00 (includes-hair cut,facial, massage),
Beauty bucks-$20.00 off a purchase of $80.00 or more,
Referral program for the trainers- refer 2 people get half-off a service.
We have even attended a ladies community night in which over 500 women get together at a local venue, to see the local businesses and what services they have to offer. Not one has called or come by.

““I Do Not Want to Give up”: A massage therapist takes a marketing leap” continues »

I had a great question posted on the “Ask Eileen” page:

Dear Eileen, I keep seeing ads for the MMMEasy [Massage Marketing Made Easy] kit from Karen Dimmick. I can’t find anyone on the various professional groups I’m on who have used this kit; most say it sounds like a scam. I’ve noticed that she comments on your blog; do you know Karen, and either way do you have an opinion of the product?

I’ve about 70% convinced myself to try it, but any input you have would be helpful. (Schools should have a few hours on marketing, don’cha think?)

Thanks,
Beth

“Thinking about Hiring a Massage Marketing Expert?: You have questions, yes you do” continues »

I got a great question on website development from “Beatrix” last week:

“Hi Eileen,
I want to develop a website. Could you recommend a company specializing in websites for massage therapists or one that would provide assistance in developing a site? Thank you.”

There are more web developers in the Puget Sound area than there are baristas. Which is somewhere around 90 gazillion billion.

“Looking for a Web Designer: Check for smarts, talent and communication skills” continues »

Hi Eileen -

Here’s a little info about the process I used when putting together a successful press release a few months ago. Feel free to share it with your readers.

The Finished Press Release:
Though I don’t have the edited version handy, here’s a link to the version I sent to the press [The link is to a pdf file that needs Acrobat Reader to display it. It's "safe" to download. If you don't have Acrobat Reader, you can download it for free. —ER].

The edited version had no pictures and the quotations were replaced by shortened factual statements or eliminated altogether. Overall text length was about 1/2-2/3 of what I sent out.

Choosing Relevant (and Likely) Publication(s)
I chose local publications that are distributed in our city ““Making the Piece Fit the Paper”: An in-depth look at writing a good press release” continues »