Massage therapy and marketing - an oxymoron?

By Nicolay Kreidler

With few exceptions, the most consistent statement by massage therapists and managers alike is that bodyworkers and sales are like oil and water. Maybe this is unfairly picking on a profession while the other contributors to the health and wellness industry get off scott-free but it seems that sometimes retail revenue flows more commonly to other professions, maybe because clients arrive with better defined intentions to purchase specific products when they receive other services than when they have booked a massage. And granted, massage is for the most part not conducive to a sales pitch with the client face-down, compressed into the cradle.

But aestheticians, cosmetologists, nail-techs, hair stylists and anyone else involved in the business of health, healing and beauty should also consider the following:

Surveys have shown that the majority of spa goers expect to purchase something else other than the service they originally booked and given the opportunity and the appropriate consultation are more likely than not to walk out of the facility with a product or additional services. When they don't, it is likely they were not given the opportunity or appropriate attention. What this translates into is that sales in its many different facets within the health and wellness industry is an area that still can yield substantially more than it currently is doing.

Spas have a certain advantage over single practitioners because of display areas and a front desk "sales force". But is this really the key and need it be so? I beg to differ. The therapist willingly takes on the role of the expert when they perform a treatment and, as we know people tend to listen to experts. A knowledgeable interpretation of the intake consultation, protracted observation during the treatment and the application of appropriate techniques are designed to solve the problems that clients present to us.

Because we qualify and introduce ourselves as experts we are uniquely positioned to extend the benefits of the treatment by offering simple exercises, helpful products, additional services, and even items that help the client in other ways such as relaxation cds, books or meditation supplies. And because we develop and intimate rapport, as therapists or service providers we are more knowledgeable of the clients needs than a receptionist could be.

Think doctor's office. The doctor prescribes medication and behavior modification; maybe a change in diet, and at the end schedules you for a repeat visit to monitor how the treatment is working. Would you ever not follow the doctor's orders (or the homeopath for that matter)? So really what it comes down to is that the majority of "sales" - or should we call them "prescriptive actions" should be conducted or at least initiated by the service provider -whether in a spa setting or in an individual practice. Think: "Ms. Smith I would like to see you in weeks time to continue the treatment and then after that every three to four weeks for a six month period.

Hopefully by now you are reevaluating your ideas of sales a little.

At this point is also a good time to mention that making a sufficient amount of income is very helpful in maintaining a healing practice since without the necessary revenue you soon will not be helping anyone with your skills, and that would be a pity.

Is it really the profession massage therapy that attracts people who are generally opposed to "selling" because they feel like they are "selling out"? I think not. Maybe on some level there is resistance born out of a lack of deeper understanding of what our responsibility towards our clients is, maybe it stems from a supposition that our culture with its consumer craze and the resulting perpetual striving for more is at the core of many diseases. Maybe it is just a lack of interest in education oneself on areas that exceed the arena of technique?

So here let me debunk one of the myths that exist amongst practitioners and even some spa owners. Catering to a client's needs by actually listening to them and then satisfying their requests and helping them improve their health and wellness by making sure they get the most out of their time spent with us is not hurting them, but rather helping them. I think everyone will agree on these simple examples: a 90 minute massage is better than a 60 minute one, taking home some liniment for self-application to that sore area is better than not doing anything at home, and getting a massage once a week will certainly improve the client's overall health as opposed to getting a massage once a year.

When you, as a provider feel a resistance to promoting your services and products, you might want to check yourself to see if maybe you are lacking confidence on some level that what you are doing is valuable. Or notice what feelings and associations come up for you when you are asked to participate in the process of promoting and selling services and products and track them back to their origin to see if it is really well founded.

And to the spa owner I have to say the same thing. Remember why you chose this business in the first place. As you probably have realized by now, it is not a rags to riches business and even making ends meet requires hard work. And here is another pointer: If you approach your practitioners with quotas to suit your financial goals, you are more likely than not to raise resistance. Try approaching it from a client-centric point of view and the revenue you seek will follow. Talk to your providers of developing a holistic approach to extending the benefits of the treatment to peoples homes and making the most out of your services by booking them.

If you're in the business of providing solutions to the problems, needs and desires your clients bring to you, you will understand.

When the philosophical foundation is understood there are a few more factors that we need to address:

Sales training - or the lack thereof.
One of the most interesting phenomena is that the majority of practitioners in the health and wellness industry do not receive in depth sales training during their professional education. I am not only talking about product retail but also about the actual sales of services including re-booking, upgrades, upsells, packages and series. And I have not heard anyone at a professional school ever emphasize that generating business is also the responsibility of the individual practitioner - even in a spa operation with many therapists - do I hear that "why am i not booked today?" and the "how come I don't have any clients today".

Sales training
Sales is an art that is based in communication skills and the ability to pace and lead a client. What it really matters is the ability to empathize and be present with a client, listen actively without judgment and find out what it really is that the client wants the lead them and assist them in a course of action that will help them get what they want.

Scripting
Our brain sometimes needs a little help to develop routines. Scripting processes and dialogs can come in handy. We are not talking about creating empty dialog with client and just rattling off a learned sales pitch but rather creating space and time as well as a set of reminders that will help as a checklist to make sure we do not forget to optimize every client's experience.

As a massage therapist I do not want to go on and on while the client is trying to relax and go into their body. There should be time between treatments to facilitate this. Spa owners, please don't expect this within a 10-minute turnaround between treatments.

Let me sum up some of the factors that restrict sales in a subjective order of influence:

1) Understanding the philosophy of a "prescriptive" approach
2) Becoming skillful in verbal and non-verbal communication
3) Scripting - developing routines that help facilitate the process for every client.

I hope this excursion has provided you with some inspiration. Good luck.

Nicolay Kreidler is a licensed massage therapist and massage instructor at Touching from the Heart and a facilitator at Spa College. He is an active consultant to the spa industry.

You can also reach Nicolay at nicolay@learn-massage,com