Bridal Shower outcall

[Darksoul]

Has anyone done one of these, and what do you charge? I have a possible bridal shower coming up (possible because I have not heard from them after I gave them a quote). They don't know how many massages will be needed... they're expecting 20 guests, but not everyone will want a massage. They want me to be at the party from 11-3.

I quoted them for the time (11-3). 4 hours x my hourly rate, plus the outcall fee.

Any thoughts?

 

[Hockey Girl]

I did this once when I was in school. 2 friends and I charged $30 per person, and we each gave 3 or 4 massages. Everyone who was at the shower had a massage. It was really fun, I'd like to do more of those!! Now that I'm registered, I would charge my normal rate per person.

 

[RockIt]

I've found that the "plus outcall fee" just gets too confusing when there are more than a couple of people.
For example, if your outcall fee is $20 and 11 people are getting a massage, each person is meant to pay how much? One of them got an hour massage one got a 15min massage and the others were a mix of 30min and 45min - do you still plit the outcall fee evenly or pro-rata between lengths of session? Way too confusing for me to figure out on the day since they say 14 people and only 11 end up getting a treatment. ANd who do you approach about the outcall fee? Gets confusing....

So I just put the outcall fee on the hourly rate, say your hourly rate is $60 with $20 outcall fee, for parties, it's $80, no outcall fee. Don't forget you've taking a lot of extra linen, particularly for the 15-20min ones - it's still the same set-up time for each 15-20min session as a one hour massage - that's 2 or 3 extra setups you need to factor in somewhere, having the extra cushioning of the outcall fee factored in to each hour means you don't have to worry about it.

If you get 6 hours work out of it and feel you're doing a bit too well with the outcall fee inflated hourly rate, give the organiser a free massage or half price or something - I'll usually do half price once they go over a 4hr quote, free once they go over an 8hr quote, but I don't promote that, they agree to the full priced quote and get a nice surprise on the day. If they turn into a complete bunch of pains where they take 20min each to get on the table once I've asked to come in, or they've not filled out the intake form before I am ready for them, etc, I don't make the offer, but I don't feel too upset since I know I've got the bit extra factored into the rate. And after 2 party guests like that, I will make an announcement so the rest get a bit better organised.

Or if one person is paying for you to be there, they usually organise everyone. It's just if the individuals are paying for a 15-20min massage, they expect 15-20 on the table, because it you include get on the table and get off in the 15min, they're only on for 5min and feel shortchanged, so you can't say "your time starts now" and then they finish their conversation, go to the bathroom and you have started the next person because their time is up.....

 

[Mr. Systemic Autistic]

Is this chair or table work? Personally, I would prefer to do chair massage at an event like this. Is the person hosting the shower paying for your services, or are the guests paying per massage?

I would have charged the same way you quoted, with an hourly rate plus my
"travel fee". If you don't want to deal with that term, you could just quote something like "$90 for the first hour, and $60 for each additional hour."

I hope you get the gig!

 

[jony]

I agree with charging for the amount of time you spend there, plus any travel fees you’d like to add. This makes things a lot simpler, and you are guaranteed compensation. After all, those of us who charge by the hour only have so much time in a day to sell.

I haven’t yet done a bridal shower or anything, I was once contacted by an administrator of a high school who wanted a therapist to come do chair massage for a teacher’s meeting/party/luncheon thing. They wanted the therapist to be available all day so that teachers could just come and go as they could. The coordinator thought these ppl would schedule appts by writing themselves in on a signup sheet and then paying me directly at the time of service.

I politely educated her (she was obviously ignorant to how the average therapist dealt with these types of arrangements) that my usual hourly fee was x, and that was applicable to all of the time I spent there. I don’t think she expected that. I think she was figuring that I’d be paid what ppl paid me and that I would just hang out for free in between! t015 :roll:

I'm not totally sure on wedding etiquette yet, but in most bridal cases, there is a maid or matron of honor that is supposed to organize all the festivities, including the bridal shower. In this case, I would have her put the feelers out to her own attendees to get a feel for the level of interest in chair massage and length of session and then she would have a better idea of how much demand there is and how long to have you there for. She might also collect the money from interested people (if they’re paying for their own). She would just pay you that day, just like any other gig.

Good luck, I hope you get the gig! t035
Blessings,
~Jyoti

 

[Linkin Park is my Heart]

I charge a flat standard outcall rate, $110 first hour, $90 each additional hour. I make it clear when booking that I will be receiving payment form the host and if gests are contributing then it is the host's responsibility to collect in advance from the guests, if need be. I've seen some unfortunate problems posted on the board regarding payment, but for me this has never been a problem, likely because most of my business is word-of-mouth referral.

At gatherings of more than four persons present, chair is better than table, though I did a large event where the host requested I bring both, so guests could choose. About half preferred to kick off their shoes and lie on top of a sheet and under a blanket for a short clothed shoulder/back and/or foot massage. Generally, though, there's just too much going on for folks to disrobe and fully relax on the table like they would at your office, and chair is just generally better to keep the flow of the party moving.

It's well worth your time to ask questions to find out exactly what kind of event it is, what other activities are planned, if alcohol is to be served, if the host knows how many of the guests get massage, how many are expected (men? women? both?), what the order of events are so you can plan the best time to arrive and departur, etc.. Tailor your services and offer suggestions that compliment the host's plans. Check back a day or two before the event to confirm and see if anything needs adjusting. Every host wants to guests rave about what a great time they had; you want them to also tell the host how clever they were to think of having you there! t058

 

[Vicki]

brilliant. thank you everyone... i got the gig (not necessarily something i wanted, but i got it). it is a referral from a client i adore. however, it's quickly become a nightmare (this is why i don't do parties!).

mrskitten... where in texas are you?

thanks again everyone!

 

[littleash]

What went wrong karmassage?

 

[Noe H]

"Karmassage"...I love it! t007

My home and office are both in the Las Colinas part of Irving, basically serving the greater Metro area.

My husband and I simply adore Austin (wistful sigh).