Outcall should be cheaper?

[mrs_g2]

It is amazing to me the mindset of ppl who think they should get a discount if they line up friends at their house for massage. I mean, why would a therapist who can do massage at X amount of dollars per massage in the convenience of her shop, be expected to load up her table and supplies, use her gas and her mileage to go to clients for the same or even LESS money! An hour is still an hour of time no matter how many ppl you have! Ugh! I'm tired of them looking at me like I'm greedy for not 'jumping' at their generous offers! Ugh! Vent over...

 

[themr.joeperry]

Outcall should be cheaper?

I agree! lol

I always viewed things this way: in-office (i.e. you come to me) massage therapy is a form of healthcare. Outcall (i.e. I come to you) massage therapy is a luxury.*

Either way, having to pack my massage supplies into my truck, Google map someone's address, then drive there, set up, gather intake paperwork, etc, takes a lot more time than simply having someone come into my office. This means I have to schedule a MUCH larger block of time, during which I can't see other clients. Meanwhile, it's a convenience for them, not having to go anywhere, and thus I didn't feel guilty about charging more. (I charged $70/60 min in-office and $100/60 min outcall.)

Now, when I made an outcall, I encouraged couples to get massage back-to-back, and I'd offer a 10% discount for doing so. I worked out other group discounts for bridal showers and bachelorette parties or girls night in or whatever. Usually that discount was a little deeper, but I always made more per hour than my in-office fee.

As time went on, I was thankful that I had taken the time in the very beginning (before I got busy, and before I got put on the spot, faced with a decision) to go through each scenario (i.e. a housecall to do clothed table massage for a group of ladies, or a 6-hour gig on a Saturday to do chair massage for a family members at a wedding reception, or a back-to-back couple, etc. I figured in distance, traffic congestion, after-hours/weekends/holidays, clothed/unclothed (i.e. did I have to bring sheets?), table or chair, and a bunch of other factors, and I came up with a pricing schedule I was comfortable with. When you're comfortable with your pricing schedule, you get this great "settled" feeling, a feeling like now that that's taken care of, you can move forward on a solid foundation. When you've made your decisions ahead of time, you also radiate a subconscious confidence that others pick up on, and you get a lot less "balking" at prices. Either they pay it or they don't. They'll either accept it without batting an eye, or they'll pass and move on but still respect you and your work.

Just my ramblings

*Of course, things change a little when considering someone with mobility issues, handicaps, etc.

 

[Hop]

Outcall should be cheaper?

I DO discount for a client that I do outcalls for... *BUT* guess what? She's a massage therapist who has her own table, sheets, music, etc all prepared for me. All I do is show up with my hands and a little jar of cream and off we go!

Maybe if someone starts taking a little attitude about outcall pricing, you could suggest that they invest in all the things that you have to haul around with you .

 

[imsoeffinhxc]

Outcall should be cheaper?

I DO discount for a client that I do outcalls for... *BUT* guess what? She's a massage therapist who has her own table, sheets, music, etc all prepared for me. All I do is show up with my hands and a little jar of cream and off we go!

Maybe if someone starts taking a little attitude about outcall pricing, you could suggest that they invest in all the things that you have to haul around with you .

For most situations, though, this would still not compensate for the time spent that could have gone to another client (or two).

We don't do outcalls. Hubby started out doing solely outcalls, and when we rented that little room for him, he nearly wept in gratitude that we'd reached that seforum.xxxe. He's not being lazy in not wanting to cart his table and stuff all over; he just has lots of "issues in the tissues" himself, and it was causing him much grief. It's not good for the therapist to be fighting muscle spasms when about to go into a session! :shock:

 

[BabeHart]

Outcall should be cheaper?

I'm really more upset at myself. I have a client who schedules with me once every 3 months and I agreed on an outcall at a very low rate anyway, and then I got paid even less because she paid what she was used to paying in office which means I went to her house at no extra charge for my gas or time. I learned my lesson...

And I guess what really gets me is after years of turning down outcalls due to things like this, I went against my better judgement and did it anyway.

 

[heyyah123]

Outcall should be cheaper?

Outcalls are about convenience, not luxury.

As a basic rule of economics, convenience carries a premium. You can buy milk at 7-11-- very convenient -- vs. the supermarket. The price difference has nothing to do with luxury.

What your potential clients have figured out, which many MTs touch on, is that lining up a day of clients at THEIR location, might actually be more convenient and more profitable for you, hence their push for a discount.

The economy is rife with examples where bulk purchase and advance bookings of perishable commodities -- hotels, airline seats, MTs time -- command discounts.

If you can fill your book at your place, you have no incentive to discount outcalls. But if someone can deliver 5 - 6 appts, well in advance, then you might find it worth the discount, much like booking a series of 10 gets you 2 free...

 

[so.moon]

Outcall should be cheaper?

It is amazing to me the mindset of ppl who think they should get a discount if they line up friends at their house for massage. I mean, why would a therapist who can do massage at X amount of dollars per massage in the convenience of her shop, be expected to load up her table and supplies, use her gas and her mileage to go to clients for the same or even LESS money! An hour is still an hour of time no matter how many ppl you have! Ugh! I'm tired of them looking at me like I'm greedy for not 'jumping' at their generous offers! Ugh! Vent over...

My coworker had this happen this week. She had agreed to do chairs at a couples seminar. When she told the organizer her price, the organizer wanted to bargain over it. She was going to charge $10 per chair massage, (lasting 10-15 mins each) and if couples wanted them, she would give them each one for $15 for both. The organizer wanted her to charge $5 for a 15 min. chair! There were a couple hundred people there both days, my coworker wanted to be nice but she asked me what I thought and I told her she shouldn't lower the charge to $5. She didn't.

 

[lolly]

Outcall should be cheaper?

I completely agree. There is a convenience fee. I have a mobile massage business. I charge $80/hr in my private practice and I charge $95/hr for an outcall. This is actually a very fair rate. However, there is something to be said about volume. If you can get several hours at once I may be inclinced to do it for the price of an incall. But an outcall should never be cheaper than an incall.