Where did I go wrong? Discouraged...

[Jenken]

I am a new LMT and Reflexologist preparing to open my own practice in the next week or 2. Today I set up at a local hair salon that participates in the American Cancer Society Relay for Life. "Get a 10 min. Chair Massage or Reflexology treatment for a $10 donation" In 3 hours I only had 3 takers and 2 of those were hair stylists working there!!! After an hour and a half I changed the sign to "any" donation instead of $10. (I thought maybe the price point was the problem - apparently not!!!)

The owner of the salon said that people around here (very small town) are just very backward. I'm totally discouraged about being able to have a practice.

Any advice?
Thanks.

 

[Kate]

First, thanks for doing the event and putting yourself out there not only for yourself but also for the American Cancer Society Relay for Life. They received $30 more than they would have had you sat at home or did something else.

I'm assuming you passed out your business cards? If not, there's always the next time and you could also drop some off at the salon later on.

How many other massage therapists and/or reflexologists are in your town or area? As a lot of therapists will agree, it takes some time for business to develope - even for a therapist who has been practicing for quite some time and in non-backward locales.

Keep up with it. There are a lot of advice at MassagePlanetL regarding business ideas.

Good luck.

 

[Fusion]

My first thought is that the wording on the signage could have been altered.

"Relax those tired muscles! $10 for 10 minutes
Every cent donated to American Cancer Society"

or something like that.

Also, your area may just need some educating on how awesome massage is. It does take time. You did a good job. Sometimes, on chair massage gigs, no one signs up.

 

[ICEBALLS 2]

This was your first chair event? yes, I'd say you did good, too t023

Sometimes, on chair massage gigs, no one signs up.

I can attest to this first hand, as most of my business is chair massage.

How many people did you ask vs. the 3 that said yes? In business class we learned that one usually has to ask 7 times before getting a "yes".
If you asked less than 21 people, you were doing good!

How good was your signage? (great wording, shiva!)

Did you invite people to your chair or wait for them to read the sign and come to you?

Was there any advanced advertising of the event that included the fact that you would be set up there?

Many people don't carry cash, or only carry what they need. If there wasn't any advance notice that you'd be there, they might not have had the money to make a donation.

Did your training include a business class? If not, I highly recommend the book, Business Mastery by Cherie Sohnen-Moe.
Not only does it give you great tips and forms (also found at http://www.sohnen-moe.com) but it will help you define and set realistic goals for your business.

and, ofcourse ~ we're all here to cheer you on :jumping: !

 

[Busy Mommy PM]

Don't beat yourself up - not everyone is familiar with chair massage and sometimes people just haven't budgeted the money - especially in today's economy.

I liked Shiva's wording too. It's all about hype, or catching their interest. I have done a lot of chair massage and in a small city where we used to live that was cheap. I wanted to get some visibility, so I charged $5.00 for 10 minutes at the Farmer's Market almost every Saturday for months.

I did get some exposure I am not sure (now) that it was worth giving so much massage away. However, in weeks where not much else was coming in, it helped. Very few people converted to full appointments.

However, there are intangibles. It gave me confidence at getting people into the chair quickly and working on a variety of people which stood me in good stead when I got corporate chair massage gigs.

Building a business is hard work and takes dedication. Another site about marketing is Eric Brown's Bodyworkbiz.
http://www.bodyworkbiz.com/index.php He has a number of courses on marketing, some specifically for chair massage.

 

[Pompal 09.]

I've had my chair set up at events many years ago offering "free" massage, just to get people to take a taste........and still no takers. But one of the things I discovered at events where there are lots of people passing through, if there's no one in the chair, I got less interest. I used to make my husband come along as a "shill", and if I had an empty chair, he had to sit in as my "client". People needed to see what it looked like I guess.
savannah

 

[lex_r0x]

I agree with Marion, BodyworkBiz is an excellent resource for online classes. I haven't taken the chair massage class, but have taken 4 other classes. Tons of great information in these classes!!

Also, I agree with the others that for a first event, 3 people isn't horrible. It will get better each time as you get more known. I also agree with Savannah that people are more interested when they see someone in the chair getting a massage. If I do an event with another therapist, and it gets slow, one of us will get in a chair to be worked on so people can see how good it looks. If you are working in a salon, get the stylists in your chair for 5 minutes. It will not only generate more interest, but gets the stylists talking to people about your work.

 

[Camona]

I agree with Savannah, you could try "shill" most people don't want to be the first one to do anything (picture an empty dance floor at a reception). They want to follow the herd and if they see someone else getting a massage, they are more inclined to be like "hey I could go for a massage too." Don't be discouraged, cream always rises to the top! t023

 

[jboi4life83]

Thanks for the encouragement and the great advice everybody, you guys are great!

 

[blood.pixie]

Where did I go wrong? Discouraged...

I am a new LMT and Reflexologist preparing to open my own practice in the next week or 2.

Any advice?
Thanks.

Don't forget to join your state association if you haven't already. They may be planning some ideas for World Reflexology Week coming up in September and that could be a great jump-start for you.

Good luck! Hope to see you over in the Reflexology sections too.