Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/665755
BUSINESS SIDE the session, ask if they'd like to schedule another session with you before they leave. If they can't rebook in the moment, give them a business card with the days and times you work written on it. Hopefully, you were able to go through this exercise in a relatively quick fashion. Don't recycle this magazine—keep it! You should perform a checkup every six months to see if your numbers have changed. But remember: data just sits there unless you use it to act. Take the time to run your calculations, and then refl ect on what they tell you. It's like getting on the scale—it's just a number. How you choose to use that number is up to you. Les Sweeney is ABMP's president. Contact him at les@abmp.com and read his blog Expect More, With Les, on www.abmp.com. Kristin Coverly, kristin@abmp.com, is the manager of professional development at ABMP and creates resources and teaches workshops for therapists across the country. Both are massage therapists with business degrees who care about you and your practice. HOW CAN YOU MAKE MORE? Since the two parts of the net income equation are income and expenses, it makes sense that you increase your profi t margin fi gure by either lowering your expenses, raising your income, or— ideally—doing both. You lower expenses by tracking them carefully and looking for opportunities to cut or reduce each of your line items. Can you save money by ordering products using your ABMP member discounts? Do it. Can you reduce your rent by subleasing your massage room when you're not using it? Do it. How do you increase your income? Step one, of course, is to increase your client numbers and fi ll your schedule by getting new clients, increasing client retention, and increasing clients' session frequency. Next, evaluate your rates. Are they competitive with the other rates in the area? Is it time to raise your rates because of increased years of experience or new modalities? Employees, do you think your earning potential rests solely in the hands of your employer? Not true! There are a number of marketing strategies you can implement as an employee to fi ll your schedule and increase your income. At the top of the list are client retention strategies to encourage clients to rebook with you specifi cally and not just with whichever therapist is available at the time. As you're talking with the client after C h e c k o u t A B M P 's l a t e s t n e w s a n d b l o g p o s t s . Av a i l a b l e a t w w w. a b m p . c o m . 27 Need tips on how to market and grow your practice? ABMP members can visit the ABMP Online Education Center at www.abmp.com/ce to view business webinars, including Kristin Coverly's "Yes, You Can Market Your Practice! Essential Marketing Skills Made Easy" webinar, and earn free CE hours!