Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/121374
The 2013 ABMP National Consumer Survey includes feedback from 610 adults about their habits and opinions regarding massage therapy. Here's a summary of the survey results mentioned in this column: 16% received massage in 2012 21% received massage in the past, but not in 2012 21% are open to receiving massage, but haven't yet 42% are not interested in receiving massage 60% prefer to pay for their session with a debit/credit card 67% of those who received massage in 2012 suggested LS: Right. You can't expect clients to change their behavior or lifestyle just for their massage. We live in a pluggedin, on-the-go, eat-in-the-car society. Not all of this is good, and massage can be an antidote to this "never off" lifestyle. We also need to recognize that for our clients, their massage might be an oasis, but it lives right next to soccer practice, dry cleaning, music lessons, rush-hour traffic, and the office. Clients plug you in just like they do email, calls to parents, exercising, etc. Being accessible and convenient are important elements to developing regular client visits. massage to a friend or family member 10% book using an electronic method 28% prefer to book using an electronic method 52% trust a Facebook friend's referral Statistics courtesy of Harstad Strategic Research, January 2013 LS: You're right. That means that there probably are about 130 million potential clients in the country. The challenge for therapists is to determine out of every five people you meet, which three are the ones interested in getting massage? KC: Therapists are often discouraged and think it's impossible to find new clients. If three out of five people are interested in massage and only one of five received a session in 2012, the potential clients are out there! We just need to reach them with focused marketing strategies. LS: One thing that's helpful in the consumer survey is understanding the behaviors of current massage consumers. Here's a neat stat—60 percent of respondents prefer to pay for their session by either debit card (44 percent) or credit card (16 percent). KC: That sounds right to me; I'm surprised it's not higher! I don't pay for much with cash or check anymore unless I have to. I think this is an important one, though, because we need to continue to evolve the way we use technology to meet our clients' needs. It's so easy to use a credit card reader with a smartphone these days. If the majority of clients prefer to pay with plastic, we need to give them that option. 28 massage & bodywork may/june 2013 KC: My turn. Did you know that twothirds of 2012 massage clients suggested massage to a friend or family member? LS: My take? Disappointing. I want 100 percent! Shouldn't everyone feel good enough about massage to suggest it to a loved one, or even a coworker? This is an area where our colleagues need to step up and take some initiative. You've probably seen the sign in a restaurant or other service business that goes like this: If you like our service, tell others. If you don't, tell us. Massage therapists need to live this with every client, every session, every day. Time to put on our big-girl and big-boy pants. KC: If I could wave a magic wand right now, I would give each massage therapist a stack of personalized thank-you cards to hand out to their clients—cards that the client could give a friend for $5 off a massage or an extra 10 minutes in a session, or some other small benefit. Then, I would track those cards and reward the clients that did the best selling for me. It goes back to the statistic about who is open to massage—will I