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Hi Michele!

Here are my thoughts, once again. Let me preface my comments with, "This is what has worked for me."

I notice at times, with myself and others, we make sweeping statements, and we just shouldn't do that ;) So, this is what's worked for me and others I know.

You comment: "I heard Massage Envy has these memberships but trying to compete with that doesn't seem to be a very good idea to me."

Again, it depends on how you do it. Have you visited a ME (Massage Envy) location and spoke with them? I've found that they have some great idea's, yet, I can still improve on them! Get the scoop on what they're doing, get their contract, look at how you can create something similiar with even more benefits, then promote your strenghs towards their weaknesses.

Here are a couple ideas: Don't make people sign for an entire year. (This makes people feel at ease, just ensure you deliver so they don't cancel.) Do you offer a 60 minute massage? Put that against the usual 50 minute massage. Find other benefits that You offer as opposed to ME.

As an outcall therapist, I have a list named, "The Dirty Dozen." In this are 12 huge benefits that clients receive from me over having to visit a Spa (or whatever.) Works like a charm! Even you (or anyone else reading this) can find a ton of benefits of yours in comparison to your competitors, even if you work in a Spa or someone else. It just takes a bit of time and work. Find out what the competition is doing, then raise your own bar on benefits! (Do you notice how I've yet to say, "Lower your prices?")

As to your second paragraph, I have a tough time commenting on it due to the fact that I don't know your current demographics, how many clients you are looking to attract, what your rates are, etc., etc. But, here's an idea: Try it! Whatever you want to do, just do it! One tip though: Don't get tooooo generous. If your plan doesn't work that well, figure out why, and if you need to offer more, then you can do it. It's always easier to do this than to give away everything, have tons of clients yet make no money, then, have to raise your rates or cut perks. People hate that, get ticked off, you'll lose all your new clients and their referrals, and, worse of all, you may get a bad reputation ;) (Once again, it's all in how you do it. I'm all for raising rates ;))

One thing I noticed as well when writing this: There are several forms of 'memberships.' I have monthly memberships and huge savings memberships on an annual basis. The key (to my memberships) is that the more clients pay up front and the longer the term, the more 'savings' they receive. Folks paying $65 per month won't receive nearly as much of a cost savings as clients who pay for an entire year up front.

I know I'm on a rant, but here's the biggest most important point I can make:

It's what you are doing and how you are doing it that counts!

What do you mean by this, Kris?

Here's how I see it...

I've learned to look at the bigger picture more than short term gains. I have a plan in place, a process, not just a proccedure. For me, the actual massage session is just 10%, just the proceedure. It's also a small amount of money.

What am I really looking for? Information!

90% of the money made is on the back end. Re-bookings, referrals, etc., etc.

To begin with, your client in-take form. Ensure you obtain clients mailing address, e-mail and phone number. You MUST be able to contact them again. Also, we need to have a process in place to obtain referrals. (That's another entire post and I'll leave it alone for now.)

Can you see where I'm going with this? The more information we collect, the further we can market to these folks. So, what does this mean?

I'm not nearly as concerned with what price I charge for a first time client, or running 'low priced specials' to attract new clients. Obviously I'm not going crazy giving away massages, but even so, the same rule applies. I'm ensuring I get their contact information, get referrals to increase their lifetime value as a client. I'm all about building professional relationships with clients, not having tons of new 'one time' clients.

If someone is doing free 5 min or 15 min chair massages at some location, what are we really looking to do? Collect information! Prior to any massage, ensure we have contact information! This leads us into the larger picture of getting the client scheduled again, referrals, etc., etc.

Do I give away massage sessions? Sure, on a weekly basis!

What, Kris? But you just said above......!

Here's the deal: I have several clients who receive massage, free, on a weekly basis. Why? First, they are long term clients who have been with me for years. Second, they have referred me so many of their friends, family, associates that they've earned it. Their lifetime value as a client is huge! If one clients provides me with several referrals every week or every month, they are getting free massages.

How does that sound? Answer any of your questions?

Hopefully I did!

Kris

That's great information Kris.

I'm only calling it a "Yearly Membership" because I would be offering 12 massages, one for each month. And they expire by the end of the year. If they want to buy more, they can. They can use all 12 in one month if they want to. Why wouldn't you have someone sign on for the year? Could you explain more on that?

I wasn't really saying we shouldn't "borrow" ideas from ME. They have some good ideas to use. I guess what I mean is trying to beat their prices or something like that. I'm sure it still doesn't make sense. I'm having a hard time explaining it on here. Makes sense in my head though. ;)