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marketing for a male massage therapist

I need help. I need ideas to help market myself in the salon I work in. I have been there for 3 weeks and have done 3 massages. I have passed out business cards, worked at charity events, free chair massages, posted on line. I am going to start hanging up flyers around places, but I do not know what else to do. thank you for any advice.

David

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Frank J on July 19, 2011 at 2:06pm

I had that same problem when I worked in a spa. A guy told me to tell the clients that I did hair too.

Permalink Reply by Hannah Levy on July 19, 2011 at 3:35pm

Hi David,

I just wanted to check in to see how the last few weeks have been going with these new marketing strategies?

I use to work at a salon and found that the massage therapists were most successful when they gave the stylist's clients hand massages while their hair color was processing or before the appointment if the stylist was running behind schedule. This allows them to feel your technique and touch. Also the client might bring up any other issues over the course of the hand massage and you might be able to educate them on how a session with you would alleviate those issues.

Additionally, some of the busy stylists would have the massage therapist help out by giving their client a head/scalp massage when the client was at the shampoo bowl. Once the clients feel your touch and your scalp massage techniques, that might be enough to sell them on you being their massage therapist.

Good luck!

Permalink Reply by Stephanie Keffer on July 19, 2011 at 10:23pm

Hi David,

I had a hard time working in a spa and as a male I'm sure it's even tougher. I'm just going to ramble some advice to you and it's up to you if you want to use it or any other therapists.

For a website I use godaddy.com if you get the Website tonight package it's $8.99 a month for 10 pages and it is formatted you just plug in your info and go. My domain I got on "sale" for $3.99 for the year then when I kept it for this year it was $19.99. I have a dot US because the dot COM was taken :(

Join a networking group but don't waste your time on BNI too expensive. Networking has done wonders for me.

Your in Kalamazoo. So hit up the student athletes at Western and any other colleges in the area. Even find some studios that do Zumba and see if you can post flyers there.

I agree with the hitting up the females for their significant others to come in. Though some of us women prefer men therapists too so don't discount us.

Also Facebook fan page is free and beneficial.

Try referral credit. You refer me 5 people and you can get a free massage. This works well for me. Also I do a semi annual sale. In July they can get 6 massages for the price of four then I repeat the same in December. I did $4,000 worth of sales in December alone and last year was my first year in business for myself.

One thing I learned too is to take what others do in business and try and fit it into the massage world.

I wish you luck David.

Permalink Reply by David on August 13, 2011 at 12:23am

I would like to say thank you to everyone for their suggestion. The Salon owner fired me after 7 weeks of being there. She said I was not progressing fast enough and not making her enough money. Although I was getting 1 new client every 2 weeks with repeat business. O'well I was still losing more money driving the 20 minutes there and back and back every day. I was getting so sick of the whole hair salon atmosphere ( please no offense to anyone ) I had to sit in the middle of the salon all day and listen to it. Then I was answering the phone, greeting customers, cleaning pedicure tubs, doing the shop laundry, and sweeping the floors for free. No one ever tipped me out. I am going back to my first career. I was in the food industry for 19 years, and I am ready to go back. I will continue to do massage half time out of my house, but I don't think its going to be my career again for awhile.

Permalink Reply by Daniel Cohen on August 13, 2011 at 5:19am

You gave it a shot. Lessons learned and perhaps that will open up future opportunities. I was in the Food Industry for 32 years. The last 11 I did massage evenings and weekends. Now I am doing massage full time at my own massage clinic.

Good luck and next time be in an environment you like. It will make a difference in how you perceive yourself and the image you project. From your description this was not the place for you.

Permalink Reply by Helen Moss on August 13, 2011 at 4:08pm

How about offering a free 10 min to each beautician that refers you a client, they could build their mins to 30 or an hr. or could you have them package w you when the client books the appt. i/e - client calls for a hair cut , have co-worker say "would you like to book a massage before or after your hair cut? we have a MT that is running a special for $30. " Power of suggestion is a wonderful thing, customer might say not me but I will for my wife, husband ect. The 10 min free for the co worker would still work too. Good Luck its hard but keep the faith it will work out.

Permalink Reply by David on August 13, 2011 at 4:14pm

Dear Helen,

Thank you for the idea, but I already working on them for free daily. As I posted last night the salon owner let me go after only 7 weeks of working there. Please read my post from yesterday I explain it all there.