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To educate clients or not
I would like your intake on something that has been going through my mind for a while now. I work one day a week at a day spa. They offer a variety of massages: hot stone, relaxation, deep tissue. Many people confuse deep tissue and relaxation massage thinking deep tissue is the same as the relaxation massage just more pressure. Even a couple of the other MT's think that. But this isn't about that.
So the staff and owners got talking and the owners decided in order to eliminate confusion, they are going to change the name of deep tissue massage to therapeutic massage instead of educating the clients on the difference. I personally think that we should educate the clients on the difference instead of changing the name of the service. That's what I do in my own business and the clients seem to love it. I educate all my new clients, whether it's their first massage or they have had 100 massages and this is just the first time with me. I want to make sure that they know what to expect from whatever massage I'm doing. And it helps the clients new to massage to know what to expect and give me feedback on what they want.
What do you think? Educate the clients or not? Should we just assume they know what to expect? Assume they know the difference? Or even that they know what it should feel like?
I would love to hear your input.
Views: 353
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Gordon J. Wallis on
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I educate my clients. Good massage feels really good...To me deep tissue means nothing...Every good massage has perfect pressure. It is the touch.. I educate my clients.
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Permalink Reply by Therese Schwartz on
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I'm with Gordon - I educate my clients too. And also for me deep tissue is meaningless; I do what I need to in order to solve problems for people, while making sure that the pressure is perfect for them.
But the issue at hand is whether or not to educate clients and my vote is a whole-hearted yes. Never assume anything!
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Permalink Reply by Lee Edelberg on
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I agree with the above: education. But, then those terms have always befuddled me.
My experience of receiving a session from someone who is offering what they call deep tissue work is usually unrelenting, painful pressure that I don't much enjoy and leaves me feeling sore or bruised. So I rarely ask for it. And the term "relaxation" massage seems almost moronic to me. I need a certain level of pressure during a session to be able to really let go and have muscles release. If it's too light and/or unfocused, I don't relax and I just get irritated waiting for something to happen.
If someone gets me to relax deeply during a session, then in my opinion that is therapeutic work. So I wouldn't call it "relaxation " massage because there is a hint of negativity in that term.
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Permalink Reply by Katie Clair on
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Every massage I do is a relaxation massage to an extent, even more so, every massage I do is therapeutic. Even if the therapy is given with a light pressure, I still do my best to make sure the client gets some sort of therapy. Clients need to be educated. "yes I will give you a massage and use pressure that is firm when it needs to be and not as firm when it doesn't, but I refuse to give extreme consistent pressure, you can go to another therapist for that, it just is not beneficial'
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Permalink Reply by martin rørdam on
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There is a couple of things to take into consideration here.
First. Your boss is the boss you do what he tells you to, period (and be loyal in your acting about it!)
Second. That's worse. Teach them or not?? Hmm personally I would teach them, BUT I'm also a salesman for my (own) company/clinic and I have learned many years ago that you can easily "win" the "discussion" but you will loose the customer. So in my company/clinic I would change name after what my costumers think (even though it "professional" wrong!). It is better to sell 10 "wrong named" massages than 4 rightly named!!
Martin Rørdam at www.masseuren.dk (Denmark)
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Permalink Reply by nicolasa on
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Educate the client is your best tool for your business to grow. They apreciate knowledge and validates your qualifications as a massage therapist. There are so many techniques under deep tissue modality that therapeutic is just touching the surface. Even clients who are in the medical profession are not aware of some of the benefits of a deep tissue massage, so its to your advantage to educate, you will create your own following and increase referals. So YES!!!! I agree with you, You are able to get your clients on a plan where you will target the whole body in lets say 6 sessions with deep tissue for them to experience the greater benefits vs 1 session just simple going at a firmer pressure all over.
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Permalink Reply by Kathy Mackay on
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What do you think? Educate the clients or not? Should we just assume they know what to expect? Assume they know the difference? Or even that they know what it should feel like?
Absolutely educate the clients. You can do this while respecting your employers decision to rename a service. It doesn't have to be "either - or" in this situation. I can see renaming it therapeutic simply because it offers a more encompassing title that indicates things are getting fixed rather than a purely stress reducing/relaxing session. It may indeed help to eliminate client confusion on what they want or should expect in the session from the outset of setting an appointment.
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Kathy, my experience with deep tissue and relaxation massage is this... The ones that want relaxation massage dont want to be brutalized by their therapist... The ones that want deep tissue massage are tired of paying big money just to have their skin rubbed with oil. .Call it what you may...But every client deserves the perfect pressure.. Thats it... How can anyone get a good massage if the pressure is off? You cant...Those words are meaningless to me. And your clients need to be educated about those terms...I mean if they come in because their low back hurts or if they are getting a massage because they are just stressed with life...The pressure should be just perfect... So if they pay $20 more for deep tissue..Then you give them the massage they need?
Kathy Mackay said:What do you think? Educate the clients or not? Should we just assume they know what to expect? Assume they know the difference? Or even that they know what it should feel like?
Absolutely educate the clients. You can do this while respecting your employers decision to rename a service. It doesn't have to be "either - or" in this situation. I can see renaming it therapeutic simply because it offers a more encompassing title that indicates things are getting fixed rather than a purely stress reducing/relaxing session. It may indeed help to eliminate client confusion on what they want or should expect in the session from the outset of setting an appointment.
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Gordon, I don't disagree with you, a client wanting relaxation doesn't want to be brutalized and a client wanting deep tissue doesn't want a "fluff and buff" and yes, every massage should be the perfect pressure.
Is your question about the ethics of charging additional money to provide different types of services?
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Permalink Reply by Michele Ellis on
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I find that pressure has nothing to do with type of massage. Relaxation and deep tissue can be the same pressure. The difference between the two is technique. Relaxation is more swedish massage. Focusing more on circulation and having more broad strokes. Deep tissue is more slow and steady focused work. Imagine taking the arm and giving is a little shake. That's working the deepest you possibly can (the joint) yet you are using no pressure. That's the way I learned it and the way the difference makes the most sense to me.
As far as those saying that my employer has a right to change the name and I should just accept it whatever they do, that was not the point of my post. My employer does have the right to change the name, I know that. And they can do that, I have no problem with it. It just got me curious on what others think and would do. What has worked for you? Things like that. So I'm not going to tell my employer bad move. Cause it's how they want to run their spa. It really isn't my say and I know that.
I find everyone opinions very interesting. Keep them coming. I love hearing others point of view and how others do things. :)
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Michele Ellis said:I find that pressure has nothing to do with type of massage. Relaxation and deep tissue can be the same pressure. The difference between the two is technique. Relaxation is more swedish massage. Focusing more on circulation and having more broad strokes. Deep tissue is more slow and steady focused work. Imagine taking the arm and giving is a little shake. That's working the deepest you possibly can (the joint) yet you are using no pressure. That's the way I learned it and the way the difference makes the most sense to me.
As far as those saying that my employer has a right to change the name and I should just accept it whatever they do, that was not the point of my post. My employer does have the right to change the name, I know that. And they can do that, I have no problem with it. It just got me curious on what others think and would do. What has worked for you? Things like that. So I'm not going to tell my employer bad move. Cause it's how they want to run their spa. It really isn't my say and I know that.
I find everyone opinions very interesting. Keep them coming. I love hearing others point of view and how others do things. :)
I agree with absolutely everything you've said here ^
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