Jaw Dropping Innovation

Did you watch the Saints and Falcons game Monday night?

In the midst of the brilliant battle news of an intriguing innovation trickled to the surface. John Gruden and friends brought up a mouthpiece that is improving athlete performance and enhancing flexibility while increasing an athletes strength. Claims that it is making phenomenal receptions even more attainable by relieving tension that translates to spinal stress, I just had to know more.

A bit of research reveals the "Under Armour Performance Mouthwear"

We thought we know knew so much about the body, but this jaw dropping innovation opens new doorways. What other mysteries might be discovered by increased understanding of how are bodies work?

Mouthpiece
Video
Technology
Science

On Site Massage On Demand

Most of my massage career involved On Site Massage, but Spa on Location takes a step up. I found their service and client list impressive. As for giving in to Massage Envy and n8touch, Spa on Location hasn't even slowed down. Check out their web site and see if you don't get a few ideas.

Need A New Niche?

This information is leading edge, though not bleeding edge, as it appeared on the horizon some time back. And now the plot thickens, but I digress.

Along the path of building a better massage practice I've traveled many twisting trails of terror and intrigue about how to find a solid massage niche. Who are my customers? Where do they hang out? How do I specialize to harness a solid market base? Who can I create strategic alliance with to bolster my customer base? The journey's been fascinating and has inspired me to raise my brow and look ahead for opportunity that comes out of the chaos of change.

As massage therapy has matured, many massage therapist have quivered in fear from the divisions of the trade that race towards medical massage and the onslaught of corporate massage factories. Others have grabbed the ring and filled there practice with relaxation, proactive health enthusiasts and youthful appearance disciples.

However, as health insurance challenges jolt the nation, and baby boomers are feeling the oats they sewed in their 20's, the population in the western hemisphere grows restless.

No . . . really . . . I mean REST LESS.

Rarely has the public been so frustrated with trying to get health care that they are more willing than ever to take a proactive approach, and educate themselves about how to prevent injury, and to stretch and strengthen to avoid surgery, and are seeking knowledgeable support networks. (Don't forget these guys. These are a secondary niche opportunity for your practice.)

Staggering numbers from almost every viewpoint indicate at least 80 percent of us will experience at least one episode of debilitating back pain. Sleep issues from aging, weight gain, stress, insomnia, career changes, financial pressures and more are stealing the comfort of the golden years and some folks clamor to get their health back.

So where does that leave you?

Well, slowly over the last few years a new god has appeared. Of the onslaught of health practitioners available out there, one has been steadily rising to the surface as the "go to" guide for all issues of structural and soft tissue need.

This skill set is spending more time with patients on a one-to-one basis, fill one of the greatest demands of returning patient needs, know more about the personal life and lifestyles of their patient base, and are in such demand that they make up the largest growing employment segment of health careers. And on top of that they know, appreciate and may even come from the field of massage therapy.

Did you guess Physical Therapists (PT)? If you did you're right!

But here's what interesting. The supply and demand for PT's is putting pressure on workloads and availability. What if you created an alliance with a Physical Therapist to handle their massage work? What if you paired with a new Physical Therapist as a support and liaison as they build their practice? What if you specialized in neck & shoulder injury, hand or arm injury, sciatica or psoas issues, hip or knee speciaty? What if you focused your practise on training/educating physical therapists on massage technique and specialty? What if you just created a cross marketing arrangement with a Physical Therapist? The more you focus your specialty and match it with a Physical Therapist the more specific your niche, the more condensed your marketing, the more successful you can become.

Serving the needs of the physical therapists, (yes, even seeking them as clients!) will put you dead center in a market familiar or wanting of your services. Referral from one of these professionals can go a long, long, way. Do some homework and you'll find that PT's in and of themselves tend to garner a stable income and massage is a value to both them and their clients. And . . . almost every Physical Therapist is rooted to a physical office or facility, (where clients come to) belong to a professional association (where a bazillion other physical therapists dwell), and are connected on many levels to nearly all other departments of health and wellness professionals.

For those of you in the suburbs and smaller communities . . . private physical therapist offices are growing out there too! Because EVERYBODY seems to have a back ache these days!

Click here to see an article from Business Week that speaks to the growing demand for Physical Therapists. I'll try to post more as I come across them. For now just put on your creative career cap and conjure up the direction this may lead for you.

Best of success to you always!

~ B ~

http://www.massagemsoi.com
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/massagemarketingrebellion/

8 Key Benefits of Utilizing Piece Work as a Calling Card

A random encounter with a massage newbie led to an enlightened experience for both parties the other day.

Knowing I was massage friendly, this newbie dropped by to talk about marketing experiences and the conversation quickly led to the challenge of competing with corporate massage entities.

Frustration was obvious as this new MT discussed trying to generate clients when the local massage mill pitches prices so low, he cannot compete.

I challenged him to think differently and asked what was his favorite part of the body to work on.

"I really love arms" he said, and asked if he could demonstrate.

His work was both unique and thorough and as he worked I shared the idea of doing piece work.

Piece work isn't new, but it may not have generated much thought from massage practitioners.
I predict it will become a dominant trend in both gorilla marketing, and specialty approach.

If you break your massage into smaller segments of work it can present several advantages for marketing, specialty and client retention.

Here are 8 Key Benefits of Utilizing Piece Work as a Calling Card:

1. Reduces time requirement which lowers initial price point.
   
2. Injury or issue specific massage increases value for customer having discomfort right now.
   
3. Delivers intangibles: style, quality of touch, knowledge and professionalism in real time.
4. Provides for an integrated introduction of your technique.
   
5. Facilitates on site, or instant gratification for customer.
6. Less intimidating when work can be done without disrobing.
7. Displays immediate benefits for the receiver.
8. Generates marketing income instead of marketing costs
   

Solo-preneur, Entrepreneur, Insta-preneur: Which one are you?

Entrepreneurs of the massage kind are the power behind multi practitioner offices, Massage Envy franchises, Big Mall Chair massage, and the likes of Zubio in metro areas. Clearly these folks and more are making a difference while changing the face of massage as-we-know-it. Much gnashing and hashing has gone on amongst the troops in terms of what the implications are to the solo- practitioner (solo-preneur), but resist as we will . . . the entrepreneurs have moved on, and solo-preneurs must adapt.

You may not like the terms, Solo-preneur and Entrepreneur. Not the jargon of massage on the day to day scene, but I bring them up to reveal their place in the past, present and future of massage.

Independent Practitioners are solo-preneurs, carving their way into a specified niche or modality. While we prefer to see our work from the perspective of its benefits, (i.e., healing, wellness, nurturing, relaxing and now medicinal), what massage as a trade has been all along is a business. And we've had to adapt, and that's why these terms are important.

Entrepreneurs are traditionally seen as mavericks creating business opportunity, cashing in and moving on to the next project, ambition and money in hand . . . but business people with savvy non the less. While yester-year found these individuals rare, today's business climate has turned many successful into entrepreneurs by nature.

Why?

Because business of late has upped the game in terms of being able to respond to the market, and staying strong on your feet. CEO's and Owners have learned to scramble and adapt, and its why so much has happened so fast in the last 20 years. So many business tools have grown up to streamline the process, yet also made some things more complex. So, while the wave continues to build . . . we have two choices.

1. Stand in its way and cling tightly to the life-raft.

or

2. Ride the wave and grow stronger on the way.

After all, we're in business.

Is there a chance of crashing? . . . Well, sure. There always has been. However, things on the horizon may help us to think in new ways and help the massage trade to adapt with the times. Are you game?

Lately I'm hearing the term Insta-preneur bandied about. It seems to be haunting me at night in my dreams. What does it mean, and how will it shift the playing field? That my friends is what this post is really about.

With the voluminous growth of the internet and the speeds that broadband now offer, business is growing at the speed of cable. Here we sit with a service oriented massage business, and it all seems "over the head" in terms of how to use it. If the internet is where the people are, we need to climb on board to reach them. Perhaps not as an all consuming method, but we at least need to understand the power and reach of it. But I digress.

What is stuck in my craw is the idea of the insta-preneur. Simple enough to understand that with the internet business can be handled instantly. Yet that doesn't quite apply to massage, right?

Well not so fast.

I must be a marketer by nature because what it conjures up for me is questions on how to take massage to "instantaneous" levels?

What if we could do massage anywhere? Anytime? Just like the internet.
How would that look and what would it require?
How would it change the way I found customers?
Who would my most likely customer be?
How would it change how I approach them?
How could I communicate and respond to them with speed?
How would it change my return ratio?
How could I compete with Massage Envy's and such?
How would it change my niche or modality?
How would it set my small business apart form others?
What equipment would I need to make it all happen?
What could it do for stability to the business?

Asking these questions gave me some interesting ideas. I hope to post more about that in the future. For now, I'm curious what you all might have to say. Does this tickle your brain or make you want to cover your head. Do you want to challenge the way you see things or is your massage business OK, no changes needed?

There is no right or wrong here, and I hope it's not too long winded, but massage has been my passion for many years. I feel compelled to conceptually midwife it to the future. And by the way . . . the future is NOW!

Resource to keep you thinking:
Best Small Business 2009: Home Health Services

Just hooked up my phone so I can text blog posts

Trend Savvy?

Whether you're leading edge or bleeding edge, the best view out the window is through resources that direct the flow. To stay current and visible, take time to know where the bus is going, (which is not always where you think it will.)

Tune in to the future and reset your massage niche dial.

Meet you there!