Thriving vs Surviving
Do you offer discounts? Work on your days off?
You probably do when you’re in Survival mode.
Welcome back to another Monday with the Mavens. We created the Massage Mavens blog to connect with and educate self-employed massage therapists working to grow as business owners.
It can be lonely working for yourself – and we’re here to remind you that while you’re in business for yourself, you don’t have to be in business by yourself.
While we cater our content to independent MTs, all massage therapists are welcome here; whether you run your own independent massage therapy studio, you contract in a clinic, work in spa, or you are still in school.
Any of us who own solo studios have found ourselves in Survival mode at least once.
There is no shame in it.
Starting a business is daunting and sometimes unpredictable work that comes with ups and downs; especially in the beginning. (I call bullsh*t right now if you deny having ever been in a position where you either worked a second job, or your studio had to get creative to come up with rent, or ever taking home the kind of salary that only supported a Ramen Noodles and Water kind of diet…)
Survival mode as a business owner can feel isolating and scary. Remember you’re not alone.
If you have a second job and can afford to build your studio without making any compromises about when you work and who you work on, that’s great! But if that’s the case, you’re not really in “survival” mode, are you? So this week’s article is more for the therapists who have taken (or are planning to take) the all-or-nothing leap.
If you’re a solo massage therapist and your studio is your only source of income, and things are moving slowly, here you may very well be in “survival” mindset. You founded your studio with aspirations to work These Days and This Rate and on These Clients - but right now you’d just be thrilled to work on Any Clients. And that’s okay! I’ve been there, too! Let’s just make sure that doing what you have to for your studio today doesn’t compromise your ability to do what you want to do for your studio tomorrow.
Running a discount to generate some fast cash is a great option if you’re just starting out and have bills to pay while you work to build and attract a loyal, stable clientele. But it shouldn’t become a default activity any time you have a slow week. (*My caveat here is that your discounts should still bring in enough money that it’s worth the work. A 50% discount very rarely creates a repeat customer, and even more rarely leaves the therapist with any money in their bank.)
Coming in on your day off to accommodate a client’s schedule if they cannot get in to see you at another time is a GREAT way to build rapport when your own books are slow, and you aren’t overworking yourself to do it. Just be sure you set the tone early that you’re this is a temporary solution to their scheduling issues, and you will not be in a position to make that accommodation regularly. Being at someone’s beckon call shouldn’t become the kind of customer service that’s expected day-in-and-day-out.
Accepting sessions where a local mom just wants to relax when you’re really trying to build a niche in the Whiplash world is not a cardinal sin. Again, any money coming in the door is valuable when you’re surviving. Give an excellent service, ask for an excellent Google review, and continue marketing to your niche.
Offering discounted monthly memberships to create recurring, reliable income is a great way to build stability. When you know rent is covered month after month, it gives you the space to breathe and flow. (Even better if you offer those regulars an incentive to also send their friends your day —ie a Referral Rewards program). Just remember to price the membership at a level that still generates a profit for your studio, and plan for how membership prices will evolve as inflation changes your profit margin year-over-year.
I’ve been seeing a lot of content lately telling new therapists not to compromise on their X’s Y’s and Z’s. And while I agree that, within reason, you deserve to build your studio exactly as imagined, I am also here to remind you it’s okay to just earn some cash when you need it. I did all of the things on that list when I was starting out. I do none of them anymore…but they were incredibly helpful tools when I needed them.
You can (and should) be picky about these things in the long term. But sailors have a point when they say “any port will do in a storm.” Survive first. Thrive next.
Do what’s right for your studio, and find that momentum. You didn’t come this far to quit now.
Thanks for stopping by!
As always, we’d love to hear how our content has helped you improve either your studio, your mindset, or your revenue as a self-employed massage therapist.
Rachel Martin, LMT, is an independent massage therapist living in Denver Colorado. Having built her solo massage studio to capacity, she now spends her free time helping other massage therapists do the same. Check out The Bodyworkers Business Collective, Queen Street Marketplace, and The Techy MT to learn more.
