Building Your Successful Sports Massage Practice

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Octavia Holmes
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Facilitated By Bob McAtee, LMT, CSCS Pro-Active Massage Therapy Colorado Springs, CO www.stretchman.com Building Your Successful Sports Massage Practice Success: What Is It?

1 Facilitated By Bob McAtee, LMT, CSCS Pro-Active Massage Therapy Colorado Springs, CO Building Your Successful Sports Massage Practice Success: What Is It? How do you define success in the sports massage niche? Financial? Client population (professional athletes?) Emotional satisfaction? Still loving your work? #AMTAconv When you transition from being a massage therapist in someone else s business to being a business owner (your name on the lease or on the business loan), then you re an entrepreneur ( solopreneur ). This takes an entirely different skill set. Keep In Mind Working on your business is as important as working in your business. If you don t know how to do something, find someone who s already done it to teach you, guide you, mentor you: AMTA Mentor Program THE BEST NEW CLIENTS ARE REFERRALS FROM CURRENT CLIENTS The Reach of Three: Ask your clients to help you build your business Your client s network of potential referrals include: Family Parents Siblings Kids, etc. Friends Neighbors Teammates Colleagues Co-workers Volunteers Social clubs

2 First Visit Must-Do s Have a conveniently located and welcoming office and comfortable treatment room. Be welcoming: SMILE. Be Excellent at delivering quality massage. Adapt your work to the requests and needs of each client. Self Referred: First Contact Many times, your potential client has stalked you online before contacting you. What will they find about you on Google & Yelp? Do You Have Credibility as an Expert? Does Your Online Presence Reflect Your Community Involvement? Aligned With Your Marketing? Bolster Your Credibility Set yourself/your practice apart in a meaningful way What s your compelling personal story? The Value of Volunteering Pay your dues, but be discriminating Promote Credentials: Post-grad training Experience, esp. with your target market High-profile clients (w/permission) Become a health resource for your community/target market Contribute a Q&A column to your local paper, or club newsletter Start your own blog Co-market with local charities that you believe in Gain experience Avoid working for free ; instead always place a monetary value on your donation of time: Pro- Active Massage Therapy has donated $500 of sports massage services to the Pikes Peak Marathon.

3 Small Group Activity Improve Your Visibility in the Community Networking Discuss your best options Strategize how to find best volunteer opportunities Determine your ideal client Everyone Needs Massage is not a good answer! You can t be all things to all people Define Marketing: Branding, Education, Outreach Active vs. What s in a Business Name? Pro-Active Sports Massage Weber Massage Therapy Athletes Edge Massage Clinic Pasadena Massage Company LA Sports Massage Business Cards Letters after your name: BA/BS, CMT, CNMT, BCTMB, ART, Is an alphabet of letters impressive proof of your excellence or conversely, does it mark you as a wannabe? Do the letters announce that you re a learned person and establish your qualifications and credibility? It depends Jack Black, PhD., CHMM, CIH, CSP, DABT Joe Smith, CMT, LMT, CNMT, BCTMB A-Z Modalities List? Sample Business Cards

4 Business Card: Photo or No Photo Pros: Great way to help people at networking events or conventions remember you better We re drawn to faces or pictures more than just text. We have seconds to attract the eye of the recipient You have your photo on all your other social media, why not on your biz card? Cons: May draw the wrong kind of client, esp. for female therapists So common now that you won t stand out Seems cheesy to some Signage Website Google in class: what do we find? Claim Your Pages on: Google, Yelp, Social Media: Do I need all of them? The Dream is Free Hustle is Sold Separately It's not about the number of tools in your toolbox, it's about your depth of knowledge & understanding as to how & when to use them.

5 Active Marketing Done Person-to-Person (or Group) Kevin Burns Story Just ran into Gregg Popovich (coach of the NBA San Antonio Spurs) on the streets of SF and he saw my San Francisco Sports Massage shirt. Me: Hi Mr Popovich, really respect how you coach these young men on and off the court! Pop: Thank you, I see your shirt. Do you work with any local athletes? Write 5-second and 30-second sound bites, practice delivering, feedback to group. Me: Seasonal work with Oakland Raiders and my private practice. Pop: Any Warriors? Me: lol...i don't kiss and tell! Pop: laughs...great response. I'll be in touch! Be stingy with your business card! Public speaking options Me: Pleasure meeting you Mr Popovich, have great day! Pop: Call me coach. Be well! Always act professional and respectful with people and you'll be respected back Retaining Clients Be Happy to See Them! Stay Connected: Newsletter Blog , text Forward relevant articles Working For a Team Be a Team Player When working in a team setting, respect and value the other professionals. Focus on overall benefit to the athlete by understanding and respecting the role of the medical personnel, athletic trainer, strength coach, etc. Know your Role and stay within your scope of practice!! Dress for Success Adapted from How to Market Yourself as a Sports Massage Therapist by Benny Vaughn, LMT, ATC, CSCS, Massage Magazine, November 2016

Keep Learning You are more than just your hands!

Who to Follow on Social Media: Leon Chaitow, Whitney Lowe, Jack Stella, Bob McAtee,

USA Sports Massage Group on Facebook Keep Learning Make a list of the top 5 books for

Bone Palpation Manual, Joe Muscolino Orthopedic Assessment in Massage Therapy, Whitney

McAtee (due out in 2018) Continuing Professional Development and the Application of

ca Experienced Practitioners Beliefs Utilized to Create a Successful Massage Therapist

6 Keep Learning You are more than just your hands! Focus on well-rounded professional development. Who to Follow on Social Media: Leon Chaitow, Whitney Lowe, Jack Stella, Bob McAtee, Art & Science of Kinesiology (Joe Muscolino), David Lauterstein (Deep Massage) Join USA Sports Massage Group on Facebook Keep Learning Make a list of the top 5 books for your sports massage library: Therapeutic Massage in Athletics, Pat Archer Muscle and Bone Palpation Manual, Joe Muscolino Orthopedic Assessment in Massage Therapy, Whitney Lowe Complete Guide to Sports Massage, Tim Paine Sports Massage for Injury Care, Bob McAtee (due out in 2018) Continuing Professional Development and the Application of Evidence Based Research GregLehman.ca Experienced Practitioners Beliefs Utilized to Create a Successful Massage Therapist Conceptual Model: a Qualitative Investigation KENNEDY, LMT, BCTMB, DRPH, Ann B.; MUNK, LMT, PHD, Niki. International Journal of Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork: Research, Education, & Practice, [S.l.], v. 10, n. 2, p. 9-19, june ISSN X. Available at: < tmb/article/view/367>. Date accessed: 01 july doi: /ijtmb.v10i2.367.

THIRTEEN RULES OF MASSAGE By David Lauterstein 1. Slow down when you need to. Speed up when you don t need to slow down. Massage that s always slow is ultimately boring massage. 2.

7 THIRTEEN RULES OF MASSAGE By David Lauterstein 1. Slow down when you need to. Speed up when you don t need to slow down. Massage that s always slow is ultimately boring massage. 2. Palpate how can you love if you don t know what s there? 3. Know anatomy not just in general. Have memorized the origins, insertions and actions for at least the 90 most important muscles. 4. Care; really care; let your care be palpable. 5. First do no harm to yourself! Pay attention to your body mechanics and your psycho-mechanics. 6. Don t substitute force for intelligence. 7. Take a history; your client s complaint arises from and takes place within their whole life. You re working on time as much as space. 8. Try to do not more than 4 sessions a day. 9. Become a boundary genius; when you hold to impeccable boundaries it becomes a powerful part of the healing process. When you create an atmosphere of total safety and trust, the healing process is initiated. 10. Don t hedge on the business side you are in the massage business as much as you are assisting in the healing process. 11. Get massage. Not getting massage is like a writer never reading. 12. Take a workshop at least once a year; a vacation twice a year, and a contemplative break once a day. 13. Don t give up. Work, exacting work, moves mountains. Let s Get Social stretchman@stretchman.com Facebook: Landline: (no texts, VM OK) iphone: (OK to text)

Module 2 Marketing - Template 7 Strategic Networking. Get & Keep Clients. Articles/Blog Posts 4 a month

Module 2 Marketing - Template 7 Strategic Methods of Marketing Making Connections Article Marketing Submitting Articles to Sites on the Internet to bring more people to your list In Person 1 2 Events Per