Rubbing Against Tough Competition
Business Side
By Jonathan Poston
Originally published in Massage & Bodywork magazine, February/March 2006. Copyright 2006. Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals. All rights reserved.
Adversity can foster growth and a fair market by forcing business owners to offer better prices, higher quality products, and/or faster service. Businesses must rise to the challenge or fade away. Although coping with competition is normal, multiply this exponentially and herein lies an accurate vantage point for the professional massage therapists operating in cities such as Santa Fe, N.M., Asheville, N.C., and Boulder, Colo. In order to avoid choking in these tough situations, businesses must develop strategic perspectives and savvy operational philosophies. Massage professionals can be successful amidst this uninvited saturation and use a variety of approaches to cultivate financial success.
Lorin Parrish, the executive director of the New Mexico Academy of Healing Arts and owner/director of Body in Santa Fe, began as a massage therapist in 1976. Things have changed since then, and Santa Fe is now home to hundreds of massage professionals. So why does Santa Fe, a city of more than 60,000, attract so many therapists? Parrish says, "This is the greatest place to live on the whole planet. We are living among so many healers, and more people are open to the healing arts." As the owner of Body (www.bodyofsantafe.com), which employs around 40 therapists, she has taken innovative steps to exist among the hundreds of other massage professionals operating in the area.
"'Massage for locals' is our tagline," Parrish says. "We pay our therapists well and offer a price ($60 per hour) to match the local market." While therapists employed by Parrish are paid the same as other massage therapists working at successful locations in the area, Body can still afford to offer clients lower costs because of its business strategy. Other businesses including an organic caf, bodyworker store, yoga studio, childcare service, event management, and spa, operate under the same roof to contribute to the overall profit. These business concepts work together on other levels as well. For example, the childcare service is an extra perk that the law offices and insurance companies consider before they purchase packages for employees.
Parrish suggests that therapists provide good service and give clients what they have come to receive while refraining from using sales talk or gimmicks. If your clinic does not offer the desired service, don't hesitate to refer them out.
At Parrish's massage school, 48 of the required 1,000 hours are devoted to "identifying what you like to do." As a result, graduating students are better prepared to develop a niche that "comes from the heart."
In Asheville, Peggy Huff is the president of the Center for Massage and Natural Healing (www.center formassage.com), which graduates 125 massage therapists a year. A large portion of the graduating class will set up shop in Asheville -- a city with a population of approximately 70,000 people. Huff realizes there are major obstacles students face when they go out on their own. To address these concerns, part of the school curriculum mandates that students create business plans and custom brochures. This ensures that they are better prepared to compete with the hundreds of other massage professionals in the area. Huff attributes the saturation of massage professionals to the fact that there are three massage schools in the area and because it is an area that "draws people from all over the country, including massage therapists." Huff's school also offers a job placement program to graduating students to help alleviate career worries among new professionals, but in the end, the student must work hard to make this type of business successful. "Doing nothing does not work," she says.
As a graduate of Huff's Center for Massage and Natural Healing, Mary Osada now owns and operates A Touch Above Massage, which has thrived for four years under a strong business plan in Asheville's stretched massage market. Osada decided to open her doors for business in Asheville despite the rumors that the market would not bear another massage therapist. She even refers to the city as the place where "you can throw a stone and hit a massage therapist." She was inspired when a friend assured her, "There are enough backs for everyone here." Osada simply decided to stay focused on providing quality massage therapy.
Although Osada has heeded conventional marketing wisdom by registering at the Chamber of Commerce, placing ads in the newspaper, and writing articles for local newsletters, she has also embraced other powerful methods that have contributed to her success. In addition to being available for massage at events, making presentations to local athletic organizations, and sending letters to allied health professionals, Osada believes that word-of-mouth marketing has been one of most effective and underestimated tools available.
Osada says she follows simple rules, such as "returning phone calls, being punctual, and keeping your word" in order to build a professional image. She also studies others that have been successful in the market and chooses role models who are willing to share secrets to help her along the way. Her overall service motto has been to provide quality of massage over quantity of clients and the business will thrive. She reiterates the popular adage, "If you build it, they will come."
In keeping up with the competition, physical therapist Patrick Naylor, coordinator for Sports Physical Therapy at The Boulder Center for Sports Medicine in Colorado (www.bch.org/sportsmedicine), offers package deals and special discounts. To attract clients in this city of 95,000, the center offers six (45-minute) massages for $299 along with discounts for students. The real advantage the center's massage therapists have is they are surrounded by allied health professionals who refer internally on a regular basis. Another built-in edge for this clinic is it has insurance options that allow massage therapy to be billed under physical therapy as long as it is supervised by a PT.
***
Although there are many approaches to growing a business in a saturated market, a traditional work ethic, dedication, and a creative perspective will anchor a viable idea to solid ground. Setting professional standards and ethics will establish a signature service with which folks can identify. Practical tactics such as offering a variety of complimentary services, placing ads, and being involved in the local community will keep the business wheels rolling. And innovative actions like building working alliances within the medical community and exploring new billing approaches, will allow the business to reach new heights. Practicing massage in a highly desirable area may mean greater competition and higher risk, but with a proactive approach new potential can be realized.
Jonathan Poston is a writer based in Asheville, N.C., specializing in health and business news. Contact him at 828/768-6262 or mindlynxx@hotmail.com.
Adversity can foster growth and a fair market by forcing business owners to offer better prices, higher quality products, and/or faster service. Businesses must rise to the challenge or fade away. Although coping with competition is normal, multiply this exponentially and herein lies an accurate vantage point for the professional massage therapists operating in cities such as Santa Fe, N.M., Asheville, N.C., and Boulder, Colo. In order to avoid choking in these tough situations, businesses must develop strategic perspectives and savvy operational philosophies. Massage professionals can be successful amidst this uninvited saturation and use a variety of approaches to cultivate financial success.
Lorin Parrish, the executive director of the New Mexico Academy of Healing Arts and owner/director of Body in Santa Fe, began as a massage therapist in 1976. Things have changed since then, and Santa Fe is now home to hundreds of massage professionals. So why does Santa Fe, a city of more than 60,000, attract so many therapists? Parrish says, "This is the greatest place to live on the whole planet. We are living among so many healers, and more people are open to the healing arts." As the owner of Body (www.bodyofsantafe.com), which employs around 40 therapists, she has taken innovative steps to exist among the hundreds of other massage professionals operating in the area.
"'Massage for locals' is our tagline," Parrish says. "We pay our therapists well and offer a price ($60 per hour) to match the local market." While therapists employed by Parrish are paid the same as other massage therapists working at successful locations in the area, Body can still afford to offer clients lower costs because of its business strategy. Other businesses including an organic caf, bodyworker store, yoga studio, childcare service, event management, and spa, operate under the same roof to contribute to the overall profit. These business concepts work together on other levels as well. For example, the childcare service is an extra perk that the law offices and insurance companies consider before they purchase packages for employees.
Parrish suggests that therapists provide good service and give clients what they have come to receive while refraining from using sales talk or gimmicks. If your clinic does not offer the desired service, don't hesitate to refer them out.
At Parrish's massage school, 48 of the required 1,000 hours are devoted to "identifying what you like to do." As a result, graduating students are better prepared to develop a niche that "comes from the heart."
In Asheville, Peggy Huff is the president of the Center for Massage and Natural Healing (www.center formassage.com), which graduates 125 massage therapists a year. A large portion of the graduating class will set up shop in Asheville -- a city with a population of approximately 70,000 people. Huff realizes there are major obstacles students face when they go out on their own. To address these concerns, part of the school curriculum mandates that students create business plans and custom brochures. This ensures that they are better prepared to compete with the hundreds of other massage professionals in the area. Huff attributes the saturation of massage professionals to the fact that there are three massage schools in the area and because it is an area that "draws people from all over the country, including massage therapists." Huff's school also offers a job placement program to graduating students to help alleviate career worries among new professionals, but in the end, the student must work hard to make this type of business successful. "Doing nothing does not work," she says.
As a graduate of Huff's Center for Massage and Natural Healing, Mary Osada now owns and operates A Touch Above Massage, which has thrived for four years under a strong business plan in Asheville's stretched massage market. Osada decided to open her doors for business in Asheville despite the rumors that the market would not bear another massage therapist. She even refers to the city as the place where "you can throw a stone and hit a massage therapist." She was inspired when a friend assured her, "There are enough backs for everyone here." Osada simply decided to stay focused on providing quality massage therapy.
Although Osada has heeded conventional marketing wisdom by registering at the Chamber of Commerce, placing ads in the newspaper, and writing articles for local newsletters, she has also embraced other powerful methods that have contributed to her success. In addition to being available for massage at events, making presentations to local athletic organizations, and sending letters to allied health professionals, Osada believes that word-of-mouth marketing has been one of most effective and underestimated tools available.
Osada says she follows simple rules, such as "returning phone calls, being punctual, and keeping your word" in order to build a professional image. She also studies others that have been successful in the market and chooses role models who are willing to share secrets to help her along the way. Her overall service motto has been to provide quality of massage over quantity of clients and the business will thrive. She reiterates the popular adage, "If you build it, they will come."
In keeping up with the competition, physical therapist Patrick Naylor, coordinator for Sports Physical Therapy at The Boulder Center for Sports Medicine in Colorado (www.bch.org/sportsmedicine), offers package deals and special discounts. To attract clients in this city of 95,000, the center offers six (45-minute) massages for $299 along with discounts for students. The real advantage the center's massage therapists have is they are surrounded by allied health professionals who refer internally on a regular basis. Another built-in edge for this clinic is it has insurance options that allow massage therapy to be billed under physical therapy as long as it is supervised by a PT.
***
Although there are many approaches to growing a business in a saturated market, a traditional work ethic, dedication, and a creative perspective will anchor a viable idea to solid ground. Setting professional standards and ethics will establish a signature service with which folks can identify. Practical tactics such as offering a variety of complimentary services, placing ads, and being involved in the local community will keep the business wheels rolling. And innovative actions like building working alliances within the medical community and exploring new billing approaches, will allow the business to reach new heights. Practicing massage in a highly desirable area may mean greater competition and higher risk, but with a proactive approach new potential can be realized.
Jonathan Poston is a writer based in Asheville, N.C., specializing in health and business news. Contact him at 828/768-6262 or mindlynxx@hotmail.com.
