Top Tech Tools of 2014 for Massage Therapists

Top Tech Tools of 2014 for Massage Therapists

• Online Scheduling
  Many massage therapists report online scheduling being their single most important tech tool for their practice.
  Mary-Claire Fredette of Cincinnati just wrote a blog post of her own on the topic: Why Online Scheduling Works for Massage Therapists.
  Using an online scheduling system not only provides a convenience for your clients, but it also helps to cut down on no-shows with email and text reminders, helps to reinforce your cancelation policies, gives you more control over your schedule, can help fill last minute openings, eliminates phone tag, and increases your professionalism. (Just to name a few of the benefits!)
  
• Professional Website 
  Having a professional website for your massage business helps to build authority, builds a relationship with your clients (before they even walk in the door), improves credibility, and much more.
  Some things to consider when creating or redesigning your website:
  Make it easy to navigate.
  Update it regularly.
  No flash graphics or music.
  No "wall of text". Break it up visually with some pictures.
  For more guidelines on creating a winning website, check out our past post When good websites go bad.
  
• High Ranking Search Results / Search Engine Optimization
  Search friendly design, keywords, content, links... there's a lot to consider with SEO, but a few basics can get your website going in the right direction. Be cautious of guns for hire claiming to skyrocket your search engine rankings, this is an area that has a lot of scam artists online.
  We'll be writing more in 2015 on ways to improve your SEO, so stay tuned.
• Testimonials 
  Many MT's report the use of testimonials as a key influencer for new clients to book. Whether it be a review site like Yelp.com, or the use of your own collected testimonials, showcasing reviews for prospective clients can be very persuasive and help you build your business.
  Bodywork Buddy automatically collects client testimonials for you and displays them on your online scheduler.
  We also have a checklist you can signup to receive that details lots of great ways to use testimonials to boost your business.
  

Using Bodywork Buddy For 2 Different Locations

While Bodywork Buddy was really designed for a single location for online scheduling, we do have some members who use it for multiple locations.

There are a couple of different ways you can do this.

The first is to create your service groups of the types of services you offer, and then within those groups create different services for each location.

For example, a service group of "Hot Stone Massage" with the services of "60 minute hot stone massage @ location 1" and "60 minute hot stone massage @ location 2". This method seems to be the preferred style with our members.

Another way you could create different locations on your microsite is by creating different service groups for each location.

*While this workaround seems to be suitable for some members, please note that it is not possible to create only certain days in the calendar as "open" for each location. You could add in the text descriptions for the services which days are at which location, but clients scheduling online would still see all of your available openings in your calendar no matter which service or location they were scheduling for.

Member Spotlight: Sarah Littlejohn

http://www.westgamassage.com

• Today's Bodywork Buddy Member Spotlight is Sarah Littlejohn from Carrollton, Georgia of West Georgia Massage & Bodywork.

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  Q: What inspired you to become a massage therapist? A: When I was 15, my mom was in a car accident. She went to see a chiropractor who was also a neuromuscular therapist. I was so amazed at the progress my mom had from receiving manual therapy. Pretty soon, the chiropractor let me sit in on massage sessions (my mother’s) and explain what she was doing. It was like a whole new world was open to me. That same chiropractor soon opened a massage school. After going to college, I decided to follow my original dream and study NMT. I never looked back.

  Q: How long have you been a MT? A: I’ve been a massage therapist for almost 5 years now. I kick myself constantly for not doing it sooner.

  Q: What is your favorite thing about being a MT? A: When you an help someone who is in tremendous pain to walk out of your office virtually pain free, what better feeling is there? I’m incredibly lucky that I get to provide this service to people daily.

  Q: What is the most challenging issue you face as a MT? A: No job is without its challenges. At first everyone struggles to gain clients. It seriously just takes time. The biggest struggle for me though, has been my trying to be taken seriously by physicians. The key is to always be up on the latest massage research and to promote an evidence-based practice, which I do with pride.

  

  
  

  Q: What advice would you give to other massage therapists to help build their business? A: First, if you are a sole practitioner, subscribe to Bodywork Buddy. It will make your life so much easier. Second, the best piece of advice is to stay motivated. There have been times that I have been slow. This happens to everyone. It’s common to feel stagnant. Don’t let this get you down. Take advantage of slow times. Use your non hands-on office hours to study, take a class, work on marketing, or simply rest. Down time is a gift and is key to the building process of your business. Don’t give up! You will get there. Stay motivated.
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It's the End of the Year... Are You Organized?

As we approach the year's end, it's natural to start thinking about income reports for your massage business as well as goals in the new year to be more organized.

Bodywork Buddy can help. Our extensive reports features allow you to easily download everything you need.

Plus some awesome charts.
We love charts.

Yearly summary? We got that. Income statement? Yup.
Expense line item report? You got it. We could talk about reports all day long.... so really, let's just sum it up and say this will make tax time a breeze for your business.

Bodywork Buddy has a free 15 day trial, no credit card required. Zero risk to try it out. Decide it's not for you? No problem. The trial automatically expires after 15 days and no further action is needed.

Need help? We're here. 

*New Feature* Policies Now Appear in Emails as well as Microsite

Your company policies listed in your account settings (Dashboard > Account > Account Settings > Company Policies) have always been accessible on your scheduling Microsite via a link at the bottom.

Now they also appear on your appointment confirmation and reminder emails to clients.

Reinforcing your cancellation policy along with email and SMS reminders (features of Bodywork Buddy for no extra charge) can help to cut down on no-shows and last minute cancellations for your massage business.

Do you have a cancellation policy? What other ways do you find helpful to make sure clients are aware of your policies?

5 Tips to Boost Your Gift Certificate Sales This Holiday

5 tips to boost your sales of gift certificates this year:

1. Create packages or bundled services for an experience rather than just one service. Create more value with add-ons rather than discounting your services.
   
2. Have several gift options at different price points.
   
3. Email your list promoting your gift certificates. Be sure to write it from the angle of helping them with their gift giving rather than trying to sell something.
   Remember to use email etiquette. Not sure where to start? Check out our past post on email marketing.
   
4. Change your voicemail greeting to include info on gift certificates available.
   
5. Include a banner or image on the home page of your website about gift certificate promotions. 

Plantar Fascia Exercises Video

Here's a great video to share with clients suffering from plantar fasciitis.

Is Bodywork Buddy Right For Me?

Extensive reports available with Bodywork Buddy

There's a lot of different choices when it comes to online scheduling and practice management software. It's important to first consider what features are crucial for your needs. Not every system is going to be the right fit for you. (Much like with massage therapy where clients need to try out different therapists to find the right one for them.) Most online scheduling systems offer a free trial so you can do just this without any risk or commitment.

We find that most therapists can get a good feel for the system and if it's the right fit for them by signing up for the Bodywork Buddy free 15 day trial. But here's a list of some key features to see if it might be a good fit for your needs.


If you answer "Yes" to any of these, Bodywork Buddy may be right for you:

• I am a solo therapist with my own business 
• I only have 1 location
• I want clients to be able to schedule online from my website or Facebook page
• I want to track my income and expenses
• I want to automatically send email and text reminders to clients
• I want to automatically collect testimonials from clients
• I want to track sales and redemptions of gift certificates and packages
• I want to keep client files and notes including SOAP notes
• I want to sync my Bodywork Buddy calendar with my iCal and/or Google Calendar or other calendar
• I want to access my account from my smartphone or tablet as well as a desktop computer
• I want to easily see upcoming client birthdays, or what clients haven't been to me in X amount of time
• I want to have full customer support via live chat, email, 24/7 online help center, and phone at no extra charge

If you answer "Yes" to any of these, Bodywork Buddy is probably NOT the right fit for you:

• I want to process credit cards within my account, or require a credit card to make an appointment online
• I have multiple therapists
• I have multiple locations
• I want to schedule classes online with my scheduler
• I want to track sales and inventory of retail products
• I want a downloadable app on my mobile device to access when I don't have internet access

These are certainly not all of the features of Bodywork Buddy, but a few key things to think about when you're looking for an online scheduler and practice management system.

We strongly encourage you to signup for the free trial if you're interested in Bodywork Buddy to see if it's a good fit for your needs. There is no credit card required to signup, your 15 day trial will automatically expire if you choose not to continue with it. So there's no need to worry about remembering to cancel it, or worry that your card will get charged. 

While signing up for our trial will put you on our email list, you can unsubscribe from that at any time if you choose. 

We won't constantly call and harass you if you decide that Bodywork Buddy isn't right for you. 

We promise. ❤ 

And that's what we mean by risk-free. Your card won't get charged. We won't inundate you with unwanted phone calls and emails. 

We will, however, always be here if you have any questions or need any help.

Full Knowledge Base in Bodywork Buddy

We have a Help Center that is accessible 24/7 within your Bodywork Buddy account. Each section of the system has it's own category in the Help Center and is complete with video tutorials.

You can easily search for answers to your questions and lookup info at any time. Most articles include screenshots with step-by-step instructions to walk you through each area.

Still have questions or need some assistance? Our team is always here to help. Contact us on live chat, or send us a message (just click on the tab at the bottom right of the screen).

Apple Maps Connect

Apple quietly launched a new service called Apple Maps Connect earlier this week. Similar to Google My Business, it's a listings-based service that helps small businesses get found on Apple Maps.

If you'd like to add your business to Apple Maps Connect, it only takes a few minutes and is simple to do.

The blog Search Engine Land has a thorough post with screenshots walking you through the process. Check it out and add your massage business!

New Subscription Area Update

We've updated the subscription area within Bodywork Buddy!

The new updates include:

• Ability to keep more than one credit card on file (to avoid disruption in service if the first card transaction isn't approved)
• Transaction receipts automatically emailed each time your card is charged
• Easily change from one subscription plan to a different one at any time
• Other features that will enable us to add exciting new things in the future in the member area!

If you're a Bodywork Buddy member, you'll see a banner on your dashboard reminding you to update your billing information within the next seven days. Add a second card to your file to ensure there is no disruption of service in the future should the first card not be approved.

Have questions? Need assistance? Contact us! We're always here to help.

Thank you for being a member. We appreciate you so much!

Suite Spa

I was surprised when I came across this blog post by Massage Table Outlet highlighting a new trend in the spa industry taking place in my own backyard - Grand Rapids, Michigan.

The J.W. Marriott in Grand Rapids has started offering in-room spa services with the use of a newly designed cart to cater to this market.

If you often work with hotels in your massage business, maybe you've already heard of this.
While not all MT's work closely with that industry, the whole thing got me thinking:  how else can you create a niche or cater to a specific group for your massage business?

Get creative.  What area needs your services that aren't being targeted currently?  What groups interest you that you would like to work with more?

Post-Convention Post!

We had a great time in Denver at the AMTA National Convention. Thank you so much to those of you who came out, it was great to meet you!

Bailee Cavos won our drawing for a free year of Bodywork Buddy - congrats, Bailee!

We were so busy that we didn't even get many photos, but what a great experience.

Many thanks to AMTA for the convention, the Colorado AMTA for helping us all prep for Denver beforehand, and to everyone who participated this year.

Top right: Bodywork Buddy cofounder Cindy with fellow Ashiatsu DeepFeet instructors 

Jeni Spring of Texas, Nancy Delong of Oregon, and Pilar Hook of Florida.

Middle right: Bodywork Buddy cofounder Berin after setting up our booth.

Bottom right: Sharon Bryant of the Alabama chapter AMTA.

We also launched our new site design on the first day of convention. To kick off Summer, we had implemented a complete overhaul to our member area to our new mobile responsive design. (The feedback from our members has been amazing!) So this new design for the front end now matches the awesome insides of Bodywork Buddy.
If you've been thinking of checking out our free 15 day trial, now's a great time to signup!

AMTA Convention 2014

Are you going to the AMTA convention next week in Denver?

If so, we'd love to meet you! Stop by our booth #428 and say hi! Charge your devices and connect to our free wifi while you chat with us.

Register for a free trial of Bodywork Buddy while you're there and enter a chance to win a 1 year membership! (value $300)

If you haven't already, download this app from AMTA so you can easily access the schedule and map of the convention center along with other handy info. In Google Play / iTunes.

We can't wait to meet you!

Sincerely,

Berin & Cindy Iwlew

Founders

*NEW* Mobile-Friendly Bodywork Buddy

Last month, we implemented our new completely mobile-friendly user interface for Bodywork Buddy. The upgrade made it possible for our members to run their practice smoothly from a smartphone, tablet, or desktop computer. Registration is now open, signup and try it for free!

This upgrade includes many improvements from the previous mobile versions and is optimized and built specifically to run smoothly across all devices. The system is fully functional on mobile devices, allowing members to access all areas of their account - not just certain areas optimized for mobile - but the entire system.

Our member microsites underwent a mobile upgrade last Fall which enabled clients to be able to schedule with Bodywork Buddy members from their phones or tablets. Now with this latest upgrade to the member area, the system is fully functional on mobile devices.

No apps to download, Bodywork Buddy is accessible on your mobile device by opening your internet browser and going directly to www.BodyworkBuddy.com. Simple and quick!

We were thrilled to release it to our members and even more thrilled with their feedback!

According to studies, mobile use has now surpassed desktop use for internet access. Here at Bodywork Buddy, we're excited to be able to offer this awesome mobile functionality to our members.

• 2014: Mobile Internet users exceed desktop Internet users – see below (Morgan Stanley).

http://www.avoka.com/blog/2013/03/the-high-performance-digital-front-office/

Awesome Mileage Tracking App

I just discovered Mile IQ, and I'm loving it!

It automatically tracks your mileage on your phone. You don't need to remember to open the app up before heading out - just keep it running in the background on your phone and it records your trips.

You can go into the app at any time and classify your trips as business or personal, and each trip shows on a map so it's easy to remember what the trip was.

If you're self-employed, you probably realize the benefits of tracking mileage to claim as an expense on your taxes. Now there's finally a simple way to do it.

www.mileiq.com

Life Is Good

Everyone always loves the little massage-y guy "Life Is Good" image whenever we've posted it on social media before, so we thought we'd share where you can buy it on a Tshirt that would make a great massage office uniform!

Full Circle Bodyworks


Enjoy!

4 Quick Tips to Rebook Clients

1. Offer a complimentary add-on such as hot stones, hot towels, aromatherapy, foot or
back scrub, etc.

2. Email with openings for the week sent out on Sunday or Monday. 
Be sure to include a link to your online scheduler to make it as easy as possible for clients to schedule.

3. Offer tiered rates. 
For example: Monthly rate $65, biweekly rate $55, and weekly rate $45.

4. Ask them at the end of their appointment when they would like to schedule their next one!
This seems too simple, but many times all it takes is asking. Remember that clients are relaxed after their massage and may not be thinking about their calendar - likely to float right out of your office without remembering to schedule their next appointment.

Add Your "Schedule Online" Button To Your Email Signature

Adding your schedule button to your email signature can make it even easier for clients corresponding with you to schedule online.

How to add your "schedule online" button to your signature in your emails (this example shown for gmail).

From your dashboard in Bodywork Buddy, hover over Account > click Micro Site Info.

Left-click your mouse and scroll over the button image. (located under "extra stuff" at the bottom of the Microsite Info page).

Hold the "control" and "C" keys on a pc, or the "command" and "C" keys on a mac to copy the button and link.

Go to your email > click on the settings gear in the upper right corner of gmail > click on Settings.

From within settings > General > scroll down to Signature. Click within the text box, and then right-click your mouse. Click "paste". (Or click "control" and "v" on pc, or "command" and "v" on a mac.)

Click on the schedule button, and your microsite URL will pop up. 

Teacher Appreciation and Nurses Week

This week has two great marketing opportunities for your massage business. Teacher Appreciation and Nurses week are both this week in May.

While it's Tuesday and this week has already gotten started, it's not too late to send out an email to your clients to remind them that you have gift certificates available for purchase. Massage is a great gift to honor our teachers and nurses!















Haven't gotten started with email marketing yet? Check out these past blog posts for some ideas:
http://blog.bodyworkbuddy.com/2013/12/3-easy-tips-for-starting-your-email.html
http://blog.bodyworkbuddy.com/2013/08/the-7-deadly-sins-of-email-etiquette.html

Relationships

"Sometimes, the reason some things get done is because there's a relationship there."

This is something a friend of mine recently said in a discussion we were having about some big changes coming to the company she works for. The company just announced they are moving hundreds of jobs from their current location to another city 80 miles away. She was speculating on how things will change in their day-to-day operations when those jobs are not only in a new city, but are filled with people her department has never met. Starting over with no background, new people, to try and pick up where they left off with coworkers with a history of working together, a team... because of that relationship.

Her comment made me realize that all businesses are really about relationships. While it might seem obvious to some that a massage business is about building relationships with our clients, it actually wasn't that obvious to me when I was first starting out. I can remember being so stuck in a scarcity mindset and struggling on how to get clients that day that I didn't think much past that appointment and creating a long-term relationship with that client. I remember feeling scared to ask clients to schedule their next appointment because I didn't want to seem "pushy".

Now when I look at my massage practice and that some of my clients have been with me since the beginning, it's amazing. 15 years working with these people's tissues. Marriages, divorces, births, deaths... relationships. We've gone through all of these things together in our working relationship of massage therapist and client.

Clearly, there's a big difference between a working relationship in a corporate setting and the relationship that goes on between massage therapists and their clients. "Things get done" might seem a bit off topic... but the important take away from that is "there's a relationship there". Reaching out to clients in between their appointments or if you haven't seen them in a while, asking after their session when they would like to schedule their next appointment, remembering important dates or life events by keeping organized records/notes of your sessions... these things can make a difference in building that trusted relationship with your clients.

Cindy Iwlew is cofounder of Bodywork Buddy Massage Software, a complete online management solution for independent massage therapists that includes online scheduling. She continues to operate her own private massage practice of 15 years. www.BodyworkBuddy.com  

Important Changes for Yahoo Users

Last week, Yahoo quietly made a change to their email services that has affected most emails being sent from a third party on behalf of a Yahoo address. (For example: email reminders to your clients from your online scheduler).

Bodywork Buddy immediately emailed our members who use a Yahoo address to notify them of this change. Since this affects all third party services sending emails on your behalf, we wanted to let others in the massage industry know in case this affects you and your massage business.

To quote Yahoo:

Yahoo made a simple change to its DMARC policy from “report” to “reject”. In other words, we requested that all other mail services reject emails claiming to come from a Yahoo user, but not signed by Yahoo.

So what does this mean? If you're using a Yahoo account for your massage business, any emails from a third party online scheduling system will likely bounce and not be delivered. This affects all third party systems sending emails on behalf of your massage business, not just Bodywork Buddy. 

What's the solution? For now, the only real solution is to use a non-Yahoo address. Although there is speculation that this may start to be incorporated by other free email services as well. Your best bet? Use an email address from a private domain.

Here at Bodywork Buddy, we are encouraging our members with Yahoo addresses to change their account to a non-Yahoo address for the time being for clients to receive their reminders still shown as coming "from" their massage therapist. We will keep you in the loop on any changes regarding this issue with Yahoo. 

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact our team. We're here to help!




Sincerely,
Cindy Iwlew

How to Raise Your Rates

Are your rates too low but you're afraid to raise them? Worried you'll lose clients? Fearful you won't be able to compete with the massage chain down the street?

Check out this video with Mareo Forleo and Ramit Sethi on how to raise your prices.  I love the challenge Ramit gives at the end: write out 3-4 sentences of how you add value to your client's life. (Not to be confused with explaining or justifying your price increase!)

I asked on our Facebook page what helpful tips our fellow massage therapists have for raising rates, and Tracy Illchuk suggested advertising an increase a few months beforehand and offering a package bundle (3 massages) at the old price. (Thanks for the tip, Tracy!) I definitely think it's a great idea to let your clients know the increase is coming.

What would be your write-up of the value you add to your client's life?

Cindy Iwlew is co-founder of Bodywork Buddy Massage Software, a complete online management solution for independent massage therapists that includes online scheduling. 

She continues to operate her own private massage practice of 15 years.  www.BodyworkBuddy.com

Our Story & A Gift For You

https://www.facebook.com/NCBTMB

Over the weekend, the NCBTMB Facebook page posted a graphic about National Mom & Pop Business Owners day. It reminded me that while most massage therapist's businesses are "Mom & Pop shops", we are here at Bodywork Buddy, too! So I thought I'd tell you a little more about how Berin and I got started with Bodywork Buddy and why it's a labor of love for us.

I'm not a naturally organized person. I started my massage practice with my very unorganized ways... and it was fine, for a while. (Until I got busy.) And believe me, I really struggled in the beginning.

A lot of my blog posts here are drawn from what I have learned in my own massage business. I experienced for myself what works and what doesn't when trying to build a clientele. Once I did things like offer a unique service and online scheduling, I started to get really busy. I soon realized that it was going to quickly become a big mess if I didn't get organized and have set systems and processes in place. I was using about 4 different programs to run my business at that time. One for online scheduling, one for my website, one for client management, one for bookkeeping... half of those being desktop software that I could only access while at my office.

I know you're wondering...
It's pronounced "Eye-Loo".

Embarrassing confession: I would wait until the end of the year and then go through my whole appointment book and record the income into my bookkeeping system for taxes. (and by bookkeeping "system" I mostly mean paper.) What a mess! I wanted something that would make it easy for me to track my income, and make it effortless to stay on top of it and be organized. (This is why Bodywork Buddy will show you past due appointments that haven't been completed with payment information yet. Bodywork Buddy tells you that it still needs to be done! So you can't forget or wait until the end of the year to stay on top of it... not that you would do that, right? I just know that I would!!)

I wanted to make my life easier with more automated practices for my massage business. And to have all of these services in one easy program, accessible from anywhere with an internet connection.

on the left: my bookkeeper, Oscar.

So while all of this was going on with my massage business, my husband Berin was laid off from his development job. He'd been working remotely for a company in Los Angeles. They were acquired by another company, and brought in a couple of "Bob's" to make big cuts. (By big cuts, I mean pretty much everyone.) The only jobs available for his industry were in California or Texas at the time, and most were as independent contractors with not much security anyway. We didn't want to move since I had my massage practice here (and family, of course - Michigan is our home!). But we also didn't start Bodywork Buddy thinking "hey, if Berin can't find a job in his field then we'll just create one!".
It honestly started as him having the time on his hands, and my need for a solution. He was still doing some freelance work and looking for more permanent work while starting to build the system.
It was after he started building it that we thought "If I need this solution, maybe there are other massage therapists out there looking for the same thing!". And hence, Bodywork Buddy was born.

Bodywork Buddy has evolved since then from the features that I felt I needed and now includes many other features that our members have requested since our inception.


When massage therapists ask me what sets Bodywork Buddy apart from other online schedulers, I honestly think the biggest thing is that we're focused on the massage industry because we're in it. We're not some huge corporation or software company that has been started by serial entrepreneurs and investors. We didn't set out with the intent of being entrepreneurs. We're invested in this in a different way, with the love that we have for massage therapy (and Berin's love for coding). Also, unlike many software companies, self-taught cofounder Berin is also the software architect and has built the entire foundation of the system himself. It's hard to explain just how beneficial this is if you're not familiar with outsourcing software development. Let's just say: our developers aren't going to all of the sudden "not care" about updates or upgrades needed to the system. Our developers are the owners, we care with our blood, sweat, and tears... similar to the way that you care about your massage practice.

I love that not only has Bodywork Buddy helped me to organize my business, but I love even more that now we're helping other massage therapists get more organized and thereby become more successful in their massage business!

I can't express how awesome it is to hear things like this from our members:

"I am really enjoying Bodywork Buddy. It will be such a great resource for my massage practice. I am dyslexic and having everything in one place is such a gift. Everything from soap notes to being able to mark massages as trades. I have been bouncing around between booking sights for about a year. One of the biggest things that has not kept my business is that I just can't read them. This is NOT the case with Bodywork Buddy. I feel so grateful to have found this resource." [sic]       -Tisha R.  

It's been quite an adventure. And we're really glad you're part of it! As a thank you for being here, here's a free facebook timeline image. (many thanks to Ryan Hoyme of Hoyme Consulting for the massage images!) Just right click, and save image to download for your use.
















Thank you. I hope you didn't find this post too personal or boring. Or cheesy. It's very new for me to write from such a personal perspective. I just want you to know that I get how hard it is to build your massage practice from scratch. I've been there... and I'd love to help you build your business in any way I can.

Cindy Iwlew is co-founder of Bodywork Buddy Massage Software, a complete online management solution for independent massage therapists that includes online scheduling. 

She continues to operate her own private massage practice of 15 years.  www.BodyworkBuddy.com

My other bookkeeper, Raven.