While you should be marketing your business year-round, the holidays provide a great opportunity to promote your massage business. Let’s face it: most people are very stressed during the holiday season, and with the current economy stress levels are high to begin with. So what better way to offer your services and help your clients — and you — get into the holiday spirit than offering 5-minute stress relief?

Chair Massage is a great way to promote yourself.

One of the best ways to market your business and give potential clients a sampling of your technique is to offer chair massage. Setting up your chair in a local coffee shop of a New Age shop could be the perfect way to let people know what you can do. Many therapists charge $1 to $2 a minute, and offer a standard routine of 5 or 10 minutes.

Another option is to offer free massage at events such as sporting events, fairs, and conventions. In this case, you will need permission to use the following marketing techniques.

The beauty of this is that the costs are minimal. You will want to make arrangements with shop owners ahead of time so they can promote your services. Even if your computer skills are minimal, it’s a simple matter to print up some flyers, either tailored to each venue or one standard flyer with the date in large letters at the bottom. You will also want to stock up on brochures and business cards to hand out. You can also sell gift certificates at the same time, boosting the sales potential.

Another thing to have on hand is intake sheets. Have each client fill one out, giving you a good start on a mailing list. This will also give you the basic information you need to offer the best massage. You might also want to consider making up a large vinyl sign to hang in the window or above your chair on the day of the event. Office supply stores carry several different kits that will help you design and print large, waterproof signs. Depending the site, you may also want to print to signs and attach them at the top to create a sandwich board. All materials — signs, flyers, brochures and cards — should have your business name, phone number, and website. You can also offer a bottle of water to each client, with your business card taped to the bottle.

Now that you’ve got clients lined up …

What’s next? Give each client your undivided attention. In this kind of environment, there will be plenty of distractions, so do your best to ignore them and focus on the massage. Even if you have a standard routine, spend a little extra time on the clien’ts problem. Unless you have clients lined up waiting, offer a few minutes of “free” extra massage.

Future articles will offer some standard chair massage routines to get you started. In the meantime, these links offer great information on chair massage:

The Bodyworker.com offers theory and practice for therapists.

Chair Massage is For You is devoted to many aspects of chair massage, from promotion to routines.

Other articles in this series:
7-Minute Chair Massage Routine
Adding Hand and Arm Massage to Your Routine