Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Why Doing Groupons & Other Deal Sites is Like a Crack Addiction for Massage Therapists

  THIS is exactly what I have been preaching about discounted massage services for years now.  Thanks for posting this~

 


Run a deal. Big check arrives. Oooh, lots of customers! Money dwindles. Rent falls short. Desperation sets in. Must run another deal! Big check arrives. Oooh, lots of customers! Money dwindles. Bills do not get paid. Desperate move. Must run another deal!

This just in. A new form of addiction has been spotted. “Dealaddiction”. Has your business been hurt or affected by Dealaddiction?

Dealaddiction is a serious form of addiction characterized by heavy doses of discounted services, high advertising costs and very little return on investment, while being stimulated with the “highs” of bulk payouts. The effects of Dealaddiction are starting to reveal themselves in the form of desperation among massage therapists that use them, who keep getting sucked back in to run a deal. Similar to a crack addiction, Dealaddiction has demonstrated limited lifespan of a business and an unsustainable business model. Side effects include poor cash flow, decreased amounts of revenue and high advertising costs. Life span is significantly reduced.
It’s very easy to want to take the shortcut and be tempted with the high volume of sales of vouchers. It’s even more tempting to run another deal when you’re seeing funds in your bank account in the thousands or tens of thousands of dollars. Don’t be fooled. This addiction has only one path – business destruction.
The only treatment for Dealaddiction is of the cold turkey variety. When you stop conditioning customers to wait for a deal in order to come in to see you for a massage, they will have to start paying your regular price. Some of you may have the mindset that they’ll just go find another massage therapist with a deal. That may be true to an extent… but what if EVERYONE in this industry stopped offering them as a collective group?
This post needs to go viral. As an industry, we can stop working with deal sites altogether and go back to basics. Share with your massage therapist network!
Running constant deals with companies like Groupon, DealChicken, LivingSocial, et al may in fact bring in customers and big payouts. However, it’s not a sustainable business model to continuously offer deals time and time again in order to keep massaging people and living off of the tips. The likelihood and rate of return for deal site customers has already piqued and is dwindling. Massage therapists are just not seeing the return business that we first saw when the deal site companies started launching.
It’s simply not sustainable. It’s like having a crack addiction. Eventually, when you inhale enough vouchers and deals, your business will overdose and die. It’s as simple as that. The only way to stop your business from dying is to go back to the basics – yes, where you actually had to craft carefully-worded advertising pieces, pound the pavement and use the postal service. No more instantaneous “fixes” from the deal sites. Remember – without massage therapists making deals, the deal sites do not make any money. Have any idea how much of the market the massage & spa industry represents on their bottom line? HUGE. We actually, collectively, have the power to tank their entire enterprise!
This is not an easy process. It requires work and effort, and a strong resistance to the addiction. It may also require you to make an investment into your advertising, as well as perhaps not taking as much out of the business as you might have been for personal draws. Need a sponsor or group therapy? You’re in the right place. The Facebook page at ThrivingMassageBiz.com has been a great resource for massage therapists to get ideas to grow their business, and can help even the most deal-indebted massage business owner recover.
Ready to go back to basics? Check out “My Brothers & Sisters in Arms: Developing the Clients You Want“. There are a lot of how-to’s and do’s and don’ts on targeting and attracting the ideal clients for your business… particularly clients that will pay your full rate. <They do exist!>
This business owner? Officially Groupon-free and proud!

The End.

PS – If you’ve ran a deal before with a deal site, can you relate to this post in wanting to constantly get more and more big checks and more and more clients? Share your experiences about success/failures with your deal site runs. We’re a nonjudgmental group here, so you’re in a safe zone. <phew!>

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Heard This Week on the Massage Table

Client:  "Well, do you have any energy left for me?"
Me:  "You are in luck.  You are my FIRST client today so I have LOTS of energy for YOU."
Client:  "I think I'm scared now."


Client:  "Can you do some of that neck stuff?  I told my buddy that it felt like my head was going to pop off but it was sooooo gooooood."


Me:  "I love Downton Abbey.  Grandmama Violet is my favorite because she is so funny and blunt."
Client:  "I like her too but don't you think Lady Mary is a BITCH?"


Client:  "You know when I booked this appointment I didn't know what to expect so I only did a 60 minute massage, because I have had massages in the past that I was actually wishing for the massage to be over already.  Now that I am here and liking this.....I am wishing my time wouldn't end!"