how much marketing should I be expected to do?

[norah]

I'm currently working several different locations: a wellness center (mainly offers massage) 3-4 days/wk, a chiro office 1day/wk, and senior massage 1 day/wk in assisted living place. I also do about 2-3 massages from my office in my home per week. The chiro and senior massage are JUST beginning, so I have no idea of the volume I'll have. I started at the wellness center 6.5 months ago, right after I was licensed, and have been getting only about 2-4 massages per WEEK.

When I first started, the owner offered a "special" -- $35 massages (the regular rate is $65/hr). This offer only went out to existing client base. I was understandably crazy busy (20/wk) during the time the special ran (about 2 months), but since it ended, some of the clients have continued to see me on a regular basis (I have about 5 monthly clients), and as I said, I'm seeing about 2-4 clients per week. (the rest of the clients I saw during the special already had "fave" therapists, and only saw me because of the bargain --- which, I felt uncomfortable like it was 'stealing' those clients away from the other therapists, but they all seemed to understand that it was the owner, and not me, doing the special).

Here's my issue ... in the last 6 weeks, I've had the owner ask me at least 3 times about ME running another special (ie, coming up with the special, designing mailing, doing labels, etc), AGAIN to send to my "prior clients" (about 90).

Am I wrong for feeling that if she wants to increase revenue, she, as the owner, should be advertising to a larger population?? I'm only getting 40%, which isn't much of a problem for me, because I understand she has alot of expenses. I should also point out that I don't have a room 'dedicated' to me; we all come in and take whatever room's available (except for a couple who rent specific rooms). So I'm not taking up space that could be used by someone else to generate revenue for her. Additional info that may factor into your response: we provide all of our own sheets/laundry/lubricants. She provides the space/utilities/scheduling.

I'm feeling so much pressure to get my numbers up. I've talked to the other therapists, and ALL of them have been slow for July/August. She's not pressuring any of THEM to do their own advertising.

I have NO problem advertising for my own home business and the other locations I've got lined up, in fact I kind of enjoy that part.

I guess I'm just looking for a reality check: Am I getting too hung up on the 60% that she's getting, in thinking that I shouldn't have to do advertising, and that should be something she provides for the 60%??

Thanks for any input you provide!
Heidi

 

[G Marshall]

I started out both building my own business and working in a couple of other places. I quickly came to the conclusion that any money and any major time/creativity I put into marketing would be spent marketing my own business.

I now work only for myself.

That 60% should be a good incentive for HER to market her own business. There is nothing wrong with her asking you to market, and nothing wrong with you doing it. But it is her business and she will profit nicely from increasing her business. It's okay to politely decline. You don't even have to explain, or point out that the others are also in a slow time and are not being asked to do marketing. Just say no.

 

[Pompal 09.]

Rose,
I HAVE politely declined . . . SEVERAL TIMES! :? So the last time she approached me, I agreed to do it (about a week ago). Then she called me yesterday to ask how my postcard is coming along! :x So now I'm feeling *pressured* to do this thing, and I'm really beginning to resent it. Part of me thinks she's doing it to try to mentor and encourage me. What's happening, though, is I'm beginning to feel as if I'm "not good enough." I don't like feeling like that!!

I feel like I'm just whining now, but thought I'd share more of the story.

Thanks for the quick response, Rose.

BTW, the promotion I decided to do is a 15-min sugar scrub treatment for hands OR feet with their next massage. I don't want to "give away" any more money (in my time, anyway)!

 

[Kay]

I was an IC at one place and ran into this. Personally I feel that the reason she is getting more of the cut is that she provide certain things. One of them would be advertising . Clients that come into her place are her responsibility to pay for the advertising.

I paid for advertising for my own private clients. I actually got "burnt" by this situation in my IC experience with a salon/spa. They did not advertise me at all and the advertising was done by me. postcards, newsletters, etc. That is not how it should be. At the time I was naive and didn't realize it. They are getting more of the cut for a reason, in my opinion.

 

[joliesoleil]

Rose,
I HAVE politely declined . . . SEVERAL TIMES! :? So the last time she approached me, I agreed to do it (about a week ago). Then she called me yesterday to ask how my postcard is coming along! :x So now I'm feeling *pressured* to do this thing, and I'm really beginning to resent it. Part of me thinks she's doing it to try to mentor and encourage me. What's happening, though, is I'm beginning to feel as if I'm "not good enough." I don't like feeling like that!!

I feel like I'm just whining now, but thought I'd share more of the story.

Thanks for the quick response, Rose.

BTW, the promotion I decided to do is a 15-min sugar scrub treatment for hands OR feet with their next massage. I don't want to "give away" any more money (in my time, anyway)!

That is a good way to do a promotion. Huge discounts don't work, obviously, or the one she did would have worked...

Do you have to put all the money into the postcards, (ink, etc.) and poseforum.xxxe, or is she backing you and you are just putting it together?

If this works, great. If she keeps pestering you to do more, especially if it is a big expense, you might have to be blunt. I hate being blunt, but straightforward really does work best.

 

[kinky_scotty]

Rose (Sharon? ),
I'll find out today if they can be printed there, or if I am to pay for it, and also about poseforum.xxxe. I think if the printing/poseforum.xxxe is on my dime, I might tell her I have to reconsider.

Thanks again for the input!

Heidi

 

[Enver]

Duh, I just noticed your signature says "Sharon" ... all this time (I've lurked a long time here) I thought your name was Rose!! :

 

[SCyy S]

Duh, I just noticed your signature says "Sharon" ... all this time (I've lurked a long time here) I thought your name was Rose!! :

It's okay, I had no idea how confusing that would be - but I have just learned to answer to either name LOL.

 

[nicole-kellie]

Either she should be paying for this advertising, or she shouldn't be pressuring you to run a special. Period.

 

[Savana]

I wouldn't do this if I were you. It's a matter of valuing your time. If the owner can't provide enough clients to make the contract worth your time, then perhaps you'll want to start looking for other places to work.

When the place I first started working at put postcards in all the MT mailboxes with a note instructing us to place them in the entryways of various local businesses, I just put them back in the owners' box. Wasn't in my contract; fortunately, I was never forced to assert that fact. The postcards were forgotten about.

Meanwhile, any outside time I had was devoted to marketing my own business, not someone else's. Spend your time and energy on getting to the point where you don't need to split the income with someone else

 

[star_lite57]

Sheb and Ego,
Thanks for the affirmation! I wasn't sure if I was just being whiny for feeling this way. For other reasons (distance from my home, for example), I've been considering cutting ties with this anyway, and it's not like I'd be losing much with 2-4/wk!! :roll:

I'll have to think on that some more, and decide if the aggravation from the owner is worth it. I still haven't clarified with the owner if she's expecting me to pay for the printing/poseforum.xxxe, or if she is. I had only a quick second with her between clients to show her the design I came up with (I simply modified a promotion I had come up with for my own business! : ), and she definitely liked what I had done.

I hope I won't regret saying this (please be gentle!) but I'd appreciate hearing some perspective from the "business owners" in the group (RelaxandRejuvenate?).

Heidi

 

[Jeanmarie]

an update on this situation ...

I told the owner that I decided to not run a promotion. She then told me that because I was not going to 'work' to build a practice there, that I would not be given any "new" clients. She did it all in a very nicey-nice way, ya know "thank you for being honest with me about your intentions, so I'll be honest with you ... blah blah blah". She ended the conversation by promising me that, though I would get no new clients, she would not 'take away' any of my existing regulars (at that point, I had about 7). Even though my home practice has been picking up nicely, and I'm adding some other IC work (a chiro office and a senior center!), I decided I would continue there with my regular clients because I'm in the very early seforum.xxxes of my MT career, and 7 regular clients means alot!

I did feel it was unfair, because there is another therapist there who had less client volume than I did, who was not running a promotion, and who hadn't been told she would get no new clients. t017

Wait, it gets worse...

Last week, I had to reschedule one of my reg clients (for an appt in mid-Nov), so I called from the Spa's phone and left a message on client's machine offering alternative days and requesting a call back (to the spa) to let us know what time slot she'd like. I got a call a few days later from the spa office girl, saying that in the future if I need to communicate with clients, to have the office girl make the calls [WTF??? I can't communicate with my own clients???] ... I could tell from her voice that the owner was behind it, and she called me back a few days later to apologize and to explain that it WAS the owner behind it.

That's when she gave me the news that would change everything ...

The spa owner had ordered the office girl to call each of my regular clients (but nobody else's clients) and offer them a FREE massage from her newest therapist. Mind you, she's already running an almost-half-price special for the new therapist, but this is an all-out attack against me!

Needless to say, I've written up my letter notifying her that I'm terminating our verbal IC agreement (that was the owner's choice -- I brought an IC agreement for us to negotiate, and she never wanted to finalize it -- and it mostly wouuld have protected her anyway). I wrote two versions of the resignation letter: (1) the brief, concise, businesslike letter of resignation, and (2) the letter I wish I could send! t013

This long-winded post is just to say that I'm glad that I followed my heart and the advice of the posters who responded to my OP, advising me to NOT put time/effort into building someone else's business!! My private practice is flourishing nicely (new referrals each week, and most rebook!). My best 'revenge' will be the success of my private practice.

P.S. I changed my user name from SunsetSeniorMassage to Ding because my practice is not as focused on senior massage as I thought it would be, so it seemed inaccurate!

 

[Jessica F]

I think you did the right thing by "moving on"... it does sound like these offers of free massages to Your clients are a personal insult towards you.
Perpetual bargains are only good for the clients... not the MTs.
I applaud you for venting in a letter you will never send to her.
When I quit the salon I had been working at (about 3.5 years ago)... I gave them a very brief letter also. (I was also an IC.)
I think it's always best to handle it in the best most professional manner you can, and try as hard as you can to keep emotions out of it.
Wishing you much success now that you're "on your own!"

 

[biswajit g]

I'll be quick...I'm with Ego here. Any advertising you do should be put towards you not having to work for anyone else.....to your own business. Plus, any time you start feeling pressured or stressed, you're not going to do your best work. And isn't one of the reasons that we all came into massage was to put out our best work? You definitely handled the situation more calmly than I might've. I have little patience for people who act ignorant or who have no class or professionalism.

Even though you will still get stressed "on your own" it is still so much more fun and satisfying to be on your own and definitely worth the headaches.

 

[Alayna]

Good move, Heidi! Congratulations on your business picking up. Your promotional work is in the right place - your own business - now!

 

[Basit]

Yeah, good move - be proud of yourself that you saw that coming! Good luck!

 

[BADNESS]

You guys are the best!! Thanks so much for the support and encouragment! :woohoo: