how to start?

[ebears]

I have been doing outcall massage with no luck. I am wanting to get a job working somewhere, at this point anywhere. lol My question is how can you get started somewhere with no clients and no funds to rent a room?

I have a list of local massage places(most single therapists), chiros, gyms, etc and working up the nerve to go to these places to see if they could find a place for me to pratice. Thing is I am worried about getting enough clients to cover funds for renting a room. Thought maybe working a deal to give $10 for each hour and $5 for each half hour until I reached the monthly rental fee, but what if I can't get enough clients at first. Plus I saw on some threads about this might be considered kickback.

Any help or advice would be great. Also some courage to get my rear in gear to start my search. he he

 

[ShAdOwGiRl:[]

Surely there are some places you can work as an employee or independent contractor rather than as a renter?

 

[Ramsgate]

Welcome to the forums!

Sometimes schools will let you rent a room by the hour or by the client. You might want to check there.

Also, there are a few threads regarding working from your home/apt. A search should pull these up.

 

[beachchick]

Bring a resume in to Spas, salons & chiro offices in your area. There may be places where you can start as an employee (giving 50% or so to the business and keeping 50 for yourself) and perhaps transition into being a room renter/ independant contractor.

 

[Lunacy]

Wanting to avoid being an employee, but you may be right have to start somewhere.

Rent a room from a school? What kind of schools are you talking about? Never heard of this concept before. And thanks for the welcome.

I have several resumes printed up and ready to hand out.

Thanks for the advice.

 

[Jsgirl]

A massage school would be the likely place to look first.

 

[Sgt. Snarky]

Do you mean a massage school for job postings? I have talked to the school I went to about their job postings and they are all in OKC and not wanting to drive that far to work. I have searched for a while and all available massage jobs I find posted are to far away from me. Seems I live in a black hole when it comes to massage.

 

[Honeyeyes]

I rent a room. I had no clients started off. Do you work somewhere else for some income? I was working full-time in retail, and I dropped down to part-time, so I'd still have that extra income to help with paying rent. I also now started working at the spa as an employee two days a week answering the phone and doing laser procedures (they still let me do massages if I have any those days, I just have to be "off the clock"). This way I can be at the spa more often and could drop more hours at my retail job. I am now getting closer and closer to being able to quit my retail job. It is hard, but if you really want to make it as an IC, you can do it!

 

[YUM YUM]

Thanks for the encouragement. No, I don't have another job right now.

I was a stay at home mom that went to school to become a massage therapist. I did work before my kids were born but had no desire to go back to that line of work.

 

[Top Cat]

You can do this! It's a little overwhelming at first. Up until tomorrow (hehe) (tomorrow is my last day) I rent(ed) a clinic room as an IC at the massage school I went to. It was a decent deal; they booked your appts for you, got you new clients, made all the confirmation calls, etc. You set your hours and days. You take days off when you want. All you had to do was show up with your sheets, oil, blankets, essential oils, and bolsters. They supplied the room, music, and table. Of course, with this, came much lower school pricing, and off the top you paid a portion for rent. I had no problem paying rent, it was the fact that the pricing itself was very low and it attracted a casual clientele that wasn't so serious about massage. However, it wasn't a bad deal--I stayed there nearly 3 years, which is probably the longest I've worked ANYWHERE.

I used the school as supplemental income until I built enough of a regular clientele to get out on my own. We fixed up a room in our home. The floorplan is perfect for having clients over; no trapsing through a bedroom or kitchen. The studio is used JUST for massage, it's professional and ambient and it looks great We don't really advertise or have a lot of community connections (we've been in school since the beginning of time and we do zero networking LOL), but we've still managed to get where we are and for that we're thankful You can do this too!

Don't sell yourself short; don't undervalue yourself or your TALENTS, and don't cling to something horrible out of desperation. You WILL get what you want when the time is right--which will probably be soon

Good luck!
Hugs,
~Jyoti

 

[toughcountryfucker]

I would not give up too soon. There is a niche for you out there. Sometimes it takes a little searching and persistence. If you make the extra effort you will be successful. You have to go a step further than everyone else. Those who persevere are ultimately successful. See that hump as the ramp to your succes since you will be the one to walk up it while others stay behind.

I do not know about your particular location so it's hard to say what your specific options are. But I assume there are people out there. Start with your all your friends and aqaintances. Make sure they all know what you are doing and that you want clients. Remind them over and over again. Get yourself some free business cards from Vistaprint dot com and make sure they all have a few. Remind them on a regular basis. Send out an email every 2 weeks. Determine the 5 people in your life know who are the go-to folks for news and good advice. Give them a free massage and ask them for 2 referrals.

Give other people a good reason to refer you. Concierge/front-desk person at your local hotel $5 for each referral. Offer a chiropracter a commission for every client he or she refers. ($10? tack it on to your price.) I'm sure you can come up with other ideas.

I would not rent a room. You should establish yourself first. If you are having difficulty finding clients it probably means your need to tweak you communication and methodology. Once you have a client base you can start renting. If you can find a place where you can be on call that pays a commission that would work. Plaster your town with flyers. Be the most visible massage therapist. Be different. Offer solutions to existing problems.

Establish a niche. Meaning address a special need no one else does. Elderly, pregnancy, pre and post natal, obese, infant, illnesses, cancer survivor, traveler, mother, construction worker, flight attendant, waitor, computer worker etc. everyone has their own unique issues from time to carpal tunnel. Position yourself to address these problems and mention it in your flyers. Did I mention offer solutions rather than promoting yourself. What kind of work did you do before? You have distinct knowlege of the issues there and you probably still know people.

Build your business one client at a time. Remember you have a wonderful gift to offer.

 

[Quicksand]

Do you mean a massage school for job postings?

Pueppi said "Sometimes schools will let your rent a room by the hour or by the client."

You said "Rent a room from a school? What kind of schools are you talking about?"

I said "A massage school."

 

[newvisionjds]

Give other people a good reason to refer you. Offer a chiropracter a commission for every client he or she refers. ($10? tack it on to your price.)

Be careful with this as it can be considered a kickback.

 

[Mucky pup]

Rent a room from a school? What kind of schools are you talking about?

As BJB-LMP said... a massage school was what I was talking about.

 

[Kriky]

Give other people a good reason to refer you. Offer a chiropracter a commission for every client he or she refers. ($10? tack it on to your price.)

Be careful with this as it can be considered a kickback.

I am cuirous what is your issue with this? You would not be doing anything illegal.. I would consider it a service if another professional recommends someone. In fact I always ask for a recommendation. I'm sure the professional will recommend only those who reflect positively on themselves. And to reward that extra effort, I think, is a positive gesture.

 

[wellhithere]

spapro, it may be different in some states but i am pretty sure we learned in school here in WA. that it is considered a kick back to do something to intice a chiro like that and is not legal. We also where told not to have a DC bill your services thru their provider # but i know thats done all the time. So everyone does not follow the straight and narrow.
sorry off topic.

 

[RedSheepHerder]

Kickback in Oregon too.

 

[Pompal 09.]

hmm, looks like the kickback issue is true for some states and massage laws. So doctors and their wives can golf and spa sponsored by Cough Sirup....

But back to topic, I would still encourage joint ventures with businesses that have a client base that could be receptive to massage. If "kickback" is too gray, maybe another form of collaboration is possible. How about: I come into your hairsalon and do some chair massage on your clients while they wait and you feature me in your next newsletter and advertise at your front desk? It's all about give and take. You could partner with:
Hair Salons, Yoga Studios, Nail Salons, Chiropracters, Orthopedic Docs., Plastic Surgeons, Gyms, Fitness Studios, Health Food Stores, Heart Disease Centers, Hotels, Motels, Campground, Cabbies...

If I had nothing going on in my massage business, I'd be out there pulling every angle. What to lose?

 

[Joshua S]

I rent(ed) a clinic room as an IC at the massage school I went to.

a massage school was what I was talking about

Never see that around here. The students do all the massage work at the school I went to. Plus the closest school to me (the one I attended) is a 45 minute drive.

I want to thank everyone for their advice, encouragement and some new ideas.

Jyoti ~ I want to say congrats on your new venture and wish you much success!

 

[Heidi S]

Okay, I am going to try to say this in the least amount of typing!!

I apologize in advance if I repeat anything anyone else has stated above.

In order for you to run your own private practice the #1 thing you are gonna need to be is a PEOPLE PERSON!

If you are at all shy, you won't make it. Personality along with great techniques and going to take you where you want to be.
Start with all family and friends
Send out a formal announcement of your business to everyone you know.
They need to know that you exist now and are ready for their business.

Next, you need to walk into every salon, chiro, pt office etc... and introduce yourself and your business. Offer the owners a sample of your work.


Absolutely join a networking group. Heck join 2 or 3 to get started. There are many that are affordable and sometimes free. check out your local newspaper.

It takes a lot of work to have your own practice. However, it pays off big time if you committ yourself and be consistant with getting involved with people and activities.

I could go on and on and on and on, because it takes so many of these things in combination to get things going.

I am sure I missed a bunch of other things too.