Introduction to Business Development for Therapists

Your Motivation

Marketing

Advertising, Promoting and Selling your services

... ways in which you could further expand your portfolio ...

Your Motivation

Motivation is the first item on this list because it is THE MOST IMPORTANT !

You are unlikely to succeed commercially as a therapist if you are only vaguely interested in doing so.

Different things motivate different people at different times so it is often helpful to examine our motives so that we are truly and conciously working with our fundamental desires, which is a very satisfying process.

So, if you have not already done so, gain maximum conscious clarity about what you want to achieve as a therapist and why !

Here are some common examples:

All of the above are frequently mentioned among groups of therapists and students training to become therapists but not all of these are likely to apply to any one person !

It is important to understand your own, personal motivation, so ...

Write your own lists, and refer back to them whenever you need to re-focus or motivate yourself.
Be specific about financial and other objectives.

Marketing

From a business perspective "Marketing" is NOT just about placing advertisements for new customers; that comes later ...

"Marketing" means developing and maintaining a thorough awareness of the possible "Market Places" (categories of customers) for your products and/or services. It is primarily an analytical activity that should be a conscious and stategic aspect of all businesses, however small.

Successful Market Analysis begins with asking the right questions about the business you wish to develop.
In the case of therapists, such questions might include:

The answers to questions such as these should help you to define your target client base.
For example, you may be willing to travel to give treatments - but not to travel to each client individually, and in addition, you may prefer to work normal office hours. If this is the case, then focussing on gaining Corporate Work (Massage and other On-Site treatments in workplaces such as offices) may be ideal for you.

One way or another, do define exactly the type of clients you would like to work with BEFORE considering how best to promote your services. (Otherwise, even successful advertising/promotion may only "succeed" in attracting clients who want treatments when you are unavailable or do not want to work !)

Advertising, Promoting, and Selling your services

Once you have clearly defined your preferred type of client(s), it's time to form your strategy for getting their business.

First, they must be informed about you, your products/services, and associated terms of business (including hours of work, prices and so on).
Informing others about your products/services is the area of Advertising and Promotion. This can take many forms. Approaches that are commonly used by therapists include:

Consider the cost-effectiveness of your promotional strategies in terms of your time as well as in terms of cash.
For example, placing a newspaper advertisement will cost a fixed amount of money but probably very little of your time. Conversely, distributing leaflets through letterboxes in your area will cost money in various ways (such as printing costs, or the costs of paper and ink if you do this yourself) PLUS probably very considerable time delivering the leaflets if you hope to reach a large number of people.

Adopt a strategy that includes more than one promotional approach because the timing of responses may be different for different approaches.

For example, some approaches are likely to result in most business immediately if at all (that is, they will have a low-probability of success at a later date and without further effort from you).

Examples may include visits to potential clients (Football/Rugby Clubs etc.) and distributing fliers through letterboxes. Whereas other approaches may be less likely to result in a large number of clients immediately, but once set-up will be seen by many people over a period of time and so may continue to supply you with new enquiries - even at the times when you are too busy to spend your TIME promoting yourself.

Examples of approaches of this type include advertisements in the press that run regularly (e.g. every week), notices in local shops that remain in place for some time, and internet presence (as long as the search engines actually find you - so do check this after a few weeks).

Next, consider how much information to supply about your product/service.
For example, can you assume that your target market (hoped-for clients !) will know what "Reiki" is, or do you need to include descriptions and explanations of the words you use ?

Don't forget that Advertising has two functions:

With both of the above in mind, but especially (2), pay attention to how you present yourself and your business on all of your promotional materials, including your business cards.

Projecting a professional image makes a difference !

Examples of how to do this include:

All of the above are simple ways of guarding your valuable credibilty and professional reputation.

Ways to expand your Business Portfolio

.
Your treatments can have the effect of changing people's lives for the better - which may be achieved by "just" relieving stress, or in more obvious physiological ways (as may be evident in the cases of Sports Massage and Manual Lymph Drainage, for example).

One consequence of this is that your clients may seek your advice on other related subjects, such as relaxation, concentration, weight loss (or gain), maintaining suppleness, and so on - depending on your specialism/skills/interests.

Ways to expand your business portpolio may include:

Offering or Recommending Products

This is an opportunity for you to offer a better and more complete service to your clients by also being able to offer them specific products that meet their needs, some of which may also enhance the benefits of your treatments in between sessions.
This is a genuine service, and not just a sale, when you have invested your time and expertise to study, understand, and be able to recommend appropriately. This is especially true in the cases of products that are not easily available from supermarkets, chemists, and other similar retail outlets.

Examples include:

Some of the above suggestions involve producing products yourself within your own existing sphere of competence, whereas others invlove participation with organisations that supply the product(s), train you, and help you to derive increased income from recommending and supplying appropriate products to others.

If in doubt about your competence or insurance to supply any particular products, check with your insurer and (if applicable) the supplier of the product(s).

If you are interested in supplementing your treatments by training in and offering appropriate products, research all the possibilities you can find. This is not just essential research in order to make your decision about which opportunity to pursue. More importantly, your knowledge of the alternatives to whatever you choose is also valuable to you and your clients.

Teaching your Skills to Others

Not everyone wants to teach others, but those who do can extend benefits to an even larger group of people (through the treatments given by their students) than they could ever achieve by their own treatments alone.

Obviously it is important to begin by gaining considerable experience in your chosen field.
Then, when you feel ready to do so, consider teaching others in a small way first - perhaps with a group of interested friends. There are many courses available to help you develop your teaching skills and to gain certification as a Further/Adult Education Teacher.

Among the most common examples of therapists becoming teachers of their healing skills are Reiki Practitioners becoming Reiki Masters and then holding workshops to teach Reiki to small groups of people in informal surroundings.
Other examples include the increasing number of therapists who also run short (non-accredited) introductory courses at Adult Education or Community Learning Centres. This may also be a great way to meet new clients !

Teaching others can have many spin-off benefits for you, such as: