Upon graduating from massage or bodywork school, the majority of professional touch therapists know a significant amount of information about anatomy and physiology, the art and science of touch and how to go about beginning their careers in this healing profession. However, what a large number of these practitioners may not know enough about is the business side of massage and bodywork.
For those massage therapists and bodyworkers who go to work in a spa, resort, massage franchise or any other sort of large scale practice, in which they are an employee, knowing about business may not be as pressing. In these scenarios, there is usually a corporate structure in place to take care of the various elements of business, such as accounting, marketing, management of personnel and so on.
For the many massage therapists and bodyworkers who are in private practice, the business side of this healing industry is far less “cut and dry.” In situations where a massage therapist or bodyworker is practicing alone or perhaps even managing other practitioners, there will be a need for business knowledge.
Fortunately, what one may not have learned in massage or bodywork school is available through continuing education. There are all kinds of continuing education classes that focus on business topics, from marketing and accounting to management and more. Even better, these continuing education classes are geared specifically toward massage therapists and bodyworkers.
For instance, a continuing education course on marketing for massage therapists and bodyworkers likely would provide students with basic templates for beginning a marketing campaign. These might include pamphlets, press releases and other such materials that could be customized to the student’s practice and then distributed in his or her local community.
Such a course might also teach massage therapists and bodyworkers about the benefits of personal networking, and how to go about building a better business network day by day. Tips for giving presentations about massage and bodywork and other methods of getting one’s name out into the community might also be explored during a course on marketing for massage therapists and bodyworkers.
This kind of class may be the perfect fit for the touch therapist in private practice who is looking to bring more clients into her business. Continuing education on the topic of marketing might also help the massage therapist or bodyworker who runs a practice with multiple employees. In either case, these courses are meant to help you bring in more clients and boost your bottom line.
This is one example of the kinds of business classes available to massage therapists and bodyworkers in the world of continuing education. Of course, there are also classes on all sorts of other business topics, so take your time as you explore the right continuing education course for your practice.
If you live in a state or region where the massage and bodywork profession is regulated and continuing education is required, make sure your chosen continuing education course is approved by the governing board to count for credit.
–Brandi Schlossberg