How Do You Get New Clients?

When marketing what you do to get new clients, there are many potential approaches. When I was first entering the massage therapy world, I was told to make sure I had my “elevator speech” ready to go. If you’re not familiar with this concept, it essentially suggests that I should have a pre prepared short description of my work that explains it in such a way that any listener can understand it in a short period of time, like during a short ride in an elevator.

As clever as this idea sounds, the thought that I should be able to “pitch” my work in this way never really resonated with me. In fact, I have never really found that explaining what I do to potential clients to be very helpful or something that I could ever try to sum up in just a few sentences. What I do often changes depending on the needs of the client. Sometimes my work feels very clinical and physical. Other times my work feels very ethereal and profound.

So over the years, I’ve changed my strategy to discuss how I can help rather than telling someone what it is that I do in a general sense. To give this approach some structure I have set up a system where I have free 15 minute phone consultations with new clients. I break these 15 minutes up into three 5 minute sections:

The client describes the reason they are seeking my services
I let the client know if I can help and whether I have addressed similar issues before
I help them set up an appointment on my schedule

This phone consultation has a couple different benefits.

I can avoid wasting anyone’s time. Sometimes when a client calls I can tell right off the bat that they need to see a doctor first, wait a little bit longer to heal before coming to see me, or if they have an issue that is contraindicated with manual therapy.
I can give the client a chance to ask me any questions they may have without having to commit to a paid session.
We can get to know one another a bit first. It often feels like a quick opportunity for the client and me to get a sense of one another. This way when the new client walks into my office for the first time, we don’t feel like complete strangers.

As I mentioned before, there are a lot of ways to market yourself and bring in new clients. Not all of them will feel right for you, so sometimes you need to try out a few different options to find your best fit. I still find that in this world of social media and speedy advertising that connection and demonstrating my ability to listen are some of my most successful strategies in marketing myself.