Since March 2020 our wonderful therapy world has been severely reduced by COVID restrictions and lockdowns. Globally all countries have been affected one way or another, with self-employed therapists experiencing long periods of no income, causing low morale and financial hardship.

Sadly, for some this has resulted in shutting up shop for good. The knock-on effect has seen some excellent and highly experienced therapists and therapy schools cease practice.

In Hospices, Hospitals and Cancer Centres, therapy services were either stopped altogether or severely reduced.

This meant we could not continue to offer relaxation, reduce stress and improve quality of life for our clients, many of whom were isolated through non covid related illness or mental health conditions.

We have missed seeing our wonderful clients and offering the benefits of our treatments to them. We have worked hard alongside National Therapy Associations to implement safe practices and to comply with the constant Government changes and requirements. Despite all the best efforts of so many therapists and therapy associations to move with these changes, lots of therapies were not being seen as ‘essential services.’

Depending on where you are in the world, therapies have opened with safe practices in place and Complementary Therapy Services in hospices, hospitals and cancer centres are building once again.

Which brings me to the question – how do we share ideas for building back our businesses and promoting the benefits of our services to clients and healthcare fields once again?

I would like to kick this off with some approaches I have used in the past. In 1998 I set up my business offering Massage and Reflexology and like most newly self-employed therapists I was short on income but had time to invest in promoting my services. Questions I asked myself and which apply equally as well today are:

  1. Does your marketing material need an update? What does your brochure say about you and your services?
  2. Are all your professional memberships included along with your insurance status? This demonstrates your professionalism, as we have with our  Therapists Register.
  3. Have you thought of expressing your vision? Create a vision statement and put it out there. It should embody who and what you represent and will resonate with the clients right for you.
  4. Who is your client base? Are you wishing to branch out into other fields? Write down who you want to attract and what health areas you would like to work in.
  5. Have you trained sufficiently in the area you wish to work in? If you require further training and experience in certain health fields, research appropriate training and how to gain experience in that field. You may be able to volunteer your services in return for guidance and experience. I created a ‘Clinical Practice Pathway’ where therapists training in cancer care can gain confidence and experience under a Clinical or Complementary Therapy Lead under the umbrella of a ‘respectful exchange of skills.’ You can read more about this initiative here.
  6. Do you have a peer or mentor you can bounce ideas off? If not, why not join a local business club? You will meet people from all kinds of business with experiences and connections to share – this can often lead into an avenue of work you hadn’t thought to evolve in.
  7. How do you sell your business? Research the different pathways on how you can access and connect with your chosen field and how to approach organisations. Explore each field and note the head of departments and contact details.
  8. Create professional documents for organisations such as:
  9. A one-page document with your name, business details, qualifications, insurance, professional status with links to where that can be verified & to professional code of conduct.
  10. Write covering letters aligning how your therapies and services will bring value to their organisation and workforce.
  11. Package the above with your literature as an introduction to your services.
  12. Brainstorm where you can promote what you do at low cost. At the beginning of my business, I offered taster sessions of Indian Head Massage once a month at the Body Shop and a company called Holland & Barratt (a health store). This was in effect only 4 hours of my time once a month on a Saturday, which was prime time for customers. I was not selling any products, only my services which complimented both these businesses. I contacted local radio stations and papers to let them know I was offering ‘free’ taster sessions. I did this for approximately a year and made some amazing lifelong clients this way.
  13. Demonstrations and talks are always a great way to meet local people and get your business known. You could offer to do this at healthcare events such as promoting mental health, women’s health, cancer care etc or Women’s Institute groups. At times there would be a presenter’s fee and other times not, but I usually ended up with at least one new client from them.

I hope some of these ideas have stimulated and renewed your enthusiasm for building back your business. It is a lot of hard work starting from scratch again and I appreciate there is so much more to be explored, but I have always found that sharing ideas and approaches benefits everyone.

Please share your experiences, what worked for you and how you approached the field you love working in. It’s good to share