Gift Ideas to Give Your Massage Clients this Christmas

Dec 2, 2016

Personalising your client experience during a massage has long been one of the best ways to differentiate a clinic or individual practitioner. A small gratuity, personalised service, a focus upon your client as an individual – each of these things reflect a desire to offer a service that makes somebody feel relaxed and cared.

Beyond small touches that you should always strive to include, such as trying to remember information about the client (names of children/significant others, job titles, etc), a material gift can work wonders to make your business memorable.

The holidays can be a stressful time, with clients preparing for upcoming festivities and needing to wind down after the end of year rush at work. For that reason, giving gifts is a fantastic way to build client loyalty, increase satisfaction, and let your most trusted clients know their patronage is appreciated.

That said, the choice of a gift can sometimes be easier said than done, especially when each comes out of your profits. Choosing the perfect gift takes time and effort, but with some thought and a little research it’s not nearly as difficult as it might seem.

PERSONALISED OR STANDARDISED?

Personalised gifts are obviously going to be a lot more effective and memorable for your clients, but you’ll run into a few obstacles going down this route, including added time in preparation, sourcing the gift, and potentially added cost.

Having a pool of standardised gifts to choose from can be a life-saver. You might have a client drop in quickly, they might be very private about their interests, or you might just run out of ideas for them.

We’ve included some ways to source personal gifts at the bottom of this article, but having a good repertoire of ideas to choose from is best if you want to please as many people as possible.

1. A RELAXING CUPPA


Any business should play to its strengths. As a Massage Therapist, your job is to provide peace and relaxation for people, and a gift that reflects this is always going to be welcomed.To that end, why not consider getting your clients a small bundle of relaxing tea to sip as they unwind from a long day? Tea has long been known as a more relaxing and franticly addictive alternative to coffee – and while not quite as invigorating, still invigorates through the tannin inherent within the leaves.

Additionally, tea comes with a range of health benefits – it’s linked to a reduction in strokes and liver disease, an increase in your general immune system, and it contains numerous antioxidants.

If you’re perplexed on where to look, go to a local tea shop and ask (or check online). If you’re a practitioner of a massage style from a specific country (say, Thai massage), you also have an easy route; have a quick search for famous teas originating from the region.

2. CHOCOLATE


It’s a universal gift. Not many people can say no to delicious chocolate, and there’s a gigantic range of options to choose from.We’d advise not going for cheap chocolates. Choosing a nice tasting, rich blend over receiving a fun-sized Twix is a stark difference, and your clients will appreciate the small extra mile that you go for them.

If you’re really looking to go the distance, and have a few extra dollars to back it up, you can get personalised chocolates (both in wrappers and on the chocolate themselves) for as low as $3 each. Imprint the name of your clinic on the front, or even your client’s name (although it’ll usually skyrocket the price to make each chocolate possess a unique signifier) for a neat little edible momento of their experience.

3. RELAXATION THROUGH MEDITATION


As we discussed earlier, leaving a lasting impression can go beyond the massage. Introducing people to ways to manage their own stress will do a lot to help their wellbeing. They’ll still be coming to you for their regular massage, but they might not be quite as knotted as they otherwise might be.Giving people a guided meditation tape or course can open them up to a whole new way to cope with life’s problems that doesn’t take them out of their regular schedule.

4. BACK-SCRATCHERS


Make them appreciate a good massage by giving them the gift of a smaller, localised helping hand. Think of gifts such as this as an appetiser for your services – they’ll have an itch, scratch it, and think of you how helpful you are for their discomforts.

5. STRESS BALLS AND DESK TOYS


Next to a massage, one of the most effective stress relievers that you can have is a stress ball. They’re cheap and work in tandem with your services to promote healthy outlets for stress management.Desk toys are another overlooked form of office stress management. They’re a vital distraction when you absolutely need it and a good way to escape into your own thoughts when you have a couple of minutes to yourself amidst the bustle.

Getting yourself a couple of these to give away, and personalising them, not only will make the client happy and keep them coming back, but could also draw customers that see it gracing your client’s desk!

6. A THANK YOU CARD


If you have the time, but not the funds to do much around the holiday season, a handwritten card of thanks for a trusted client (perhaps with a discount or loyalty voucher inside) can show them how appreciated their continual support is.

SOURCING A PERSONAL GIFT

If you’re looking for a specific gift for a specific client, but can’t quite think of the perfect one, try out some of the following tips:

    • Get a feel for their personality, and search for something that reflects that. If they’re coming to you for high stress, something to make their lives easier or more relaxing is a good start. If they’re coming to you for holistic wellbeing, a guided meditation voucher could be what they need.
    • Check out their online presence. If they have a public facebook presence, it’ll mention a few hobbies or interests.
    • Listen! Odds are they’ve mentioned an interest or hobby before during a session. Wrack your brain, and see if you can’t drum up a few small tokens of your appreciation.
    • Inquire subtly in the sessions leading up to Christmas about any interests that might spark a gift idea. It doesn’t hurt to lay down your own groundwork for success, after all!
    • Don’t be afraid to increase your budget for long-standing or illustrious clients. After all, they’ve provided more money for you, and have demonstrated their loyalty throughout time.

START THINKING

Christmas is just around the corner, so if you’re looking for ways to impress your clients this festive season, consider these gift ideas and keep your customers coming back for more next year!

Cameron Aubrey

Cameron Aubrey has over 20 years experience in the massage industry, and leads the team as Course Director at Discover Massage Australia. Cameron holds a Diploma in Remedial Massage, and his expertise runs across a large range of massage techniques, particularly sports, Swedish and whole body massage.