Best Web Site Template For Your Massage Business

Hi everyone! It's been a while since I added anything to my blog. My wife and I recently had our world turned upside down - but in a good way.

Here's what's been going on. My wife's due date for our first child was July 30. The week before Memorial Day weekend, she wasn't feeling so good. She made a doctor's appointment and they admitted her to the hospital. To make a long story short, they had to deliver that weekend!

So on May 24, our son Jonathan was born at 2pds 11oz. He's still in the NICU, but he's doing great. He should be home in 3-4 weeks. Needless to say, it's been friggin' NUTS around here. It also put my new course on hold because my wife proof reads and formats my stuff. The only thing she's doing right now is pumping breast milk and sleeping. But things are starting to get back to normal.

Anyway, let's get back to the perfect template for your web site. Before I reveal it, I'd like to take a second to quickly explain why most massage therapists' clients really don't check out their web site more than once. I get a TON of emails about this. "Nobody seems to care about my web site. Why is that?"

After visiting many therapists' web sites, the problem is obvious - probably 99% of these sites (if not 100%) look nothing more than an online brochure. And if you have my first course, you know exactly why brochures are your biggest waste of money and effort and what you should be donig to easily attract clients and prospects instead.

That being said, you should have a web site. However, even if someone discovers you through a Google search, if your web site is basically an online brochure then they have no real reason to choose your massage practice over any other massage practice in your area. Think of what you do when you do a Google search. If a web site doesn't catch your eye right away or is too difficult to navigate around, you simply click to another web site, right? I mean, why waste your time when there are plenty of other sites to click to.

A fantastic web site that you can model yours after is Rachael Ray. Nevermind if you are into her or not. Go to her web site and the web site for the Rachael Ray Show. Both are great models. Let's examine them a little more closely and then let's seee how you can use her format for your massage business.

At the very top, she has a navigation bar for things like food, travel, kids, pets, blog, shopping, etc. That alone gives people reasons for exploring her site further. Also, there's an attractive picture of her in the top left corner. I'm still shocked at how many massage therapists absolutely refuse to put a nice headshot of themselves in their marketing material. (It's strange. They have no issue whatsoever with meeting someone for the first time, having a minute or two of small talk, then rubbing their bodies with oil for an hour - but they're freaked out about picture of themselves. I still can't figure that logic out)

Next, there's a video clip. This is extremely important and is something that every single massage therapist should have on their web site! What could your video be? It could be a short clip of you introducing yourself and briefly describing your practice. It could also give people a reason to make an appointment with you such as a free gift or premium of some kind. The video can also be a 1 minute clip of you working on someone so people can see for themselves what it will be like getting a massage from you as well as what your environment looks like. This will help them know what to expect ahead of time and will put them at ease. Wouldn't you want to see that before you got a massage somewhere for the first time? Wouldn't that make you a little more comfortable, especially if you've never had a massage in your life?

She also posts people's blog entries along with their pictures. There's a headline in her blog that says, "See What Rachael And Her Friends Are Talking About". This makes it interactive with her fans. People LOVE being recognized! I can't stress this enough. This creates an instant bond with people and it costs nothing to do. Also notice how she refers to them as friends. Very smart!

She also has an archive for her articles. Again, it gives people even more reasons to stay on her site. You can easily do the same thing with massage articles. Plus, she has a ton of recipes. The only thing that's missing that I can notice is a way to capture people's emails. But she's so popular right now, I guess it doesn't matter. She already has millions of die hard fans. But YOU should! And if you do have an auto-responder, you must give people a reason to give you their information. In mine, as you all know, I have a 6-lesson course plus a free ebook. It's not enough to just ask for their contact information. The more benefits there are for them, the more will respond accordingly.

You can also use your web site for podcasts, contests, selling gift certificates, links to other web sites, discounts - you can let your imagination go wild.

So if your web site is basically a grocery list of massage modalities, your address, and all of the therapies that you've learned (which they no idea what they are, anyway), then it needs some upgrading.

Hope this helps. I promise that I'm going to be releasing more content soon such as videos and podcasts.

**And for everyone on my mailing list, keep your eye out for a CD you'll receive in the mail about my new Hybrid Massage Practice course. If you're not on my mailing list, email me your mailing address and I'll ship it to you. It hasn't been recorded yet, but it will be soon.**

Take care!
info@ultimatemassagesuccess.com