Reflexology in the News

Great to see an article about reflexology which may lead to more research in the future!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/healthnews/9398070/Reflexology-improves-heart-efficiency-claim-researchers.html#

Marketing your Reflexology business

Here is the 4th in the series of marketing tips for your reflexology business, see the I Love Reflexology website for previous and future hints & tips:

What words will your potential clients for putting in their Google search? 

Reflexology Bedford?  Pregnancy Massage Stevenage? Sciatica relief Hitchin?

Make a list of the different services / products you offer that you think your clients will be searching for - these are your keywords, it is essential that you not only list them in the keyword section of your website, (speak to your designer, provider helpdesk or help section on your web software), but you must also make sure that these words appear in the text of your website where you are describing your services to potential clients.  Just adding keywords in your page properties won’t work if your web page content doesn’t also mention them as Google will only rank keywords that are relevant to the content on your website.  Don’t be tempted to just repeat a list of keywords at the bottom of your web page as this will only work temporarily and Google frowns on this and may eventually drop your ranking because of it.  If these are your services and products then your web page content should be able to reflect this clearly and concisely to both your potential clients and to Google, improving your Google ranking and therefore making it easier for potential clients to find you. 

Always bear in mind that the main purpose of your website is to tell people what you do, keep it clear, concise and relevant and don’t leave anything to assumption!

Pricing and your competitors

Many therapists are fearful of not getting any customers, and lower their prices thinking this will attract more clients.  However this can weaken the perceived quality of the treatment and there is a danger you become the £1 shop of the high street without intending to. Be mindful of the fact that people may be buying from you because you are “cheap” and this allows them to treat you as cheap because they don’t see value in you.  After all, how many of the people who were your free case studies went on to become your regular paying clients? 

Carry out regular checks on how much your competitors are charging and what they are offering and consider how you compare.  Decide where you want to position yourself and price accordingly, keep an eye on what your competitors are offering and always consider how potential new customers are going to compare you against each other – what impression are you giving them and how will you encourage them to choose you?  You may decide that you want to position your business at the high, luxury end of the market aiming for clients who want the best and are willing to pay for it, or you may decide after all that you want to make your unique selling point that you are the cheapest in the area and strongly promote yourself as such, either way ensure you make an informed decision that you can explain if asked, don’t leave your pricing to chance!

www.ilovereflexology.co.uk/marketing.html

Marketing Tips for your Reflexology Business

Here is the 2nd in the series of marketing tips for your reflexology business, see the I Love Reflexology website for previous and future hints & tips:

Sign up to Google, set up a Google account and add or claim your business in Google Places! This will give you an internet presence even if you don't have a website and gives you another opportunity to tell people about your business.

If you have a website make sure its listed on as many relevant websites as possible, there are lots of free ones out there, Freeindx, Google Places, Healthy Pages, I Love Reflexology and more!  Every relevant link improves your Google ranking - the higher the ranking the more likely your potential customers will be able to find you

Double check your website pages, make sure each page, but especially your home page, clearly tells your potential clients who you are, what you do, where in the country you work and how to contact you!  This is basic information that potential clients need to know and if you don't tell them it WILL put them off.  If they are looking for a reflexologist in Brighton and your website doesn't say where you are based they will just move onto the next website, and even worse Google won't match your website to Google searches looking for a reflexologist in Brighton!

Marketing your Reflexology business

Spring is the time of year when I tend to have a good clear out and that includes Spring cleaning my business, including my marketing plan!  Following on from a fellow therapist asking me advise on ideas for marketing her business I thought I would add a new area to the website with some simple marketing tips which are useful for all of us to check back on now and again, experienced and new therapists alike!  So here is todays tip:

Whether you have a website or not it is essential to ensure you list your business as many places as possible that offer a free listing. If its free then you have nothing to lose, and you will be able to gain an online presence even if you don't have your own website!

Examples of free listings include: Yell.com, 192.com, Freeindex, Professional Association websites such as FHT, AOR etc, I Love Reflexology, Hotfrog, and more - where are your competitors listed? Do a google search on the services you offer in your town /area, reflexology, massage, pregnancy - how many competitors in your area are offering the same and where have they listed their services, make sure you are listed all of those places too!

Reflexology and Self Help Tips for Insomnia

Everyone suffers from the occasional bad nights sleep but those suffering from either disturbed sleep or an inability to get to sleep on a regular basis will often find that their health suffers as a result.

Reflexology

There are several reflex areas recommended for those suffering from sleep problems - don't forget if you are working using a circular motion you should work in a clockwise direction to stimulate, and an anti-clockwise direction to calm and relax.

Head / Brain / Neck

The brain and central nervous system are mainly located in the big toe, however all the toes cover the head, brain and face reflexes so don't leave the other toes out while working.

Start by thumb walking up the pad of the big toe until you have covered the whole of the area, then walk down the front and the sides of the big toe, and walk around the neck of the big toe to cover the neck muscles.

Work the pituitary gland to regulate the hormone production of all the other glands, and then the pineal gland which releases melatonin to control the sleep/wake pattern.

I often find that individual toe stretching and rotating in each direction here is also useful for reducing tension.

Body

Gently work the diaphragm line on both feet in each direction to release tension and relax the client, give extra attention to the solar plexus point - you may want to come back and do a solar plexus hold several times during the treatment to relax the client.  The solar plexus reflex point is also K1 acupuncture point and the Chinese believe that it cools the heart fire energy, calming down the mind and helping you fall asleep.

The adrenals also have a role to play in controlling sleeping patterns, if the client is unable to sleep due to stress ensure that you work the adrenals using a circular motion in an anti-clockwise direction in order to calm and relax.

Make sure that you do plenty of spine work, finger walking up and down the spine as well as friction work to help release any remaining tension which may be held in the spinal area.  Ensure you include thumb walking across the spine rather than just up and down it - this will work the spinal nerves and muscles making sure the whole of the area has been relaxed.

Essential Oils

A number of essential oils are known to have sleep inducing properties.  Try adding a few drops of your chosen oil or oils to a warm bath, onto your pillow or a hanky in your bedroom, into a base oil to use for a back massage, or to a vapouriser.

Suggested oils include : lavender, chamomile, marjoram, melissa, neroli, sandalwood and ylang-ylang.

Supplements

You should ensure you are getting enough calcium, vitamin B and vitamin D if you are suffering from sleep problems.  Supplements such as valerian, chamomile tea, bachs rescue remedy have all been found to be useful for some individuals.

Progressive Relaxation

If your sleep problems are caused because you are stressed and over tense then progressive relaxation, which involves gradually tensing and relaxing muscles, may be extremely useful for you:

Clench your right fist as tightly as you can.  Keep it clenched for about 10 seconds, then release the tension immediately and completely as if turning off a switch.  Do the same with your left hand, then clench both fists at the same time.  Bend your elbows and tense your arms.  Release and let your arms hang at your sides.  Continue the process by tensing and relaxing your shoulders and neck, wrinkling and relaxing your forehead and brows, your eyes and jaw before moving onto your stomach, lower back, buttocks, thighs, calves and finally feet and toes.

Music & Visualisations

There is lots of different music on the market to aid sleep, choose carefully and read peoples reviews before purchasing as people's taste can vary hugely.  Our recommendation would be anything by Fredrik Karlsson, (no animal noises or words).  Alternatively you could try regular meditation -

Get some Headspace do a short 10 min meditation which you can download to your ipod for free.  Or try some visualisation - make sure you are comfortable, remember back to a time when you had to stay awake and you really didn't want to, remember how much of a struggle it was to stay awake - and then give in to the urge to sleep.

Crystals

Several crystals are thought to aid restful sleep - try placing your chosen crystal either under your pillow or by your bed:

Amethyst, cerussite, charoite, chrysoprase, hematite, lapis luzuli, lepidolite, muscovite, sodalite, blue tourmaline, labrodorite (if worries and fears are keeping you awake), moonstone, smoky quartz, rose quartz and rainbow obsidian.

Acupressure

There are several acupressure points along the occipital which is at the back of the head at the base of the skull.  Press into the indentations along the occipital and hold for 30 seconds to 1 minute.  Other acupressure points which can help with sleep problems are:

HP7 – Great Mound – go to the palm side of the wrist crease and find the point halfway between the inside and outside of the wrist.

HP6 – Inner Gate – palm side of the hand, in the middle of the arm, three finger widths above the wrist crease.

B62 – Extending vessel – on the outside of the foot, in the indentation 1 and a half finger widths below the middle of the outer anklebone.

Feng Shui

If possible ensure that your bedroom is as uncluttered and restful as possible.  Try to avoid computers and TV’s in the bedroom which create too much busy energy.  Ideally you should be able to view the door but the door shouldn’t be directly in line with the door.  If you have a mirror directly opposite the door you may sleep better if the mirror is covered up.

New website launched to help people find medical based research on their chosen therapy!

I wanted to share this fantastic website http://www.spaevidence.com/spaevidence which aims to pull together medical research on spa therapies from all over the world into one comprehensive site.  This will be a wonderful resource for therapists, students and potential clients alike and hopefully a step in the right direction in giving complementary therapies a more professional reputation!

I came across the site in the attached article which you may also find interesting  http://www.cnngo.com/explorations/life/massage-good-you-or-does-it-just-feel-nice-205350