Pye said. Strategy One benefit of offering session packages is guaranteed income for the massage therapist. Since the therapist receives a large amount of money up front, and won’t be paid session-by-session by any client using the package option, the therapist needs to budget accordingly. Cutlip said session packages actually create more reliable, steady income, even though she is not paid at the time of every session, and making at least some income up front can help during lessproductive times. “Packages help level out the cash flow,” Williams added. “An infusion of cash from packages helps us make up for times when we are less busy.” Types of session packages offered are up to the therapist’s discretion. At Lotus Massage & Wellness Center, in Tucson, Arizona, a client who purchases a package of four sessions saves $5 per session. Purchase of an eight-session package results in $8 savings per visit. A 12-session package provides savings of $10 per session. Meanwhile, the therapist who is paid for the 12 sessions up front receives $780 plus the confidence to know she will be able to assist the client’s health on a regular, ongoing basis. This in turn can benefit the outcome of massage and result in increased referrals from satisfied clients. One Las Vegas, Nevada, massage therapist, Kris Kelly, for example, promotes “mega massage packages”—one of which costs $5,200 up front. This buys the client two one-hour sessions per week for $50 per session, reflecting a total savings of $1,976—and regular income for Kelly. His one-massage-a-week package costs $2,860 up front, costing the client $55 per massage. Cutlip books an initial session with a client, and afterward informs the client she has session packages available. She sells massage sessions in bundles of three, five, 10, 15 or 20. “With these bundles, you receive a discount to make regular bodywork more affordable for those who need it on a regular basis,” she said. “With each package, the bigger the commitment, the bigger the break.” At Silicon Valley Massage Therapy Group, clients may pay for three Swedish massage sessions for $240, receiving $10 off each usual session price of $90; or they can pay $420 for six sessions, reflecting a per-session price of $70. Session packages are about more than money, though. The commitment and convenience aspects of packages are important to many clients as well, said Williams. “Since our sessions are highly tailored to the client, we sell packages based on their needs,” Williams said. “For some clients, it’s a money-saving path to maintain wellness, and to others, it’s [about] a finite number of sessions recommended by a therapist who is working with the client on a specific issue—while to many, [packages offer] convenience designed to make getting bodywork anytime they need it easier.” Cutlip and Williams both said that 40 to 50 percent of their clients purchase session packages, and that once a client has done so, he is much more liable to do so again when his package expires. “I have clients who purchase small packages every few months, and then those who buy their entire year at one time,” Cutlip said. Research on consumer psychology indicates it might be beneficial to the sale to frame it in terms of the cost per session, rather than focusing on the lump sum due at the time of the sale, because seeing what might be considered a large sum activates the brain’s pain-processing center, according to neuroeconomics expert George Loewenstein, Types of session packages offered are up to the therapist’s discretion. One massage therapist promotes “mega massage packages”—one of which costs $5,200 up front. 24 | MASSAGE Magazine | September 2015 | www.massagemag.com | Ph.D. Also according to Loewenstein and colleagues’ research, “Brain Scans Predict Buying Behavior,” published in the journal Neuron, consumers prefer to make one large purchase rather than several small purchases, so the therapist could also focus on the ease and convenience inherent in purchasing sessions in one package, at one time. Wellness Offering session packages conveys to clientele the message that massage should be thought of as a wellness habit—something to be received on a regular basis rather than just a few times a year. Session packages provide the therapist with regular clientele, reliable income, and the opportunity to make a lasting difference in each client’s levels of relaxation, flexibility and pain relief. Developing this wellness habit is “a win-win for both therapist and client,” Williams said. “Packages add options to the way you deliver services, help with leveling cash flow over time, and are a great way to encourage more frequent massage sessions. “Once a client has purchased a package and seen the savings,” he added, “they’ll be back for more.” Karen Menehan is MASSAGE Magazine’s editor in chief. She wrote “Market to Millennials: Reach the Next Generation of Massage Clients” (February) and “Body Image: Massage Creates Healthy Self-Connection” (March) for MASSAGE Magazine. Menehan has edited and written for additional publications and organizations, including Imagine Magazine, the Sacramento Bee newspaper and the LIVESTRONG Foundation. M M| Practice Building Offer session packages to convey the message that massage should be thought of as a wellness habit. | www.massagemag.com | September 2015 | MASSAGE Magazine |