Considering Freelance Work

[BigAl14]

So I am thinking about doing freelance work, now that I have everything needed to legally practice massage therapy in my state. To be honest, I wanted to avoid this because point blank I am lazy and careless, as you all who recognize my name on this site know.

The reason I am here is because I have questions and need you guys/gals' advice.

-Living with my family, there is no space, so I will only be doing "outcalls". Is there a less sleazy word for this, and is it safe?
-How are clients able to look up my status? I tried googling my registration number, and then my registration number and my full name, but nothing came up.
-Is there a term less sleazy than "non-therapeutic massage"? Since in my state I am registered, not certified, I am not authorized to work in a health care facility, therefore can not advertise therapeutic massage. However, in my opinion, non-therapeutic massage sounds a lot sleazy.
-What type of pictures shall I include in the advertisement? I have one of me in a suit from a long time ago that I intend to use, but should I add something such as a generic picture of my massage table and chair with a sheet set put on it? Perhaps even one with me smiling and giving a thumbs up?
-What is a decent rate to charge? It seems to me that the standard rate is $60 for an hour, but since I am traveling to them I was considering adding $5 to neighboring cities and $10 extra to further cities. Also I had thought about providing a slight time extension so the massage can be between 60 and 80 minutes, that way if there is an area they want me to go over again, or if they want to enjoy it for a little while longer, they can.
-Should I order client intake forms, or is there a decent model somewhere online that I can print out? If so, please send me the link to it.

These are the only questions I can think of right now, any and all answers will be appreciated.
Cheers

 

[Heline B]

Considering Freelance Work

I think if you did a board search for "outcalls" you would get a lot of threads that would answer these questions and more. I'll be brief.

You could call them "house visits" or something like that. I don't think the word outcalls is sleazy, but I guess it depends on your area and what other outcall therapists are advertising and doing. It can be safe and it can be dangerous, there are precautions you can take like having someone to call and check in with before you go in and after you come out, give that person the addresses and names of the people you'll be going to, and if you don't call them at the specified time, they are to call the police. I would make sure to get credit card numbers from each client and you could probably even get their driver's license # or something. Make sure the client sees you calling to check in with that person.

Your state board should have a website where people can look you up.

I would not use "non-therapeutic massage," I agree that it sounds weird. How about just "Massage Therapy" or "Relaxation Massage for Health" ?

You could avoid showing a picture all together, but for outcalls, where sometimes the client can be nervous about who they are inviting to their house, it could be useful. I think as long as the picture is completely professional, maybe a pic of you doing massage. Personally I think the thumbs up sounds cheesy, but that's just me.

As for pricing, I think what you suggest is way too inexpensive. For every hour of massage you will be doing at least an additional 30 minutes of work to drive there, set up, break down, etc, if not fully an extra hour. When I charged $65 out of my home for massage, I would charge $100/hr for outcalls. Keep in mind that the IRS counts each mile as being worth 50 cents, so for someone who is 10 miles away just the gas/wear&tear alone would be worth $5 to charge your client, not to mention your time. You could also make outcalls a minimum of 90 minutes...I would probably charge $120 for that.

You can google for intake forms, they're all over the place. Or if you are a member of ABMP or another professional organization they have them online that you can download.

Good luck, as I said there are probably a ton of threads already on this subject.

 

[Katie Sunshine]

Considering Freelance Work

Geki, I do hope you will update the thread you started about your Jurisprudence Examination now that you have completed all of the steps. You are likely to help someone else along the way.

To name a few, you can talk about Out-Calls as:

• Off-Site
• Mobile Off-Site
• Mobile Massage
• Mobile Massage Work
• Mobile Work
• In-Home

I am not sure how anyone who has completed 600 hours of bodywork training can call themselves lazy. Don't get down on yourself just because things are not happening as you had hoped.

RE: non-therapeutic massage: Why can't you say "Massage" or "Massage Therapy"?

I'm a little short on my time to write much right now, but as a help for someone else, I recently added a post with links to all of the articles I have written about out-call work on my blog. This may be of use.

Best of luck.

 

[-~~Rain~~-]

Considering Freelance Work

Thank you for the swift responses.

The reason I find the word "outcall" sleazy is because I can't think of anywhere to advertise other than craigslist at the moment, and I've browsed through the therapeutic massage section a couple of times and as a result, have found escort posts. I just don't want viewers of my advertisements to associate me in any way as escorting.

Shivashiva, what should I do to be able to accept credit card payments? I have a bank account, what else do I need? Paypal?

I am definitely not going to use the term "non-therapeutic massage". In my opinion, the state board should reconsider that term.

The reason to put a picture in the ad is so that the person knows what I look like. Would you want someone you've never seen to have your address and be arriving to your house?

Shivashiva, I really like your opinion about the pricing. The reason I had considered charging such a small fee is because one of my old co-workers and I had discussed going into this business together and allowing me to use her basement as a base location whilst she does all the advertising. However, this fell apart as she decided to run another business so that is not in the equation . Also, unfortunately, there is no space in my house for clients to come in. Shivashiva, your idea is much, much better.

pueppi, I think the sound of "in-home" massage sounds better to me. Also I will check out your blogs.
Cheers

 

[Socrates]

Considering Freelance Work

Shivashiva, what should I do to be able to accept credit card payments? I have a bank account, what else do I need? Paypal?

If you happen to have a "smart phone", you can use Square or some other form of processing.

Here is a thread we had on the subject: Using "Square" for Credit Processing