Benefits vs. Features in Massage Therapy (Killer Intros pt2)

This is a continuation of a series entitled “Killer Introductions for Massage Therapists”, see part 1 here.

Benefits vs. Features

Simply defined, a feature describes what it is and a benefit describes what it does. This is a very important distinction. Features are things like the style of massage, techniques, and anything that describes your work. Benefits are what the client actually gets out of it; how their life is affected by the bodywork.

One of the biggest problems is that most of the things described in textbooks as benefits are really features. Do you think your clients really care about better circulation? Endorphin release? Decreased secondary edema? Any of the other things that are commonly described as benefits? Of course not.

What they really care about are the benefits they receive from these effects.

1. Better circulation = More energy, less pain (from stagnant irritating chemicals)
2. Endorphin Release = Less Pain so maybe they can sleep better at night
3. Decreased Secondary Edema = faster recovery from injury

It is vitally important that you translate what you do into something meaningful to your clients. They care about what your work will do for them, not about what it is you do. So make a list (write it down!) of the benefits you deliver to your clients.

Taking The Next Step

The next step is to figure out who you give these benefits to. You deliver different results to stressed out executives, pregnant women, and athletes, so why would you say the same thing to each of these clients?

Massage has a great many effects and benefits on the human body, pick the ones that are going to have the most effect for your target market. Going with these examples:

1. Executives: Stress-reduction, better job performance, increased energy, reduced headaches…
2. Pregnant Women: Decreased sciatic pain, Reduced discomfort from side-lying positions…
3. Athletes: Increased performance, reduced risk of injury, more playing time…

Think about what is important to your target market. Once again, write it down!

Back to Part 1 On to Part 3

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