As massage therapists, most of us cringe at the thought of telling our loyal clients, especially the ones we’ve been seeing and helping live better for a long time, that we’re increasing our prices.

The fact remains though that you’ll need to (and should!) increase your prices over the years of your massage or bodywork practice. That’s particularly true now after a period of inflation as you find yourself paying more for life’s basic necessities. Think about it through the lens of inflation. If your prices don’t increase, you’re essentially discounting your services by the rate of inflation (about 7-8% in the past year).

The trick to setting and changing your prices is charging enough to make a fair profit but not so much that you scare away existing and potential clients. In the following sections, we’ll provide some insight and some ideas on how to raise your prices as a massage therapist without losing clients as you do so.

Understand Your Local Massage Market

The first step in raising your rates is understanding the market for massage and bodywork services in your area. Research the prices of other massage therapists and see where you fit in. Are you charging less than the average while offering an equivalent experience? If so, then you definitely have room to raise your rates.

It’s also important to consider which massage or bodywork modalities you offer. For example, are you a specialist with extensive experience in myofascial release techniques or prenatal massage? If so, you should be able to charge more for your specialized services. Plus, if you’re trained in medical massages, you may be able to accept insurance for your massage billing. That way, even if you raise prices, your clients won’t need to bear all the burden themselves.

Communicate With Your Clients

When it comes to adjusting prices for your massage services, early, strong, and consistent communication is absolutely vital. Be straightforward with your clients, keep them informed well in advance that you’ll be raising your rates, and provide clear reasons for why this is necessary.

Whether it is due to an increase in expenses, such as rent or supplies, or because you have invested in additional training or certifications to serve them better, it is important that you be transparent.

But we must also not forget the true value that we bring to the lives of our clients. The benefits of massage therapy go far beyond simple relaxation and pain relief. Regular massage can improve overall health, reduce stress and anxiety, and even improve sleep quality. So as you consider raising our rates, it’s also important to remind your clients of the impact that your services have on their well-being.

To bring this discussion around the delicate task of adjusting your prices, I’d like to stress once more the importance of clear, honest, and frequent communication. No one likes unwelcome surprises, so your job is to do everything possible to get the message out well in advance. 60 to 90 days advance notice with regular reminders as the countdown to new prices progresses is a good rule of thumb to follow.

Offer Package Deals

Another way to raise your rates without losing clients is by offering package deals. For example, you could increase your prices for one-time services but discount the sale of multi-session packages or memberships to levels where the price increase is less.

The beauty of this is that you’ll likely end up with more regular clients who come more frequently, resulting in more income than you may have received with just the sale of one-time services.

To soften the bite, you can also add a little “surprise and delight” consisting of an add-on service such as aromatherapy. Giving just a wee bit more than your clients expect is a surefire way to put a smile on their faces and get them back for more.

Raising your massage rates doesn’t have to mean losing business. By understanding the market, communicating regularly with your clients, and offering package deals and incentives, you can increase your income without sacrificing the quality of your services. Best of luck!