Case Studies - Tips and Tricks to Get The Most of the Experience
I get it. You have just finished training, you are pumped with enthusiasm and want to just get crackin’. Your case studies are not just a learning necessity to get your hands on your certificate, they are for you to really hone in on the type of therapist you will become!
Choosing Your Case Study Clients
It may sound pretty obvious, but this is possibly the most important part of your case studies - who are you treating? Remember, this is your time to really put your new skills into practise before you get let loose on the general, (and paying!) public. So if you can, be a bit strategic and picky with who you choose so that by the end you will feel confident to get going with your ideal clients.
If you know you have a really clear direction that you want to take your massage business, start now. Find case studies that match that! However, the vast majority of us don’t know yet, or have just a loose idea - in which case, make sure you have lots of variety in your case studies. For example, your mum and your two aunts, are not exactly a variety…
Have someone you know and feel super comfortable with.
Choose a range of ages so you get comfortable with working with both younger and older bodies.
Pick someone you do not know so well! Or even better, a stranger!!
Don’t shy away from people with injuries or conditions you will have to navigate and work with - this is a great way to build confidence in communication and understanding your clients needs.
Choose varying body types and lifestyles - got a super athletic friend? Great, use them. Got a neighbour who works at a desk all day and doesn’t exercise, perfect!
Choose people who will give you genuine, honest feedback.
Do choose people who are willing and able to receive a full body massage at each of their sessions. This time is about locking all of those skills in so make sure your case studies are able to deliver that.
Booking Your Case Study Clients In
I can not stress this enough - book them in, lock them in and make each session an official event, not a casual verbal ‘fancy a massage?’ kind of thing. The hardest thing students find during their case studies is that they clients are flakey and cancel and this is usually because they have not been made aware of how important their participation is. Choose case studies who you trust to turn up and take their participation seriously. Honestly, you will find the people you know less are the most reliable!
Book each session, not just one at a time. This not only means you both have a clear structure, but it also highlights the importance of the time. If you are casual about booking in sessions and do them one after another, it will take you weeks, maybe even months longer to complete all of your sessions! Get them confirmed at the very start.
Ask Your Clients to Complete Their Feedback, ASAP
Ideally, the same day as the treatment that you did. Those feedbacks all get submitted and if they delay doing them it makes it really hard for you to figure out who’s is missing.
Ask you clients to put your FULL NAME on the feedback form, please :)
Likewise, Complete Your Diary as You Go
Although you will not send your feedback diary in until the very end, it is important that you complete it as you go. Use this time to really sit with how the experience was for you personally, not just practically. What did you learn? What worked and didn’t work, not just in the massage but in the communication and in your space? Written reflection is a fabulous tool, use it to your advantage.
Use This Time to Work Things Out - Practically
Not sure if you want to work mobile? Give it a go in your case studies and get a feel for how it works and whether it will work for you with way less pressure than a paying client! Have a few spaces you could use at home but are unsure which is best? Use them both and see what works better for both you and your client! Play with music playlists and figure out which you connect with, and which your clients respond to best.
Your case studies are also a great way to work out your treatment space practically and logistically so that when your first paying client arrives, it functions perfectly. Test out a few layout options and watch how each of your clients moves and navigates through and around it. How you think someone will use and interact with your space, can often be different in reality!
Where are you going to conduct your consultations?
Where are your clients belongings going to go?
Where are you going to store your client records?
How will you store linens and kit?
Where will your clients park?
What is the essential information that you realised each client needed to reach you? Google pins, parking details, etc. Is there a way to streamline this communication?
How and where are you delivering after care, offering water etc? What felt the smoothest delivery? How could it work better?
The Massage
This is your time to practise all of your moves and get really comfortable with providing a full body treatment so you feel confident to take on paying clients. With that in mind, you want to make sure that all of your case studies can be full body massages. Ideally, you will also want to have a case study that you can practise more of your foot massage techniques, and maybe another that is happy with more scalp and face work!
Try not to just do the moves and techniques that you are super comfy with, test yourself to practise the elements that you find more challenging too. You can use our Video Hub to help too!
With your massage, work to adapt each treatment to your clients needs, within the full body framework. In the consultation listen to what your case study client needs and use all of your techniques to deliver a treatment that is tailored, unique and feels special.
The End Result…
If you follow these tips and tricks to get the most out of your case studies, by the end you will feel ready to take on playing clients! You will of course sill feel nervous but, see that as a good thing, it shows you care! This work is a constant learning curve that doesn’t end when you certificate arrives in the post - every client that walks through your doors for years to come will challenge you, ask you to expand your skills and knowledge and keep you learning.