because your opinion counts!
Since state licensure has gone through and I've finally received my actual state license, making it all legal and aboveboard for me to go to people's houses and charge them money for massage no matter what town or city they live in, I've started thinking again about getting some personal business cards. I spent a chunk of my spectacularly unproductive day today browsing them online and the dissatisfactions I had the last time I thought about this are all coming back to me.
Massage therapy business cards--the reasonably priced, not totally custom-designed ones you can order on the internet, that is--seem to fall into one of a few categories.
There are ones with cartoon (female) therapists working on cartoon (female) clients, which are often quite cute and well-designed and sort of retro, but they're very girly. Then there are ones with pictures of hot stones or aroma therapy bottles or other spa-like accoutrements, which also are, well, sorta girly. My own perception is that you're kind of cutting out half your possible clientel with either of these, because I think a male person is going to look at a business card like that and file it mentally under "female stuff."
Then there are the Asian themed ones, with yin yang symbols or Buddhas and such. Many of these are also very attractively designed. My problem is that that may be all well and good if you are actually practicing an Asian modality like shiatsu or tuina, but I don't. It seems like it would be somehow misrepresenting my work, even if the wording on the card made it clear that I practice Western bodywork. Plus, if you aren't practicing an Asian modality, you'd be using what are cultural and/or religious symbols just because they look cool. Which seems wrong to me, and disrespectful. (Yes, I do have a kanji tattoo. Shut up.)
Finally there are the really lame sort of New Age-y waterfalls and rainbows and other "peaceful" imagery. That's not me, either, and doesn't really represent how I feel about my work.
What I really like is something like these: http://www.poshbetty.com/pbBizCardsInfo.php
especially options 4 or 1. Something that looks good, kinda stylish and a little funky (like your therapist), but doesn't scream "only fer wimmins!" But it has fuck-all to do with bodywork.
So, my market research questions are thus. Do you think the graphic on the card needs to be something associated with the service? Should a massage business card look "massage-y"? Do you think the card should suggest anything about the personality or philosophy of the service provider and tenor of their work? Does the design of someone's business card or other promotional materials have anything at all to do with whether you would book with them? Would anything about the design of someone's card totally turn you off?
xoxo
6 comments:
I'm from a world where simple is the standard. Corporate logos are about as much color or pizazz as most all the cards I collect carry, and that has always seemed just fine to me. But I'm not in the body business, nor perhaps best representative of your target clientele. (Figures--the Google spell-check can't handle "clientele").
I guess my first question is whether you anticipate doing the DBA thing, or otherwise incorporating yourself and going by any sort of business or trade name. If so, a good logo would be the answer to your business card question.
If you're preferring the "just Andrea" approach, and just using your name, then I'd think what suits you would be the best way to connect with clients who'd want their kneads met by somebody like you. (heheheh, couldn't resist). If that proves impecunious, then perhaps you can switch towards something more commercially-oriented later, but best, I think, to do it your own way first.
All that being said, I'm still a fan of classic understatement, but that's just me. About the best image I can imagine might be a photographic one of a hand on a shoulder. Blue is soothing, as a background color for the photo... But I'd still vote simple white or off-white for the card overall. (But, again, I'm the boring corporate guy, so take all this with the proverbial grain of).
I'm looking forward to reading the progress on this!!!
In some ways, you're absolutely my target clientele--you've had professional bodywork and you know it has value. You've been willing to pay for it on occasion b/c you know it has a health benefit. So I guess my question is, if we met in a social situation, you found out I'm an LMT and you asked me for my card, at that point does what the card looks like matter? Or is it totally irrelevant to whether you ever decide to make an appointment?
My friend M2, who has a very tiny number of private clients in addition to the other work she does (which, frankly, is all I'm envisioning for myself at this point) has, for her personal cards, very plain, white w/ black print, and they look extremely stark to me, and kind of just one step up from writing your name and phone number ona Post-it note. But maybe that's all she (and I) needs? By the time someone asks her for that card, they're already interested in calling her.
I guess that's opposed to the other way people use business cards in the massage world, posting them on bulletin boards and such, where an outstanding graphic is going to draw someone's eye. But I'm not really planning on that kind of advertising, so...
I dunno. Thank you so much for the imput!
The hue/tone of the stock can go a long way towards softening the "stark" feeling, as can a warmer font. I've been amazed at what a good graphic designer can do without obvious color or seemingly visible effort. Try some off-white papers and different fonts and see what you can do to achieve warmth without silliness. My preference is for cards with substance (the "feel" of a heavier card stock is remarkable compared with flimsy alternatives) that are easy to read. (Lots of fonts aren't).
I do indeed value bodywork, as I would a professional (as opposed to informal) business card. I would think it to convey a similar respect for the therapy, as opposed to the shallow "feel good" motions some people go through without ever putting in the effort to reach "the spot". (Geez, it's hard to keep away from double entendre with this, isn't it). Especially if you aren't going to be tossing them out at the bus station, I'd recommend investing in something you're proud of, and that someone would feel privileged to receive.
Think of a business card as an ad. Then think about the space you have available and what message you want to send. The Kad is right on several points. Not only can the right stock choice do wonders for the message, so can the right choice of type. You aren't typically going to find either the nuances or an appreciation of what you want online. I'd take your project to any one of several local printers who can do this reasonably, and deal with you as a human being into the bargain.
(Had just one shot at a double entendre and nobly walked past it.)
Oh, c'mon.
I fully believe I can get anything I want on the internet. Don't burst my bubble now. ;-)
Gotta say that I think those PoshBetty cards are too cutesy retro... they might be good for a retro diner or 50's/antique store, but I don't think they really say "serious up-to-date modern massage therapist".
And I agree with your trepidation on cards looking too girly or too Eastern or New Agey if that's not the sort of massage you do. Not only would it be giving an inaccurate impression, it would turn off the ones who aren't girls, or aren't looking for a New Agey experience, etc.
And I do agree that the more professional a card looks and feels, the better. When I get a card that looks and feels amateurish, I'm often afraid that the work will be amateurish too.
I'd think something more along the lines of:
Malevolent Andrea
Professional Massage Therapy
Specializing in X, Y, and Z
Phone Number
Email (You might want to get a gmail address, I think that seems more professional).
Address (or no address, but I do wonder about someone who doesn't put down a snail mail address, even if I'll never use it).
I think you can choose an interesting font to make it stand out (maybe something art deco, cause I like art deco) not just plain Helvetica or Times, and maybe can go with an ink color other than black--you could even do something like use a dark color for the stock and then use a light colored ink. But I wouldn't get racier than that with graphics, etc. because I think you stand the danger of turning off way more people than you'd turn on.
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