Aroma vs. Swedish & Business

[artw]

Hi fellow geeks,

I am due to enrol on to a massage course but have a choice between aroma or swedish massage (vtct - 7 day intensive). So fellow geeks:

• Which is popular with clients in your experience? (I want to work mobile for a while)
• Is £30 a reasonable charge?
• Is it possible to get 4 or 5 clients per week? (realistically)

Thanks in advance for your reply.

 

[artw]

anyone?

 

[weezie]

I would personally start with Swedish as this can be adapted to a aroma massage but Swedish is generally more requested as it is usually a firmer massage. Also it is a much quicker qualification as you don't need to learn about blending oils and then you can just use pre blended oils for a nice scent. Aromatherapy massage is an alternative therapy treatment whereas Swedish can be remedial. I trained to do Aromatherapy massage but the blending and consultation take so long and also when clients ask for aromatherapy massage they generally just mean they want nice smelling oils which you can still provide with swedish. I basically tailor made my own massage using Aroma/Shiatsu and Swedish moves but it is mainly Swedish. I suppose it depends what kind of treatment you want to give your clients and whether you believe in the power of alternative therapies.

The charge depends on where you live, the quality of the massage what kind of clients you have. I charge £50 for 1hr 15mins which I think is fair for what I do but others charge more or less...

 

[artw]

weezie, if you dont mind me asking: how many clients did you manage to get per week when you first started out? is 4/5 (mobile) per week a realistic amount for massage?

 

[weezie]

I don't only do massage so was doing a variety of treatments at first and still do. I now have two clients who have massage every week without fail and then I usually have another 3 massages minimum a week (I am mobile and have been working 4 years for myself).

I am not sure what would happen if I only did massage as my clients usually choose a variety of treatments and swap around, that is not to say that I would not be doing more if massage was all I did. I really can't remember how it was at first with massage but it does take time to build up this is why you need to charge the most you can for your treatments.

 

[hippy-chick]

it used to be that you had to do swedish massage before you did aromatherapy massage at college.

I got asked for body massage much more than I do aromatherapy so I would go with the swedish massage course.

It took ages for me to build up a clientele when I was mobile, I probably had 3 clients and only them every month.

Now my most popular treatment is massage, I can often do 4 in a day.

 

[artw]

I dont think I will be able to make it to the dates set fro the course in swedish massage. If I went for the aroma massage will that hinder in getting clients?

Is the aroma massage unpopular?

 

[trozzina]

Hi,

Aromatherapy is very popular with clients but personally I think you have to ask whether it's something YOU love.

You really have to be passionate about the oils, and if you are then your clients will be. If you're not then I'd probably get a good range of pre-blended oils as, like some of the others here say, most people who ask for aromatherapy would probably be quite happy with that.

The other thing to consider when choosing between the two is energy/strength levels - Swedish can take a lot out of you and your hands! Very important you get good training so you can protect yourself!!

 

[artw]

I didn't know that swedish was a lot firmer than aromatherapy massage. I am really passionate about oils and mixing them according to what the individual would like as I know aromatherapy oils are really good for stress etc. My only worry is that when it comes to massage it seems people may prefer swedish because they think its a firmer massage and they are getting more for their money (I could be wrong here!)

It would be really good to hear from people who offer aromatherapy massage and their experiences. How popular it is etc? How many clients they get for aroma per week?

I would like to offer it as a mobile massage therapist (females only).

 

[hippy-chick]

Swedish is generally firmer, working on muscle groups, etc.

Aromatherapy massage empthasis is about getting the oils onto the body to aid absorbtion, so the massage is lighter, long fluid moves to spread the oils.

You can offer an aromatic swedish but I do try and separate the treatments, ie choose swedish with just oil or aromatherapy massage for the benefits of the oils.

Most of my clients choose swedish.

 

[artw]

Is a 7 day intensive course too short? I was quite happy until I started reading some threads on this forum about VTCT. The course is with:

Aromatherapy Course & Diploma: Manchester & Cheshire


Please advise

 

[Brandywine]

I did a year long Swedish massage VTCT course at college 6 years ago.It was extremely good and our tutor was very knowledgeable and an experienced massage therapist. I think any training course is only as good as the tutor.

 

[trozzina]

I also did a year course for that (and other therapies). It gives you the time to do lots of case studies on a wide variety of people, each with different needs and to come across different situations whilst you're still learning.

Generally I wouldn't be too impressed if somebody had learnt it in a week but if you're already experienced in other forms of massage then you might find it's enough.

 

[Chillaxing Girl]

Personally I think intensive courses are too short as you really do need to have hands-on experience of different body types. Massage routines should be adapted for each client to an extent. I think Swedish is the one to learn first as it contains more or less what you need to know to carry out aromatherapy massage. Obviously the main difference is knowledge of essential oils and how to blend them. I find Swedish massage is more popular with male clients and female clients love aromatherapy massage, so it really depends on who you're planning to target.