How do I promote my Unique Holistic Practice?
June 19, 2010 6:28 PM   Subscribe

How do I promote my Unique Holistic Practice?

In addition to being a freelance sociologist, I have a healing practice which includes spiritual counseling, touch therapy, energy healing, and Tantra. My practice is unique because I combine science and spirituality in the most optimal way that I know how.

I take great pride in my work, and the service I offer is, I believe, truly outstanding. Furthermore, I am always trying to improve and myself.

Some people consider Tantra to be a taboo practice. I wonder how open to be with people regarding that aspect of my work. It is very important to me that they not misunderstand and think that I am providing some kind of pornographic service, especially since Tantra is part of my spiritual path, and something which I take very personally.

On the other hand, many people don't really know what Tantra is, and although I'm happy to enlighten people, I wish to not give them a long, complicated answer when they ask.

Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
posted by SociologistTina to Work & Money (20 answers total) 2 users marked this as a favorite
 
Honestly? Quit pretending what your doing has anything to do with science. People who seek out "touch therapy" and "energy healing" have already eschewed science, and people who are swayed by the science aren't going to have anything to do with such practices.
posted by kjs3 at 6:43 PM on June 19, 2010 [30 favorites]


Be willing to give people a long, complicated answer.

Your healing practice is a service industry, and this is both part of your work and part of your spiritual path. When people ask you about it, you ought to come off as knowledgeable, excited and eager to share.
posted by box at 6:59 PM on June 19, 2010


"Honestly? Quit pretending what your doing has anything to do with science. People who seek out "touch therapy" and "energy healing" have already eschewed science, and people who are swayed by the science aren't going to have anything to do with such practices."

Having spoken with a lot of people about their concepts of health, and their understanding of "science," I can tell you that it is a very demon haunted world. Even when you hold out a candle for most people to try to give them a little illumination, they tend to blow it out. Most of the people I have spoken with don't understand the ideas of empiricism, control groups, placebos, or peer reviewed journals. To even begin a conversation about confidence intervals with them is pointless. Mostly because they choose not to understand it in the same way most people choose not to listen too closely to a foreign language, as it just holds no meaning for them.

The word "science" has very different meanings to different people. The understanding of the meaning of the word "science" on metafilter is light years beyond what you will find out in the world.
posted by 517 at 7:09 PM on June 19, 2010 [8 favorites]


Print up some pamphlets/flyers explaining your services (i.e. "What is Tantra?" "What is Energy Healing?" etc.) and distribute them to other businesses who might attract the kind of customers you're seeking (eg. health food stores, head shops, new age bookstores, etc.)

Your flyers can be as long- or short-winded as you want them to be, but you should focus on explaining your personal approach (i.e. your assertion that you combine science and spirituality) and what makes you unique.

Offer 25% off for new customers or some other kind of incentive for people to give you a try.
posted by amyms at 7:09 PM on June 19, 2010 [3 favorites]


Making false claims about scientific evidence and similar can drag a person afoul of state unfair competition laws almost without regard to the particular business they conduct.
posted by Inspector.Gadget at 7:10 PM on June 19, 2010 [1 favorite]


I looked at your website and I honestly have no idea what services you offer. Your website is about you, and while you do need to qualify yourself to potential clients, your marketing needs to be way, way more client-focused. What needs can you meet?

There's nothing there about where you practice, and that's critical.
posted by DarlingBri at 7:13 PM on June 19, 2010 [1 favorite]


@odinsdream: excellent point. One persons fraud is anothers marketing plan.

@517: also an excellent point. However, I've found, subjectively, that people who are devotees of certain health related practices (particularly, those devoted enough to support someone as a practitioner) are actively hostile to science, since it tends to not support their devotion. YMMV.
posted by kjs3 at 7:27 PM on June 19, 2010


Count the number of actual questions in your post. (Hint: there's only one.) Now count the number of times the word "I" appears in your description.

Your clients (not to put too fine a point on it) probably don't care that much about you. Try focusing on them for a change.

Get curious. Learn from the people you have worked with thus far. Why did they first come to you? What were they looking for, and what attracted them? What has their experience with you been like? What are they receiving, and why is it valuable to them? What other kinds of healers do they work with, and how would they compare you to them?

If you spend a month or two focusing on these questions, then come back, I bet you'll have more and better questions to ask.
posted by ottereroticist at 7:56 PM on June 19, 2010 [3 favorites]


Mod note: few comments removed - you guys know the drill. be helpful or just keep on walking...
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 8:12 PM on June 19, 2010


Disclaimer: not a believer in practices such as you practice.

Answer: I have known of people who practiced touch therapy and gotten good word of mouth. If you get results, I don't think promotion will be necessary. If not...
posted by bricoleur at 8:17 PM on June 19, 2010


What does being a sociologist have to do with any of your healing practices? You put it first and foremost in all of your materials -- hell, it even comes before your name -- but if I were looking for services like those you offer, the fact that you're a sociologist specializing in the social welfare movements of the 1960s does absolutely nothing for me. In fact, it makes me skeptical of your services, as you seem to be trying to legitimize them* through association with something that, on first glance, I consider completely unrelated.

Because, really, sociology is the study of society, social movements, social welfare, all that. But the services you want to provide are much more personal and one-on-one. What's the connection?

So if it's NOT unrelated, you need to be very clear about how it fits in with the other stuff. "Because I am trained as a sociologist, I use empirical inquiry and the scientific method to bring a more evidence-based approach to a field which most people might not consider scientific at all. This helps me understand my clients more holistically..." or something like that.

And please, please, PLEASE don't list yourself as a sociologist thinking that people might confuse that with being a psychologist.

You need to list your qualifications up front. If you have studied these techniques and therapies, you need to give some evidence that you have met whatever standards these fields offer. Massage therapists, for example, require licensure at the state level, with a certain amount of classwork completed. The fields you've discussed might not have those requirements, but how many hours have you studied? What program did you study with? Who were your teachers? People who are very familiar with the techniques you're discussing will want to know these things. Your own conviction that you believe the services you provide are outstanding won't be sufficient at all.

Kind of like I'm wondering why you have a master's in sociology and didn't go on for a PhD. To most academics, who are familiar with the field and/or the progress of academic degrees, that looks a bit sketchy.

*I mean this in the sense of providing more support and references for the strength of your practice, not "making the woo-woo medicine sound 'real.'" People close to me have benefited from some of the techniques you describe, and you didn't ask whether I believed in them or not.
posted by Madamina at 8:48 PM on June 19, 2010 [3 favorites]


Fundamentally, tell me why I should pay you money for your experience having dabbled in things that many people study for years. If the center of your pitch is "I'm qualified to be a therapist/spiritual advisor/holistic healer because I have an unrelated degree and have read many books" even people who BELIEVE in everything you do will be skeptical, and rightly so.
posted by StrikeTheViol at 9:39 PM on June 19, 2010


My impression is that "holistic" is kind of '90s and you might look for a different word for marketing purposes. Synergistic? Maybe that's also on its way out. But think about it.
posted by zadcat at 10:40 PM on June 19, 2010


You've not given us much information - what are you currently doing to promote your service and how effective has that been?
Based on your question and your website I think you need to be more clear about what exactly your services are. But don't just give the names of the techniques/practices, tell me what they can do for me - what problems in my life/body can you solve? On a website you can give background on the techniques and your experience etc but on a separate page. You need to keep your opening blurb focussed. Make it less about you and more about what you can do for me.

If you're just starting out then you need to get the word out - get some leaflets printed with your focussed opening blurb and a link to your website for more information. Figure out who your target audience is and go to them (eg. you mention in your profile about- weight loss, so go to a weight watches meeting or a 'bums and tums' aerobics class and hand out flyers) if you truly believe in the awesomeness of your service, offer a free first session to new customers.

Testimonials from people you have successfully treated would be a good idea too.

And as someone else pointed out above - ditch the sociology stuff. Unless you can give a reason why its relevant, no-one cares about how much university education you have.
posted by missmagenta at 10:57 PM on June 19, 2010


Even the most gullible people I have known would not trust a "healing" practitioner of any sort, even the most woo-woo sort, who did not use her/his real name in her/his public-facing marketing materials.
posted by fourcheesemac at 6:08 AM on June 20, 2010


First, you need a business website. That main page on your current website is a great "about me" page, but not a good first impression. Here is an example of a really basic page from a holistic professional's page who is not part of a clinic....your page already looks more pleasing to the eye, you just need to organize & make the information more concise.

Everyone is right on about too much info about yourself. If I am into what you're doing, I don't care as much about your wordy resume- I want to know how you can help me. I would personally print up some brochures/4x6 cards, etc. with simple questions on it: How can Tantra help my life? How can X help me get over Z? and take amyms advice and distribute them in every natural food/metaphysical/etc shop you can find in the area. Also get on some local internet lists- witchvox comes to mind- and write the same kind of ad.

The point is to get them to your website where you will have easy to read, understand (short- not more than 2 paragraphs). & navigate sections on the various things you offer- don't describe how you do them, but why you do them and how they can help. Maybe write up a simple "what to expect when working with me" blurb.

My point is keep your literature that you distribute simple and intriguing, and if they want to learn more, give them a clear place to do that. And if you are worried that they will think you are providing a sex service, you can make that clear on your informational page about Tantra and how it relates to the services you offer.
posted by haplesschild at 6:21 AM on June 20, 2010 [2 favorites]


Another thing to avoid - on your blog you tell a story about a recent "philosophical counseling/relationship education session with a young woman". Even though you're (presumably) not using real names, you go into enough detail that the people involved would easily be able to recognize themselves.

For most people, thinking that you were likely to blab their personal detail on your website after a counseling session would be an immediate deal-breaker.
posted by tdismukes at 7:12 AM on June 20, 2010


If you're a freelance sociologist and you also have a healing practice, you need 2 websites. Those are very different services and you need to present a different set of information for them.

For the healing practice, I have no idea:

- what you offer
- what makes it unique
- who trained you to provide these services
- if you're not following an already-established modality of treatment, why should I trust the way you do it
- where you are located
- why it would help
- what to expect in a session and how long it takes
- how much it costs
- what I should wear/bring/etc
- what tantra is (basic description focused on why & what it helps)
- what your hours are

This is my acupuncturist's bio:
Everyone deserves good health care! In my experiences with Shiatsu and Acupuncture I have learned that there are many options in how I approach my own health and the health of others. We each have an inherent ability to heal and this is what we will use in combination with Shiatsu and acupuncture to achieve balance for your health.
With 8 years of experience and a passion for community health. I aim to combine expertise and healing intuition to provide people with quality health care. My training includes:

* Dip. Acup., S.S.C. Acupuncture Institute (Toronto), 2008
* Dip S.T., the Shiatsu School of Canada (Toronto), 2002
* Member of Canadian Society of Chinese Medicine and acupuncture (C.S.C.M.A), (Toronto), 2009-present,
* Instructor, the Shiatsu School of Canada, (Toronto), 2008-present
It's a small part of her site. It tells me how she feels about her clients (me), what she does for them (me) and why I should trust her. The rest is focused on me, e.g. How it works: a walk-through, how and why they use a sliding fee scale, and a collection of relevant resources.
posted by heatherann at 11:59 AM on June 20, 2010


I agree with Madamina. I have a BA in Sociology and Linguistics, and have studied many of the things you mention on your website. None of this means I am particularly qualified to help people resolve life problems. (I'm not honestly sure what a 'freelance sociologist' does.) People do not want to solve their social or spiritual issues with information about black feminism or the lives of working class people in mid-Century Bethnal Green. It's good to know, and would probably make me want to have a chat with you over a coffee, but it's not the main thing people need to know.

Admittedly I am a little sceptical of holistic practises and what they can offer me, so I may not be in your target market, but nothing on that front page tells me what you can offer me - are you a relationship counsellor? A life coach? 'Free thinking mystic' makes me think this is, forgive me, woo-woo. I agree with tdismukes that you should avoid telling stories from sessions - it doesn't inspire confidence that things will be kept confidential. Hypothetical stories to illustrate your ideas and conclusions would bw interesting, though.

Information about exact services and fees would be useful, as well as any prep work needed by potential clients. Are you taking clients now, and if so what are you offering them?
posted by mippy at 1:01 PM on June 20, 2010 [1 favorite]


Another thing to avoid - on your blog you tell a story about a recent "philosophical counseling/relationship education session with a young woman". Even though you're (presumably) not using real names, you go into enough detail that the people involved would easily be able to recognize themselves.

Not only does tdismukes point out a significant breach of client confidentiality, be aware that "counseling" may have a legal meaning in your state of residence and, if you are not licensed to practice as a counselor, you could run into trouble. (Just, as others have pointed out, might be the case with the other therapies you're offering, dependent on state of residence.) If you want to use stories like that to illustrate the benefit of your services, this is traditionally done through client testimonials.
posted by catlet at 3:19 PM on June 20, 2010


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