Guidelines for Therapists Taking Part in #massagetherapiststogether Campaign

First off, thanks so much for taking part in the #MassageTherapistsTogether campaign to donate treatments to NHS front line workers! It's a great thing to do to give back and also a great endeavor for the industry we all so dearly love.

We've written some guidelines for you below which are based on questions you've asked.

But first of all we would like to clarify the role of Massage Warehouse.

We started this campaign to give the massage and complementary healthcare industry a positive boost when we all return to work and to give therapists an opportunity to give back. As an industry we've been badly hit by the restrictions resulting from COVID-19 and the positive PR we can achieve from this campaign will be greatly welcomed.

Our (Massage Warehouse) role is as follows based over 7 different stages:

1. To make therapists aware of the campaign through marketing and awareness campaigns - Now Complete 
2. Recruit therapists and have them fill out forms to collecting details to build the campaign - Now Complete
3. Build software and searchable map where NHS staff can find the details collected in stage 2 of therapist's near to them - Now Complete
4. Add therapists details to the map so they can be found - Now Complete
5. Collect questions from therapists and provide some guidelines - Now Complete
6. Get national press for the campaign so the industry can get some positive PR - Ongoing
7. Encourage therapists to gather their own local press and raise awareness for the campaign. In doing this they will hugely benefit their therapy businesses - Ongoing

Essentially we are the matchmaker allowing NHS front line workers to find you, the therapist and reach out to book an appointment. 

Please note we are not a professional association, so we cannot give you guidance on anything to do with the treatments. Your professional associations are the best place to look for this guidance.

GUIDELINES & FAQ:

• Campaign Start Date: 

After much back and forth from the government, therapists in England are now due to return to work from the 13th of July whilst therapists in Wales and Scotland are set to return later. 

After speaking with therapists in our Facebook group it is clear that understandably, for a variety of reasons, many complementary therapists are still preparing or deciding when they wish to return to work. 

Therefore in order to give therapy businesses time to source PPE, prepare their treatment rooms and procedures and to allow time for the dust to settle and await for further regulations to be made clear we have made the decision to push back the launch of the #massagetherapiststogether campaign to the 1st of September.  

As before this start date is subject to shift to meet any regulations should they change. In the meantime we will be hard at work continuing to promote the campaign to a national audience and asking therapists to support us and boost their own professional profile by sharing their involvement with local media.

So from the 1st of September NHS staff can get in touch with you to make a booking within 30 days. You can speak with them, take details and accept their booking but you do not have to provide an appointment until you are comfortable to do so.

• What can I say to the NHS worker if I haven't started back to work yet?
  

When the person gets in touch to avail of a donated treatment but you do not know when you will be back to work yet whether it's via phone, email or messaging service, please say something along the lines of;

"Thank you for your booking and I am looking forward to offering you a free treatment. I have not decided on the date I will return to treating clients yet but I can confirm that you have secured a free treatment with me and I will be back in touch with you to confirm a time and a date for your appointment once I have decided on a return to work date."

•  How long will the campaign last?

The campaign will last for 30 days from the 1st of September as long as governmental regulations do not change. We feel 30 days is long enough for NHS workers to avail of the campaign and puts a time limit on the campaign so that you the therapist are not contacted indefinitely. During those 30 days, the NHS worker can get in touch with you to book an appointment. The appointment does not have to happen within those 30 days. You can arrange with them for it to happen anytime once you feel safe to return to work.  

• How many treatments should I donate?

We recommend you donate a minimum of 1 treatment and a maximum of 5. However it is entirely up to you and depends on how much time you can give and your availability. The NHS front line workers can contact you via phone or email and you can accept or decline the booking as you would do any normal client or patient. If you reach your limit and get a booking request after that, you can let the most recent booking requester know that you have already allocated all your donated treatments.

• How do I confirm the person asking for a donated treatment is an NHS front line worker?

NHS doctors and nurses carry an NHS ID card which states their job title, photo and card ID number. When the person gets in touch saying they would like to avail of the offer please ask for a copy of their card sent via email or messenger and let them know you will be asking them to present it when they visit for their appointment. It is up to you which way but it is best to confirm they are a doctor or nurse with the NHS.

• How will I take bookings?

There are no set rules surrounding the treatments and bookings and you can proceed as you do with your other clients. When filling in the form you will have given either a phone number, email and/or website or Facebook page. The client may contact you via one of these. Once first contact is made and you decide to accept them, you can confirm over the phone or email or if you have one you can give them a discount code to use on your own booking system. 

•  Do I have to accept a booking from any NHS front line worker?

No! Please treat a booking for the donated treatment like you would any booking. If there is anything about the client or situation which does not fit with your normal acceptance procedures you can decline the booking request.

• Will my details be removed from the campaign when it ends?

Yes, absolutely. Once the campaign ends after 30 days, we will be removing the map from our website and deleting all the therapists listings. 

•  I'm doing this to give back but are there other benefits?

Yes, there can be! Doctors and nurses are plugged into the healthcare system. Some of them may be friends with local GP's or work at smaller local clinics. It would be great to get some referrals out of your generosity.

After the treatment, you could politely ask the client any of the following:

1. Can I take a photo of us and share it on social media to mention I donated a treatment to show my appreciation of your service
2. Ask them whether they can share a photo or video on their social media mentioning you and the treatment they received
3. Ask for a review on Facebook or google maps mentioning the campaign and sharing their experience of your service
4. If they are a GP ask if you can give them some leaflets / business cards to share your services with any patients in need of treatment

Also, if that client ever wants a treatment again in the future, chances are they will come back to you. And I am pretty sure they will recommend you to their friends and family because of what you have done. 

• Why is Massage Warehouse doing this?

We have been in the business of serving therapists a long time and we are the UK's only specialist complementary healthcare retailer. We are also run by therapists so we care for the therapist community and industry. What we do is our job but also our passion. Our industry is down now and because of the touch aspect of our profession we have been one of the worst hit industries. We have started this campaign not only to give back to the NHS workers fighting for all of us, but also to support the massage and complementary health industry as we try to get back up on our feet. Therapists within our industry are not only our customers but also our friends and colleagues, we want us all to come out of this keeping up the positive momentum our industry has seen in recent years and even possibly stronger after some very positive PR and public awareness.

• What can I do to get publicity locally to help spread the word, create positive awareness for our industry and free advertising for my business?

We're glad you asked! Your business can benefit greatly from this campaign with just a little effort. Local newspapers and radio stations are crying our for things to write or talk about! Thousands in your local area will read the local newspaper or listen to the local radio and this is a great opportunity to get in front of them for free!

Here is what to do:

1. Download our press release here
2. Insert your logo next to ours and add your business name to the first line and anywhere else you think appropriate so that it is "Your Business Name & Massage Warehouse" Campaign. Make this your campaign locally and you are doing it alongside us
3. Make a list of all your local newspapers, magazines and radio stations and find out the phone number and email address of the relevant person to let know about this
4. Send them an email explaining a little about the campaign and attach the press release you downloaded and edited
5. Follow up with a phone call to that person to tell them you've sent them an email you think would be a great positive news story for them and mention in both the email and phone call that you are trying to get the word out to local NHS front line workers so they know about the campaign
6. Sit back and wait for the positive press!
7. Let us know how it goes for you inside the FB group. We would love to hear how this works out for you and every other therapists taking part!

Check out the PR Sarah from oxford School of Massage did on her local BBC radio below.