Time Between Clients

[Fasty]

Hi. آ I found this ladies post on another page, sandwiched between the original thread which was going on,  and it looked like something that might be good as an idividual thread on its own. آ Mmh. آ I think I'v now gotten into page 4 of the entire forum, for those of you keeping track of my steady progress. ;D آ But, enough about me! آ hehe

Wergle YaBB Newbie typed:  Hi...I was wondering how each of you handle your massage schedule.  How much time you put in between clients and how many hours of actual massage you can manage per day before it gets too much. Thank you for your responses, Wendy MT

I do my best to schedule only 5 massages per day; of course I don't always have 5.  I leave 30 mins. in between.  So the schedule on a perfect day should look like this: An 11 am, a 12:30 pm, a 3:30 pm, a 5:30 pm & a 7 pm appointment.  Hope that helps.

 

[pikko]

Time Between Clients

Also found this reply to her question on the same thread so am transferring it.  Hope you don't mind, Calico. :CalicoComfort YaBB Senior Member wrote:

I try to leave 15 minutes between clients. It extends my day by an hour or two but it's the right amount of time for me to handle the undress time, payment, reschedule, take a deep breath, return a call or two, eat a hard boiled egg, greet the new client, fill out the intake form, that kind of thing. As far as appointment documentation, I use the Palm Pilot software, it's compatible with my laptop at work and I can bring the information home and hotsync it to my home pc. It has a good scheduling program and holds my entire client info data base. But I still have S.O.A.P. cards for each client. I used to do 6 or 7 hours of massage per day, but a year or two ago I limited my day to 5 or 5 1/2.  I work 5 or 6 days per week, so I need to look at the big picture and calculate how many massages I do per week. To be honest, alot of the time, I end up doing 4 or 5 just because that is all that schedules. I believe the universe wants me to do more or less on certain days, and I just work as the work comes, thank goodness when I have a cancellation once in a while, and don't overwork myself.

 

[all_day]

I book appts every two hours.  This limits me but that's ok.  This gives me time to really get good information and educate new clients.  Especially good for those first timers who are really nervous.  At the end I have time to clean up and do paperwork while still fresh before the next client comes in.  I have a nice reception area but have only had one client, who came in 30 minutes early, use it.  

 

[Miley]

Time Between Clients

I book clients every 60 minutes, and perform a 50 minute session. That gives me 10 mintues.I do between 90 and 110 hours per month.

 

[Jane Marple]

Time Between Clients

30 minutes in between.I find this provides plenty of time if someone's early, or a few minutes late. It gives me time to return a phone call or 2, rest, and most importantly, to tell my client in all sincerity that they can rest on the table after the massage as long as they need to. A.

 

[Jackie the Peace Maker]

I leave at least 30 minutes in between one hour sessions (longer if it's a 90 minute) and try to arrive at least 15 minutes before the first session of the day.  I don't like for anyone to have to wait, unless they've arrived ahead of schedule.Only exception being when people come in together and book back-to-back massages.  For them, I take only as much time in between as I need to change the sheets and drink a bit of water.

 

[Law Man]

I have to say it really depends on the season.Currently, I am averaging about 2-3 clients per day, 6 days per week.  Of those, about 3-5 per week are two hour sessions, and about 2-3 are one hour sessions; the rest are 90 minutes.  When I add the hours at the end of the week, it always looks better than if I did a client headcount.  I like to leave about 30 minutes between clients for paperwork, folding sheets, etc.  I like the room to be ready when my clients get there.  In the fall and winter, I should be averaging more clients per day, usually 3 minimum.  I can't work on more than 5 in a day, unless they were just 60 minute massages... 4 is my ideal.  I don't think I want to go more than that; I'd like a long career.

 

[leslie b]

Currently I have a day or so between clients, but ideally, 30 minutes.  Sometimes an hour is even better.  This allows flexiblity if the client is running  late.  And allows the therapist to remain calm and cool and professional. mick

 

[cheeky]

Time Between Clients

15 to 30 min. Your Clients will love you for it. At the old place I was at they book every hour on the hour. So the clients were getting 50,45,40 min massages and paying for an hour. I don't care if you tell them 5 min to dress and 5 min to undress they are paying for the hour. So doing an actual 1 hour of hands on massage is great. And the client will come back.

 

[McHaggis Scoticus]

Time Between Clients

reading on how much some of you work in a day/week kills me. at my work we leave 15 min inbetweene and a about an hour break after evert 3 clients back to back. five hours in a day is alot normal is 3 and we are only at the shop for a six hour shift.

 

[froglady]

I do aprox 5 hrs hands on/day 4 or 5 days a week (& sometimes more during the winter holidays & thru early spring).  I do 60 minute, 90 minute and 120 minute sessions.I leave myself 30 minutes between clients.  I like to have this time for client turn-over (undressing/dressing/paying/setting up next apt) but I also use this time to sit and chat with clients (5-10 minutes, or more if it's there first time in) before they begin.  This gives me time to connect with them before they get on the table and gets all the 'talking' out of the way.  I find that this time is invaluable for feedback from prior as well as a chance to see if anything 'new' is going on.

 

[Pompal 09.]

Wow...In our office we book clients back to back.  We only leave five minutes between appointments.An hour massage = 55 minutes.  I leave the room and wash my hands, check my schedule, drink water, etc. while my client gets dressed.  Say my thank yous and goodbyes, change the sheets, and greet my next client.  I am fortunate enough to have front desk staff to take care of consent forms, payment, and my schedule.I schedule a 30 min break after three or four hours, and I only do five hours a day max.It's intense, but I get to go home by 2:30 and spend the afternoon with my son!Katykangaroo

 

[prtygirl17]

This post is making me feel even more like a work-aholic! :-[I work 5-6 days a week.  My first appointment is at 10am, and my last appoinment is anywhere from 6:15 - 7:30.  I have 15 minutes in between each appointment, and average 1 lunch break per week.  Fortunatly I have a front desk person that helps me with phones and appointments, and I finally have a couple of LMT's that are starting to take some of the load off me.  It's no wonder how I keep this girlish figure!  Reading this post makes it even more clear to me that I need to take at least one break every day.

 

[princess(:]

I agree with Berkana.  30 minutes gives me time to connect with the current client and gives us time to chat and get any info updates.  I like working on three/day, I will take four.  I usually take a day off mid-week. Right now, I'm taking one appt. on Saturday.

 

[Aimz]

[quote author=natalie link=board=bus;num=1088780018;start=0#10 date=08/04/04 at 23:49:39]reading on how much some of you work in a day/week kills me. we are only at the shop for a six hour shift. [/quote]Natalie,I know this may be easier said than done but...IF you are overworking yourself, leave??Are you able to change jobs?  Are you able to go out on your own?You do not want to burnout.Please work smart.  Please work safe.Robyn

 

[jhig78]

Time Between Clients

I try to schedule 30 minutes between clients, but have found myself scheduling 15 or less if I have to squeeze someone in. I don't like only having 15 minutes in case someone shows up late. I usually am too nice to cut an appointment early, I only do so if the next client is coming really quickly. I am "on call" from 9am until 12am, so I don't really take days off for breaks. I advertize that I am closed on Sundays, but I have worked many Sundays. I figure while my practice is not yet full, I take breaks if nobody schedules. Maybe when I've got a full schedule I'll have start / closing times and days, but until then, I'll work whenever.

 

[random.nagger]

I always schedule 30 minutes in between clients.  I found that If I do less it really makes me crunched for time.  I do not like to rush my clients either.  I tell them to take their time when I am finished.  I also found that Ihave built some very nice relationships with my clients because I do take time with them before and after a session.  It's nice not to rush and we can talk and I even walk them out when we are done.  On the down side, it does take them forever to get out of my office, so even if I do schedule 30 min. in between I often only have 10 mim.  left to get ready for the next client.  But that is still 30 min. in between actually giving my hands and body a workout.  So I wouldn't change it.