2007 ABMP Member Survey
ABMP conducts member surveys every other year to not only find out what ABMP services our members employ the most, but also to relay pertinent and applicable information to help support and promote our members’ careers and to provide useful information about the massage and bodywork industry to the public. We hope this information will help members write detailed business plan proposals, understand the trends and directions of the field, better establish positioning within their communities (i.e., Are you charging at or near the national average?), and provide clear information about your work to clients and colleagues. We hope you’ll find the following summary valuable in your professional journey.
On July 13, 2007, ABMP sent out 4,962 invitations by e-mail asking members to participate in our biennial survey. We also posted a link to the survey on www.abmp.com on July 20, 2007. Our final number of survey responses was 976, or 19.7 percent of our original list. Following is a summary of the survey results, with some comparison information included from the 2005 and 2003.
When practitioners were asked which technique was the primary focus of their work, deep tissue massage was the most prominently practiced, with 33.1 percent indicating so. In 2005, Swedish massage was the most prominently practiced (37 percent), but that technique came in second this year with 31.4 percent; nonetheless, Swedish remains the technique practiced by the highest percentage of respondents (93.7 percent).
Contact hours for therapists are dropping. Average combined hours from sessions performed during the week prior to the survey dropped to 14.4 from 15.4 in 2005, and the median dropped to 12 from 13. The top five reasons clients seek members’ services, in order from highest to lowest, are: stress management, relaxation, relief from acute pain, management of chronic pain, and rehabilitation from injury.
As was the case in 2005, the largest percentage of new clients come from referrals by existing clients. In 2007 that number was 44.4. percent, down slightly from 46.8 percent in 2005. Other sources of new clients in 2007 were referrals from family/friends (19.4 percent), advertising (18.5 percent), medical practitioners (17.3 percent), and other massage/bodywork/somatic practitioners (8.4 percent).
The predominant business locale remains the practitioner’s office, with 35.9 percent of massages delivered there; 13.7 percent of massages were delivered in practitioners’ homes, while 7.0 percent were delivered at clients’ homes. Other relevant locations were chiropractic offices (12.2 percent), day spas (10.9 percent), and—a category included in our survey for the first time—massage-only clinics (7.4 percent). Those who reported working in a spa setting dropped to 28.9 percent from 33.4 percent in 2005 and 41.8 percent reported in 2003. The number of people who reported working in a medical setting fell to 24.3 percent from 32.9 percent in 2005. Nearly one in five (18.5 percent) reported working in a massage-only setting.
Of the 18.5 percent of respondents who reported working at least part-time in a massage-only setting, 88 percent report being paid only for the time they are actually giving massages or other treatments, while 12 percent report being paid for all hours they are scheduled and present. Sixty-five percent of practitioners are paid a flat rate and 35 percent are paid a percentage of the total spa fee. About 57 percent of therapists receive client tips in a massage-only setting.
Of the 28.9 percent working in a spa setting, 89 percent report being paid only for the time they are actually giving massages or other treatments, while 11 percent report being paid for all hours they are scheduled and present. Fifty-seven percent of practitioners are paid a flat rate and 43 percent are paid a percentage of the total spa fee. About 80 percent receive tips in a spa/salon.
Of the respondents, 24.3 percent report working in at least one or more medical settings, with the distribution being 56.5 percent working in a chiropractic office, 33.3 percent in wellness clinics, 13.5 percent in physical therapy practices, 8.4 percent in M.D. offices, and 59.9 percent in other medical settings. Like those in a spa setting, most are paid only for their massage time (81.2 percent) rather than all hours worked. However, more are paid a flat rate in a medical setting (72.5 percent) rather than a percentage of the client fee, but practitioners in medical settings report receiving tips from only 29 percent of clients.
Pay and session length remained the same since 2005; a typical massage or bodywork session lasts 60 minutes, and therapists receive $60 on average for their work. Fourteen percent of therapists report receiving third-party health insurance reimbursement for at least some massage/bodywork/somatic therapy services they provide.
More than half of ABMP massage therapists are married (54.5 percent) and most are female (82.8 percent), and their average age is 44. The average tenure in the field rose to 6.2 years (from 5.6 years in 2005).
The number of members who report having a college degree continues to rise, though only marginally (56.5 percent versus 55.5 percent in 2005 and 55.3 percent in 2003). Thirty-three percent have at least some college, independent of their training in massage/bodywork/somatic therapy; 31.5 percent have a bachelor’s degree, and 9.7 percent have a master’s degree or higher.
Income for the first year of practice continues to trend upward, with an average of $10,504 (up from $9,588 in 2005 and $9,279 in 2003), though the median dropped to $7000 from $7,750 in 2005. Though 2005 indicated that average earnings were on the rise, average 2007 earnings dropped 6.3 percent compared to 2005 totals ($17,750, down from $18,950). In 2005, 11.6 percent reported earning less than $3,500; in 2007, that rose to 15.8 percent.
The number of respondents supplementing their income with another job rose to 51 percent (from 45.2 percent reported in 2005). The amount of time spent at the other job is the same as what was reported in 2005: an average of 25 hours per week. The top five second occupations include: office/secretary/clerk, massage instructor, medical (including nurses), teacher/education, and sales/retail.
Average total earnings from massage and other jobs increased 5 percent since 2005 (up to $34,141 from $32,506). Total household income increased 28 percent to $77,285. Most respondents (61.5 percent) report being one of at least two breadwinners in his or her household. The majority of members (74 percent) have health insurance coverage; 41.6 percent procure it through their spouse, 32.8 percent say that it is self-purchased, 18.7 percent get it through their second job, and only 7 percent get it through their massage/bodywork occupation.
ABMP members continue to show interest in pursuing continuing education. Following are the areas that interest them the most, in descending order: craniosacral therapy, energy work, myofascial release, medical/injury/conditions, and lymph work.
As was the case in 2005, approximately two-thirds (65.6 percent) of respondents wish they had more clients. This sentiment was echoed later when they were asked what would they change if they could change one thing—21.2 percent indicated they would like to increase their clientele. Members also mentioned they would like to own their practice or workspace (9.3 percent), improve their current workspace (7.1 percent), and/or move to a new location (5.9 percent).
Though 64.2 percent of members have not taken the National Certification Examination for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCETMB), 31.6 percent of members have passed the exam and remain certified, while another 3.2 percent have passed the exam but chose to let their national certification lapse. Of those who took the exam, 55.1 percent did so because it was a requirement to practice in their state. While a majority of members (68.7 percent) said the price for state credentialing was reasonable, 61.2 percent said the cost of the NCETMB was excessive.
ABMP’s most readily available tool for such activities, www.abmp.com, got good marks. The percentage of members visiting the site this year (80.7 percent) remains similar to that reported in 2005 (80.5 percent), up from 64.3 percent in 2003. ABMP.com receives an average of 22,700 unique visitors and 3.5 million hits each month. ABMP’s public education website, Massagetherapy.com, receives 52,300 unique visitors and 2.5 million hits each month.
Those using the marketing materials seemed very pleased. For instance, the customized online newsletter was well received by a small, but growing, audience; 17.3 percent created one in 2007, up from 12.7 percent in 2005. In addition, 16.9 percent reported creating customized client education brochures. Thirty-one percent reported creating their own website and, of that number, almost 31 percent used our ABMP Website Builder. The online features deemed to be the most useful are the article database (26.2 percent), client newsletters (16 percent), Massagetherapy.com’s online referral service (9.9 percent), client brochures (7.1 percent), and legislative updates (6.5 percent). Though the increasing trend of members using online tools is important, many other members are still not taking advantage of free online resources.
Use of ABMP publications varies; Massage & Bodywork magazine was read by 83.4 percent of respondents frequently or several times over the past year, while only 46.9 percent read the newsletter Different Strokes frequently or several times during the year.
The top five most popular ABMP member benefits include: the online article database, Massagetherapy.com’s online referral service, the photo CD/library, free website account, and free e-mail account.
For more information about the massage industry and the benefits of massage, visit www.massagetherapy.com. If you have any questions about the survey results, including how to access and use many of ABMP’s benefits, please contact ABMP at 800-458-2267 or expectmore@abmp.com, or visit us at www.abmp.com.
