24/01/2022
Price Increase and Cancellation Policy
This year marks three years of being in business for me, with the last two years being exceptionally difficult due to COVID. Due to this, I have had to make some necessary changes concerning the financial side of TRU Massage. These include a slight price increase for services, the introduction of cancellation fees, and online bookings being paid in advance.
I have resisted making these changes for as long as possible both to keep myself in competition with other massage therapists, but also because I recognise that the past two years have been financially difficult for many of my clients. To that end, I have tried to keep the changes as minimal as possible, and mainly focusing on one key area.
On average, my usual week contains up to five cancellations from clients with very little advance notice. As I do not currently have a cancellation policy in place, this has led to a substantial loss of income that seems to have been growing over the past months. While some cancellations have been for very good reasons – sickness, hospitalisation, etc. – the majority are simply due to change of mind, double-bookings, or the client becoming uncontactable.
Due to this situation, I will be putting a cancellation policy in place on the 1st of March. This policy will be at my discretion and will be operated on a case-by-case basis based on a client’s history of cancellations. Repeated cancellations with no notice or no valid reason will result in a client needing to pay for an appointment in advance, with part of that fee not being refunded if the client should cancel that appointment under similar circumstances. That non-refundable portion of the fee will depend on the notice given, and the client’s attendance history. Obviously, life happens, and there are many reasons why an appointment would have to be cancelled at the last minute. This is why the cancellation policy will be at my discretion, and clients can always contact me if they have any concerns.
The second, somewhat less drastic, change is that a 2% surcharge will be in place from March when making a booking online. This is a third-party website setting that comes into place as I start using the website to receive payments. A price increase of $5 per appointment will also come into effect on the 1st of March. A more detailed breakdown of this can be found below. This will be my first price increase since opening my business in 2019.
All of the housekeeping aside, my business is my livelihood, but it’s also something I really enjoy. I have been very lucky to spend the last decade of my life genuinely enjoying what I’m doing, and the nature of having a mobile business is that I get to meet and treat a wide variety of people. Without my clients, TRU Massage wouldn’t exist, and I’m extremely grateful for the support you have given me over the last three years. I look forward to seeing everyone again in the years to come.
