Cherie Sohnen-Moe

In 2009 President Obama signed into legislation the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 (Card Act). The final phase went into effect Sunday, August 22, 2010.

While the stipulations of this act can protect you personally, this Act may impact your business in terms of time and costs. For business owners, the CARD Act covers gift cards, gift certificates, loyalty programs and rewards from promotional programs.

Gift Certificates

The biggest impact this has on therapists is that any gift certificate you sell that includes a dollar amount must clearly include an expiration date of no less than five years (or no expiration date at all).

As far as I can decipher, the exemption to this rule is that if the certificate is not issued in a specific dollar amount:

1. Redeemable for a specific good or service (e.g., massage, bottle of essential oil), or
2. Redeemable for a certain percentage (e.g. 15%) off the purchase.

Technically, this means as far as the Federal government is concerned, you can put an expiration date on a gift certificate if it is good for a service (e.g., one massage), and you don’t state the dollar value of the massage on the certificate. It also appears that you can still put a less-than-five-year expiration date on gift certificates that you give as promotions and to charity events, providing no money was exchanged for those certificates. Still, you might consider following these guidelines as consumers probably won’t be aware of the exceptions.

Loyalty Programs and Promotional Programs

Many companies offer coupons that are good for a limited time and you can still do so in most instances, as long as the consumer didn’t pay for the coupon. Some practitioners offer loyalty programs. If there are no fees involved, the 5-year minimum expiration term is not required. If you have a loyalty program, these are the main disclosure items you need to include:

1. Accurately label the front of the offer with a title, such as “Loyalty Program,” “Reward,” or “Promotion.”
2. Post the expiration date (if there is one) on the front.
3. Print the amount and conditions of fees (if there are any).
4. Print your telephone number and website if there are any fees associated with the offer.

Gift Cards

Gift cards used to be a marketing tool reserved for large corporations, but many smaller businesses now utilize this marketing strategy. If you do, the new rules state that you can not impose fees unless no activity

has been made on the card for one (1) year. That statement, as well as the potential monthly  dormancy/service fees, expiration date, and toll-free contact number must be clearly printed on the card.

What to Do

Keep in mind that these are the minimum Federal standards. Your state might impose more stringent rules. This new law is complicated and the exemptions are not straightforward. You needn’t worry if you are fine with the five year minimum expiration date. I recommend you consult an attorney if you offer gift certificates, loyalty programs or gift cards and you have concerns about their exemption status.

(Originally published in WIBB.)

I seem to be enmeshed in musical metaphors lately. In Jerry Kennedy’s blog titled, “Why Being a Non-Conformist Is Great for Your Business,” he talks about non-conformity and the importance of being true to yourself. So many of us play it safe, particularly in the name of credibility and acceptance. Kennedy shares how he’s struggled over the past several years to create his dream business—without reaching the levels of success he wants. In doing things the “right” way, he has stifled his creativity. He states, “And all the while I’ve been suppressing my inner punk-rocker.”

I too have been suppressing my rebellious nature. While not quite a punk-rocker, I am a rock-and-roll girl—literally and figuratively. Unfortunately, for the past couple of years I’ve been performing as a soft-rock player. And that’s not who I am. And truthfully, it’s that outspoken, funny, yet compassionate aspect of my personality that created my success. As I move into this next phase of my life, playing it safe is not the way to go!

For the past three decades, leaders in the massage industry have been working very hard to remove the stigma associated with massage and to depict therapists as “normal,” responsible people. In the zest to remove the “granola crunching” image, many practitioners have stifled a lot of their artistry. I think balance is in order.

How are you playing it safe in your practice? What aspects of your personality are you suppressing to fit in? Perhaps it’s time to let your inner rebel out to play.

(Originally published in Massage Today's WIBB blog.)

Recently I went to hear a friend's band (Episodes) play at a local bar. Their music is basically classic rock, indie and some folk rock. The music was great and everyone enjoyed it. The majority of the people in the room were friends of the band. After about an hour, the "cover band" Recovery came on. It was actually the same members of Episodes. What I found very interesting is that the crowd was much more engaged and some sang along and danced when the band played popular songs-even though a few of those songs were made popular before some of the audience members were even born!

This got me thinking about how this relates to marketing. I know, I tend to look at most things from a marketing perspective.... My conclusions are:

• Good friends will listen to you no matter what.
• People like what's familiar.
• Classics stand the test of time.

Reflect on your marketing. What are your classics? What has worked really well in the past? Think about the promotions you did where people really responded. What specials or even approaches to your work did you do that received favorable comments? Are you still doing those things? If not, then why?

While I advocate creativity, you don't always have to be doing something new to stand out. Mix up the new and the classics!

(Originally published in Massage Today's WIBB blog.)

A massage therapist wrote to me that she had sent letters to 40 chiropractors in her area and 2 of them want her to talk with them about working together. She wanted ideas on how to approach them. I suggested that she prepare for her meeting as an informal presentation and prepare something about how working together benefits both of their practices as well as helps clients/patients improve.

• Talk about the benefits of massage
• Give examples of how massage complements chiropractic care
• Discuss how the collaboration benefits all parties.

It's also wise to include a packet of material in a pocket folder: Business cards; brochure; copies of any media interviews of you; copies of published articles about chiropractic and massage; and a one-page bulleted chart listing the specific benefits of working with you.

I've been asked by several people what they should do in these difficult economic times to stay afloat. First of all, if at all possible, don't raise your rates. Also consider offering prepaid package discounts. Perhaps you can do a modified session at a lesser price.

Although we need to take into consideration people's concerns and fears about money, we certainly don't need to buy into that mindset. If you have set wellness goals with your clients and have a treatment plan in place, the majority of your clients will continue at their previous pace.

I also suggest you take the exceptions on a case by case basis. For instance, let's say you have been working with a client twice a month for the past two years. That client gets laid off. You can decide if you want to defer payment for a limited time so the client can continue to receive sessions until s/he gets a new job. Granted, it would be difficult to make this offer to a lot of people.

Flexibility, compassion and a sense of humor are the keys to getting through these economic times.