What clients check before they book a massage
- Which treatment, how long, how much. Swedish, deep tissue, prenatal, sports, hot stone: one line each on what it's for, the length and the price. "Deep tissue 60 min $110" answers most questions on its own.
- That you're qualified. Your licence or registration, and your training. Where the law says how (see below), follow it.
- What happens at a first session. How long to arrive early, what to wear, privacy and draping, how pressure is agreed, payment. A short paragraph removes most first-time nerves.
- Where and when. The address and parking (or the area you travel to), and your hours.
- The rules: cancellations, lateness, and the deposit if you take one.
The sections a massage therapist website needs
- Top of the page: what and where ("Licensed massage therapy on South Lamar, Austin"), Book a massage, your phone as a button, your hours.
- Treatments and prices, each with its length.
- Booking: pick a treatment, a day and a time, with the deposit and cancellation rule written right there.
- Your first visit: what to expect.
- About you: your training, your approach, your licence.
- Find us and contact.
Booking with a deposit
A missed 60-minute massage is an hour you can't sell. A small deposit when clients book cuts that, as long as the rule is fair and written next to the booking. In our example Ginta set up the five treatments with their lengths and prices, the opening hours, and a $25 deposit; clients can move or cancel online until a day before.
The deposit is paid by card through your own Stripe account once you connect it in Ginta (Account → Payments); until then the prices show and clients pay at the session, which Ginta's reply said after the build. Stripe charges its card fees; Ginta adds nothing. How much to ask and a fair rule to copy: how to take deposits for appointments.
Set a break between clients. Ginta left the break after each booking at none. Most therapists need 10 to 15 minutes to change the table and air the room: set it in the booking settings so back-to-back bookings can't happen.
Licences and the law
Rules differ by country and state, and they often cover advertising. In Texas, for example, the licensing rules ask a massage therapist who advertises under a business name to show their full legal name or licence number with it, and treat misleading advertising as a violation (TDLR's penalty list; the rule is 16 Tex. Admin. Code § 117.93). Our example says "Licensed in Texas" but shows no licence number, so a real Texas therapist would add it. Check what your state, country or council requires before you publish.
Keep health questions out of the booking form. Ask on the day, on paper or in a form made for health information; the website only needs the name, email and treatment.
Mistakes we see on massage websites
- A price list without lengths, or lengths without prices.
- "Call to book" on a website people open at 11pm.
- No word on what a first session is like, for the clients who are nervous about it.
- Stock photos only. Your own room, table and light tell people more.
- A booking form that asks for medical history (it doesn't belong there).
How it works with Ginta
Write your treatments with lengths and prices, your hours, your address and whether you want a deposit. Ginta builds the website with booking in about a minute: our example's message took 68 seconds and 13.6 credits, and needed no repair round. Then change treatments, prices and hours in the Parts tab without the AI, and send your own photos in the chat. Bookings, deposits and full payment work on Free (up to 30 bookings a month per website); your own domain and no cap start at €5 a month with your own Claude or ChatGPT, or €19 on Light. Going to clients' homes instead? A mobile therapist's booking asks for the address: the mobile massage example.
What Ginta doesn't do (yet): gift certificates that clients buy and redeem, packages of sessions, or client health records. Sell gift certificates in person, or use a booking app with them if they're a big part of your income.
Questions
Should a massage therapist take a deposit?
If no-shows cost you, yes: a small deposit, taken off the price, refunded when clients cancel in time. Say the rule next to the booking.
What should a massage booking form ask?
Name, email, the treatment and the time; a phone number if you call before first visits. Not medical history: ask that on the day.
Can clients book couples massages or two treatments together?
Each booking is one treatment with one therapist. A couples massage with two therapists is two bookings at the same time, one with each; say so on the page, or take couples bookings by phone.
Do I need my licence number on my website?
Some places require it in advertising (Texas does, when you use a business name). Elsewhere it's still a good way to show you're qualified.
