What policies an equine bodyworker should have (and how to uphold them!)

I have a client (let’s call her Susan) who I adore.

Susan schedules a month in advance, she pays as I’m working on her horse, and she sends me updates about her horse throughout the month. I love Susan.

Recently, Susan had to unexpectedly cancel a session last minute - but before she even sent me the text that she was cancelling… she sent me a Venmo of the cancellation fee (did I mention that I really love Susan? 😅).

But here’s the thing… very few clients are going to be a Susan. We might love them and they might love us, but that doesn’t mean that they are going to respect (or even read) our policies. This doesn’t only compromise your business (now your policies don’t even mean anything), but it can also compromise your client relationships. When we don’t set a clear expectation of what to expect, it leaves room for expectations to not be met.

So where does that put you as a business owner? It puts you in a position of responsibility to ensure that your clients:

• Read and understand your policies

• Receive clear communication when a policy needs to be upheld

The equine industry was built on handshakes, but times are changing and upholding policies is a necessary component of business to protect your time, finances, and client expectations.

So, what policies/permissions should you even consider having? This is going to vary bodyworker to bodyworker, but the ones that I recommend considering for your business are:

• Cancellation policy

  • How late can someone cancel? What will they owe if they cancel within that window?

• Horse preparation / chemical exposure policy

  • Are you okay with horses being wet? Muddy? Dusty? What about recently fly sprayed or with shine spray on?

• Horse health policy

  • Do you require clients to notify you of contagious exposure or other health issues?

• Payment policy

  • When is payment due and how can you receive it?

• Media Consent

  • Are you allowed to take photos/videos to post on social media or use for other marketing purposes?

• Email Marketing Consent

  • Can you send them marketing emails?

Coming up with the policies that you want to have is the “easy” part.

You can decide “Yeah, it would be really nice to still get paid even when someone cancels”… but what about actually upholding it? That’s the harder part for most of us.

Without talking to you in person about your specific situation and what feels most challenging about upholding policies, here are my top 3 tips applicable to anyone:

• Communicate early and often (ensure that you clients know what your policies are before you try to uphold them)

• Have a formal intake process that includes your client signing/agreeing to your policies

• 10 seconds of courage to uphold your policies (it gets easier each time you do it, I promise!)

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If you’re feeling overwhelmed at the thought of asking someone for money after they cancel their session (or upholding any other policies)… I’m here to help!

Visit my website for more information about Business Coaching and my comprehensive bodyworker business course, the Barrio Business Blueprint - I’d love to work with you to create a sustainable, profitable business.