Frequently Asked Questions - Part 2 of 3

Who is eligible to register as a provider on MassageAnywhere.com?
To register as a provider, you must be at least 18 years of age and one of the following: (a) a massage therapist; (b) a trained provider of massage services or bodyworker; or (c) a skilled volunteer provider of such services.  Individuals seeking "massage exchanges" are not eligible to register as providers and may not post ads.

You must also:

• Comply with any local, state, provincial and federal regulations, ordinances, statutes and laws, if any, that may apply to your advertisement.
• Subscribe to and abide by MassageAnywhere.com's Provider Code of Ethics.
• Register for a membership (FREE).

If you are a professional, you must attest that you have never had a permit or license related to massage therapy (or bodywork) revoked or suspended, and that you are not currently under any disciplinary action with respect to any resolved or unresolved complaint.

Complete eligibility requirements are explained in the Terms of Service.

How can you offer this service for FREE?  What's the catch?
There is no "catch".  Your profile/ad and photo album are welcome on MassageAnywhere.com at no charge.  Visitors and clients may search and use MassageAnywhere.com anonymously, free of charge, without having to register.  And no, we don't bombard you with unsolicited advertisements online or in the mail, and no, we don't sell your personal information on the side.  However, we also offer an advanced search and advertising subscription for a modest cost, at your option, and you're always welcome to make a purchase in our online store.  That helps us pay the bills.

What are the benefits of a paid subscription over a basic free account?
At no cost, a basic free account gives you a free publishable ad to advertise your massage services among the tens of thousands of others.  But, for a very modest cost, a subscription can (1) increase your ad's everyday exposure by up to 300% over a basic free ad; (2) give your ad premier positioning and rank in search results, as well as preference on our homepage; and (3) make it easier for customers to find you among the crowd.  This is particularly valuable if you advertise in a populated market area.  Now, if you work in a relatively small, unpopulated market area, our free basic account may be sufficient and you may not need or benefit from a subscription.  But if you work in a populated market area where your ad is not easily and consistently found with every search (try it yourself and see!), we recommend a subscription.  For without a subscription, the publication of your basic free ad may be substantially limited, published only in response to more limited searches or in small market areas, or only to subscribing members and/or randomly.

A subscription is not only very modestly priced but can also be a very wise choice.

What may I advertise on MassageAnywhere.com?
You must use your provider profile/ad and published reviews to offer, sell, advertise and promote your massage / bodywork services.

If you offer additional (non-massage / bodywork) services, you may make some reference to them if they're either related to massage / bodywork or are otherwise of interest to your potential clients.  For example, if you are a coach, personal trainer, nutritionist or yoga instructor, or you offer other health, relaxation, comfort, stress relief and/or holistic services, you might wish to include those in your profile/ad as well.  Alternatively, if you are a photographer, sculptor, bodypainter or other artistic service provider, you are welcome to advertise those services as well; however, as always, your massage / bodywork services must be the primary services offered in your profile/ad.

Your profile/ad must NOT offer, sell, advertise or promote any money-making schemes, contests, sweepstakes, advertising ventures, tangible goods or products of any kind, including, but not limited to, books, CDs, audiotapes, candles, oils, herbs, clothing, etc.  You may not offer "massage exchange", i.e. massage services in exchange for massage services.  Your advertisement must be legal (e.g. do not advertise medical treatment or diagnosis of medical conditions unless you have a license to practice medicine) and within our Terms of Service.  If you have a question about what may or may not be appropriate, we are happy to answer.

Do I have to tell... ?
We do not require you to disclose your identity, credentials, qualifications or other personal information except that which may be necessary for clients to contact you or as you may be required by applicable law.  Modesty is admired and your privacy is respected.  Of course, what you do tell must not be false, inaccurate or misleading.

In general, ads that are informative and inviting often get a better response.  Some possible details you may want to include are your training and experience, the ambience of your setting, how you work with clients, and how you might be different from other providers in what you provide.

What about a permit, certification or license?
In the absence of any law or regulation to the contrary, providers are not required to identify their qualifications in their profile.  Many may volunteer such information, but others will prefer to maintain a level of modesty (or privacy) in the public venue of their profile.  Providers who do not work on a professional basis or whose massage / bodywork services are complimentary and incidental to their primary occupation (e.g. a personal trainer who enjoys giving his/her clients a massage on occasion) are typically not subject to certification, licensing or regulation.

What content may I include in my profile/ad?
You may publish a headline, your name (or nickname), primary location, alternate location, styles/modalities, availability, fees, descriptions of your services (and of yourself if you wish), contact information, e-mail address, homepage URL, and various demographic information about yourself and your typical client as you may choose to reveal -- whatever it takes.  You may also publish up to eight photos of yourself and your services.  All content must be within the scope of our Terms of Service.

We can't say enough about how valuable a picture (or pictures!) will be to your advertising efforts.  Whether you're a born beauty or not, ads with photos DO get better responses, often 8-to-1 better.  Choose photos that show your warmth, passion and pride in your work.  Everyone enjoys being greeted by a warm and friendly face.

Do I have to be "serious"?
Be sincere in what you offer and everything else will fall into place on its own.  If there's something that sets you apart from the others, let people know.  If you let your ad fully and clearly express who you are and what you offer, it's more likely you will find satisfied clients.  Whatever you do, be yourself.  There's no rule you have to be "this" or "that".  Whether you're "serious" or just offering a skilled massage for fun, remember that every service and every style has value. 

Do I have to offer my services to ANYONE?  Or to... ?
If you would prefer not to open your services to the general public or "just anybody", we request that you make this clearly (and politely) known in your profile/ad.  You are welcome to identify your typical client in your profile, or simply express and affirm your belief that a good match between client and provider is important to the quality of your service.

When I upload my own photos, what is the correct size and format?
We accept image files in JPG/JPEG, PNG, GIF and BMP formats.  An uploaded image file should be of reasonable size, no larger than 300 KBytes.

Images can be any size in terms of their horizontal and vertical pixel dimensions.  Large images will be rescaled automatically to (proportionately) fit within a 400 by 400 pixel window.  Images up to 400 pixels in both directions (horizontal and vertical) will not be resized.  We automatically create the thumbnail image for every image you upload, so there is no need to do that.

Do my photos have to show my face?
We strongly encourage you to show your face in your primary photo, and from the perspective of a prospective client, a clear picture of your face may indeed be a requirement.  However, if you are not comfortable with this, or you feel like adding a little mystery, the decision is yours.  Cropping your face out of a photo is one way, but in our view, it's not the best way.  Rather, there are other ways to make an impression:

Whatever style suits you best, choose photos that are true to who you are.

Are "adult" pictures allowed in my photo album?
If tastefully depicted under our Terms of Service, modest / discreet nudity is permissible, with or without a fig leaf.  However, images depicting erotic behavior plainly intended to solicit or incite sexual activity (i.e. pornographic images) and ads soliciting prostitution are not permitted.  We may, at our option, place a clickable "courtesy screen" over certain images to protect more sensitive viewers.

It is your duty to observe the rules, but we will work with you to ensure our policies are understood.  If we find you have submitted a photo that does not fall within our guidelines, we may (at our option) edit, remove or block the photo from publication.  If you have questions or need further guidance, please contact us.

Do I have to have a web page or web site of my own?
If you are a listed provider on MassageAnywhere.com, you do have a web page of your very own and you may reach it with the following URL: http://www.MassageAnywhere.com/profile/MYNAME where "MYNAME" is your MassageAnywhere.com member name.  But if you also have another web page or web site on the Internet, you're encouraged to mention it in your profile.

May I link to MassageAnywhere.com or advertise my web page?
You are welcome to link to us or your web page by following the instructions found here.  If you link to us or your web page, please do not use any means of unsolicited mass messaging (i.e. "spam") or your account will be terminated.

You are welcome to add your MassageAnywhere.com web page address to your business cards and/or other advertising.

Will my membership subscription automatically renew?
You may subscribe either with automatic renewal or the option for a one-time non-recurring payment.  If you choose to subscribe by one-time payment, we will NOT charge you recurrently and your subscription will not be renewed automatically.  Instead, you may renew or extend your membership subscription at any time, whenever it is convenient for you to do so.  If you have subscribed, detailed information about your subscription expiration and renewal are available, after you login, on your My Account page.

If my membership subscription renews automatically on a recurring basis, how can I stop or cancel it?
You may cancel a recurring or future payment at any time by returning to your My Account page (after you've logged in).  If you have a recurring payment (or a future one-time payment), a cancellation button will be displayed for you to click as well as additional information that may be of interest to you.

I'm having trouble logging in.  Has my account been removed?
Maybe, but probably not.  We offer the following suggestions for you to explore...

1. If you've forgotten your member name or password, you may have them e-mailed to you by clicking the special link on the login page.  Please remember that your password is case sensitive, meaning that "password" and "PassWord" are not the same.  Note, if you have not yet verified your e-mail address with us, we will be unable to e-mail your member name and password to you until you do.
    
2. Login requires that you have session cookies and JavaScript enabled in your browser.  These features are enabled by default in most browsers.  Please recheck your browser preferences as instructed.
    
3. Unfortunately, some providers move, fall out-of-touch or "disappear".  However, in order to protect the quality of our search results, we need to know who's still with us and who's not.  If you're not a subscribing member (or your subscription expired), and you don't login to your account for an extended period of time, we'll assume you're "inactive" and your account will expire (and potentially be removed from the system).

If you can call up http://www.MassageAnywhere.com/profile/MYNAME where "MYNAME" is your MassageAnywhere.com member name, your account is most definitely still active.  However, in the unfortunate event that you forgot about your account and it was removed from the system, you are welcome to register again.  If none of the above works for you or you continue to have trouble of any kind, please contact us for assistance.

My paid subscription expired, but I'm still able to login.  Why?
If your paid subscription expires, you lose your subscription-only benefits, but we will also afford you a grace period during which you may still login and renew your subscription.  However, if you forget to renew before the end of the grace period, your account may then be terminated and removed from the system, and you will no longer be able to login and renew your subscription (meaning you would have to recreate your account from the ground up instead).  Of course, you do not need to wait to renew until your subscription expires; you can renew or extend your membership subscription at any time.

Can I have more than one profile/ad on MassageAnywhere.com?
If you operate a group practice, each provider in your group is welcome to his/her own profile/ad in addition to any overall group profile/ad.  Otherwise, you should not create multiple profiles/ads.  If you operate out of two locations (e.g. you have both a weekday location and a weekend location), the same profile/ad will cover both locations.  If you have special circumstances, please contact us to make arrangements.

Is my e-mail address required?
Yes, but it will not be published without your permission.  Your e-mail address is required for the following reasons:

• for confirmation purposes during registration and subscription;
• in the event you forget your password;
• so we may notify you when a review of your services is submitted; and
• to maintain your account in compliance with our Terms of Service.

And of course, interested clients may wish to e-mail you as well.  However, in accordance with our Privacy Policy, we will not publish your e-mail address without your permission (as indicated by an editable option in your profile).  To receive e-mails from interested clients without publishing your e-mail address, you may request that e-mails from potential clients be automatically and privately forwarded to your unpublished e-mail address.

IMPORTANT: Whether or not you choose to publish your e-mail address, it is very important that the e-mail address in your profile be your correct e-mail address, as the owner of that e-mail address will be granted password access to your account.

Will you be sending "junk" mail to my e-mail address?
NO.  We will e-mail you only in response to your actions on MassageAnywhere.com (e.g. to confirm your registration or changes in your registration, if you forget your password, etc.), or to notify you when a user submits a review of your services, or (at your option) to forward e-mails received from the public at-large in response to your ad.  We may also notify you of any important matters concerning your account, such as billing, complaints, etc.  Of course, if you choose (at your option) to publish your e-mail address as part of your public profile/ad, your e-mail address will then be made available to anyone who reads your profile.

I can't find my ad.  Where is it?
You can always view your ad after logging in by selecting the "view ad" hyperlink at the top of any page.  However, if you search for your ad via the search form and your ad does not appear, one or more of the following may be the reason:

• The visibility option in your profile does not allow full visibility.
• You do not have a paid subscription and you performed a search that returned numerous results, often in a populated market area.  In this example, your ad may appear when you search one day but not on another, or it may appear when you search at 7 am but not at 7 pm.
• You have a paid subscription but it has expired and you did not renew.
• You entered the wrong ZIP code or selected the wrong city in either your profile or the search form.
• Your photo album is empty and your search included only profiles with photos (the default setting), or you performed a keyword search and the requested keywords were not found in your profile.
• You requested a search showing just photos without description, but you do not have a valid primary photo.
• You have not yet created your profile.
• You violated the Terms of Service and your account has been suspended or is being reviewed.  Please note, if this is the case, you will be clearly informed of such when you login to your account.

If you're looking for an explanation of the search process and how we determine the order in which results are returned, click here.  If none of the above possibilities solves the mystery, contact us for assistance.

Will my ad appear on the MassageAnywhere.com homepage?
To be presented as a featured Provider on our homepage, you must be professional and upload an acceptable photo or image for display.  The display of featured Providers on our homepage is updated over time with preference given to our newest subscribing Members.  However, final selection and presentation of featured Providers on our homepage is at our sole discretion.

I don't like my member name.  Can I change it?
Yes, but think about it first.  Clients, potential clients and other web sites may have links and/or bookmarks involving your current member name, and if you select a new member name, those links and bookmarks will no longer point to your profile.  Also, once you choose a new member name, your old member name will become available to anyone else who would like to use it.  So, choose your member name carefully and avoid changing it once it has been established.

If you really wish to change your member name (or password), click the "My Account" link at the top of any page after you login and follow the instructions.

I no longer need my ad.  How can I remove it?
If you are going on vacation or a "hiatus" of some sort, you might choose to "hide" (see below) your ad temporarily.  For this purpose, your ad's visibility is controlled by an editable option in your profile.

Of course, if you actually want to remove your ad completely and permanently right now, then you may resign your membership (you must be logged in first and be absolutely certain that's what you really want to do... for once deleted, it's gone).  Note, however, once your ad is fully removed, your account will be deleted as well and your member name may then be given to someone else.

I entered my precise GPS latitude and longitude, but the information was not saved.  Why?
Few providers actually know their precise GPS latitude and longitude, and accordingly, we automatically calculate some extremely good approximations even if you haven't a clue.  Nevertheless, if you happen to have precise information by way of a GPS device or other means (see below), you can enter the information directly into your registration profile.  Upon entry, we will perform a "sanity" check on the entered GPS information, and if the entered information is not relatively close to (i.e. within a few miles/kms of) the location we believe is generally correct for the corresponding ZIP code or city, we may (quietly) ignore your entered information.  However, unless you live in a far remote corner of an unusually large or unusually shaped ZIP code or city, your valid GPS information will most likely be saved exactly as entered.

Note that your latitude and longitude information can only be entered as decimal degrees (e.g. -95.3615), not as degrees, minutes and seconds.  To convert "D" degrees, "M" minutes and "S" seconds to decimal degrees, you would calculate "D" + "M"/60 + "S"/3600.  Your values should be between -180 and +180, with negative values for Western hemisphere longitudes and Southern hemisphere latitudes.  If you have problems, just contact us and we will be happy to assist.

Note, if you do not have a GPS device handy but you are interested in obtaining a precise GPS latitude and longitude for your street address, the following free lookup service on the web may offer exactly what you need:

• TravelGis

FOR CLIENTS AND PROVIDERS
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What is a "hidden" profile/ad?
Most profiles/ads are fully visible and can be found by anyone doing a search.  However, providers have two options to make their profiles less visible.  The first option is to make a profile visible only if you know the provider's member name, URL or web address of their profile.  This option is useful to providers who like to include a link to their profile in their e-mails or elsewhere but do not want the general public to find them by an anonymous search.  The second option is to make a profile completely hidden so that it cannot be viewed by anyone except the provider him/herself.  Some providers may choose to hide their profiles while they are on vacation or otherwise unavailable.

What are "personal" keywords?
Some providers attach additional (unpublished) keywords to their profiles which may cause you to find them in your keyword searches even though those keywords are not actually found anywhere within the providers' published profiles and/or reviews.  If you are a potential client, by default your searches will examine providers' personal keywords.  However, you may also choose to exclude providers' personal keywords from your searches if you wish.

For example, a provider might include the personal keyword "Buddhist" in her profile, and if you deliberately searched on that keyword, you would find her profile, though you might not actually see the word in her published ad or reviews.  We neither ask nor expect you to rely on personal keywords with respect to your potential experience with a provider, but if you do and you are disappointed (or pleased), you are encouraged to express yourself to the provider, submit a review and/or file a complaint.

What about "provocative" content?
It is our wish, if not our policy, that no visitor should ever be unwillingly exposed to overtly provocative content while browsing MassageAnywhere.com, and to ensure this, you may find or submit such content masked by special thumbnail-sized images we call "courtesy screens" that must be clicked before an overtly provocative image is displayed.  For ease of recognition, all such courtesy screens have the word "courtesy" plainly visible.
		Importantly, we remind everyone that MassageAnywhere.com exists to serve the wide-ranging massage needs and interests of people in all walks of life, all around the world, and the decision of what is appropriate or welcome expression cannot belong to MassageAnywhere.com but must ultimately be made by providers and clients on the terms which mutually meet their interests and needs.  Nevertheless, to steer MassageAnywhere.com toward a common ground, we have defined standards and policies in place with regard to the type of content that is / is not allowed on MassageAnywhere.com.  In particular, images depicting erotic behavior plainly intended to solicit or incite sexual activity (i.e. pornographic images) and ads soliciting prostitution are not permitted.  However, modest / discreet nudity, with or without a fig leaf, is permissible if tastefully depicted under the Terms of Service.  While you may find clickable "courtesy screens" over certain images to protect more sensitive viewers, please note we do not / cannot pre-screen or routinely review all providers' submissions, and should you find offensive, indecent, harmful, inaccurate, deceptive, or otherwise objectionable content on MassageAnywhere.com that violates our written standards and policies, you are encouraged to file a complaint (anonymously, if you wish) by clicking the link at the bottom of the offending provider's profile.

How do I use bold, underline and italic effects?
If you enclose text between <B>bold</B>, <U>underline</U> and <I>italic</I> tags, the text between the special tags will be displayed with bold, underline and italic effects.  To do this, you must use the B, U and I tags exactly as you see them in this example, namely: <TAG>text</TAG>.  Please use such effects sparingly, if at all.

Do I need cookies and JavaScript enabled in my browser?
Whether you're a visitor or a member, your browser must be JavaScript enabled.  To login or register as a member, your browser must also be enabled to accept temporary session-only cookies, and if you are a visitor, we recommend this as well, although it is not required.  Chances are, your browser is already configured with these safe features enabled, as they are the enabled by default in the original distributions by the browser companies.  However, if you've "customized" your browser preferences in some way, and you've disabled these features, our web pages make an effort to inform you.  Details and instructions on how to check and adjust your browser settings may be found by clicking the links for these features above.

Sometimes your web pages aren't updating until I manually refresh them.  Why?
If you are using Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE), we recommend you adjust your Temporary Internet Files settings so that your browser will check for newer versions of stored pages on "every visit to the page" rather than so-called "automatically".  If you rely on the "automatic" setting, IE will *guess* when a page has been updated rather than ask our web servers.  The guesses can be pretty good, but it may also be wrong.  In short, the "automatically" option will not always refresh outdated pages properly.  To adjust this setting, select Tools -> Internet Options -> General -> Temporary Internet Settings -> Every Visit to the Page.  Otherwise, when IE guesses wrong, you may continue to see outdated pages for days or weeks until you manually refresh them with the button.

=> Continue to FAQ Part 3

Do you have a question not answered here?  Let us know and we'll be happy to answer, maybe even update the FAQ!

DISCLAIMER: Persons depicted in examples are unaffiliated models; images were chosen for their illustrative content and not as examples of actual massage providers / clients.