Spas are one of the fastest growing businesses and thus, have become quite competitive. In fact, the spa industry is on track to grow immensely in the next year. As a spa owner, you want yours to be the choice for as many people as possible. To make sure that your business is unique and that it attracts customers there are certain things you can do…
Have a strategy in place.
Many businesses, not just spas, get their marketing wrong because start without a well-defined marketing strategy. You have to plan ahead if you want to succeed. If you don’t already know how to create a strategy, we can help. Your marketing strategy should help you understand how to price your services, encourage customer loyalty, and most importantly, the marketing channels to focus on.
Leverage the internet.
Everyone is looking for services online, including day spas. If you want to be successful you must be ready to leverage the power of the internet to become more visible. Just look at the amount of people searching for day spas in New Jersey on a monthly basis…
The first step is to create a professional looking website that is easy for your potential clients to navigate and schedule their services on. Be sure to have the developers add a blog to the site so you can easily keep your audience up to date on new events, services, etc. Here is a great example of how to utilize a blog to promote your spa. A great example of how to structure your spa website can be seen on MassageEnvy.com. Their main services are easily identified on the left. Important information such as hours of operations and directions are to the right. They also make it very clear as to how someone can request an appointment, with a large button near the middle of the page.
In order to create trust with a potentially new client, your website should include past client testimonials.
Next, you will want to invest in boosting the online visibility of your website in the search engines. This is a process known as Search Engine Optimization (also known as “SEO”). To learn more about how SEO works, watch the short explainer video below.
Get listed in online directories.
Not only do you want your website to be visible on search engines, you want it to be visible on local online directories. Websites such as Yelp and Trip Advisor are great opportunities to be found by potential clients. The secret to gaining more visibility on these directories is to fully fill out the description and ask past clients to leave reviews. These reviews also play a part in your search engine rankings. Research has shown that the better reviews a local business has, the higher they are placed in the search results.
Use social media.
If used correctly, social media is a powerful force. As a spa, you should only create social media accounts on social channels where your target demographic is most likely to “hang out”. This may include:
The idea behind social media marketing is to engage with your audience. This creates trust and trust builds loyalty, which keeps customers coming back. You should invest time and energy into connecting with your audience, sharing informative content, and connecting with new users.
Implement a loyalty program.
How do you reward the people who come to your spa over and over again? Many people like to find a great spa and stick with it. To leverage these people as part of your marketing strategy, look into creating a loyalty program by which you give them something of value for referring your spa more business. You can give referrers free treatments if they achieve a certain number of visits, you can offer bounce back vouchers, or just offer them discounts.
Let your neighbors know you are there.
There are many people in your immediate neighborhood who would love to have a spa experience without having to travel out of their way. You should let them know that you exist by cold calling them or creating flyers and putting them in letterboxes within a half-mile radius. Maybe mention that there is a discount for those who are coming for the first time – it will encourage people to stop by and then you can showcase just how great your services are to keep them coming back.
Do last minute discounts during low seasons.
The spa industry can be cyclical. There will be certain seasons when you will have fewer bookings. You can get more clients through the door by offering good discounts so long as people come in before a certain date. You may be charging less but you will make up for it through the sheer volume of clients that you receive.
Use these marketing ideas to ensure that your spa starts getting more customers today!
