Local business clients are often a neglected opportunity. Many companies and organizations struggle around Christmas when it comes to looking for appropriate employee gifts. Approaching local business and offering an incentive to buying gift cards in bulk can often be an easier sell then you might think.

The best part about targeting local businesses is that the recipients of those spa gift cards are often close at hand. New clients who are within a few blocks of your spa on a regular basis have the potential to become frequent repeat customers.

This year, approach the businesses in your neighborhood. Have a strong pitch and a well thought out incentive for businesses willing to purchase in bulk. Remember that a gift card in the hand of a new customer is easily worth twice that of a card in the hands of a regular customer.

The difference between the spa industry and the restaurant industry is that there are many excellent, well-established restaurant management courses available in cities around the world, and the same cannot be said for spa management. The spa industry is still in its infancy in many ways. So how does one get spa management training?

The most obvious way is to apprentice in another spa and learn what you can from the owner; the problem is that some owners are naturally reluctant to train their future competitors. Alternatively, you can take business management courses, but these will lack much in the way of spa specific information. You can possibly get work managing a branded spa, but some of what you would be hoping to learn, in terms of spa management, would of course be done centrally.

Luckily the growth of the spa industry has meant that training courses and curricula are beginning to coalesce. There are online spa management courses available. Books and instructional DVDs are also an option these days for those willing to do a little research.

If you are an individual hoping to establish a successful spa, be sure to afford yourself the basics of spa management before you begin. After that, there is a lot that can be learned on the job, by way of online or distance education. You only have once chance to make a first impression – make the most of that chance.

As an entrepreneur or business owner in the beauty industry, you can use teleseminars and webinars to further your business and increase annual revenues. There are many companies online that specialize in facilitating a professional teleseminar and these services are advisable if you are a novice. A service will help you set up the registration process, provide numbers and access codes for each registrant.

Distance seminars such as these are not appropriate for simply telling someone or a group of people about your products and services. Although I guess you could have a virtual telephone based “Tupperware style” party, it is better used for educational purposes that intuitively link back to your business. For example, you may want to provide a 60 minute teleseminar on “Signs of Aging and How to Slow the Process Through Skin Care”. As you can see, this topic is broad based and would appeal to a wide range of people, and allows you to build a database to market your beauty products or services after the event.

You can earn revenue directly from the teleseminars and webinars directly. You can charge a fee for attendance, but this should really be reserved for those who are truly experts in their field and can offer a high level educational experience to registrants. If you do charge a fee, make sure that you have a perk package, such as a mailed package that includes product samples and a coupon, for example. Once again, this is another opportunity to market your business.

The basic setup of a teleseminar or webinar should be as follows:

1)    Welcome and Introductions – once all participants have entered the conference call, introduce yourself and your business, as well as any other speakers who may be presenting. Always give a brief outline including agenda and if there will be a Q&A period at the end.

2)    Presentation – begin the presentation and be sure to speak in a clear and concise manner keeping in mind that everyone is listening via telephone and some connections can be shaky. Stick with your agenda and go through each section methodically.

3)    Closing – make sure you have a closing segment so that participants know that the seminar is coming to a close. Be sure that you reiterate your company information and let everyone know that a follow-up email will be sent to all participants.

4)    Q&A – In most cases, questions must be submitted to the facilitator before the teleseminar starts. The telephone is not really the ideal format for an open question period.

It is a good idea to have an audio transcript of the teleseminar, publish it on your business website and then send an email to everyone so they know where it is located. This is also a good opportunity to thank everyone for attending, elicit feedback and perhaps offer a discount to teleseminar attendees who are interested in purchasing your beauty products or services. Always be thinking of ways that you can link your business to any event, gaining the most marketing impact possible.

1. Can your name, phone number, email address and physical address all be found easily?
2. Can someone who looks at your business card immediately tell what business you are in?
3. Will they be drawn to use your business when they need the services you offer? Does it convey the professional image that you wish to convey?
4. Last but possibly most importantly, is the information on the card accurate?

Business cards can be purchased for as little as ten or twelve dollars at office supply stores, and many people choose to print their own cards on their inkjet printers. Here’s a couple of tips that will help.

Don’t use the cheapest cardstock available.

The cheap white cardstock with black ink and no graphics don’t present the best possible image for you and your business. And, unless you are a trained graphic artist, don’t make the mistake of printing your own cards on your personal computer. Again, they don’t present the image that you wish. As a professional you know the value of using the skills and services of other professionals.

Find a creative graphic design professional and a good printing service to have your cards prepared. Let them come up with a logo or graphic of some kind to include on your card along with your business slogan. Make it look good because many times your business card makes your first impression.

Should you print on the back of the card?

Be careful if you use the back of the card since so many people like to write something about you on the back. Leaving it blank gives you and them a place to write notes. However, the back of the card also gives you a place to put a coupon or information on special incentive programs you may wish to offer. Look at the pros and cons of using the back of the card, and discuss it with your printer or graphic designer.  Also when having cards printed remember that while the initial order is for 500, printing a thousand costs just  little bit more and gives you twice as many. Order extras and always give people two cards. One to keep and one to give to a friend.

You’ll see a difference soon in increased sales.

Shown in photo is the reception area of the Guerlain Spa in New York City. A perfect example of classy, inviting and soothing.

If you don’t stress over it, your clients will. First impressions are important and comfort is key if clients must wait for or between treatments. Reception areas should be warm, comfortable and inviting (and its a good place to introduce other services or products that you have to offer). Think of the reception room as a silent business partner that performs sales support duties. The reception room, if it is doing its job properly, conveys warmth to the clients and makes them comfortable. It loosens them up and makes them better suited to serve their function as clients, which could be called a customer service duty that the reception room performs.  In this sense it also  is performing sales support because it puts the client in a positive frame of mind, ready to enjoy the treatment they receive.

As a sales support helper the reception room is a perfect place to have wall hangings – either nice flyers or posters – that promote various products that you as a clinician have for sale. These of course need to be products that you would use yourself. Products that you believe in and would be willing to stake your professional reputation on. They also need to be consistent with your philosophy of customer service and client care. And, they need to be profitable enough for you to justify the space they take up in inventory and the time it takes to promote them. You should not have a problem in finding such products, and most of these companies have marketing collateral materials, including posters and wall hangings. Place them in nice frames if possible and put them in prominent and easily noticeable locations.

Brochures placed in conspicuous locations, along with magazines and trade journals that promote good skin care and the services you believe they should take advantage of. Be sure that you have a quality magazine or brochure rack handy to use.

Cleanliness and simplicity in design is, of course, also important for the spa waiting and reception room. Simplicity contributes to the client’s relaxation and level of comfort. Cleanliness, in addition to just making good sense, also helps to assure your client that you take hygiene seriously. No one wants to go to a dirty spa, and many clients purposely check out the cleanliness of the reception room to get an idea of the mindset of the clinician.

With all of these facts in mind, it is clear that the reception room is something that you should be concerned with. A little stressing over the reception room can keep you in business.

Image Provided by SpaFlyer.com - a great source for all industry professionals

If you don’t already know the town as well as you should, it is time for investigation. That means the town in general and those things related to the business of aesthetics as well.  Find out how many medical spas, day spas and related businesses the town has and get an idea of their clientele.  Look at where they are advertising and check back and see how long they’ve been with various media.  It is a good best that they only continue with advertising methods that have proven to work for them.

Take a look at the services offered by day spas and medical spas locally. What products and services do they emphasize?  Are most of the clients there for facials?  Waxing?  Look at the package deals they offer, and especially any newspaper ads, flyers or coupons.  Becoming a one time customer to get an idea of how they operate will be a small investment that might be worthwhile.

Next, become involved in the community.  What organizations and activities do you normally participate in?  Church, charities, sports, education?  The more people you get to know through networking, the better for your business later.  If you are going to be involved in fundraising for a charity event anyway, make sure that you have business cards with you to give to anyone you talk to when the time seems right.  The same with church, the PTA, the Spanish language class or yoga class you were considering taking, and even those folks you meet in the grocery store. Many business people have a “three foot rule” which means, if they are within three free of you, you give them a business card.

Doing your research on the community you plan to do business in is always a good investment of your time.  Know the area and you’ll have more success in business.

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While consumer focused trade shows are a great way to introduce your beauty products and services to new customers, business to business tradeshows are where true success and growth can be found, and B2B tradeshows are the focus of this article. According to the Trade Show Bureau, approximately 44% of exhibitors have less than 50 employees.

For smaller spas and beauty companies, a trade show really does level the playing field; allowing newcomers with unique spa and beauty products to compete head to head with larger, more established companies. Booth design and display can be created quite inexpensively and with maximum impact. Booth space is affordable, with a national average of about $15 square foot, and for just a few thousands dollars, you can be rubbing elbows with the big girls.

Trade shows allow you to showcase your beauty products and services, giving you the opportunity to put together wholesale deals and perhaps placing your products in stores across the nation and maybe even around the world. The trick is to present yourself and your company in a professional light, and set your trade show booth so it looks too good for potential partners and retailers to pass by.

It is also important to think about after the trade show… will you be remembered and will clients be following up to order your products? Make sure you have marketing packages (lots of them) to give out that includes a powerful marketing brochure and sample products, as applicable. A new type of ‘brochure’ marketing is to include a CD or DVD with an interactive presentation and a live click-through link that leads right to your beauty business website.

You should also think about having some type of an information gathering method. This might be a raffle for a large basket of your products prominently displayed in your trade show booth. Make it easy to enter the draw! Nothing to fill out, no ‘second thought’ jitters – just a big fishbowl or wishing well for trade show attendants to drop in their business card and they are entered automatically. When the trade show is over, you can use these to build your business contact list, and follow up with each one with a friendly email asking how they enjoyed the trade show, stating who won the basket and asking if they would like to receive more information about your beauty products or services.

If you can afford it, trade show gimmicks and give-ways are always very popular and successful. Of course, everyone gives away magnets, pens and calendars. Try to think outside the box – perhaps you have sample size pots of your facial cream that is branded with your company info that you can give out? If not, what about a fun give-away item such as a facial headband, travel size beauty products, colorful nail file or a mini pedicure kit? Whatever you choose, make sure the items are well branded with your company name and website address.

In a business age that involves linking, tweeting, spacing and blogging, there is one social media that really stands out as a viable way to reach new clients and that is Facebook, located online at www.facebook.com. Taking over from MySpace as the darling of the internet, Facebook allows registered users to interact on all levels – with posts and messages, with photos and video or by simply writing on another user’s wall. From a business application standpoint, there are many advantages to being seen on Facebook.

When you set up a facebook account for your spa or beauty business, be sure that you personalize from a business perspective and not a personal one. For example, now that you can pick a username (a new feature on Facebook), you can use your beauty business name as your username – this will show up in every post you make on facebook. Make sure your profile photo represents your business as well, perhaps using your business logo or a photo of one of your best selling products.

If you have a blog on your spa website, use the new tool on Facebook that allows you to automatically import blog posts onto your Facebook page, giving each blog posts twice as much exposure and also making sure your Facebook page is always fresh and current.

Within one of your newsletters that you send to colleagues, clients and networking partners – announce your new Facebook page, talk a little bit about how you will be using it to offer information about the beauty industry and invite them to become your ‘friend’.

Start a special interest group on Facebook – perhaps drawing upon your area of expertise in the beauty industry and you will be amazed at how quickly people will join your group and begin discussions. This is a strong business tool.

Seek out other people on Facebook that seem to share your business interests and values and invite them to become your ‘friend’ on Facebook. This is a very powerful social networking venue for meeting new customers and fellow business people.

Use the photo album and video upload sections to add media to your Facebook page. Pictures of your products, videos of conferences or trade shows, commercials you may have created about your business products, or human interest photos from special events you may have hosted or attended. All of these items show others the human side of you and your business.

A few warnings: if you have a personal Facebook page, do whatever you can to keep it separate from your business page. Do not invite your personal friends and children to join your business page if they are going to write on your wall in a personal manner – this is just not good business. Always work hard to keep business and personal very distinct and separate.

Facebook can be a really fun addition to the marketing plan for your beauty business and a way to meet like minded people. You will be pleasantly surprised in how many new Facebook friends you find through your group or because others who are drawn to your area of expertise in the beauty business want to get to know you.

Moreover, knowing and understanding your client not only increases your chances of selling them more spa products and/or beauty services, leading to greater profit, but also has a domino effect that results in word of mouth and the influx of new customers through recommendation. Hence getting to know your clients, greeting and treating them to their liking is crucial to the success of your spa or beauty business venture.

This kind of rapport with your client is even more essential if you keep in mind the nature and the degree of aggressive marketing your fellow business competitors conduct every day. Your primary asset in this type of business are your clients, this is because if you know their mentality and gauge their buying trends and their preferences, you have the market in hand.

This kind of valuable customer information will also enable you to replenish stock, get the most viably trendy products in the market, thereby satisfy your customers and in the process entice them into come back again to be serviced.

Moreover not knowing your customers will only hinder your chances at success to a greater degree because if you do not know what pleases your customer, you will never know how to approach them. Some might like to be dealt with professionally yet on a somewhat impersonal and formal basis – while others really like a personal, friendly approach.

So if you do not know who likes what you will only end up causing them dissatisfaction and yourself economic loss, due to sheer ignorance and simple lack of planning.

What your customer says is very important for you and your overall success. For every new client, you will try to convince them to purchase products that complement the treatments and services they have just received. You may also try to convince them to book subsequent appointments with your business. This is good business sense and results in maximising profits.

But what you should also be doing simultaneously is trying to obtain information about their economic status, what they can afford and what not, what they need next in their beauty regime and how your business can help.

Reaching out to your customers, taking the time to get to know their lifestyle and their needs – it is always time well spent. It will ensure your beauty business or day spa is top of mind when it is time to book new treatments or purchase new beauty products.

Offering to talk about your spa business or a specific area of business specialty, free of charge at a local event is an excellent way to network and grow your beauty business. Speaking engagements present an ideal opportunity to let everyone know how skilled and knowledgeable you are about your niche area of the beauty industry. As a result, you can be sure when attendees are looking for a business to patronize, they will think of you first. It is also very common to leave an event with the names of several new clients, or maybe even orders.

There are so many different groups you can approach to offer educational guest speaking services free of charge. Since you are in the beauty industry, start with women’s organizations and networking groups that meet on a regular basis. You can also contact “mom” meetings that are focused on offering a night out for busy stay-at-home mothers. Colleges and universities are also constantly on the lookout for quality speakers. Perhaps you could focus your lecture on getting ready for the work world, from a spa industry perspective. For executive and business organizations, with members who are already stressed for time, you may want to approach it from a different perspective in terms of quick beauty options that have maximum impact.

From a public speaking perspective, make sure you know how much time you have and then practice your speech or presentation many times so you know you are going to be able to fill the time. Always save a little time at the end for a Q&A period, so that you can not only answer any audience questions, but also give you a further opportunity to promote yourself and your spa or beauty business.

It is often a good idea to have “goodie bags” to give away to participants, that ideally should include product samples, perhaps a few sheets of educational literature that tie in with your presentation and of course, your brochure and business card. Don’t feel shy about tooting your own horn a little and conducting a little discreet business promotion. The group organizer is quite aware that you are offering your services free of charge for a very specific reason – to promote your beauty business. The key (and sometimes this takes a little practice) is striking the right balance – giving an educational or informative presentation while still gaining some critical and targeted business exposure from the event.