Pamela Hill Institute

Does your aesthetics business or spa have brand appeal? If not that should become a high priority for your and your management and marketing team, and should filter down to all other staff members. Brand appeal is the top of mind awareness that makes your clients and others in your community think of you first when they think of the type of business you are in and the services that your business offers. Brand appeal is what separates successful businesses from failing businesses and what separates successful businesses from those that are super successful industry leaders.

Take a look at some of the biggest and most successful businesses on the planet. When you hear “billions sold” you probably think of McDonalds, the hamburger fast-food chain. When you hear “have it your way” you probably think of their competitor, Burger King.  When you hear “we’ll leave the light on for you” you think of Motel 6. These businesses have all successfully branded themselves. They have used sales and marketing slogans that some would call gimmicks, but whether they are gimmicks or not, they have been successful for these companies. Now find anyone in the US, or most of the rest of the world who doesn’t now what a Big Mac is, or a Whopper. These businesses established their brand. They used a technique called branding, which you can use in your business also. You don’t have to be as large as McDonalds. Indeed, McDonalds didn’t start out large.  It began as a small restaurant – just one – and grew from there on the power of an idea. What is your idea? And how powerful is it?  Find out what it is by analyzing your business, your goals, and the services you provide. What do you do better than anyone else you are competing against? Is it service? Cleanliness? Price? Determine the way you wish to market yourself and your business, and what you want the public to think of when they hear your business name. And, even more important, what services do you offer than need to become ingrained in the minds of the public so that when they hear them they think of you.

Integrate your marketing message. Make it consistent. Don’t just try one ad, and then change tactics. Business is like a long war with many battles. Or, like a long cruse with many events along the way. Find your message, your brand, and present it in a way that catches the eye and catches the mind.   

In any spa settings, it is the little things and the personal touches that really keep clients loyal to the business, and coming back for more and more. And it is what makes them refer their friends and acquaintances to your spa, increasing your client base in the lowest priced way possible, with built in loyalty.

Take a look at the little things in your spa and see if you are covering the basics. First, is the spa clean and attractive? Does it present an inviting appearance that begs the client to come inside, and do the clients feel comfortable when they do come inside? Subdued wall coverings, pastel colors of paint, clean white linens, soothing background music and comfortable furniture in the waiting room are all just a few of the little things that can make a world of difference. You may prefer rock and roll or country and western music yourself, but it can be distracting to your client. Sounds of nature, soft instrumental and even New Age music can be more soothing, and pleasing the client is what your business is all about. When it comes to linens, white is always safe, and don’t skimp on quality. Make sure that the linens are soft to the touch. Textile issues are very important in client comfort. You may spend less on a sheet with a low threat count that looks good, but a higher thread count and better grade of  material may help you keep a client happy and make you more money in the long run.

Another little thing that is a personal touch sure to please is this: remember the client’s name, and the names of their family members. Make notes to yourself and keep a file on each client. If she has a special event coming up, be sure to mention it when you see her again. If her son plays in sports or her daughter is a cheerleader, ask how they are doing. And be sure to call her by name. Dale Carnegie in his famous course taught that a person’s name is the sweetest sound that they will ever hear.

Above all else, give personal service. Go out of your way to make each client feel special and know that you care. If you follow these simple rules you’ll have happy clients and a successful spa business for years to come.

Your business card is one of the least expensive forms of advertising that you can use to expand and grow your business. Your business card is  inexpensive, portable and it has room to write on, allowing personal messages to be passed on to your clients. If you don’t think that you are getting the most out of your business cards then ask yourself if your business card is easy to read. Can your name, phone number, email address and physical address all be found easily? Can someone who looks at your business card immediately tell what business you are in? And, 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?  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 cards 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. Get with a good 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.

Gauging the effectiveness of an advertising campaign is a skill all business owners should have, and unfortunately very few really do have. Whether you are using newspapers, magazines, fliers, radio, television or some other form of media, it is essential to target your audience as closely as possible and give the medium you are using a fair shop. Too many people for instance will run one newspaper ad and expect to see immediate results. Or they will run five or ten radio spots at odd times, often the cheapest times, overnight when fewer people are listening, and will wonder why they didn’t see an increase in business. They will say “I tried that and it didn’t work” not realizing that they didn’t give it a fair try at all.

There are two primarily types of advertising: direct response and top of mind awareness. Direct response advertising is the type designed to give you an immediate, but short term business increase. When a car lot runs a weekend sale and promotes it heavily, that one event is fueled by direct response advertising. However, most businesses use top of mind awareness advertising and don’t even know it. They receive more long term benefit from it when they do it appropriately, because they are branding their business. They are making sure that people think of them and associate their business with the general business category. Try this test. When you have a sniffle you reach for a 1.) tissue or 2.)Kleenex. The answer is number one, but you likely said number two. Kleenex is a brand of tissue, but they have branded themselves so well that people use their name to mean tissue. Think of Coca Cola. How many people say they are going to go have a Coke when they actually mean a soft drink. Coca Cola has successfully branded itself.

When you hear the phrase "we’ll leave the light on for ya" you probably think of Motel 6. Their branding efforts were very successful. You can do the same think with your spa business, but it takes time and dollars. Newspaper ads should run two or three times a week for about six months to implant themselves in the mind of the reader. Radio ads should run consistently for six to nine months to effectively brand your business. When thinking of designing and advertising campaign, be sure to educate yourself on the subject. Consider a college course in advertising. Or, read some of the books on IMC, or integrated marketing communications that are available at your bookstore. Don’t go into advertising blindly like so many people. Educate yourself and you’ll see a positive difference.

What is a PhotoFacial Treatment? It is a series of treatments of the full face using gentle pulsed light which improves the appearance of aged or sun damaged skin. It also reduces facial and neck redness and flushing. PhotoFacial treatments provide clients with a youthful appearing skin. They were developed to consistently  and predictably improve the appearance of the skin and have little or no down time.

During the PhotoFacial process an intense light is emitted in a series of pulses over the entire face at three week intervals for a total of five treatments. The special light used is different from laser treatments because it emits light over many wavelengths and allows the light to penetrate all of the skin levels. In this manner it reaches all of the dilated vessels. Lasers produce only a single light wavelength and are limited in the depth of penetrating they can provide. Clients can be treated even if their vessels are not visible because the intense light pulses can even find the tiniest vessels. Generally client will see from 75% to 95% improvement in their particular condition.
 
Other conditions can be treated with PhotoFacial as well. Those who suffer from photo aging of the sin, age spots, skin texture irregularities, mild acne scarring, large pores and dark circles under the eyes can all be helped.

There are some conditions that PhotoFacial cannot help. Frown lines for instance, those lines that form on the forehead and between the brows. PhotoFacial is not a face lift substitute and won’t help with sagging skin. It also won’t cure puffiness around the eyes. It also won’t help with skin cancer but it can treat actinic keratosis, a pre cancerous condition. It won’t get rid of bumpy moles but can remove their pigment. It will also remove acquired freckles. Genetic freckles will usually return after treatment however. It also won’t help with seborrheic keratosis or dermatosis papulosa nigra or sebaceous hyperplasia. But it will help with many conditions.

Should you add PhotoFacial to your spa practice? If you are ready for growth and have the funds and time to acquire the equipment and training, PhotoFacial does give you a needed service that many of your clients will benefit from, so it is well worth considering. Try taking a survey of your clients and see how many have an interest and then make your decision.