There’s always a buzz among spa professionals around Mother’s Day.
Buzz, and also stress. You’re still recovering from the hustle of Christmas and Valentine’s Day promotions. Plus, many are realizing that they’re almost halfway through the year and looking at how their revenues are measuring up.
This stress could blind the judgment of many spa business owners, causing them to slash prices just to generate volume.
This year, approach your Mother’s Day promotion differently.
Before you jump into creating bundles and packages, I want you to take a pause and reflect on previous years:
Have you made money or lost money?
After you’ve tallied your revenue and minus what you spent on a promotion, overhead and materials… did you come out ahead?
If you used a price reduction strategy, were your Mother’s Day promotions profitable?
Many spa professionals I’ve worked with got a wake-up call when they took the time to tally the results and realized that a price reduction promotion is rarely profitable.
I want you to keep this in mind – running a promotion doesn’t mean you have to reduce your price. In fact, do not get caught in the price reduction trap.
Here’s why: an article on Entrepreneur Magazine stated that the average person spends about $163 on gifts for Mother’s Day. That’s more than what couples spend for Valentine’s Day, and what most people spend on a Christmas gift for their mothers.
That means people are willing to spend money to find the right gift for their moms. They’re not looking to save a few bucks just to check it off the list!
Your Mother’s Day promotion should not be about price slashing at all. Instead, you should capitalize on the occasion by helping your customers create a memorable experience for their mothers.
Remember, people are spending money. Your promotion is not about reducing your price. Instead, focus on offering a service that delivers value. If your clients see the value of your package, they’ll be willing to spend the money.
Now you might wonder – if you don’t use price reduction for your promotion, what else can you do?
As an entrepreneur with 27 years of experience in the industry, I’ve seen and done my share of promotions.
Instead of giving you a list of “37 promotional ideas for spa professionals,” I’d rather remind you to be mindful of WHY you’re using a certain promotional tactic.
First, you want to consider where you are in your business growth, your particular business goals, and what you want a particular promotion to do for you.
Are you looking to grow your client base and boost your credibility? Then you may want to run a special to get more people to write a review for you so you can gain more exposure and increase your following.
Are you looking for more leads? Then you might consider running a Mother’s Day giveaway or contest.
Do you want to increase retail sales? Maybe you can do a raffle – e.g. clients who purchase a certain amount of retail will get a chance to enter a raffle and win a prize.
Do you want to make your existing client base feel special and keep them engaged? Maybe you can create an exclusive offer only available to your current clients to make them feel loved and appreciated.
Are you trying to get more new clients in the door? Then include a gift certificate in the package so the recipient (hopefully new to your spa) will be enticed to come back in the future.
Whatever your main business objective is, identify one strategy that supports the goal and stick with it.
The last thing I want to see happen is that you work hard for weeks and then realize that the price slashing has reduced your gross income to the point where you’re not meeting your revenue goal.
Are you convinced that price slashing is not the answer to a successful promotion? Good! What can you do instead?
1. Create Special Packages
One of my favorite strategies is to create special packages that are not listed on your menu and only available for a limited time during a particular holiday.
Not only can you break down all the individual components so your clients can appreciate the real value of the offer but you can also increase the sense of urgency because it’s only available for a limited time.
You can also give this unique package a special name just for Mother’s Day – it’ll immediately draw the attention of clients who are looking for a Mother’s Day gift. It’ll help them narrow down their choices and come to a purchasing decision much quicker.
In addition, since you’re not offering this bundle on your regular menu, you’re avoiding the scenario in which clients are comparing the package with your usual offerings. This will take the price comparison mindset out of the purchasing decision.
2. Add Value To the Experience
When you put your bundles and packages together, think about how you can add value for your clients.
Keep in mind that whatever you’re adding to the package doesn’t have to be expensive. Think about it this way – you’re delivering an experience to your clients. They don’t come to you just so someone else can put cream on their faces. They come to you because they want to relax, be pampered and feel beautiful.
What can you add to the experience without impacting your profitability?
E.g. you can include an eye treatment or a lip treatment, which can easily be done for a client who is already in your treatment room for a more extensive service. Or you can throw in an LED treatment – you have the machine anyway so the only expense is an extra few minutes.
3. Give Back
You can also use this Mother’s Day occasion as an opportunity to give back to the community. As a business leader, giving back should always be a consideration.
Maybe you can advertise that part of the proceeds from your Mother’s Day promotion will benefit disadvantaged moms in your neighborhood or in your community – if it’s in alignment with your branding.
It’s a great way to show, not just tell, the value you and your brand represents. It’ll help you stand out from the crowd and deepen the connection with your clients.
4. Sweat the Small Things
Like I mentioned, visiting a spa is about the experience.
Paying attention to details can change everything.
Add some chocolate; serve up a flute of champagne; do something creative to make a mom feel special.
When you make clients feel good, they’ll come back more often. And they’ll tell their friends about the experience.
You can even highlight this special experience as a feature in your unique Mother’s Day package to increase the perceived value of the offer.
As you can see, there are many ways to run a Mother’s Day promotion without getting caught in the price reduction hamster wheel – think outside the box and you’ll be surprised what you can come up with!
This article is based on a Spa Business Tip Tuesday episode – a Facebook Livestream event that happens every Tuesday at 3 pm Eastern Time in our private Facebook group: The Esthetician Marketing Club.
To get the latest and greatest tips and resources for the spa and esthetician business, join our free group! https://www.facebook.com/groups/theestheticianmarketingclub/ so you can be notified when we go live!