What innovative adjustments has your spa made to overcome difficult times? Selling retail products and spa services are likely your top income performers. Here are nine retail tips and spa marketing ideas for your business, including advice from Eminence Organics President Boldijarre Koronczay on keeping the balance between encouraging your loyal Clients to return and marketing your spa to new Clients.

9 Retail Tips for Spas

1. Harness Your Email Subscriber List

Email marketing is one of the most persuasive forms of marketing and can help you achieve many strategic goals. You can capture people’s emails when they first book an appointment, as a requirement to receive free samples at an event, or through a newsletter signup on your website. Just make sure that you follow the anti-spam laws in your country and the country of your recipients.

Send your new Client a “Welcome” email to give your spa the chance to showcase your brand personality and your services and products. After a Welcome email, follow up with a mixture of spa promotional emails and education emails. For example, rather than showing products all the time, send out an email with new blog posts or promotional articles. The content can range from the educational, such as teaching your Clients how to maintain healthy skin, to promotional, including articles that describe your services in detail.

2. Call Your Clients

Call and follow up with regular spa Clients and ask them if they need services or a resupply of their favorite product. "The personal touch will go a long way, not just in closing the sale, but in building loyalty with that Client," advises Boldijarre.

3. Make Your Retail Area Shoppable 

On average, store sections only get shoppers' attention for five to six seconds. But a merchandising planogram can be the key to making a sale within those seconds. A planogram is a map or schematic of the store with a view that shows exactly where each product is situated, giving Clients the best opportunity to see an item and then purchase it. For example, Clients who are shopping for cleansers may notice the toners nearby and remember that they're out of that product too.

At Eminence Organics, we offer a Merchandising Planogram to our Spa Partners with a beautiful and easy-to-shop Eminence retail shelving plan and kit. Working with an expert, spas can make the best use of the space and increase sales by making their retail space far more shoppable.

4. Update Your Google My Business Listing

If you’ve ever Googled “spas in my area," then you understand how crucial it is that your business information shows up on Google search and maps. Once you’re verified your listing, add as much information and media as you can, such as your operating hours, a phone number, website URL, a business profile photo and the area you serve.

Google My Business has a star-based review system where the public can submit a review of your spa. Make sure you respond to positive reviews to show you’re thankful for their support. You should also respond to negative reviews professionally to show that you have excellent customer service. 

“There’s nothing more of a turn off than customers looking at your website [or Google listing], seeing information, driving to your spa, and then it’s actually closed due to a change in hours of operation,” explains Boldijarre. Effective and accurate communication is key to ensure you do not lose customers.

5. Increase Your Average Order Amount

Help Clients find more products they love and boost your sales by increasing your average order amount. One way to increase your average is by creating a loyalty program. You can see this in practice at Eminence Organics, as we offer all of our loyalty program partners high-value “Gift With Purchase” products and other incentives. You can also create a loyalty program for your users, with different tiers of rewards for the purchase points accumulated. Loyalty programs are a great way to incentivize your Clients, increasing repeat business.

6. Offer Complimentary Virtual Consultations

Whether it’s a doctor’s appointment, a work meeting or a spa consultation, virtual meetings have become part of the fabric of society. The convenience is hard to resist, and an online consultation that’s also complimentary is especially enticing. The Client doesn’t even have to leave their living room to connect with you, learn about your spa services and what you can do for them. 

Eminence Organics offers Digital Consultation forms and Digital Recommendation forms to our Spa Partners to fill out with the Client. These forms ensure the Client is listened to and assessed as accurately as possible. You can also end the call by offering to book them for an in-person appointment based on their skin care needs. 

7. Incentivize Your Spa Staff

Drive retail and spa service revenue with an engaging staff contest. When you create a contest or run a challenge for staff, you achieve the following:

• Higher levels of motivation and morale throughout your entire staff, which trickles down to your Clients
• Motivation to make more sales and sell a higher number of products to Clients
• You’re introducing fun, reducing stress and increasing comradery, ensuring the workplace is a joyful environment 

If you're an Eminence Spa Partner, you can even use our turnkey Staff Contest Kit and Prizes! We’ll provide the contest, great prizes and a simple prize redemption process to make it easy for you to excite staff and increase employee retention. 

8. Event Planning Support & Giveaways

In a similar vein, special events can increase revenue and build your business profile in the community. In terms of giveaways, you can drive sales by offering Clients a free gift with the purchase of a gift card or encourage people to enter giveaways with prize values between $100 to $300. Promote these events and giveaways on Facebook or Instagram Live, your Stories and your posts. 

9. “One Sample, One Name”

“Another idea is what I call ‘One sample, one name,’” says Boldijarre. “Record the names receiving samples and set reminders for your front desk or even estheticians to call the guest and ask them how they are liking the product. This personal touch will go a long way.”

In your spa, ensure there is clear signage for testers (for customers who may be too shy to ask) and a safe way to test the products.  At Eminence Organics, we’ve created a shelf talker for our Spa Partners to help them with this messaging. 

Want To Become An Eminence Organics Spa Partner?

By partnering with us, you can increase Client retention by offering award-winning, natural, organic and Biodynamic® products in your spa. These products are easily marketable as they are created with fresh ingredients and proudly free of parabens, petroleum, sodium lauryl sulphate and other harsh chemicals. With seasonal launches containing innovative formulas and proven ingredients, you’ll be able to continually refresh your spa marketing and reinvent your offering to your customers.

Which Eminence Organics resource has helped your spa business? Let us know in the comments below and join the conversation on social media. If you're not an Eminence Organics Spa Partner, find out how to become one here.