The Skinny Spa & Beauty Industry Marketing Strategies Today

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1 The Skinny Marketing Strategies Today Merge your offline, in-store experience with online customer engagement

2 As the beauty and spa industries continue to accept video and digital as essential marketing activities, they are learning to strategically merge their offline storefronts with their online presence. When actualizing online marketing campaigns and leading the digital pack, the trailblazers in this industry understand how to build a digital ecosystem that maintains its relationship with customers while creating an authentic ongoing dialogue, expand the consumer base by investing in targeted local strategies, incorporate engaging videos to capture attention and new business and improve customer experience through all digital channels. To achieve the perfect mix of activities, we explore some best practices, stats and case studies to contemplate while helming your salon or spas current digital marketing initiatives. Video is important to your Spa, Salon or Beauty Brand The visual experience of seeing spa and salon services in action creates interest from potential clientele and can ultimately seal the deal. In fact, online video is said to influence 90% of consumer buying decisions. Many businesses are as a result seeing success using video, especially salons and beauty spas. Many are using it in conjunction with other online marketing tactics like social media, which adds extra value to profiles. Here are just a few reasons why video is important to your salon or spa business. Video Marketing Is Viral Just on YouTube alone, over 60 hours of video are uploaded a minute with over 1 trillion views a year i. That ridiculous statistic wraps the day spa and salon industry into it. The below charts shows how effective a viral video could potentially be for your salon or spa ii : Salon And Spa Presence Online By Type (%) 9 A single video, combined with your website, Facebook account and YouTube can increase your brand awareness and interest nationally since more videos are viewed and streamed through YouTube than the biggest three television networks combined iii. Further to this, beauty is a fastgrowing category on YouTube, with a passionate audience looking for the latest trends and inspiration for their own Page 2

3 looks, says Terry Hurlbutt, lifestyle lead for YouTube s original programming group. YouTube and videos that take a creative approach are great ways to reach out to potential customers - offer instructional how-to s, expert beauty advice and demonstrations as well as other unique viral content. Virtual Tours Close Sales As with real estate and hotel marketing, seeing a virtual tour of salon facilities and being able to view product offerings live inevitably leads to stronger sales closings for salon owners. By offering your customers or target audience the chance to view nail techs at work, beauticians doing facials and actual customers relaxing at day spas, you ll book more appointments than with still photographs or written reviews on your website. Combine the power of Facebook with its ability to video share and you ve extended your chances of new customer acquisition three-fold while proving to your community that you offer high quality services, excellent customer service and a business that is professionally operated. Video Marketing fits into your Integrated Marketing Plan By integrating different forms of online marketing into your mix, your message to customers becomes consistent, cohesive and relatable. While video is integral to your online marketing initiatives, the way it interacts with social media, promotion, marketing, search engine optimization, public relations and so much more is that much more powerful. Find a cohesive way to drive home your message and customers will keep you top of mind when they require your services. Studio Cie Case Study Studio Cie, an upscale wellness spa located in Lakewood, California has seen incredible success using video marketing. According to owner Carol Cisneros iv, online video marketing has enabled the spa to give customers a walk-through of their facilities, allowed people to visually try before they buy and has increased customer brand awareness. They have added calls to action via video which has increased the visitorship to their physical shop. Specific revenue growth figures weren t available at the time of review but were considered dramatic thanks to video marketing. Contributing to the video marketing success of Studio Cie is the fact that they understand the necessity of making all of their online efforts cohesive. They have also developed an engaging Facebook page v with well-placed verbiage and excellent video content. Increase ROI for your business with Video Nothing conveys your message better than a platform that engages both sight and sound at the same time. By leveraging the power of video marketing you are able to speak to your potential clientele while allowing them to make eye contact with both you and your business. This creates a more connected shopping experience for each of them. Also, customers are finicky about getting their personal needs taken care of in a well-kept environment; your videos can depict how you clean supplies and the general interior of your facility. To get going, here are a few unique video concepts that incorporate offers, contests and profiles which can ultimately drive higher ROI for your business vi 1 Run a Groupon deal Groupon is looked to by its subscribers as a city guide, pointing people to all the greatest places in the city. Businesses get more new customers than with any other form of advertising by running specials or offers valid for instore redemption. You can direct visitors to the link or actual Groupon in a video posted on your website, blog, Facebook page or YouTube. Not only does this create buzz around your profiles or sites, it also links your customers online and offline worlds as they have to visit your store for redemptions. The Internet has revolutionized the way that people like to Page 3

4 receive information and interact with brands. In 2011, 33% of internet users who interacted with beauty brands took advantage of special offers online and 33% said they wanted to get free offers and samples online, which they could redeem in person vii. 2 Run Live Video Feeds Run a live video feed of your stylists hard at work or cover salon events via video and upload them to your website. Streaming video of your salon or spa can prompt customers to book appointments with you as they are being actively engaged and gaining insights into the personalities they may interact with when visiting your salon. Although salons and spas are beginning to test the waters with digital marketing efforts, not many are doing something of this nature; those that are though are seeing higher conversions from lead to customer. Janettics Hair Studio has shown success by experimenting with off the cuff video, which they post on their Facebook profile in order to garner attention from potential customers. -- equating to 15 million consumers) have interacted with beauty and personal care brands online. Spas and salons are harnessing this power according to a report from NailsMag ix in , the number of spas and salons that used Facebook jumped 46%. The below chart reflects the amount of overall revenue that salons tallied in the last five years without factoring in specific breakdowns of traffic. 5-Year Revenue Vs. Spending Stats, Spa And 4, 17 Salon Services (Billions) 3 Run Video Contests Create engagement on your Facebook wall or website by running a contest or sweepstakes via video that offers customers a chance to win a prize related to your salon business. Offer a free facial, manicure or haircut to draw in new customers and create further buzz by letting the new clients know that if they share the video on their social profiles a coupon will be offered as an award. Getting Social With millions of social media visits and updates made every minute, it comes as little surprise that the spa and beauty industry would catch on quickly. People increasingly go online to research beauty products and services before purchase with sites like Facebook and Twitter, informing purchase decisions for 34% of buyers viii. Almost four in 10 people (37% Best Practices for Beauty Brands on Facebook Beauty brands have emerged as among the most digitally savvy. They have a long legacy of ecommerce and have been vending their wares online much longer than many brand categories like fashion, travel and jewelry, just to name a few. Although traditional advertising methods still prevail in beauty through women s magazines, for example Facebook and other social media avenues are playing an increasingly larger role in their marketing, ecommerce and customer service strategies. High-end brands like Lancome and MAC have emerged as leaders in this space and very powerful campaigns have Page 4

5 been launched by mass brands like P&G (Cover Girl, Olay and Pantene) and Unilever (Tresemme, St. Ives and Dove). Their integrated campaigns have made the rest of the industry recognize Facebook as a powerful customer relationship management (CRM) tool. While many brands are perpetually challenged in addressing both global and local markets, beauty brands have always excelled at targeting the two separately with strategic Facebook campaigns. Here are some tips from top leading beauty brands. 2 Develop a Content Calendar As Facebook has become a central tool for beauty brands, many are using content calendars to get organized. Rachel Ostrom, executive director of global marketing at Aveda says her team plans out content one month in advance to accompany product launches and promotions at salons. Content is always driven by what is happening in-store as well as what performs best. Normally what perform best are posts that tap into the knowledge of fans by posing questions. Posts like these can drive upwards of 600 responses, says Ostrom. 1 Focus on Community & Engagement Many in the beauty industry will agree Facebook, although many are beginning to experiment is not a place for direct selling; rather it s a place for community-building and engagement. Whereas some may use Facebook as a sales or promotional tool, MAC s Facebook page, which has more than 3 million fans, instead uses it to strengthen its brand, engage with customers and cultivate a sense of community x. 3 Reward Fans with Exclusives As Facebook fans tend to be the most loyal and engaged, they make the best recipients for rewards and sampling programs. Aveda did a great job of integrating the online with offline in a recent Facebook campaign. Fans were given information via video, before filling out sample requests on Facebook. 20,000 sample packs of shampoo and conditioner were given out to fans, after which they were invited to go into a nearby store or salon to pick up their samples. Campaigns like these are great for driving awareness, increasing a fanbase and receiving valuable feedback from engaged customers. 4 Integrate across other Channels While some brands aim to replicate the shopping experience of their ecommerce sites on Facebook, Marisa Thalberg, VP of corporate digital marketing at Estee Lauder Companies Inc. sees no clear benefit in doing so. She believes the best approaches are those that complement rather than replicate a brands already-existing ecommerce site. In the number of spas and salons that used Facebook jumped 46% When running a Facebook campaign it s even more powerful to bring the rest of the brand s marketing channels into the mix in order to maximize reach and bridge the online and offline experiences with the brand. When Aveda launches Facebook promotions, it sends s to its customer base to drive them to a dedicated Facebook tab and it holds in-store and aveda.com promotions. 5 Provide Customer Service Support A question asked by a customer on Facebook is just as important as a question asked in-store, according to Thalberg of Estee Lauder Companies Inc., whose company portfolio includes Aveda, Clinique and MAC. Mary Kay, a brand that excels at offline customer service also sees the importance of creating an online customer service experience that mimics the offline experience they ve always had. Page 5

6 Search Engine Marketing & Video So what do you do about this? With 70% of local consumers now using the Internet to find good local businesses, greater visibility on search engines and local directories could put a local business in front of thousands of potential customers each month xi, says Myles Anderson of Search Engine Land. Further to this, since video results appear in about 70% of the top 100 listings and have much higher click through rates than their plain text counterparts, video is integral to your search engine strategy. Local Search & Google Places All spas and salons should be listed on Google Places as well as any local guides or spa industry directories. Google Places not only allows you to add your business, address, opening hours, and services it also allows you to add videos, customer testimonials and images. Google Places is powerful in the search engines and can therefore put you in front of tons of local, targeted people seeking your services. Since local listings take top priority in search and consumer clicks in search engines are mostly concentrated around local listings, your listings in search are incredibly important for your salon or spa. Claim or create your listing on Google Places, Yahoo Local, Yelp, Merchant Circle, CitySearch, Yellowpages and Bing. Also claim your places on social networks like Foursquare and Facebook Places. Optimize your website for local search listings. Include keywords that are locally targeted and strategically tweak your website to be geared toward local searches Use check-in services to engage your customers Use Check-In Services to gain competitive edge By 2014, there will be more mobile Internet users than desktop/laptop users. And 50% of local searches are already done on mobile devices xii. With an increase of users relaying on mobile devices and geo-location technology to make decisions, businesses needs to find ways to think locally. Here are a few ways to get started with check-in services like Foursquare: Encourage customers to check-in and leave tips and reviews for other customers Increase foot traffic by incorporating Check-In Specials for customers to redeem at time of visit Say thank-you to top customers with badges that reward them for their business/check-ins Page 6

7 Online Reviews Local consumers like to read up to 10 reviews before making a decision about which local business to use, according to Search Engine Land. Increasingly your online reviews will be one of your best selling tools. Let your best customers sell for you not only in written reviews but also in video testimonials, where they can explain the relationship they ve had with your business. Video testimonials are the best way to build trust and credibility and customers spend 10x longer on sites with testimonial videos, according to ReelSEO. Video testimonials are a particularly valuable way for online consumers to see satisfied salon and spa clients their enthusiasm can easily become incentive that leads to increased sales. Why Video Testimonials? Video testimonials are the best way to build trust and credibility Customers spend 10x longer on sites with testimonial videos Video testimonials are perceived as genuine, credible and authentic Social Media is important for SEO Your spa or salons social media (YouTube Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, LinkedIn ) presence and keyword usage are increasingly impacting your search engine ranking. Not only is social media a great place to talk directly to customers, it s also a great place to add your videos how to s, profile videos, customer testimonials and much more. Take advantage of this easy way to up the ante on your SEO strategy. Showcasing firsthand experience can go a long way in encouraging viewers to book appointments and ultimately step into your spa or salon. Gooday Beautie Parlour & Hair Salon has dozens of client and customer videos, which they store on their Facebook video page and they are seeing great success with it. Beauty is a fast-growing category on YouTube, with a passionate audience looking for the latest trends and inspiration for their own looks - Terry Hurlbutt, lifestyle lead for YouTube Page 7

8 Fusion Aveda Salon & Spa uses Video to convey their message Many salons and spas are using video to educate and provide service demonstrations, which can of course increase conversions and offer information that written content just can t convey. Fusion has added a short video to the homepage of their website, which is an important source of information for potential clientele. It also proves to be a powerful marketing and SEO tool for local salons and spas. Online engagement drives offline experiences Finding unique ways to engage customers online can drive offline business and the in-store, customer experience. Video marketing is the most effective source for spas, salons and beauty studios to get a message to customers in a costeffective manner. If you want to make your marketing dollars work for you, video marketing will prove to be the most economically sound yet visually unique for your spa, salon or beauty-related business [16] that you ll find today. Don t wait for your competition to take over your local market get on track with current marketing trends by incorporating video marketing into your digital marketing plan and watch your chairs stay filled year-round. Video Solutions Profiles Engaging and unscripted videos that provide clients with the opportunity to deliver a personal message to potential customers in their own style and tone. Ads Either scripted with a professional voiceover or interview-driven to deliver a positive first impression and drive higher conversion. Testimonials Captures customer experiences through authentic, unscripted interviews that build trust and credibility News Compliments traditional PR methods with videos that are journalistic in tone in order to establish credibility and drive media interest. Page 8

9 Appendix: Spa & Beauty i. Will Video For Food: ii. iii. iv. NailsMag Usage Figures: Time Magazine: Small Business: v. Spamarketing.tv: vi. vii. viii. ix. Brand Dignity: Smart Insights: Smart Insights: NailsMag Industry Report, : x. Mashable: xi. xii. Spa Boom Blog: Digital Buzz Blog: BusinessCreator, Inc. 47 North Jefferson Street, First Floor Allentown, PA (Toll Free) Page 9