All I Want for Christmas....

Today we continue our topic on planning for the most important profit opportunity of the year...The Holidays!  If you missed part one...make sure you read "It's Beginning to Look Alot Like Christmas."

Today's tip is fun one and one that can get your spa, clinic, or wellness practice a huge spike in sales and many new clients...A Client Holiday Wish List!:)  Toward the end of October ask clients to fill out a holiday wish.  The following is just a small sampling of questions you many choose to ask:  Favorite skin care products, favortie body products, favorite shampoos and conditions, favortie at home spa equipment, favorite nail products, favorite accessories, name, significant other's name and email address, other people they would like to receive the list along with email addresses and their relationship.  After this is done, start planning (with your staff) for 2 more events in November and December: 1.)  A Closed Door Shopping Night for Guys and 2.)  A Closed Door Shopping Night for Everyone.

For the closed door event for guys, pick a date to have an evening event and email only the men in your client's Holiday wish list.   This event will pretty much sell itself because you will be able to tell him you know what their significant other wanted for Christmas!  But add gift wrapping while he waits eating pizza and drinking and beer and you've definetely got a winning event!!!

For everyone else on your client's list (i.e. friends, moms, sisters, in-laws, children) have an event just for them and possibly team up with a local bakery or restaurant to provide free snacks and tips on baking or party hosting in exchange for handing out information about their business.  To maximize the selling potential for this event, have customers fill out a card with their name and email address and other contact info and have a drawing to win prizes...that way you will have all of their contact data for later!;)  Also make sure to have enough staff on hand to answer questions, book appointments, etc.

What other ideas can you think of to engage your customers, collect data, obtain new clients and maximize sales at events?  Please share them below.:)

Source – Skin Inc August 2012

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas!

Think back to last holiday season.  How were your sales?  Did you do the same promos, events, etc as the previous?  If you did and sales were down, don't expect anything different this year!  As the old saying goes, "Doing the same thing and expecting the same results is..."  (we'll let you fill in the blanks here)!

Now that Labor Day is over, retailers are starting to plan for this important time of year.  Stores last year started the season earlier, stayed open longer and offered better promotions.  Did yours?  It may be hard to believe that each year, consumers start their holiday shopping before Halloween to spread their spending out over a longer period of time.  Being the type of business that has a loyal, influx of repeat clients...it's up to you to take advantage of this at your spa, clinic, or practice and start cashing in on this important time of year for sales.

For the next 3 weeks, we will focus on ideas to help dirve your holiday business and strengthen your profits to increase your cash flow for the start of next year.   This week we talk about Hosting an October Pre-Halloween Sale:

Since you now know that clients like to start early to spread out their spending try taking advantage of that by pulling out items that were left over from last year.  Put specials on existing retail items on the shelf and get an early shipment of holiday items from your vendors.  For instance, Scandle has already stocking fall/holiday fragrances like Fig & Brown Sugar, Oatmeal Milk & Honey, Warm Varm Vanilla Sugar, and Limited Edition Faves like Autumn Harvest & Pumpkin Pie Spice!

Send out an email blast to clients for a period of time you know most of them have free, like 3 or 4 hours after work, for limited time specials, place announcemnts throughout our facility (i.e. in bathrooms, hand out with receipts, etc.) and send out post cards to your most important clients.

Make sure to decorate for the event, giving it a holiday feel.  Put up decorations, sale signs, and place products strategically on tables and shelves.  When the event is over, take down the decorations, etc until mid-November.

If you really want to go all out...partner with a restaurant to provide hor d'oeuvres and a quick demo on making holiday appetizers in exchange for handing out menus and other promos from their facility,

If your event is a success, you can bank on it becoming a regularly yearly event that your customers will look forward to!:)

*Source - Skin Inc August 2012