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The goal of any business is the same - to increase revenue. How to reach this goal depends on the philosophy of management. No matter the method, it will take time, effort, and proper strategy. Mistakes will come up now and then, and that’s normal. But if these mistakes result in losing clients and decreased revenue, you should attend to these issues right away.
In this article, we will be talking about five of the most common mistakes your med spa might be making that cost you clients and revenue. We’ve compiled this list with the help of several med spa clients that we have worked with over the years. Let’s start?
5 Med Spa Mistakes You Should Not Be Making
Not Investing In Getting the Right People
Like in any business, getting the right people to man the suitable stations is key to success. Note that your administrative staff and your treatment providers are essential in reaching your goals. That is why picking experienced, and knowledgeable staff is necessary - but not the only solution.
There are instances when businesses don’t get the best workers from the job pool. Don’t worry. It’s not that bad. You can always invest in training and education for existing staff - especially if they have the proper work ethics. Giving your team the right training along with the latest tools will ensure their growth and your success in the long run.
Another department that most med spas disregard involves consultation and conversion. While regular staff can do the consultation and conversion, it’s always better to get a specialist for the job. Somebody doing the consultation and conversion should be knowledgeable of the science and processes of each service you offer and well-versed in sales. Client education should be the priority, but sales should be a close second every single time.
Your Business Model Needs Tweaking
If a business wants to succeed, it should be backed by a stable and well-thought-out business plan. The core of every good business model is an excellent strategy and careful planning. Here are some of the more common mistakes regarding business plans.
- Not identifying the right target market and competition - It’s hard to sell a service when you don’t know who you should sell it to. That is why identifying your target marketing is central to any business plan. Once you know your target market, the next logical step is to identify the local competition and strategies. This information will be vital in creating a strategic campaign to help you rise above the competition.
- Offering the right treatments - There is this notion that if you have a med spa, then you should provide all available treatments or services possible. While that’s good in theory, it’s not that realistic, especially for smaller businesses. You need to offer and promote the treatments that are in demand in your target market. Knowing who you will be marketing to will give you an idea of what treatments and products to offer. Find a balance between providing treatments that drive revenue and those that get people through the door.
- Planning for Growth - Many new medical spas often make the mistake of assuming growth will come within the first few months. This, coupled with unrealistic client and revenue goals, often spells disaster for these med spas. Part of your business plan should be a section that talks about realistic goals and timelines. How fast do you want your practice to grow? Understand that growth is not all about bigger revenue. Sustainable growth is supported by happy clients, quality services, and a happy work environment for staff. Sometimes, this kind of growth is slow and steady, which can be disheartening for some. But if planned correctly, this growth will also be exponential, so hold tight and trust the process!
Not Looking At Online Opportunities
The future of business is online. This has been true for the past 5-10 years. However, medical spas still don’t consider the Internet an excellent way to get new clients. The idea is pretty straightforward. When people want to know about treatments or solutions for their issues, they go online for answers. Providing information about a treatment or service online is an excellent way to get new customers. Most of the time, when a person finds sufficient information on a website, they automatically trust the website and the brand. If you have an excellent call to action on your website, you can easily convert your visitors into paying customers.
But getting in front of your target market on the search engines is not a walk in the park. If you want people to see you right away, working with paid ads is the best course. The other option is to rank organically on search engines. You do this by optimizing your website and pages, so the search engines consider them as “authority pages.” Once they get on the top 1 or 3 of the search engines, you will see an increase in organic traffic over time.
Aside from a website, another way to capture your online audience is through social media. The most popular platforms like Facebook and Instagram boast billions of users per month. The medical spa industry is one of the most visually reliant industries as most of the clientele base their online decisions on what they see - like videos and images. By posting creatives relevant to your industry and target market, it will be easy for you to create a massive following that you can convert to paying customers in the future.
Not Focusing On Client Retention
Getting new clients is good and all, but if they don’t come back, they are only half as good for your business. Client retention is often given the back seat in business plans as management frequently gets infatuated with getting new clients.
Thanks to social media, text, and email, the good news is that a client retention campaign is not as brutal to do nowadays. The secret is in getting the necessary information from your clients. This can be done through the traditional “drop your calling card in the box” process or through an online form they can fill up for a small token of appreciation (like a discount).
Once you have your customer info, it’s all down to finding a way to attract them back to your business. Giving a discount works most of the time, but there are more clever ways to promote customer loyalty, and you should be open to trying out such practices.
Not Utilizing An Effective Pricing Strategy
More often than not, the thing that’s stopping some customers from availing of your treatments is the price. No, this does not mean you should lower your prices to get more customers. Multiple studies show how customers perceive the price as a measure of a service/object’s quality. So going low is not always a good idea.
What you can do is offer bundles, specials, and events to entice your customer to spend more. They are not as common as straight discounts, but they force customers to pay more than one treatment which is already a win in your book.
Be wary of using platforms like Groupon, as it needs proper planning to pull off correctly. Many businesses experience a significant influx of first-time clients who pay less due to the coupons but don’t come back. This can translate to substantial losses, especially for smaller med spas.
Finding the Right Med Spa Marketing Partner
The modern marketing world can be a maze for med spa business owners and take a lot of time and energy to navigate. If you are interested in taking your medical spa to the next level, it only makes sense to look for a marketing partner to help you steer the ship in the right direction. Med Spa Marketing is a lead generation agency specializing in assisting medical spas in gaining new clients and increasing revenue. All of this is done through intelligent and effective campaigns throughout various channels. Contact Med Spa Marketing today and ask how their experts can help your practice get above the competition.
