Marketing and PR

In terms of social media marketing, Facebook and Instagram are the most used platforms by spa respondents, at 97 percent and 79 percent, respectively. More than half of spa respondents reported they do not use LinkedIn (52 percent), Pinterest (59 percent) or Snapchat (64 percent) in their company’s marketing efforts. On the other hand, the majority of resource partners use all social media tools mentioned, in addition to Twitter. The largest segment of resource partner respondents said that Facebook and Instagram were ‘very effective’ tools at 38 percent and 33 percent, respectively.

Referral program are being used significantly more by day spa member respondents than resort/hotel spa member respondents (64 percent and 16 respectively).  Loyalty cards and points systems which result in discounted or free treatments or products are two of the most popular programs being used. Other referral incentives included giving customers free upgrades on services, gift cards to redeem for the products or services and percentage discounts on services and treatments.

Thirty-five percent of all spas reported they do not recognize customers who refer a new client in any way. Nearly half (48 percent) of all resort/hotel spas stated they give no recognition for referrals, with day spas reporting this number to be much lower at just 20 percent. The most popular means of recognition reported was expressing gratitude in person the next time the customer visits the spa, with 42 percent of all spas using this form of recognition.  An large majority of all spas (81 percent) reported that they do not have any sort of incentive in place for employees who refer new clients.

The most notable change is Instagram, which was still in its infancy in 2012, is now used by 80 percent of all spa respondents and 76 percent of resource partner respondents. Facebook saw slight growth as well with 98 percent using it in 2017 compared to 93 percent in 2012.

Monthly Snapshot Surveys provide ISPA members with a valuable look into the state of the spa industry, spa industry trends and help to identify the needs of spa professionals. Snapshot Surveys are conducted on the third Friday of each month, with full results provided only to respondents two weeks from the release date of the survey. Knowledge is a valuable tool and these quick surveys provide a wealth of information shared by ISPA’s members. The September Snapshot Survey requested information from spa members relating to marketing.      The most popular advertising methods that ISPA spa members currently use include email (91 percent) and social media (93 percent). More than half of spa members are advertising in magazines (52 percent) relying on print marketing.  The advertising methods that are used the least by ISPA spa members were targeted IP address advertising (12 percent), television (14 percent), and billboard advertisement (18 percent). Among resource partners, email (90 percent) and social media (88 percent) were the most popular, with billboard advertisement (3 percent), radio (1 percent), television (3 percent) and newspaper (6 percent) being the least popular. 

However, as we move toward a digital future where technology advances such as virtual reality (VR) and artificial intelligence (AI) quickly becoming mainstays, capturing the imagination of a generation of “cord-cutters,” and “cord-nevers” will prove to be a big challenge for digital brands. But this is where “influencers” can make a big difference to your marketing efforts. 

When LinkedIn first came into the scene in 2003, several professionals thought of it as an online resume. Today, it is more like a personal branding platform—one that provides you with visibility and the opportunity to connect with like-minded industry professionals.

These factors enable me to help you understand two things. Firstly, why are we millennials so challenging to communicate with? Secondly, how can the modern spa professional use social media to be more successful? 

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