As a spa leader, it is crucial that you are constantly on the lookout for innovative ways to enhance your offerings and elevate the client experience. One effective strategy that not only keeps your services fresh and relevant, but also appeals to the ever-changing needs of clients is a seasonal spa menu. If you are feeling your stress level rise at this point, take a deep breath and exhale. Let us walk through the reasons why seasonal menus are important and discover some simple ways to implement them without wanting to run for the hills!
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As a spa leader, it is crucial that you are constantly on the lookout for innovative ways to enhance your offerings and elevate the client experience. One effective strategy that not only keeps your services fresh and relevant, but also appeals to the ever-changing needs of clients is a seasonal spa menu. If you are feeling your stress level rise at this point, take a deep breath and exhale. Let us walk through the reasons why seasonal menus are important and discover some simple ways to implement them without wanting to run for the hills!
What is a Seasonal Menu?
Put simply, a seasonal menu is a separate mini menu that can be inserted into your main menu and easily promoted online, on your e-marketing/SMS texts and social media channels. The primary goal is to feature treatments that best align with the seasons (winter, spring, summer, fall), and launch them in a timely manner to create excitement and garner service bookings. By tailoring treatments per season, you can provide clients with targeted, timely benefits to keep them coming back for more.
How Do I Implement a Seasonal Menu?
1. Tapping Vendor Sources
Nowadays, for the most part, spas offer an assortment of skin care brands within their backbar and retail boutiques. This means that you already have a built-in list of vendors that you partner with and can enlist for help. Vendors should be able to support you with seasonal menu recommendations and provide the marketing support you need to implement seasonal menus a few times per year depending on whether you want to capitalize on every season or just launch them bi-annually. Ideally, the preliminary process should start three to six months prior to the season you wish to start with to allow ample time for planning, team training/meetings and an effective launch.
2. Aligning with Seasonal Skin Concerns
Most of us love the feeling we get from the change of seasons and the excitement sparked by the start of each new season. From the chilly and heartwarming winter season, to the joy of a flower-blooming spring, the beckoning sun rays of summer and the spice-filled allure of fall, each season has its unique enchantment. However, alongside that enchantment come the unique environmental changes that directly affect your client’s skin health and overall well-being. By offering treatments specifically designed to address seasonal concerns, you are establishing yourself as the hub and expert source for skin care health and overall improved wellness.
- Winter: Chilly, wintry weather often leads to dry, cracked skin, aching joints, especially for those who suffer from arthritis, sore muscles, and for some, even feelings of despair, depression and anxiety. Offering hydrating facials, body treatments, body wraps, and warming, therapeutic massages can bring immediate relief, and even an increase in endorphins for clients for improved mental health.
- Spring: One of my favorite seasons, Spring is the season of renewal and the perfect time to feature detoxifying face and body treatments. Consider offering rejuvenating facials, body detox wraps, or lymphatic drainage massages to help clients shed the effects of the winter months and prepare their skin for the summer.
- Summer: Although education on the damage of sun exposure is easily accessible, many people do not use sunblock daily, reapply sparingly, or do not reapply at all. Aside from dehydrating the skin, unprotected exposure can result in premature and rapid aging, sunburn, hyperpigmentation and potentially even skin cancer. Post-sun soothing treatments like aloe and water lily-based facials or cooling body wraps can counteract dehydration, restore skin vitality and promote relaxation.
- Fall: Skin recovery is the name of the game in the fall! After months of sun exposure, this season is the ideal time to focus on skin recovery. Pumpkin enzyme facials and restorative body treatments using seasonal ingredients can help nourish and renew the skin after a summer of wear and tear.
Related: Crafting Seasonal Spa Treatments
3. Building Anticipation & Exclusivity
Excelling as a leader means that you are always seeking ways to increase exposure and set your location apart. Seasonal menus give your spa an air of exclusivity that customers will look forward to. Knowing that certain treatments are only available during specific times of year encourages clients to book with urgency.
By creating anticipation—clients may start to associate your spa with seasonal traditions and eagerly await the chance to enjoy the new offerings. Whether it is a “Spring into Rejuvenation Facial” or a “Glowvember Body Scrub,” special seasonal services help build excitement and keep your location top of mind.
4. Enhancing Client Engagement & Retention
Offering a variety of seasonal treatments encourages repeat visits and helps maintain client engagement. The seasonal approach can be a terrific way to keep things fresh and dynamic, ensuring clients always have something new to look forward to.
- Loyalty & Retention: Clients who know they can always find treatments tailored to their seasonal skin concerns and specific needs will be more likely to return year-round. Additionally, offering seasonal promotions can also reward loyal clients enticing them to book more frequently and draw in new business.
- Package Offers: Bundling treatments into seasonal packages can create more opportunities for clients to commit to multi-treatment visits. For instance, a winter package can include a therapeutic massage, a deep hydrating facial, and the ideal 1-2 self-care product(s) to prolong results. This strategic approach encourages clients to book multiple services in one visit and commit to home care maintenance with ease because the product is already bundled into the price.
5. Test Driving New Vendors, Boosting Revenue & Satisfaction
Seasonal menus are an ideal way to “test drive” a prospective skin care vendor before you commit. Let the vendor work for you by providing seasonal recommendations based on the offerings they think align with your spa’s vision, identity, demographic and location. When treatments align with the changing seasons, you can offer new and engaging services that attract new clients while encouraging existing ones to upgrade their usual skin care routines.
- Upsell Opportunities: Offering add-ons like seasonal scrubs or aromatherapy oils customized to the season can increase the average ticket price.
- Increased Bookings: The ability to market your spa with “seasonal specials” or “limited time offers” keeps your offerings feeling fresh, which is a wonderful way to entice clients who may not have visited in a while.
6. Marketing For Distinction
Make sure that your seasonal menu and marketing tools reflect the diversity of your community and the spa. Additionally, use images that help evoke strong feelings of the season and build stronger emotional connections. Position your seasonal spa menu as more than just an indulgence—it is a way to rejuvenate, restore balance, and meet their body’s needs throughout the year. From soothing dry winter skin, to refreshing summer facials, these specialized treatments can make a real difference in how they feel and look.
Offering a seasonal menu provides you with a wonderful opportunity to not only attract and retain clients, but also provide them with treatments that enhance their well-being in a way that is timely and relevant. It is a win-win: your clients will appreciate the personalized touch, and your business will benefit from positioning itself as a must-visit destination throughout the year with a boost in engagement and revenue.
Maritza Rodriguez is the global vice president of marketing and communications for Pevonia International and its related brands. She has worked with some of the most renowned professional skin care brands on image and marketing.
