As colder weather rolls in, so do the opportunities to renew your spa’s offerings and meet your clients’ evolving skin care needs. Winter brings new possibilities, from creating a seasonal menu to enhancing your social media presence. Let’s discuss how to harness these tools to boost your reputation and attract new clients.
Log in to view the full article
As colder weather rolls in, so do the opportunities to renew your spa’s offerings and meet your clients’ evolving skin care needs. Winter brings new possibilities, from creating a seasonal menu to enhancing your social media presence. Let’s discuss how to harness these tools to boost your reputation and attract new clients.
Benefits of Winter Treatments
Before exploring social media strategies to showcase your winter offerings, let’s look at why seasonal treatments matter. Refreshing your spa menu creates an exciting experience for returning guests. Seasonal services also allow you to tap into skin care trends and holidays, creating a sense of exclusivity that encourages bookings from existing and new clients.
But, perhaps the most crucial reason for a seasonal spa menu is that our skin’s needs change throughout the year. In winter, clients will likely seek treatments that provide deep hydration while soothing sensitivity. Holidays may also inspire a craving for something specific, like a romantic glow before Valentine’s Day.
Gathering Intel
Before updating your social media strategy, research to familiarize yourself with the current landscape of social platforms. Look up trending topics for winter on TikTok, Instagram and Pinterest to see what people are talking about. This will help you create a social media plan that resonates with your audience. A word of caution: trends move fast online. Consider the longevity of topics before you commit to posting about them.
Related: [Inspiration] Adding Winter Well-Being to Your Wellness Programs
Community & Collaboration
Don’t do it all on your own! When it comes to social media strategy, it’s wise to tap into your communities.
Engage Your Current Followers
Boost engagement on your socials by creating seasonal content that’s genuinely fun to interact with. The best approach varies by platform. For example, Instagram has built-in features that encourage interaction. Creating polls, asking questions and using other interactive elements in your stories can spark conversations about winter skin care.
Try short-form videos on TikTok. The day-in-the-life format is popular in the beauty and spa industry. Consider filming content like “come with me: a day as an spa pro” or “winter skin care tips” to share your expertise and build a connection with your audience. You can also create niche-focused videos, such as all-natural skin care routines or seasonal treatment benefits, to position yourself as a trusted source and build a loyal, engaged audience.
Leverage Influencer Collaborations
There’s a lot of power in influence. To increase your spa’s online presence, consider recruiting the help of influencers in your area. Look for someone who creates content that is a natural fit for your spa (like local creators in the wellness or beauty space). Start by offering them complimentary winter treatments tailored to their skin care needs in exchange for documenting their experience. This generates professional-looking content while introducing you to new audiences.
Additionally, you can explore other collaborations, such as social takeovers, brand events, affiliate marketing, sponsorships and product gifting, which you can incorporate into your social media strategy year-round. Of course, consider your budget and resources when dreaming up your influencer strategy.
User Generated Content
Have you heard of user-generated content (UGC)? UGC refers to any content about your business created by others, from clients posting about visiting your spa to paid promotions from business partners. There are two types of UGC you can tap into: paid and organic. Organic UGC is the closest thing to word-of-mouth on social media, featuring content about your brand, products or services without financial incentives. This can include tags from guests, skin care hauls, reviews and videos of your spa or the treatment process.
To encourage organic UGC, start by sharing engaging prompts, such as “send a before-and-after treatment picture” or “show us your #WinterGlow." These prompts can kickstart participation, making it easy for you to reshare content. This differs from paid UGC because the motivation comes from your followers alone. In a paid collaboration, you’ll be in touch with the content creator ahead of time to discuss ideas and parameters.
Another group to lean on for UGC? Your staff! No one knows your brand, treatments and products quite like your team. You can encourage them to create content you can re-share, like the best products for each skin type or showcasing their favorite facial tools. UGC created by your team members not only adds authenticity, but also brings a sense of community to your brand.
Be sure to communicate your spa’s social media and company policies with your team before they start creating content. As a rule of thumb, staff should disclose their relationship to your spa when promoting your products or treatments. And, of course, always request permission before resharing content, whether it be from your team or other creators.
Tracking Performance
After implementing your winter social media strategy, you’ll need to track its performance. So where do you begin? Thankfully, most platforms offer free, built-in analytics. These tools allow you to track key metrics like engagement (views, likes and shares) and awareness (impressions and reach). Reviewing these helps you see if your audience is connecting with your posts, what content performs best and how many people are seeing it. A highly engaged audience and strong reach can increase bookings, revenue, interest and loyalty for your spa.
If you want to dig deeper, consider using additional tools like Google Analytics or Hootsuite. Remember, your social media presence is a powerful extension of your brick-and-mortar business! Knowing where to begin with your social media strategy might feel overwhelming, but it can be a great way to attract new clients and keep your current community engaged. By leaning into social media trends, influencer collaborations and UGC, you can effectively promote your winter treatments to elevate your spa. Remember, in the current social media landscape, authenticity goes far, so be sure that your content feels true to you.
Amber McBain, vice president of marketing & communications at Éminence Organic Skin Care, is an innovator with more than 15 years of marketing and communications experience. Continuously striving for improvement in customer experience modeling and brand management, McBain has spearheaded marketing strategies for the most successful product launches in Éminence’s history.
