Now that the weather is turning warmer, you probably are starting to market new skin care treatments help clients restore their skin from the harsh effects of winter weather. Or clients may be starting to spend more time participating in outdoor activities, which might lead to more sprains or pulled muscles so that they are beating a path to your door for massage. Whatever the need, the fact is that now is the time to step up your marketing activities to promote new or seasonal offerings.
However, today marketing involves more than creatively communicating messages about the benefits and features of your offering whether online through social media or off line through traditional print or broadcast advertising channels. Customers require more brands. They are seeking emotional experiences that engage their senses to encourage them to try a service or product for themselves. Clever words or entertaining visuals are no longer enough for customers to engage with your spa or massage practice.
Creating such emotional connections or what is called experiential marketing aims to elicit a strong emotional response from customers so that they not only become loyal customers but they also share their experiences with friends and family to help build your customer base. As Dave Kerpen, CEO of Likeable Local, writes in “How To Put The Experience Back into Experiential Marketing for Inc., “Essentially, consumers want to see something to believe it, and that includes the display of a brand through its events.”
An event at your spa or massage practice might include an open house where you introduce clients and prospects to some of the latest services you are offering for spring. You also might want to offer a series of educational evening talks about skin care or health trends during which time you can incorporate information about new treatments. You also could host a webinar talking about trends in healthful living or do a series of podcasts on the same topic.
Here are some tips that Kerpen offers to ensure events achieve your goals:
Make sure that your event reflects the values of your spa or massage practice and complements your service offering. For example, you could work with a clothing store to host a fashion show to showcase new casual clothes for spring or summer now that it’s time to peel back the layers of clothing and exposure more skin to the sun. A wine tasting event wouldn’t offer the same tie in with your services.
If you plan to offer a giveaway, it should be something clients and prospects want so they keep it as a constant reminder of the event. Consider samples of retail products or something for travel such as a toiletry case with your business name.
Encourage shareability by making the event personal in some way. Make sure that there are enough of our team on hand to meet one-on-one with guests and spend time talking about their specific needs so that they don’t just attend the event and leave.
Making marketing memorable and personal through experiences is the name of the game. Make sure your spa or massage practice name stands out from the rest.