Even with new clients coming in the door, it’s a good idea to periodically review your marketing activities to make sure things are on track and stay that way. The market changes all the time and you don’t want to be blindsided by increased competition, a change in client demographic or a trend that will alter your business. Tuning up your market is a two-part process.
Assess Current Activities
Your marketing tune up begins with an assessment of your current activities, says marketing coach and consultant Syndi Craig-Hart in “How to Tune up Your Marketing Efforts for Better Results and More Profits.” She recommends that you ask yourself several questions to assess your marketing before you make any changes. Among them:
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What’s Working Great in My Business
Review your business activity for the past 12 months to determine what is going well and what you have achieved.
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What Marketing Strategies have been most Effective to Connect with Ideal Clients
Review your marketing activities from networking at business events, email marketing, social media, mobile marketing and so forth. Determine what has been the most successful to drive traffic to your website and to your door. Whatever has been the most successful should be a marketing priority going forward.
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What needs to be Improved
Ask yourself what marketing activities aren’t giving you the results you want. Try to figure out why. Maybe your strategy or implementation needs to be revised. Or possibly the activity is not effective in terms of attracting new clients – or a changing demographic - and getting more business from current ones, whether it’s more frequent massages or greater retail product sales.
Craig-Hart also suggests that you ask yourself what is keeping you from being more proactive about your marketing, if that’s an issue. It may be that you need outside marketing help because you and your team just don’t have the time to do everything yourself, but are reluctant to hand over the reins to a consultant or agency. Possibly you don’t have the budget to do all the things you want to do. Maybe you are reluctant to pursue a particular marketing strategy because you don’t have the know-how or are not confident you’ll get the results you want. Whatever is holding you back, own up to it and become more proactive.
Assess How the Market Perceives You
If you’ve decided that changes need to be made to your marketing activities – to shift direction or pick up the pace – you’ll also want to check in with clients to find out how they perceive your spa or marketing practice.
You need to know, what kind of reputation your business has. Are you considered a business owner who delivers on your promise and meets customer expectations and needs? What areas should be improved, if any, to better satisfy clients?
Also your messages about your spa or massage practice may need to change in response evolving market or client needs. You’ll need to understand what clients and prospects are looking for and craft or revise messages to resonate with them. For example, today’s clients are looking for more customized treatments. Your message may need to speak more to individual needs. Clients also like to do business with companies that give back to the community. Your volunteerism may be a message you want to convey.
Once you have a good handle on what is or isn’t working, and what you need to convey about your business, you can begin the process of selecting the right activities to reach out to clients.
While a tune up takes time, it’s worth it to have your spa or massage practice marketing humming like a well-oiled machine.