Whitepaper

The Skinny
Spa & Beauty Industry
Marketing Strategies Today
Merge your offline, in-store experience with online customer engagement
 Whitepaper Spa & Beauty Industry
Marketing Styles Deployed Today

As the beauty and spa industries continue to accept video and digital as essential marketing activities,
they are learning to strategically merge their offline storefronts with their online presence.
When actualizing online marketing campaigns and leading the digital pack, the trailblazers in this industry understand how to build a
digital ecosystem that maintains its relationship with customers while creating an authentic ongoing dialogue, expand the consumer
base by investing in targeted local strategies, incorporate engaging videos to capture attention and new business and improve
customer experience through all digital channels.
To achieve the perfect mix of activities, we explore some best practices, stats and case studies to contemplate while helming your
salon or spas current digital marketing initiatives.

Video is important to your Video Marketing Is Viral

Spa, Salon or Beauty Brand Just on YouTube alone, over 60 hours of video are uploaded
a minute with over 1 trillion views a yeari. That ridiculous
The visual experience of seeing spa and salon services statistic wraps the day spa and salon industry into it. The
in action creates interest from potential clientele and below charts shows how effective a viral video could
can ultimately seal the deal. In fact, online video is said potentially be for your salon or spa ii:
to influence 90% of consumer buying decisions. Many
businesses are as a result seeing success using video,
especially salons and beauty spas. Many are using it in
conjunction with other online marketing tactics like social
media, which adds extra value to profiles. Here are just a few
reasons why video is important to your salon or spa business.

Salon And Spa Presence Online By Type (%)9

A single video, combined with your website, Facebook

account and YouTube can increase your brand awareness
and interest nationally since more videos are viewed and
streamed through YouTube than the biggest three television
networks combined iii. Further to this, “beauty is a fast-
growing category on YouTube, with a passionate audience
looking for the latest trends and inspiration for their own

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 Whitepaper Spa & Beauty Industry
Marketing Styles Deployed Today

looks,” says Terry Hurlbutt, lifestyle lead for YouTube’s original has enabled the spa to give customers a walk-through of their
programming group. YouTube and videos that take a creative facilities, allowed people to visually ‘try before they buy’ and
approach are great ways to reach out to potential customers has increased customer brand awareness. They have added
- offer instructional how-to’s, expert beauty advice and calls to action via video which has increased the visitorship to
demonstrations as well as other unique viral content. their physical shop. Specific revenue growth figures weren’t
available at the time of review but were considered ‘dramatic
thanks to video marketing.’
Virtual Tours Close Sales
Contributing to the video marketing success of Studio Cie
As with real estate and hotel marketing, seeing a virtual tour
is the fact that they understand the necessity of making all
of salon facilities and being able to view product offerings
of their online efforts cohesive. They have also developed
live inevitably leads to stronger sales closings for salon
an engaging Facebook page v with well-placed verbiage and
owners. By offering your customers or target audience the
excellent video content.
chance to view nail techs at work, beauticians doing facials
and actual customers relaxing at day spas, you’ll book more
appointments than with still photographs or written reviews
on your website. Combine the power of Facebook with its
ability to video share and you’ve extended your chances of
Increase ROI for
new customer acquisition three-fold while proving to your your business with Video
community that you offer high quality services, excellent
customer service and a business that is professionally Nothing conveys your message better than a platform that
operated. engages both sight and sound at the same time. By leveraging
the power of video marketing you are able to speak to your
potential clientele while allowing them to make eye contact
Video Marketing fits into your with both you and your business. This creates a more
Integrated Marketing Plan connected shopping experience for each of them. Also,
customers are finicky about getting their personal needs
By integrating different forms of online marketing into taken care of in a well-kept environment; your videos can
your mix, your message to customers becomes consistent, depict how you clean supplies and the general interior of your
cohesive and relatable. While video is integral to your online facility. To get going, here are a few unique video concepts
marketing initiatives, the way it interacts with social media, that incorporate offers, contests and profiles which can
promotion, email marketing, search engine optimization, ultimately drive higher ROI for your business vi
public relations and so much more is that much more
powerful. Find a cohesive way to drive home your message 1 Run a Groupon deal
and customers will keep you top of mind when they require
your services. Groupon is looked to by its subscribers as a city guide,
pointing people to all the greatest places in the city.
Businesses get more new customers than with any other
form of advertising by running specials or offers valid for in-

Studio Cie Case Study store redemption. You can direct visitors to the link or actual
Groupon in a video posted on your website, blog, Facebook
Studio Cie, an upscale wellness spa located in Lakewood, page or YouTube. Not only does this create buzz around
California has seen incredible success using video marketing. your profiles or sites, it also links your customers’ online and
According to owner Carol Cisneros iv, online video marketing offline worlds as they have to visit your store for redemptions.
The Internet has revolutionized the way that people like to

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 Whitepaper Spa & Beauty Industry
Marketing Styles Deployed Today

receive information and interact with brands. In 2011, 33% -- equating to 15 million consumers) have interacted with
of internet users who interacted with beauty brands took beauty and personal care brands online. Spas and salons are
advantage of special offers online and 33% said they wanted harnessing this power – according to a report from NailsMagix
to get free offers and samples online, which they could in 2010-2011, the number of spas and salons that used
redeem in person vii. Facebook jumped 46%. The below chart reflects the amount
of overall revenue that salons tallied in the last five years
without factoring in specific breakdowns of traffic.
2 Run Live Video Feeds
Run a live video feed of your stylists hard at work or cover 5-Year Revenue Vs. Spending Stats, Spa And
Salon Services (Billions) 4, 17
salon events via video and upload them to your website.
Streaming video of your salon or spa can prompt customers
to book appointments with you as they are being actively
engaged and gaining insights into the personalities they may
interact with when visiting your salon. Although salons and
spas are beginning to test the waters with digital marketing
efforts, not many are doing something of this nature; those
that are though are seeing higher conversions from lead
to customer. Janettics Hair Studio has shown success by
experimenting with off the cuff video, which they post on their
Facebook profile in order to garner attention from potential
customers.

3 Run Video Contests

Create engagement on your Facebook wall or website by
running a contest or sweepstakes via video that offers
customers a chance to win a prize related to your salon
business. Offer a free facial, manicure or haircut to draw in Best Practices for Beauty
new customers and create further buzz by letting the new
clients know that if they share the video on their social profiles Brands on Facebook
a coupon will be offered as an award.
Beauty brands have emerged as among the most digitally
savvy. They have a long legacy of ecommerce and have been
vending their wares online much longer than many brand
categories like fashion, travel and jewelry, just to name a few.
Getting Social Although traditional advertising methods still prevail in beauty
– through women’s magazines, for example – Facebook and
With millions of social media visits and updates made every other social media avenues are playing an increasingly larger
minute, it comes as little surprise that the spa and beauty role in their marketing, ecommerce and customer service
industry would catch on quickly. People increasingly go online strategies.
to research beauty products and services before purchase
with sites like Facebook and Twitter, informing purchase High-end brands like Lancome and MAC have emerged as
decisions for 34% of buyers viii . Almost four in 10 people (37% leaders in this space and very powerful campaigns have

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 Whitepaper Spa & Beauty Industry
Marketing Styles Deployed Today

been launched by mass brands like P&G (Cover Girl, Olay and 2 Develop a Content Calendar
Pantene) and Unilever (Tresemme, St. Ives and Dove). Their
integrated campaigns have made the rest of the industry As Facebook has become a central tool for beauty brands,
recognize Facebook as a powerful customer relationship many are using content calendars to get organized. Rachel
management (CRM) tool. Ostrom, executive director of global marketing at Aveda
says her team plans out content one month in advance to
While many brands are perpetually challenged in addressing accompany product launches and promotions at salons.
both global and local markets, beauty brands have always Content is always driven by what is happening in-store as
excelled at targeting the two separately with strategic well as what performs best. Normally what perform best are
Facebook campaigns. posts that tap into the knowledge of fans by posing questions.
Posts like these can drive upwards of 600 responses, says
Here are some tips from top leading beauty brands. Ostrom.

1 Focus on Community & Engagement 3 Reward Fans with Exclusives

Many in the beauty industry will agree – Facebook, although As Facebook fans tend to be the most loyal and engaged, they
many are beginning to experiment – is not a place for make the best recipients for rewards and sampling programs.
direct selling; rather it’s a place for community-building and Aveda did a great job of integrating the online with offline in a
engagement. Whereas some may use Facebook as a sales or recent Facebook campaign. Fans were given information via
promotional tool, MAC’s Facebook page, which has more than video, before filling out sample requests on Facebook. 20,000
3 million fans, instead uses it to strengthen its brand, engage sample packs of shampoo and conditioner were given out to
with customers and cultivate a sense of community x. fans, after which they were invited to go into a nearby store or
salon to pick up their samples. Campaigns like these are great
for driving awareness, increasing a fanbase and receiving
valuable feedback from engaged customers.

4 Integrate across other Channels

When running a Facebook campaign it’s even more powerful
to bring the rest of the brand’s marketing channels into the
mix in order to maximize reach and bridge the online and
offline experiences with the brand.
When Aveda launches Facebook promotions, it sends emails
While some brands aim to replicate the shopping experience
to its customer base to drive them to a dedicated Facebook
of their ecommerce sites on Facebook, Marisa Thalberg, VP
tab and it holds in-store and aveda.com promotions.
of corporate digital marketing at Estee Lauder Companies
Inc. sees no clear benefit in doing so. She believes the best
approaches are those that complement rather than replicate 5 Provide Customer Service Support
a brands already-existing ecommerce site.
A question asked by a customer on Facebook is just as
important as a question asked in-store, according to Thalberg
In 2010-2011 the number of spas and of Estee Lauder Companies Inc., whose company portfolio
salons that used Facebook jumped 46% includes Aveda, Clinique and MAC.

Mary Kay, a brand that excels at offline customer service also

sees the importance of creating an online customer service
experience that mimics the offline experience they’ve always
had.

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 Whitepaper Spa & Beauty Industry
Marketing Styles Deployed Today

Search Engine
Marketing & Video So what do you do about this?
“With 70% of local consumers now using the Internet to find
• Claim or create your listing on Google Places,
good local businesses, greater visibility on search engines
and local directories could put a local business in front of Yahoo Local, Yelp, Merchant Circle, CitySearch,
thousands of potential customers each month xi ,” says Yellowpages and Bing. Also claim your places
Myles Anderson of Search Engine Land. Further to this, since on social networks like Foursquare and
video results appear in about 70% of the top 100 listings and Facebook Places.
have much higher click through rates than their plain text
counterparts, video is integral to your search engine strategy.
• Optimize your website for local search listings.
Include keywords that are locally targeted and
strategically tweak your website to be geared
toward local searches
Local Search & Google Places
All spas and salons should be listed on Google Places as
• Use check-in services to engage your
well as any local guides or spa industry directories. Google customers
Places not only allows you to add your business, address,
opening hours, and services – it also allows you to add videos,
customer testimonials and images. Google Places is powerful
in the search engines and can therefore put you in front of
tons of local, targeted people seeking your services.
Since local listings take top priority in search and consumer
Use Check-In Services to
clicks in search engines are mostly concentrated around local
listings, your listings in search are incredibly important for gain competitive edge
your salon or spa.
By 2014, there will be more mobile Internet users than
desktop/laptop users. And 50% of local searches are already
done on mobile devices xii.

With an increase of users relaying on mobile devices and

geo-location technology to make decisions, businesses needs
to find ways to think locally. Here are a few ways to get started
with check-in services like Foursquare:

Encourage customers to check-in and leave tips and

reviews for other customers

Increase foot traffic by incorporating Check-In Specials for

customers to redeem at time of visit

Say thank-you to top customers with badges that reward

them for their business/check-ins

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 Whitepaper Spa & Beauty Industry
Marketing Styles Deployed Today

Online Reviews
Local consumers like to read up to 10 reviews before making
Why Video Testimonials?
a decision about which local business to use, according to
Search Engine Land. Increasingly your online reviews will be
• Video testimonials are the best way to build
one of your best selling tools. Let your best customers sell for trust and credibility
you – not only in written reviews but also in video testimonials,
where they can explain the relationship they’ve had with your • Customers spend 10x longer on sites with
business. Video testimonials are the best way to build trust testimonial videos
and credibility and customers spend 10x longer on sites with
testimonial videos, according to ReelSEO. Video testimonials • Video testimonials are perceived as genuine,
are a particularly valuable way for online consumers to see credible and authentic
satisfied salon and spa clients – their enthusiasm can easily
become incentive that leads to increased sales.

Social Media is
important for SEO
Your spa or salons social media (YouTube Facebook, Twitter,
Google Plus, LinkedIn…) presence and keyword usage are
increasingly impacting your search engine ranking. Not only
is social media a great place to talk directly to customers, it’s
also a great place to add your videos – how to’s, profile videos,
customer testimonials and much more. Take advantage of
this easy way to up the ante on your SEO strategy.

Showcasing firsthand experience can go a long way in Beauty is a fast-growing category on

encouraging viewers to book appointments and ultimately
step into your spa or salon.
YouTube, with a passionate audience
looking for the latest trends and
Gooday Beautie Parlour & Hair Salon has dozens of client and inspiration for their own looks
customer videos, which they store on their Facebook video
page and they are seeing great success with it. - Terry Hurlbutt, lifestyle lead for YouTube

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 Whitepaper Spa & Beauty Industry
Marketing Styles Deployed Today

Fusion Aveda Online engagement drives

Salon & Spa offline experiences
uses Video to Finding unique ways to engage customers online can drive
convey their offline business and the in-store, customer experience. Video
message marketing is the most effective source for spas, salons and
beauty studios to get a message to customers in a cost-
Many salons and spas are effective manner. If you want to make your marketing dollars
using video to educate work for you, video marketing will prove to be the most
and provide service economically sound yet visually unique for your spa, salon or
demonstrations, which can of beauty-related business [16] that you’ll find today. Don’t wait
course increase conversions for your competition to take over your local market – get on
and offer information that track with current marketing trends by incorporating video
written content just can’t marketing into your digital marketing plan and watch your
convey. Fusion has added a chairs stay filled year-round.
short video to the homepage
of their website, which is an important source of information
for potential clientele. It also proves to be a powerful
marketing and SEO tool for local salons and spas.

Video Solutions

Profiles Testimonials
Engaging and unscripted videos that provide Captures customer experiences through
clients with the opportunity to deliver a authentic, unscripted interviews that build
personal message to potential customers in trust and credibility
their own style and tone.
News
Ads Compliments traditional PR methods with
Either scripted with a professional voiceover videos that are journalistic in tone in order to
or interview-driven to deliver a positive first establish credibility and drive media interest.
impression and drive higher conversion.

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 Whitepaper Spa & Beauty Industry
Marketing Styles Deployed Today

Appendix:
Spa & Beauty Marketing Styles Deployed Today
i. Will Video For Food: http://willvideoforfood.com/2012/01/30/youtube-statistics-for-2012/

ii. NailsMag Usage Figures: http://files.nailsmag.com/Market-Research/NAILSstats11-12.pdf

iii. Time Magazine: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2104815,00.html

iv. Small Business: http://smallbusiness.foxbusiness.com/marketing-sales/2011/11/18/small-

businesses-weigh-in-are-using-video-marketing/

v. Spamarketing.tv: http://www.spamarketing.tv/customize-spa-marketing-facebook-fan-page-
pt-1/

vi. Brand Dignity: http://www.brandignity.com/2011/09/salon-marketing-internet-strategy-

ideas/

vii. Smart Insights: http://www.smartinsights.com/social-media-marketing/social-media-

platforms/using-social-media-for-beauty-brands/

viii. Smart Insights: http://www.smartinsights.com/social-media-marketing/social-media-

platforms/using-social-media-for-beauty-brands/

ix. NailsMag Industry Report, 2010-2011: http://www.nailsmag.com/page/70218/market-

research

x. Mashable: http://mashable.com/2011/08/01/beauty-brands-facebook/

xi. Spa Boom Blog: http://www.spaboomblog.com/archives/spa-search-engine-optimization-seo

xii. Digital Buzz Blog: http://www.digitalbuzzblog.com/2011-mobile-statistics-stats-facts-

marketing-infographic/

BusinessCreator, Inc.
47 North Jefferson Street, First Floor
Allentown, PA 18102
855-943-8736 (Toll Free)
610-437-8822
marketing@businesscreatorplus.com

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