It’s no secret that the online market is quite oversaturated these days. As such, promoting any kind of new business can be a tricky endeavor. The main reason is that you have to cut through a lot of noise in order to reach your target audience and get them interested in your products or services.
Still ,just because something is difficult, it doesn’t mean that it’s impossible. The key to gaining traction online for your spa business is in having a well-developed marketing plan. Without it, you’re stumbling in the dark with high chances of making a crucial mistake. So with that in mind, let’s go over the essentials of your marketing plan that will help you promote your spa business the right way.
Market research to the rescue
The essence of every market plan is research. You can’t develop a marketing plan if you have zero information about the market itself, your target audience and, of course, your competitors. The point in fact is that 35% of startups fail because there was no market need for their products or services. That could’ve been avoided if proper research was conducted, to begin with.
So for example, if direct marketing is a bit too competitive in your industry, you can always try to go for a more niche approach. That said, you can go along with medical spa marketing instead of just spa marketing, for instance. Targeting a niche audience can still get you where you want to be but without investing too many resources and effort into your marketing endeavors.
But in order to develop effective marketing strategies that will be incorporated into your plan, you’ll have to first research evry angle that you can exploit, in order to gain viability and gain a competitive advantage, as well. This is why market research should never be skipped or neglected by businesses that wish to succeed in the online world.
Develop a great website
If you don’t have a website, it’s like your business doesn’t exist at all. That’s just how things are these days, even though you may be running a brick-and-mortar business, which spas usually are. Therefore, a website is an absolute must for your marketing efforts. The main reason is that consumers want information and details. Don’t expect them to visit your spa after seeing an add about it.
Instead, expect for them to visit your website so be ready to provide them with all the information they need. Aside form that, your website and blog even are the foundation for other marketing tactics like SEO (Search Engine Optimization) content marketing and PPC (Pay-Per-Click), to name a few. Without a website, there’s no way to attract and convert potential customer nor is there a way to make your business credible, visible and authoritative online.
Leverage different media channels
Another vital aspect of your marketing plan is deciding which media channels to leverage for your marketing strategies. As mentioned before, SEO, content marketing and others are tied directly to your website but other channels hold great potential for promoting your business too. That includes social media, email marketing and even traditional marketing in some cases. That said, direct mail can be just as powerful as email campaign while a well-placed billboard add can be just as effective as an add on Facebook.
So it’s up to you to decide which channels are best suited for promoting your business. The fact of the matter is that each channel has their unique advantages and disadvantages, meaning you must research them all in order to make the right decision. Another thing to incorporate in your plan is the cost of marketing on each channel. Some marketing channels are more cost-effective than others so make sure you pick the approach that suits your budget.
Metrics, metrics and more metrics
One thing that businesses often forget to incorporate in their marketing plan is which metrics to monitor and which ones to ignore. Metrics and KPI’s (Key Performance Indicators) are essential for determining the success of your marketing campaign or individual marketing strategies. Without monitoring those, you can tell if your efforts are bearing fruit or not.
However, the problem is when business owners focus on the wrong metrics that don’t really indicate a potential return on investment (ROI). These are also known as vanity metrics and include things likes monitoring number of shares, likes and comments on social media pages. They just show that your audience interacts with your content not that they’re about to use your spa anytime soon. Instead of focusing on vanity metrics, you should focus on those that actually provide useful insights. Here are a few examples.
- Conversion rate
- Customer acquisition costs (CAC)
- Customer lifetime value (CLV)
- Return on marketing investment (ROMI)
- Customer retention rate
- Cost per lead (CPL)
When you pay attention to the right metrics, you can easily determine how your marketing efforts affect your business. That said, if something isn’t right, you can easily re-adjust your marketing strategies on time and ensure better performance.
Closing Words
Having a marketing plan is essential for any business that wants to achieve success in the long run. That’s why cannot rush the planning phase nor decide you don’t need a plan to run your business.
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