Day Spas: Better, Cheaper, Faster See Issue 104

Day spas [are striving] to improve quality to compete in an increasingly difficult business environment while conforming to the needs of the domanding, time-starved spa-goers of the future. From more personalized service, to serious medi-spa treatments with proven results, to artistic, feng-shuied design, to convenient mini-services that satisfy clients on the go, spas are becoming more plentiful, more specialized, and are attracting stronger operators and marketers.

To grow the market of spa-goers, the spa industry must address the issue of affordability. Other related wellness industries struggle with this issue. For example, Whole Foods markets, [which is] targeting a new generation interested in healthy, organic food, is trying to overcome their expensive persona. (the pricey health-food store's nickname with Gen Y'ers is "Who Paycheck.")

"We need to balance our pricing along with the growth of the market," says Erica Miller, author of Day Spa Operations and Day Spa Techniques. Miller predicts day spas will soon be segmented like restaurants (quik-service, mid-scale, upscale casual, fine dining).

A natural evolution is driving day spas to become better, cheaper and faster. Competition is heating up. Consumers have much more choice, and very soon there may be too many spas chasing too few customers. There is widespread consensus in the spa industry that clients are more educated than ever. And an educated client is a demanding client. But creating a superior guest experience for inside the spa is only half the job for managers-day spas are increasingly finding the need to com up with creative ways to get people in the door in the first place, such as:

• Create community: Experts predict that day spas will cecome social centers, much like the traditional health spas of Europe.
• Reward you best clients: Maintaining a steady stream of repeat business can mean the difference between profitability and the poor house.
• Be a "purple cow": "The essence of a Purple Cow is that it is remarkable," sayd marketing guru Seth Godin, author of the best-selling Permission marketing and the new Purple Cow, Transform You Business By Being Remarkable. Purple Cow day spas do something truly unique that cuts through the clutter and distinguishes them as exceptional and worth talking about.
• Use online marketing: Online marketing in the new century is no longer a [new] concept, but a standard tool in your communications arsenal.

- Reprinted by permission of spatrade.com, from the report, "SpaTrade's 2003 Path to Profitability for Day Spas."