•   Mom’s Day Off – Focus on a bundle of services and products to offer.
•    Roses and Rosé – Have each service during this time come included with a glass of rosé and one long stem rose.
•    It Takes Two – Cater certain services around people who want couple’s treatments.
•     Kiss My Lips and Bat My Eyes – This package can include services that enhance the eye and lip areas.
•     Silver and Gold –Encourage everyone to dress in silver or gold and offer “silver and gold” spa packages that night only.
•     Twelve Days of Christmas – Highlight a new special each day or every couple of days during the 12-day period.
•     New You, New Year – Focus on getting clients ready for a makeover to jump-start their new year.
•    Free gift wrapping service – Offer free gift-wrapping on any retail purchase.
•    Fire and Ice Facial – A facial treatment that incorporates cooling and warmth at different times during the treatment.
•    Wish Lists – Allow clients to create a wish list that can then be e-mailed to their loved ones.
•     Christmas Tree of Savings – Decorate a Christmas tree and put ornaments on it that clients who purchase during this time can pick from and receive a special promotion or savings.
•    Holiday Gift Guide – Create a holiday gift guide for clients to see and use.
•    Client Appreciation Month – Create special discounts and savings once a year as a thank you to loyal clients.
•    Shop Local Event – Host a night at the spa and invite a few other local small businesses to attend. Invite clients and encourage those businesses to also invite their current clients. Set up different booths for each vendor throughout the space. This practice allows professionals to support the local economy, highlight their business, as well as gain some new clients in the process.

Focusing on every special event and every holiday can feel like overload… because it is! This approach is not recommended. Not only is it too much on the spa and its staff, but clients will also become jaded and accustomed to this behavior and it makes these special times not so special. Special events and holidays usually come with some type of savings to the purchaser and this creates an urgency to buy; if the professional is having too many of these back-to-back or in one year, it will do the exact opposite and no one will feel the need to buy during that particular time. Think about focusing on just a few special events a year and base them off the type of spa, as well as what professionals know their client demographic will gravitate towards. Focus on traditional holidays, but also think about trying out and naming a different kind of event and holiday. For example, if the professional has a spa that specializes in acne, they can focus on Acne Awareness Month as one of their big “holiday” focuses. Spend this time highlighting the top acne treatment, as well as acne retail products. Offer a discount on these items at this time, as well as special incentives for referring a friend or family member. Do not be afraid to think outside the box and do not assume that a holiday has to be a religious event or one that is marked on calendars every year. The key to successful event planning and execution is knowing what is going to work. Have fun with it and make it unique. At the same time, it is also okay to stick with the more traditional holiday planning route when it comes to planning a yearly marketing calendar. Top-purchasing American holidays in the aesthetic and spa industry tend to be Christmas, Mother’s Day, and Valentine’s Day.

Planning around the holidays can seem repetitive and daunting, but it does not have to be. Again, think outside the box; what is offered during one holiday does not have to be repeated on the next. Figure out the purpose of each event and what the end goal is. Once professionals have these two things locked down, they can plan accordingly. Be sure to keep it streamlined and concise as to not confuse staff, as well as clients.

It goes without saying that gift cards are a tried and true tactic, especially on Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day when men tend to be the ones shopping. It is no secret that men like things fast, simple, and easy when it comes to shopping and picking out a gift. This is why they tend to gravitate more toward gift cards. Take it a step further and create signage at the front desk that lays out and highlights certain package offerings that could be incorporated into the gift card purchase. Entry level, mid-range, and high-end package offerings that the purchaser can pick from are recommended. Make the offerings different than what is currently carried on the spa menu and have it fit to the theme of the holiday in some type of way. Another great way to profit off of gift card sales that will translate into retail purchases is to offer the following: purchase a $100 gift card and get a $10 retail gift card, purchase a $150 gift card and get a $15 retail gift card, and purchase a $200 gift card and get a $20 retail gift card.

Another focus should be on retail sales – consider purchasing kits from vendors. Many skin care lines come out with their own holiday kits during certain times of the year and they are, more often than not, at a savings to the professionals so that they can pass that down to their clients. Be sure to ask vendors for any special promotions going on during this time and take advantage of them. Kits are a great “grab-and-go” purchase that will then turn into a repurchase of separate items months down the line. Better yet, consider bundling kits into the purchase of certain spa packages. For example, for each spa offering on the holiday menu, tie into the cost of the service a two-to-four piece skin care kit for the client to be gifted with. Not only does this create more value to the client, but it does a few more things, as well. Bundling homecare kits into the initial purchase gets that recipient of the service started on homecare, which is essential to overall good skin health, but it also means repurchases every couple of months. Repurchasing every few months also means more touch points professionals have to spend with that client, leading to a longer-lasting relationship, as well as more opportunities to cross-sell and upsell on other services and products. When bundling, the idea is that the homecare and the treatment is already bundled together to create one cost to the client. This makes selling retail and a service an easy no-brainer. It is easy for professionals and it is easy for the client. There are a few ways to do this. First, professionals can take the exact retail cost of the products and add that to the value of the service; this will be the final cost to the client. The second option would be to offer some type of discount. Mark up the retail 30 percent instead of the traditional 50 percent so the client gets it at a discount. The third option is to just charge those retail items at cost; the professional will not make a profit, but they also will not lose money. There is no right or wrong way when it comes to bundling; it only comes down to figuring out which method is right for the spa.

It is also wise for professionals to think about unique events to host during the year. These events can be tied in with holiday events or used on their own during specific times of the year. As always, having an online presence is crucial. Everyone is competing with major e-tailers because consumers like the ease of buying from the comfort of their own homes. Professionals should update all special offerings on their website and social media pages. They should also consider adding the option for the purchase of online services, products, and gift cards through their website as it comes in handy during busy times of the year.

Jaclyn Strausser has been a licensed medical aesthetician since 2009 and has worked in Pennsylvania and Miami over the course of her career. She has worked with various board certified plastic surgeons and medical doctors specializing in multifunctional cosmetic laser modalities, chemical peels, and skin health. Strausser’s background also includes being a senior account executive for SkinCeuticals, as well as previously being a national educator for the company. She works closely with members within the medical aesthetic industry to provide trainings and develop in-office skin care services and marketing in order to create a profitable and strategic integrated skin care program for each office. She believes that skin care and healthy lifestyles come full circle and that it is through knowledge and education that a difference can be made in the skin care industry.