Tips for Creating a Tanning Salon Marketing Plan in 2023

It’s the start of a brand new year – is your business ready to prosper and grow? One of the most important things for ensuring you reach your goals is to put a plan in place; specifically, a marketing plan. This one document is your salon’s blueprint for success, reminding you how you will reach new customers in the coming year and how you will nurture your existing clientele to produce increased sales.

The Elements of a Good Marketing Plan

Perhaps you’ve created a marketing plan for your business many times; then again, this might be the first year to do so. Either way, it’s a good idea to brush up on the elements necessary to create a working plan.

Think who, what, how, when, where and why. What type of customer do you want to reach? What type of message will you use to reach them and where will you deliver it (email, social media, print advertising, etc.)? When is the best time (of day, week, month, year) to ensure they hear your message and respond? How do you want them to respond (call to action)? Why are you using a particular type of promotion and why should potential customers care?

When you’ve answered these questions (in sentence form is the easiest way), put those responses into a marketing plan template. There are plenty of them available online and usually include sections such as Budget, Calendar/Timeline, Objectives, SWOT Analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats), Competitive Analysis and so on. It doesn’t need to be a formal document, but your marketing plan should cover everything involved in promoting your business and be easily understood by all key employees.

Tanning Salon Specifics

For a tanning salon or spa, there are certain considerations that are perhaps more important than others. Take the time to do a bit of analysis on these key areas before including them in your marketing plan:

• Staffing – how many employees are needed now and in the future, as business expands? If you are going to add additional tanning beds, for instance, you need to be sure you have adequate staff to service more clients at a time.
• Clientele – who am I currently serving? What services do they want that I’m not currently providing? How can I reach a new target market?
• Unique Selling Proposition – what differentiates my salon from one down the street? How can I convey that to potential clients?
• Return on Investment – what services are providing the biggest ROI? What services should I capitalize on in order to make the biggest profit?
• Technology – is my business changing with the times, or is it being left behind? Am I using the most efficient systems or is everything being done the old fashioned way?
• Online Reviews – am I aware of what people are saying about my salon? Do I have a system in place to manage negative comments and capitalize on positive ones?

Key Considerations

In today’s world of instant information and ever-changing technology, it’s more important than ever to have a marketing plan in place. You can’t simply sit back and wait for word-of-mouth to spread about your business. It’s extremely important to have a website (mobile-friendly) and be active on social media, because that is where the majority of your clients get their information about businesses to patronize.

Be realistic about your budget. Investments made now can easily pay for themselves by year-end, if not before. If your clients are asking for services such as an infrared body wrap, you’re losing business by not offering them. That’s one type of investment which will easily pay for itself, gives you a much larger profit margin than a tanning bed and allow you to promote a service that customers ask for. Commit to spending a healthy percentage of sales on marketing your new body wrap system for the best results.

Don’t forget to measure results. Track each promotion so at the end of this year you can easily tell which campaigns were successful and which weren’t worth the time and money spent.

It’s never too late to create a marketing plan that builds your business. If you need additional ideas or help, feel free to contact us at 888-5FIT-NOW. We’re invested in your success!