IN THE KNOW: DECLÉOR

Other than massages, sales of body treatments are slow. How can I persuade more clients to book them?

Put together offers to entice clients to book body treatments. Always keep them relevant: pre and post-summer treatments or “winter blues treatments,” for example. Running them for a few months only will help keep clients interested in what you’re offering. You could also introduce offers focusing on specific needs, such as dehydrated skin.

If you have a loyalty scheme, you could run offers where clients are awarded double points if they book body treatments. Once they have collected a certain number of points, you could also reward them with a complimentary body treatment of their choice.

If your business is known for its facials, take advantage of this by running offers such as “Book four facials and get one complimentary body treatment”. Create bespoke face and body treatment packages. This could entail combining an existing facial and body treatment, giving the offer its own name and promoting it as something exclusive; a package available for a limited period of time, at a special price. Send out newsletters focusing on how to look after your body this summer/winter, to educate your clients. Use trigger words such as “results driven,” “gorgeous,” “tailor-made” or “cocooning.”

Offer a free body treatment, such as exfoliation, when clients book a massage or a facial. This could be linked to other initiatives, for example thanking regular clients for their loyalty or helping to celebrate their birthdays. Gestures like these have a twofold effect: they keep clients loyal to your spa and encourage them to experience the benefits of your body treatments. 

Fiona Brackenbury is director of training and education at Decléor UK, a position she’s held since 2001 and that includes treatment development and the creation of new products. Brackenbury, who joined Decléor in 1998, has more than 25 years’ industry experience and is a regular guest presenter on QVC.