We conducted a survey and reached out to our community to get an understanding of how Estheticians and other Beauty professionals feel about Discounts and Special Deals.
Here are some of the responses that we got
Name: Holly Brown
Business: Looking and Feeling FAB
Comment: Great way to attract customers.
Name: Davianne Beepot
Business: Skin Revision by Davianne
Comment: Always charge your worth. There are times where it is nice to incentivize clients with specials. A first-time client who is considering coming to your facial spa may have needed that special touch to come to you over your competitor. It’s what we all do when shopping. Keep in mind when discounting what you charge will always be a reflection of your worth in a customer’s eyes.
Other examples are holiday specials, which everyone loves; last-minute deals to fill empty booking slots; loyalty rewards for returning clients; referral rewards; membership/VIP discounts; and of course, your military, front-liner, senior-citizen, teacher, and community-oriented discount.
When I just started, I built went from zero customers to a client book of thousands mostly from Groupon and referrals. However, is an art to it. Customers who shop on Groupon aren’t always looking to hop around. Sometimes they are utilizing Groupon as a means to find and try out a skincare therapist before committing to them. If you plan to go this route, then you must treat this as your marketing budget with the money you are losing. They are giving you exposure with the impression; this can be up to hundreds of thousands of people. Put a “deal” out there on a service in demand that you can upgrade a client to a treatment plan, series purchase, or membership to make them a returning one after providing them with the best possible service and experience.
The moral of the story is: don’t shortchange yourself and lower your value. If you inflate your price a little, you’ll have room to drop it on an as-needed basis without worrying about your bottom line. Use discounts as a means to attract and keep clients at a value that reflects your worth but also is exciting for your clients.
Name: Blyssey Ballo
Business: Studio Blyss
Comment: I don’t think running deals or specials are a bad idea. It’s always going to depend on what the deal is and does it make sense financially to the business owner and consumer. Everyone loves a good deal, and a discounted service is better than no service!
Name: Tina Silver
Business: SilverTouch Aesthetics
Comment: I typically do not run specials or deals. I feel that it’s an invitation for inconsistency. I custom price each of my clients because they all are unique. Not all skin care treatments are the same, so I charge accordingly. This keeps my clients loyal and committed to my spa and their skin care.
Name: Mayada Rezek
Business: MayaLASH
Comment: It brings joy when we buy something as a special deal. It feels good not to always pay full price. Shop smarter not harder!
Name: Alma Valladares
Business: Artistic Volume Lashes
Comment: Is great to bring new clients in.
Name: Mary Baker
Business: FatBarbieMakeup
Comment: It’s a great way to get new clients in the door, and to extend a thank you to loyal clients. They are always a great idea for any business.
Name: Carmen Avila
Business: Serene Experience Skin Care
Comment: … they are needed especially coming out of difficult times and with a shaky future COVID and it’s variants has for us. Yes, many of the educators are faced with it too. “deals and specials” is a win/win opportunity for all.