Spa Gift Certificates

SpaBoomers sold a record smashing $10 million in Instant Gift Certificates, a 25% increase over last year's same store sales and more then double the national average, with ComScore reporting an overall 12% online sales increase versus the corresponding days last year.

Online sales have been bolstered by savvy spas that planned effectively, used online tools like email marketing and social media and were smart about online and in-store promotions. Spa websites with clean navigation and a clear path to Instant Gift Certificate (“IGC”) purchases right from the home page dominated online sales.

Spas are using their websites to communicate effectively with more relevant and engaging information about their businesses.

It is clear that consumers are shopping online but they are also searching, reading reviews, gathering information and knowledge about spas and salons. It has never been more important to engage with consumers using email marketing and social media to be at the front edge of their preferences when the gift giving holidays come around each year.

If you were not part of this holiday’s upward spa trend, it is not too late. SpaBoom is focused on helping spas expand their online reach and increase response rates to grow the long-term strength of their businesses. Join us for a free SpaBoom webinar, January 5th, 2011, where we will give you insight into the 3 most important numbers you will need to drive sales and overall revenue in 2011.

Posted in General, Spa Gift Certificates • Comment »

Spa Emergency! is featured in THE NEW YORK TIMES! A link to the story is currently on THE NEW YORK TIMES homepage, which receives more than 16.4 million unique visits per month.

It turns out that men around the country really need guidance when it comes to buying just the right gift for their loved ones, and Spa Emergency! hits the mark!

The coverage in the Skin Deep column touts the buyer’s guide, spa glossary, and ease of purchase. A link to Spa Emergency! is included, and one of the comics is posted online, as well.

The story will run in the print edition of the newspaper tomorrow but in the meantime can be seen online.

Thank you New York Times!

Posted in General, Spa Emergency!, Spa Gift Certificates • 2 Comments »

It's time for last-minute mentions, and our national directories are included all over the place!

HEALTHY VOYAGER is a blog dedicated to healthy living, with an emphasis on travel. The site highlights products, destinations, restaurants and health/wellness tips, and receives more than 5,000 unique visits per month.

Joy of Spa and Spa Emergency! have been highlighted in the HEALTHY VOYAGER holiday gift guide roundup.

Thanks, Healthy Voyager!

Posted in General, Joy of Spa, Joy of Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Emergency!, Spa Gift Certificates • 1 Comment »

During a recent visit to NY, we were able to meet with Alexis Wolfer, the force behind the The Beauty Bean, and share with her the idea behind Joy of Spa, and how the Joy of Spa Instant Gift Certificate makes the perfect gift, and can be used at over 3,000 spas across the U.S.

The result? The Joy of Spa Instant Gift Certificate has been included as part of The Beauty Bean’s “Holiday Gift Ideas for the Fitness Buff.”

The inclusion, featured on the home page, touts the many partner spas and the benefits of treatments for athletes, and includes a direct link to the Joy of Spa website.

Check it out, and thanks Alexis for including Joy of Spa in your gift guide!

Posted in General, Joy of Spa, Joy of Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Marketing • Comment »

The word is out, Spa Emergency! is a great place to find a last-minute gift. Especially if you're a guy, and you tend to wait until the very.last.minute to do the right thing.

Just in time for the start of peak gift buying season, Spa Emergency! has been included in MAXIM’s online gift guide!

Spa Emergency! is identified as one of the top 10 gifts for her. The inclusion highlights the ease of purchase for guys who are behind on their gift buying, and links directly to SpaEmergency.com.

Maxim.com receives more than 1.4 million unique visits per month.

Additionally, Spa Emergency! was included in today’s national edition of Thrillist!

Editors call Spa Emergency! a last minute lifesaver, and talk about Spa Emergency! as a spa resource for guys. Thrillist Nation is delivered to 2 million subscribers daily.

Exposure is a good thing, especially when it drives traffic into your spas!

Posted in General, Spa Emergency!, Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Marketing • Comment »

Numbers tell a story, and this year's over last year's are extremely positive, and may be a testament to integrating marketing efforts to actively include email campaigns, social media and updated website content.

First the numbers. SpaBoomers' sales, year over year, same store data, Black Friday, increased 68% over last year! And Cyber Monday, same store sales, year over year? A 61% increase!

National retail numbers published on WSJ.com, reflect overall sales gains of about 20% over 2009 for Cyber Monday, and for Thanksgiving Day and Black Friday combined, an increase of over 15% overall.

And the $1 billion shopping day we'd predicted? It happened, in fact estimates are right around $1.1 billion, up from $913 million in 2009.

Now reasons we think you may be doing better than average:

• You're already positioned to take advantage of online gift buyers, and have strengthened your local brand to take advantage of those online gift seekers. If they've heard of you, are aware of you, when they shop online and see your spa, salon or massage therapy practice pop up, they'll choose to buy from you.
• You're using SpaBoom's Marketing Suite, in at least some of its significant capacity, to promote your business. You're taking advantage of the email campaigns, and/or using the automatic social media capabilities, and you're probably updating your web content, which keeps visitors interested and coming back for more, time and again.
• Additionally, you're creating interesting and compelling packages that tend to increase the average IGC amount and are a great way to add even more value in the eyes of the gift buyer.

The bottom line here, is what you're doing is working. So be sure to take full advantage of all of SpaBoom's features to reach your online buyer this holiday season. The gift seekers are out there, they're buying, and your services are a fantastic gift-giving solution.

Make sure they know you're the best option!

For more ideas on how to make the most of your SpaBoom options this season, we have a library of recorded webinars that you can watch at your leisure.

And be sure to join us for our next live webinar:

Kick Off Your New Year with New Revenue

12/8/10 1:00pm – 2:00pm EST

Step up your short term marketing strategies to finish 2010 strong and start the steam roll of success into 2011. What is your spa New Year's resolution? Do you want to maximize sales, encourage repeat business, bulk up your re-booking rates, increase gift certificate redemption and maximize in-spa sales? Of course you do, so join us as we discuss the specifics of building your marketing strategy to accomplish all of these things and more in the coming year.

Register Now

Posted in General, Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Marketing • Comment »

Why have we decided to reduce your commissions on directory-originated online gift certificate sales?

Sometimes making life simpler for everyone makes good sense, and this is one of those times.

So your regular commission rate applies on all of your individual spa gift certificate sales that come to you from Spa Emergency! and Joy of Spa directories, period.

Note: If you've opted not to be on our national directory sites, now would be a great time to opt in! Learn MORE.

Holiday presents come in many forms, yes?

Happy Holidays from SpaBoom!

Posted in General, Joy of Spa, Spa Gift Certificates, SpaBoom New Features • 2 Comments »

This holiday represents a huge online opportunity for businesses. SpaBoomers are already way ahead of the game in terms of reaching out and taking advantage of the last-minute, long-distance gift certificate business, but there's always more you can do to really optimize your holiday sales.

Inc.com is all about helping small businesses thrive, and this article, featuring our very own Seth Gardenswartz and several of our awesome clients spells out how to compete and make the most of the holidays and beyond!

Read MORE.

Posted in Creating Customers, General, Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Marketing, Spa Technology • Comment »

Walmart announced today that it is offering free shipping, with no minimum purchase, at least through December 20th.

By promoting this aggressive offer to shoppers, the retail giant is hoping to take sales away from other online shopping sites during the busiest six weeks of the year.

In an article today, the New York Times notes that such a strong offer may "make it harder for smaller e-commerce sites to survive." This may be true for many, but not for your spa website.

A SpaBoom account allows your spa to offer free shipping and instant delivery of Gift Certificates 24/7, including Christmas Day. Take advantage by leveraging your spa's instant gift delivery proposition, it is just as powerful as a behemoth like Walmart.

Go get em!

Posted in General, Holiday Promotion Brief, Spa Gift Certificates • Comment »

Thanks to all who attended our second pre-holiday webinar on Wednesday the 3rd by Seth Gardenswartz and Janell Loving. The holidays are pretty much already here, and Doubling Your December is critically important to get 2011 started off right.

Relive the presentation by Janell as she outlines the Top 5 tips to leverage online holiday sales growth and maneuver your way to a successful, revenue-filled holiday season.

Double Your December in 2010: Watch the Video

Download and follow along with our presentation [PDF]

Posted in Holiday Promotion Brief, Social Media, Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Marketing, SpaBoom Webinars • 1 Comment »

Recently we received an email in response to the blog post If you must, tips for selling on Groupon, from Lynn Schulman of Elixir Organic Spa:

Using an intelligent discounting strategy Lynn was able to develop an advantageous group deal for her spa. Here are the three key discount strategies that turned the deal around for her spa.

Know your goal and reasons for participating

The desire to attract new clients and increase revenue was her main goals through the group deal "…I was prepared to walk away from the negotiations of the deal if they couldn't work with my pre-determined requirements…."

Margins set the standard

She based her deal on what she would require to achieve her desired profit margin after covering all of her expenses. This provided "…the advantage of a correctly aimed price point at potential new clients rather than only deal seekers…."

Upsell and Rebooking

The deal she created was never in direct competition with her existing service menu, so the therapists and staff were able to easily up-sell at the product level and rebook for services on the existing menu based on the experience received during the discounted service appointment.

If you are considering rolling a group deal — consider this: BoomTime Deals (available w/your SpaBoom Online Marketing Suite) offer you control, preferential new client targets, and the best part of the deal — you pay under 5% commission.

Posted in Creating Customers, General, Group Deals, Spa Business Management, Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Marketing, SpaBoom New Features • Comment »

It's time for another Joy of Spa News, and this edition is all about fall – the seasonal aspect, harvest bounty, and ways we can fully embrace the season ahead and all that it offers. Our articles in this edition focus on how we can welcome the cooler weather with our daily rituals, make fresh, delicious food choices, and generally capture and appreciate fall's essence during our day to day activities.

The Joy of Spa News: Embrace Fall's Offerings edition will launch to your clients on October 1st, so go out there and tailor this edition's introduction to your liking well before that.

Remember, the Joy of Spa News is branded with your spa's logo and when your client clicks to read more, the website is branded with your logo, too! While the Joy of Spa News is complete as is, we recommend your taking a look at it and tailoring the special introduction area to your exact preferences. Be sure to send yourself a test email after making any edits, and remember that Events that encompass the October 1st date will be included in the email as well.

Not yet signed up to send a beautiful, branded newsletter to your clients on a regular basis? Now is your time to get onboard! Go to Setup, Basics to put Joy of Spa to work for your spa!

Posted in General, Joy of Spa News, Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Marketing • Comment »

Strategies has launched a new digital magazine, Salon and Spa Business Strategies, a free bi-monthly e-magazine featuring business articles tailored to salon and spa specific beauty industry entrepreneurs.

Strategies is the foremost provider of business education and coaching for the salon and spa industry. Strategies has worked with countless salons and spas to improve profitability, productivity, staff retention and customer loyalty.

The digital magazine continues Salon Business Strategies (Strategies), which was published in a hard-copy format from 1994-2007.

The September/October issue of Salon and Spa Business Strategies is available now featuring:

• Build revenue with Instant Gift Certificates online.
• Tips for using Facebook to build your business.
• Why Zappos.com CEO, Tony Hsieh, believes in happiness in the workplace.
• How salon and spa owner, Louise MacClain, uses Strategies systems to stay in the black.
• Why your business location affects your cash-flow planning.

Don't have time to read the whole issue online? Print it out and take it on the go! It is easy to download to your computer so you can read it at your convenience.

Posted in Creating Customers, General, Spa Business Management, Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Product Sales, Spa Technology, Strategies • Comment »

Selling gift cards under the new Federal CARD Act includes a very interesting carve out: paper gift certificates that are only sold at retail are exempt from the new law.

If I was running a small spa in a state with less restrictive expiration date requirements than the new federal law, I'd have to seriously think about it. If it would reduce sales because of longer transaction times, I wouldn't do it. Otherwise, those little plastic cards would a find a new home in the trash can.

Here's a quick summary of the National Conference of State Legislatures information on state-by-state expiration date requirements:

If you're not ready to go back to paper, there's another interesting carve out for gift certificates that are for services. Once again, federal law no longer applies. SpaBoom now features additional expiration date settings in order to take advantage of this exemption for your Instant Gift Certificates.

You could also promote gift cards at retail for a service instead of a dollar amount. The exemption only applies when there is no dollar value on the gift card, so you need different gift cards created for different services.

Or, you can use SpaBoom to create Instant Gift Certificates for services, and print them out. There is no commission charged on Instant Gift Certificates sold at retail.

Posted in Spa Gift Certificates • 2 Comments »

How the New Gift Law Affects Your Spa

The new Credit CARD Act took effect on August 22nd, 2010, changing the rules (radically, in some states) for gift card and certificate sales in the United States. Despite what you may have heard, it has a profound effect on small businesses who sell gift cards or gift certificates. We'll show you how to navigate the new law and what you can do to protect your business.

Join Seth Gardenswartz at SpaBoom and Amy L. Pierce at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, LLP as they demystify the new rules.

Reserve your Webinar Seat NOW!

This webinar is Free. Space is limited.

Title: How the New Gift Law Affects Your Spa
Date: Wednesday, September 1st, 2010
Time: 1:00 PM — 2:00 PM EDT

What is Your Marketing Campaign Doing for You?

Marketing campaigns are all over the place these days. Everyone is searching for the magic message to create business in this economy. Do you have a plan to effectively market your spa/salon for the upcoming holiday season?

Join Janell on September 8th as she explores ways to maximize the relationships you have built with your existing clients and reach new potential clients by developing your most successful online marketing campaign for the holiday season now.

Reserve your Webinar Seat NOW!

This webinar is Free. Space is limited.

Title: What is Your Marketing Campaign Doing for You?
Date: Wednesday, September 8th, 2010
Time: 1:00 PM — 2:00 PM EDT

Posted in Creating Customers, General, Holiday Promotion Brief, Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Marketing, SpaBoom Webinars • 2 Comments »

UPDATE: For you Social Media enthusiasts, we FINALLY have our Social Media Revealed Webinar available for viewing!

Thank you so much for attending our webinar yesterday. If you would like to revisit anything we covered, feel free to view the video below or download the  presentation.

If you did NOT attend, you will find great information about preparing online for this holiday season and how it can help you win the revenue game. You'll see actionable tools to maximize holiday sales, and prepare for the holiday rush so you can be in the best position to help your business.

Download and follow along with our presentation [PDF]

Don't miss this opportunity to take advantage of SpaBoom's Online Marketing Suite at special pricing. Use or mention the referral code "yglab." The offers expire 8/27/10 so call or email us today!

Presenters are Seth Gardenswartz, VP Business Development, SpaBoom and Brigette Lemos-Norman, Social Media Manager and Program Developer, YG Laboratories.

Posted in Holiday Promotion Brief, Spa Business Management, Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Marketing, SpaBoom Webinars • Comment »

How the new rules for gift card sales affect you

The new Credit CARD Act took effect on August 22nd, 2010, changing the rules (radically, in some states) for gift card and certificate sales in the United States.  Despite what you may have heard it will have a profound effect on most small businesses who sell gift cards or gift certificates. Therefore, there are things you need to know and to to comply with the applicable law.

We have taken much of the guesswork out by modifying the default expiration dates of new Instant Gift Certificate sales in your SpaBoom account.  The new Federal minimum for dollar amount expiry is 5 years, unless your state's law specifies a longer period.  Discounted and promotional GCs follow some different rules, so we have taken that into consideration as well.

Here's how your settings have changed (you can check these in your GC Types list in Setup):

• Dollar amount GCs default to either 5 years or your state's minimum if it is more than 5 years
• Named Service GCs, Free GCs, and Discounted GCs default to 12 months.
• An additional setting, called Funds for Service GCs, is also defaulted to 12 months.What this means is that you can sell a gift certificate for a facial worth $30 today, but that price could go up in the future.  You can leave your Named Service GC expiration at one year, but set Funds for Service GCs to 3 years, allowing the recipient to redeem the GC for the facial for the first year, or for $30 worth of services for two more years after that.  Pretty neat — you have much less chance of losing a potential client, nor do you have to take a loss on the value of a service.

Questions?  We've studied and analyzed this for you (and have wrote a complete explanation of how the CARD Act affects gift card sales) but keep in mind we cannot serve as your lawyer.  Give us a call if you have questions.

Posted in Spa Business Management, Spa Gift Certificates, Tutorials • 1 Comment »

Spas and salons that are most prepared online this holiday will win the revenue game.

Join us for a webinar on Monday, August 23rd that is designed to give you actionable tools to maximize holiday sales. Online synergy and success demands that your website, social media and email marketing work smarter 24/7. Learn to streamline online traffic and prepare for the holiday rush so you can be in the best position to help your business.

Presenters are Seth Gardenswartz, VP Business Development, SpaBoom and Brigette Lemos-Norman, Social Media Manager and Program Developer, YG Laboratories.

Space is limited.
Reserve your Webinar Seat NOW!

This webinar is Free. Space is limited so reserve your seat today!

Title: Get Ready for a Billion Dollar Online Day — Free Webinar
Date: Monday, August 23rd, 2010
Time: 1:00 PM — 2:00 PM EDT

Posted in Creating Customers, General, Social Media, Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Marketing, Spa Product Sales • 2 Comments »

GiGi’s Elite Spa is a serene and tranquil retreat in Chicago, Illinois. The spa has launched their new website packed with SpaBoom’s fully integrated online marketing capability including easy management of their website content and graphics, online booking, email marketing, social media, SEO, online menus, branded Instant Gift Certificates, and special events, all within a single login.

There is a warmth to Gi Gi's Elite Spa; it serves as a place to reconnect mind, body and spirit. Clients come to relax, meditate, find peace and receive nothing shy of pure pampering. There is a focus on tailoring each client’s treatments to meet their specific needs, to revitalize their mind using the best natural products from GiGi’s own Creations product line.

Owner Gloria Gholston has her own product line made exclusively for her day spa clients. Gloria knows her customers. “Today customers are on a quest to have healthier and softer skin, so I created products equipped with the finest natural ingredients like Emu Oil, Aloe Butter, Olive Oil, Grape Seed, Shea Butter and Vitamin E. It nourishes the skin and the chamomile, sandalwood and lavender scents provide aromatherapy for the soul,” says Gloria.

Because the spa website is now fully integrated, it has streamlined the entire marketing process, which means Gloria can put even more focus and attention on clients, developing her product line and running her business.

Gloria’s serene day spa offers a cozy, comfortable and holistic environment with three elegant treatment rooms, one meditation area and a party room for special occasions. Her staff of trained estheticians and therapists prides themselves on providing the ultimate spa experience for each client. The spa offers a wide range of services including facials, massage therapy, body treatments, waxing, manicures and pedicures and a variety of special packages.

Posted in Creating Customers, General, Social Media, Spa Business Management, Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Marketing, Spa Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Spa Technology, SpaBoom Online Booking • Comment »

Earlier this summer we mentioned a new feature we've been working on to let your clients get a little nudge when they have recently bought an Instant Gift Certificate or used SpaBoom to request an appointment and haven't yet left a review.

We call it "Review Reminders" and it works like this:

• If your client has not submitted a review in the last year, and they've requested an appointment OR redeemed a gift certificate in the last 3 days, we will send them a quick little email to see if they'd like to submit a review.
• We will NOT send them a "Request Review" email if they've received one in the last three months.

The setting is in the Marketing Tab, under Marketing Settings, and we'll be turning it on August 9th — no need to do anything to enable the reminders.

Posted in Spa Gift Certificates, Spa Marketing, SpaBoom New Features • Comment »