Tutorials

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 • 2 Comments »

Have you seen a Facebook post or a Tweet where a friend says, "Hey, I've checked in at Tony's Pizza!"? Perhaps you use these services yourself to make notes about travel or just share the things you love to do with your social circle.

Just yesterday Facebook launched into the location-friendly world with Facebook Places.  We'll save you some time (though their full FAQ is worth reading) and show you how to use Places – and why you should.

Facebook users can only "check in" at your business using their mobile phone once Facebook has a Place page for you, so let's get started!

(Do step "0″ first and make sure Facebook knows about you!)

0. Create your Facebook Page. If you haven't already created a Page for your business – there is no time like the present, and we have lots of reasons why it's a great idea!
1. Create your Place. If someone has not already added your business, you can do so by using the "check in" button on your Facebook iPhone app (or at http://touch.facebook.com), then click on "Add" to get started.
2. Check In! Go ahead and check in and start the ball rolling on your visibility. Encourage your iPhone-wielding clients to do the same, and in short order your Place could have a greatly increased online presence for your city.
3. Formally Claim your Place. Once your Place is listed, you can claim it to have access to it's information like address and other details. Just search for your business name in Facebook and once you see the Place listing, look near the bottom for the "Is this your business?" link and click away to claim your Place. You'll need to verify using a business license or other form of electronic legal document, but once you have the file, uploading it is quick and easy.

Posted in Social Media, Spa Marketing, Spa Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Tutorials • Comment »

Since we've rolled out the ability to post to Facebook from within SpaBoom, both automatically and any other time you'd like, we're thrilled with the feedback.

So, we're making it even better — now you can post a photo with your entries.  Feature your newly decorated massage room, your gorgeous flower arrangements, even your smiling staff — every little bit of personalization will bring the spa experience closer to your clients, both the regulars and the future devotees.

It's simple to use — there is a new checkbox available when you create a Social Media post.

All it says is "Include Photo" and is the same functionality as attaching photos to blog posts, events and email campaigns.

Simply enable it and then select a photo from your gallery.  If you have new photos to upload, add those first before you create your post, and they'll be ready for you in the gallery selection.

Once your Facebook post is published, you'll see the photo included:

Simple and lovely while building  your brand — that's what we like to do.

Posted in Social Media, SpaBoom New Features, Tutorials • 1 Comment »

We hope you love our new feature to create referral codes for your clients.

Now we've added a new wrinkle to our referral code ability — "one time referrals."  This means you can send out a tweet or an email with your referral code and mention that it is only good for the first 5 takers… or 2… or one!

You choose your promotion, whether it's dollar-off IGCs or percentage discount, set up your built-in limitations and a date range, if you'd like, and start promoting it like crazy!

For all the gritty details, see our help topic and let us know how you plan to use this cool feature.

Posted in SpaBoom New Features, Tutorials • 5 Comments »

By now, we have probably convinced you of the utility of social media in building your client relationships and strengthening your brand.  Twitter is still a handy way to reach out to the world in just a few short phrases, while Facebook is a destination site for your fans to hear your latest news and talk amongst themselves as a community.

Still haven't started yet?  No problem!  Today is the perfect time to take the leap — we've just made it even easier to keep your followers and fans in the know: automatic posts of your Events — including your announcements, specials, et cetera — from your SpaBoom account, both to Twitter and Facebook.

To get started, go to your Marketing tab and click on Social Media in the left-hand column.  You'll see the introductory screen, prompting you to provide your credentials for Twitter and/or Facebook:

To learn how to set up both accounts, see our step-by-step help files for both Twitter and Facebook.  [You do not need to set up both, but we definitely recommend it for the most consistent branding.  Twitter is the faster of the two to get started on, so at least dip your toes in Tweeting and let's continue...]

Once you're ready, go to your Events from the left column in Marketing, and choose an upcoming event from your list. You'll notice there is a new option — "Send to Social Media" is the checkbox to look for.

Once you check it, click Update, and then you'll be able to specify the date to make the initial post, and an optional follow-up date

You should check the content for clarity — click on the "content" link — don't forget about Twitter's 140 character limit, but we'll count for you and let you know how much space is remaining just below the text.  By default, your posts will go to the social media accounts you have configured — whether you have set up both or just one or the other.  This way your message stays consistent.

[A caveat -- if your Tweets automatically post to Facebook, OR your Facebook posts are automatically sent to Twitter, you should disable that integration to make sure there is little risk of double posts.]

That's pretty much it! Enjoy and have a wonderful weekend posting away, and let us know how you are using social media — we'd love to hear your stories!

Posted in Social Media, Spa Marketing, SpaBoom New Features, Tutorials • 3 Comments »

You've asked us for the ability to reward select groups of clients using referral (or promotion) codes, and, just in time for your spring marketing strategy, it's here!

I'll run through a quick tutorial on how to create and use referral codes, and this guide is also available as a Help Topic, or just search Help for "referral".

Here's how to create your first Referral Code:

1. Go into your Marketing tab and choose Events from the left sidebar.
2. Create a new Event, and select the brand-new type "referral code" from the drop-down list.

   

3. Type in a name, description, and the code you'd like to use.  That code is what you can give to your clients.  If you're sending via email or the web, a weblink is also created in the textbox below, ready to copy & paste.

   

4. Choose your date range by typing in the date, or using the pop-up calendar

   

5. Now, just select the type of special you'd like to extend to your clients – Featured Services, Buy One Get One, or Percentage Off – and just set those up like you normally would.

   In this case, we're taking the usual $75 massage and offering it for just $62, as you'll see:

   

6. Distribute the code in any number of ways – cards at your front desk, email marketing (through your SpaBoom account or your 3rd party solution – all you need is the link!), flyers you drop into purchase bags, your Twitter account – any way you'd like!  Be creative and have fun with the codes.  You could even link to it on your website, giving the perk to anyone who visits your site often.

IGC Purchases With Referral Codes

With the referral code link, when they click on the link it will send them directly to your IGC page with the type of GC you are promoting already up on the screen, ready for them to choose it:

With the code only, the purchaser will be prompted for their code on the 3rd screen in the checkout process:

Notes About Purchase Options

1. Tax, if you add tax to your GC purchases, will be calculated on the discounted price.
2. Gratuity, if you feature that option, will be calculated on the NON-discounted price.
3. Mail delivery option fees are assessed as normally configured.
4. The IGC after purchase – just like with any other special – shows only the full value or name of the service to the recipient.   If the promotion is a Buy One, Get One, your purchaser will receive their bonus GC just like normal.

Let us know what you think and how you plan to use your Referral Codes this holiday or all spring long!

Posted in Spa Marketing, SpaBoom New Features, Tutorials • Comment »

For those of you who were unable to attend Janell's fabulous webinar on November 17th (and on December 1st), we captured it on video.  Even if you did attend, you might find some areas to catch up on or review.

Janell covers everything from why email marketing is good business, to the ins-and-outs of managing campaigns.

From our earlier blog posts, you've learned why Talking to Your Clients is a must for your business, you've started gathering your clients' information, and you've decided how to reward them for their loyalty, it is time to send them some newsletters with your personal touch!

To follow along with the video, download the presentation [PDF]   

Posted in Creating Customers, SpaBoom Webinars, Tutorials • Comment »

Now that you've learned why Email Marketing is a must for your business, you've started gathering your clients' information, and you've decided how to reward them for their loyalty, it is time to send them some newsletters with your personal touch!

The easiest way to start is simply make sure that you have our automatic campaigns enabled:

Go to Setup Tab, click on "Basics," and scroll down to the Email Marketing Section.  If the first box is not checked, it will look like this:

Go ahead and click the box, which will give you a few more boxes:

I recommend enabling everything to get the ball rolling ASAP.  That's it!  You can now go into your Marketing Tab and see which campaigns will be sent on your behalf — just click on "Email Marketing" in the left column.

Don't see anything?  Click "Update Emails" to get a current list of the campaigns we've created for the next few months.

Any of those schedule campaigns can be customized, from the time and date sent, to the text that appears in them, to the color scheme!  Just click on "Edit" to go into the campaign and start customizing away.  We have great detailed help topics on how to edit your campaigns, but that step is totally optional — you can just let the emails go on their timetable to all of your opted in clients automatically — that's the simplicity of the system.

For live demonstration and discussion, you'll want to sign up for either of our two webinars:

• November 17th or December 1st (both at 1 p.m. EST)

Posted in Spa Marketing, SpaBoom Webinars, Tutorials • 2 Comments »

Now that you've learned how to get your client list started, you've printed out some lovely collateral forms for your front desk, and those email addresses are rolling in, what do you say to your clients?  You can send them a little "Greetings — thanks for being our fan!" email with some featured services or promotions just in time for their seasonal shopping.

First, we recommend that you enter your services into your SpaBoom account.  Why go through the trouble?  There are two very important reasons, one is good for you and one is good for your clients:

1. Service-based Gift Certificates are on average 10% larger compared to dollar IGCs.   If your average dollar IGC is $100, it is normal for your average service-based IGC to be $110 or more.
2. Services are personalized to the recipient, giving them a warm fuzzy they'll keep when they visit you for their appointment.

Featured Services Event — Let's use this for our example:  discounted services for a short 3 day window after Thanksgiving.

• Click the Marketing tab, then click "Events" on the left side of the page.
• Click "Add Event" under Tasks, on the left side of the page.  Make sure the Type is set to "Special," and fill in your Headline and Narrative fields to describe your promotion.
• Choose start and end dates for the special, in this case November 27th and November 29th, and optionally choose a GC Category.  This lets you highlight a group of IGC designs on your Gift Certificate page for the duration of this Event.
• Now choose Featured Services.   It can be your most popular service, or an underdog you'd like to promote — go ahead and enter a special price, which will only apply during the date range for the special.  If you enter an offer description, it will be shown in your menu of services in Instant GCs and Online Booking.

If you'd like some other options for Specials in your Events, choose these from the "Special" drop-down list:

• Percentage Discount — Sell all of your Instant Gift Certificates for a limited time at any percentage discount you choose!
• Buy One, Get One  (or as we like to call it, "BOGO")  I like this kind of promotion — it will get your purchaser back into your business for themselves!  You can give the purchaser an additional GC when they buy an IGC at a certain dollar threshold.  You have complete control of the details of the offer, and we've even set up some default ones to get you started.  Read our help file on "Buy One, Get One".

Stay tuned for Step Three on Friday — Email Campaigns, Automatic and Customized

And don't forget our live demonstration and discussion. Sign up for either of our two webinars:

• November 17th or December 1st (both at 1 p.m. EST)

Posted in Spa Marketing, SpaBoom Webinars, Tutorials • Comment »

We started our series on starting Email Marketing last Thursday by discussing why it is so important for your business — both your clients' satisfaction and your bottom line.  Now we're getting started with your THREE easy steps to begin.

What are the reasons that you sign up for online newsletters? If you're like me, there are two: you adore the business and want to know everything that is going on, OR you like the business and they are offering a nifty promotion.  Both situations are opportunities for a rewarding customer-business relationship.

Signing up for a newsletter could be thought of as a transaction — your client is giving up personal information to you with the expectation that they will receive value for it, and you as the business are receiving the gift of attention from them — a valuable gift indeed. SpaBoom lets you give your clients a gift back automatically, just to show them that their information and their attention is taken seriously.

Let's talk client list.  "Client list," you say?  Take a look at your Clients tab in SpaBoom and see who's in there.  Just a few GC purchasers?  Read on…

Your front desk is key.  Every time a client walks through the door, checks in for services, or is escorted to their appointment, you and your staff have the chance to build that relationship.  You have tools to make it happen using your SpaBoom account:

1. Sign-in sheets
   • Use our handy sign up pads, or customize your own design in our Collateral (comment cards) tool.  Read our Collateral Help for easy setup!
   • Provide space for their email address, with the enticement of a gift offer when they confirm their email — show them you value their information
   • Guide your staff on what to say. When walking the client back to the front desk to check out, they might say this, "I'm so glad you came in today — we'd love to see you again.  Don't forget to put your email on our guest sign-in pad so we can let you know when we have specials just for our client list."  Use your own spa's voice and customize the words to suit the mood, the client, even the weather!
2. Reward confirmed emails
   • Go to the Marketing Tab in your SpaBoom account, click "Turn On" email signup offers and then customize your message to make it really stand out.  There's a wide range of built-in ideas — great stuff like "10% Off Next Visit," "$5 Off Services," even "Complimentary Product" — use our Offers Help Topic for detailed information.
3. Add Client Info to SpaBoom
   • For every email collected, just add it in SpaBoom on the Clients tab: click on "add client" to get going.  Or, edit existing clients with new details by searching their name first.
   • Each client added will be verified through email, and this is how they collect their gift from you!

Other ways to gather clients' information into one place:

• Export your email client list and then import it into SpaBoom — Importing Your Text Client List.
• Put a link on your website to your newsletter subscribe page — Adding Your Subscribe Link.

For live demonstration and discussion, you'll want to sign up for either of our two webinars:

• November 17th or December 1st (both at 1 p.m. EST)

Posted in Spa Marketing, SpaBoom Webinars, Tutorials • Comment »

Do you know about the new features you have available at your fingertips? SpaBoom's newest additions make successful online marketing a nearly effortless extension of your in-house efforts!

Join Seth & Janell on June 2nd, 1-2 EDT, as they provide a tour of the latest features & functions available to help you to further increase your online revenue potential and keep in close touch with your existing clients.

The webinar will cover:

Online Booking — w/Confirmation and

Online Booking — Automatic (coming out next month)

Blissful Marketing

• Offers — create loyalty and add additional value to your services
• Collateral — create comment cards and email sign up cards
• Twitter — tweet your latest events & specials right from SpaBoom

Joy of Spa — National online magazine for women who love to spa, and a website with online directory

We will plan about 30 minutes to present these features, 15 minutes for questions, and another 15 minutes for general questions.

This webinar is FREE to all SpaBoom clients, so be sure to join in and learn!

How do I join?

Reserve your Webinar Seat NOW!

Space is limited.

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

Posted in General, Spa Marketing, SpaBoom New Features, Tutorials • Comment »

Most of the time when you are on the Clients tab in a SpaBoom account, you might be searching for a particular client.  That's all well and good, but many times you also want easy access to lots of other information about those clients as a whole.  We have the really cool client reports on the Reports tab, but having to do a couple of extra clicks just didn't seem logical to me as a user and as a techie kind of gal.

So… we changed it.  Now, when you are on the Clients tab, you have one-click access to both the Client Detail Report and the Client Journal Report, from the left hand tasks column.

A minor change, yes, but there are dozens of other places in our system that could be more intuitive or just flow from one step to another more gracefully.  Watching some of our clients use the software to identify those trouble points is part of what we all do, but if I haven't paid a visit to your business personally, you'll have to help me out.  Tell me the things that you'd love to see streamlined and it just might get changed lickety-split.

With your input, SpaBoom just keeps getting better, week by week.  Thank you!

Posted in SpaBoom New Features, Tutorials • 4 Comments »

That's right, we are once again producing new Instant Gift Certificate designs for you and your wonderful clients to enjoy as the year all-too-quickly winds down.

One of our excellent blog commenters, Christine of Great Lakes Relaxation Center, has agreed to demonstrate how you can find and show off the new designs in your account.  I'm using her account to create the screenshots below, so you'll know what it will look like for you — nothing complicated or staged about it.

First, we wanted to make sure that your current "Most Popular" designs are not abruptly yanked from your website, so we have not forced into your list the new designs — you'll need to go get them.   You can do one of two things to begin showcasing those new designs — apply our default "most popular" in one fell swoop, or choose your own favorites for display.  I'll describe both options below.

1) The first option is quick and easy.   Go into your Setup Tab, then click on GC Designs on the left side of the screen. You'll see your already selected list of thumbnails:

 
On the left, look for the "Restore Defaults" link, and click on that.  

Click OK on the next screen, and you'll be all set.  You will now have six (6) new and snazzy Most Popular designs, which gives your IGC page enough room for the seasonal designs that we feature before major holidays (4 at a time).

2) Here's how to do the second option — pick your own designs:

Go into your Setup Tab, then click on GC Designs on the left side of the screen.  You'll see your already selected list of thumbnails.

To download the brand new designs, click on the link on the left of the screen called "Update Designs". They will come in as "Hidden" by default.  To show all of our new designs, click on "show hidden designs" and they will appear in your list:

Let's say you'd like to start by removing one of your current Most Popular designs — Celebrate Life.  All you need to do is click on the handy (and new!) "Remove from popular" button.

Next, we'll be making the new design "Lavender" visible and Most Popular.  Click on the "Show" button below the name Lavender to un-hide the design, then click on "Make popular" and you've just given super-cool in-crowd status to the lovely Lavender design.

Perfect!  Christine at our demo spa decided to go ahead and do the same thing for two more designs, hiding old ones and revealing two new designs, "Waves" from All Occasions and "Sincere" in the brand new Sorry category. Her GC page just was transformed from this:

To this:

When we decide to go all the way with her page to leave some room for seasonal designs and use the "Restore Defaults" link, her Instant Gift Certificate page will now end up like this, all nice and clean:

This was a long tutorial, but it should make all of the steps clear and give you a boost of confidence in customizing your offering to your clients — now go out there and have fun!

Posted in Holiday Promotion Brief, Spa Gift Certificates, SpaBoom New Features, Tutorials • 3 Comments »

We rolled out the ability for your clients to review both their experience with the Instant Gift Certificate process as well as your business as a whole. You can add those reviews to your website, show them off for all the world to see and even choose to not display the ones that might be inappropriate.

There is a long way between "showing" and "doing," however. What can the reviews give you to make your business better? Negative feedback!

When you log in to your SpaBoom account, we have been showing you a notice on your Today tab when you've recently received reviews. Now, we have added an extra head's-up if any of those reviews are either 1 or 2-star, ending the notification with, "and one of them needs your attention!"

It looks like this:

When you receive a less than stellar comment, it might be instinctive to flinch and just brush it aside. However, little can help your reputation and the happiness of your clients more than a quick and effective response to complaints that could indicate real problems with your business.

For example, when we check on the link to the reviews report from the example above, we see the following:

Uh-oh. It looks like Maggie is going to need a phone call to ensure she feels taken care of — otherwise it could be hard to convince her (or her friends, since the word will probably circulate at her next social gathering) that visiting your spa again would be an enjoyable experience. Luckily, because she signed in with her client account, you know how to get a hold of her, via email or phone.

What might happen if you got a negative review that was left anonymously? That depends on the review. Let's say it just says, "Your lobby is horribly smelly." Even if you don't know who left the review, you can still do a spot-check of the lobby and see if anything is a problem. If not, get a second opinion and then move on. Any negative review, anonymous or not, should at least garner a quick investigation to see if something can be improved.

In the business world, focus groups are created for the purpose of getting consumers to tell companies what they really think. Focus groups cost money, time, and are not easy to do for a small business — and with reviews, you have the opportunity to get the same kind of valuable information, while at the same time building your relationships with your customers and the local community.

Now, go forth and create some happy customers!

Posted in Spa Business Management, SpaBoom New Features, Tutorials • 1 Comment »

If you are a SpaBoom client who also uses Harms Millennium, you might be missing a key tool that will make your business run more efficiently:

Harms Millennium Integration with SpaBoom!

We've had an integration tool for a little over a year now, and when Millennium 2008 was released, a new and much simpler installation process was also launched.  If you're already integrating, you know that you can avoid having to enter your SpaBoom gift certificates into your Millennium system — they are sent over automatically, into a special drawer that you designate.

If this tool is completely news to your ears — start by downloading the integration guide that Harms developed with us to walk you through the initial steps.

Then, give us a call and we'll help get the final steps taken care of for you.  Soon you'll be in Millennium bliss, only needing to log in to your SpaBoom account when you need to change administrative details or do things like set up email marketing campaigns.

Harms Millennium SpaBoom Integration Guide [PDF]   

Posted in SpaBoom New Features, Tutorials • 3 Comments »

That may seem like a strange thing to say, but hear me out.

When YOU are looking at online reviews of a business you'd like to visit or a book you want to buy, doesn't it give you just a smidgen of doubt if every single entry is a 5-star glowing testimonial that sounds like their best friend… or their spouse… or their mother wrote it?  You find a dose of comforting reality in the business that has a 4 star average — from lots of 5s but a few 4s and 3s now and then.  Now you know exactly what I mean.

You might get reviews that are mixed, or less than perfect.  Embrace them.

As a business any amount of feedback you get from clients is pure gold, even if it does not appear shiny at first glance.

If you know the client who left the review, give them a call and thank them for their feedback.  Don't even mention the content.  If you don't know the client, consider the review — are there any nuggets of truth that could be addressed?  Perhaps they found the services wonderful but the wait time a little long.  If you were busy that day, of course that could have happened if bookings were going over their time frames.  Use the feedback to make your business better for the next client, and the next…

If the review is truly awful, the same followup procedures apply.  However, if you have ample reason to believe that the review was mean spirited without substance, you can choose to suppress it in your showcase reviews in SpaBoom –  just go to your Reviews Report, click on the date of the review in question, and use the checkbox "Hide this review."  You are only allowed to hide a few reviews, which gives you control over the quality of what appears on your site, while also allowing for your clients to express their opinions.

Enjoy this feature, but act as if each review is a gift from your clients and you'll continue to improve.

Posted in Spa Business Management, SpaBoom New Features, Tutorials • 4 Comments »

Last time, I showed you how to easily add your Reviews to your SpaBoom Dynamic website — its incredibly fast and most of the work is done for you, thanks to the design of our templates.

However, if you already have SpaBoom Instant Gift Certificates linked to your existing website, you can still join the party — we love for everyone to collect and show off their customers' comments, so here's part 2: how to add reviews to your existing website.

Wonder if you already have reviews out there?  Get a glimpse by logging into your SpaBoom account, and go to the Reports tab, then take a peek at the Reviews report.  You'll see any reviews you've collected so far, for a glimpse into what your customers think and how much they appreciate your services to them.

Ready?  You're all set to add the link to your website.  We have a great tutorial on the details in our Help section, titled "Reviews for Linked Websites".

Essentially you or your web designer will be adding a link to your website, just like you did when you added your Instant Gift Certificate link when you first signed up with us.   Easy, huh?  Promote this new and neat way to connect with your customers, and your business will surely keep booming!

Posted in Spa Business Management, SpaBoom New Features, Tutorials • Comment »

When running a business, getting feedback from your customers on how they perceive your company is critical. Do they appreciate the value you provide? Is buying from you a fun experience? You can always ask people directly, but that can be awkward or time-consuming.

SpaBoom has now added a new feature that allows you to collect this kind of information about your clients' Instant Gift Certificate purchase experience, and by extension, their opinion of how well they were able to use your website overall.

Any time someone buys an Instant Gift Certificate from you, they will see this extra section on the post-purchase screen:

Submitting a review is completely optional – they can end their transaction immediately, or click on a button to purchase another Instant Gift Certificate. If choosing to provide a review, they can select a rating of one star through five stars, and also leave a comment detailing their experience. Once submitting , they are again taken to a screen thanking them and allowing any additional purchases.

For your business, a new SpaBoom account report has been added to list all of your clients' reviews so you can see how things are going, and also to address any problems that the might have encountered. When you login to your account, you'll see a new item in the Today screen mentioning that you have new Reviews. You can view them by clicking on that link, or through the main Reports screen.
From the Reports tab, click on "Reviews" on the left side of the screen, to see this view:

You can sort by any of the columns, see the average rating at the bottom, and even click on the client's name to view their record.

We hope this will be a useful tool for you to keep in touch with your customers' attitudes and feedback for the services you offer, both through SpaBoom as well as your overall website design and functionality. Please let us know if you have questions about Reviews, or any other suggestions for great new features we can add in the future.

Posted in Spa Business Management, SpaBoom New Features, Tutorials • 3 Comments »

Okay, so you're starting to read about Search Engine Optimization (SEO) everywhere, including on the SpaBoom Blog. You have a sense that it's important, but it's still very confusing. Worse, the information you read about SEO seems to be either conflicting or unhelpful.

What exactly is SEO and how can it help you? Let me suggest this definition for SEO:

When someone goes to Google, Yahoo!, MSN, AOL or the other search engines, and they want a spa or salon, they find and click to your website. Your website and online marketing practices should be tuned such that this opportunity is maximized – and more people see your business listed in those search results.

At the end of the day, people go to search engines to find the websites (and businesses) they desire and might not already know about. SEO involves everything that is necessary to get those people to go to your website.

There are many diverse opinions on SEO, and what makes this as much art as science, is the search engines themselves are constantly "fine tuning" the way they rank websites. They appear to do this for two primary reasons: first, to ostensibly provide better search results to their users and second, to prevent websites from "gaming the system."

Despite the varying opinions on SEO, there are some basic ground-rules. We are beginning a series of blog posts that will discuss how you can evaluate the effectiveness of your SEO, and give you practical suggestions on how you can improve your SEO. To not miss a thing, add our blog to your RSS feeder, or keep watching for new posts in the "Spa Search Engine Optimization (SEO)" category.

Posted in Spa Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Tutorials • 1 Comment »

Email marketing can be powerful stuff for your spa. It's no cost marketing for SpaBoomers to the very people most important to you: your clients and prospective clients that have asked for you to talk to them.

That power comes from email marketing being permission based. To begin, you should confirm that everyone that is on your client list is appropriately marked as a "yea" or a "nay" on the "Send Email Marketing?" checkbox. Make sure your list is updated, and you'll know that those who receive your marketing emails are only the people who are already receptive to communications from your business.

Second, even if you have sent out your own Email Marketing campaigns before, you'll need to go into the Settings and adjust all of the colors to make them your own.

Some default marketing colors are shown on the screen (which could differ from those below):

…but they are just there to demonstrate a basic color palette. Until you adjust each of the five colors and save them, you will get the system's default colors and they might not be what you are expecting, which brings us to the final, crucial tip:

Use the "Send Test Email" link early and often as you craft the message. You might find that the colors need more tweaking, or the text could be refined.

Once everything looks great, you'll be ready to send off to your list of clients with confidence!

[As to what happens after you send the email, see our other post about email delivery.]

Posted in Creating Customers, Spa Marketing, Tutorials • Comment »