Body Wraps are the quintessential spa treatment, a photo of which you’ll find in almost every spa’s marketing materials. Why, then, do many spa owners and managers tell us that they are unsatisfied with the quantity of these services they perform, and that they would like to do more?
Body wraps truly offer great benefits, to all concerned, so it's simply a matter of identifying the benefits, and communicating them to spa therapists and clients, as well as employing some consistent strategies to keep your schedule full.
Benefits to the Spa
- Greater revenue per service hour. The benchmark for service dollars is generally the revenue generated by one hour of massage, so if a massage provides $80 of revenue per hour, you can usually expect that the same hour of a body wrap brings $100-120. A few extra dollars in product cost can increase service revenue by up to $40!
- Massage therapists who perform this service can often offer an insurance receipt, as it falls under the “hydrotherapy” umbrella of their scope of practice. The ability to obtain a receipt can be a draw for many clients.
- Many body wraps, such as Moor Spa’s Moor Gel and Seaweed Gel, don’t need a wet room to perform the service, which opens the door for many more spas to provide the service without costly construction in the spa.
Benefits to the therapist
- A body wrap is much less physically demanding for the massage therapist who performs it, which can extend their career lifespan. It also offers the therapist variety and prevents career stagnation.
- A body wrap often helps the client recover from muscle pain and soreness more quickly, which adds to the therapist’s fulfillment.
Benefits to the client
- Body wraps have an added therapeutic value, above and beyond a simple massage. Body wraps work to increase blood circulation, nourish the body’s systems, eliminate toxins and provide an anti-inflammatory effect that can relieve pain from conditions such as arthritis.
- As a high-touch service, clients derive tremendous pleasure from a full-body wrap, which includes exfoliation, cocooning with product (Moor Spa Body Mask, Moor Spa Seaweed Gel, or Moor Spa Kelp Enzyme Body Mask), and a light, finishing massage.
How to market these services
The key to “selling” any service is knowledge! The person in the best position to sell any spa experience is your Spa Receptionist or Concierge, your client’s point of first contact with your business. We often recommend things that we know, understand and enjoy, so shouldn’t your staff know firsthand how delicious a body wrap can be? It’s vital that your receptionist be part of the ongoing training of your staff, and they must not only know your menu but also have experienced all your services. In our experience, we often find when we visit spas that the receptionist has never had a body scrub, a wrap or any body treatment other than perhaps a massage. How can they express passion for a service that they either don't know or haven't fallen in love with?
Here is a cost-effective list of things you can do to market body services without breaking your advertising/marketing budget.
- Make ongoing training mandatory for all staff including receptionists, stylists, and estheticians – both full and part-time. If you haven’t had training in a while, schedule another session. Suggest that non-technical staff be a model for the hands-on portion of training. Make sure as many of your staff as possible experience the treatments. For the staff performing the services, competence and confidence come with lots of practice, and in experiencing it themselves.
- As each guest arrives, offer them a tour of the spa section of your business. You will be surprised by the number of regular clients who do not know the full range of services you offer.
- Make it part of the reservation process to mention at least one body service to every guest as a suggested service.
- Have your staff with open time slots offer small complimentary treatments (such as a neck and shoulder massage with Moor Spa Tension Balm) to waiting guests. Your clients will feel special, their wait time will fly by, and the time spent will offer your staff the opportunity to learn about the purchase motivation of your guests. Your client will also experience a portion of the pampering effect they will feel if they choose a full treatment.
- Educate your staff by teaching them to use words designed to convey the spa experience. Explain the health benefits of spa treatments in understandable terms. They should also talk about the benefits the client will receive by having the treatment, i.e. improve the texture, firm, tighten and tone the skin, relieve dry and itchy skin.
Work to build caring and respectful relationships with clients. Make them want to spend their free time with you – then they’ll be more likely to try the treatments you suggest.