Remember when Snapchat first appeared on the social media scene and you thought, “Oh great, another social platform I have to keep up with?”

Well, if you’ve been around me long enough, you know I’m a huge proponent of mastering one to two social media channels before moving on to a third platform.

For the majority of aestheticians and the audiences we cater to, our top two channels are going to be Facebook and Instagram.

And chances are if you’re keeping up with the marketing on those two channels, the thought of adding in a third will likely seem unnecessary.

But in any case, if you were intrigued by Snapchat, but found it to be a poor use of your time and effort, you’re in luck because Instagram Stories have rapidly shoved Snapchat off the scene because Stories are not only easier to create, but you’ve already got an audience on Instagram who love the platform. No need to build a new following!

In case you’re not familiar with Instagram Stories, they’re short photo and video slideshows that don’t appear on your main Instagram page or “feed,” but are viewable by clicking your profile picture or will appear at the top of your follower’s “home screen” feed.

When a viewer clicks into your Story, or automatically enters your Story through their “Story feed,” the pieces of your Story will automatically play in the order you’ve uploaded them to Instagram. Your Stories will be viewable for 24 hours and will then disappear from view for Instagram users.

This sub-channel within Instagram provides a massive opportunity for engaging with your followers and with many other users on Instagram who are not your followers…yet!

So, in this episode, I’m giving you six ways to leverage your Instagram Stories and create more opportunities to connect, engage and convert your Instagram connections into more conversations and clients.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• How Instagram Stories differs from your feed and how to think about the content you share in this sub-channel
• 6 ideas for content to share through your Instagram Stories that will get you connected and engaging with your ideal audience
• Some of my top tips for using the tools within Instagram Stories to increase interest, make creating content easier and maximize engagement
• How to determine what content is resonating most with your audience

Not everyone can rock a name like Salt Freedom, but that’s precisely her point.

Your brand isn’t your logo, your color palette or fonts, your brand is YOU. Yes, even if your name is not your business name (don’t worry, we’ll get to that).

If you’re typically an earbuds listener and not a video watcher, for this episode, I’d love for you to pop over to our video recording, even if just for a few minutes after you’ve listened, so you can get a look at Salt.

This woman is her brand to the core, which makes it easy to understand why she’s a branding expert.

From what she’s dubbed as her “Salty Truths” as her messaging and her Why, which informs her brand visuals, everything intuitively and authentically ties together, and it’s because she is simply herself.

Of course, knowing precisely who you are isn’t always easy, it requires a fair amount of deep dive soul work, not to mention, you are ever evolving, but doesn’t that sound like a breath of fresh air?

That the best brand you could ever create is simply you being true to yourself?

It sounds radically freeing to me, and in this episode, Salt is laying down the law on what it takes to truly be your brand so that you can stand out amongst the endless scrolling online and create the genuine connection your potential clients crave.

If your brand has felt boring or like it’s a bit of a sham because it’s just not you, this is the insight you need to hear to get crystal clear on your brand.

In this episode you’ll learn:

• How to craft a brand message and visuals that don’t get scrolled over
• The story of Salt’s name and insights on how to name your business or brand
• The most important thing you have to understand first before you can fully understand your brand
• How to reverse engineer the process of defining and refining your brand and your message

References Mentioned in Episode #032: Developing You as Your Brand with Salt Freedom

• Join the free Spa Marketing Made Easy Community on Facebook where you’ll gain access to a community with exclusive monthly trainings, tips, and business growth conversations.

It’s no secret that social media is always shifting. Whether it’s algorithm changes or emerging features that allow us to gain more exposure to our audience, there’s always something new to learn or leverage.

In this episode of Spa Marketing Made Easy, I’m talking with video pro Beth Ryan about the type of media that’s currently reigning supreme.

From live-streaming or pre-recording, using Facebook or Instagram, or using video to educate versus sell, listen in to learn how to get started with leveraging the power of video marketing for your aesthetic business.

To ask questions and receive feedback and support, click here to join the free Aestheticians Connect community on Facebook.

Whether you’re a brand new aesthetician or starting over after moving to a new area, building a clientele from scratch can be daunting. Thankfully, there’s a strategy that can help you secure more bookings, but also help you network within your new professional community.

That strategy is gift card marketing. It’s not the quickest fix out there, but it’s one of the most effective in gaining clients when you’ve got more time to invest than you do a marketing budget.

As you listen to this episode, you’ll learn:

• The entire step-by-step of crafting your spa’s gift card marketing strategy based on my experience of going from brand new to booked out within four months as a new aesthetician
• How to create strong referral partnerships with other business owners in your community
• Critical do’s, don’ts, and best practices for ensuring you receive a  high return on investment in your gift card marketing efforts
• How to tie gift card marketing into a diversified marketing strategy as you continue to grow

To ask questions and receive feedback and support, click here to join the free Aestheticians Connect community on Facebook.

Whether you’re a solo aesthetician who’s wearing all the hats or a spa director whose job it is to consistently generate leads and close new clients, we can all benefit from the power of Messenger bots.

Now I know the term “bots” can be scary, so here with me on this episode of Spa Marketing Made Easy, is bot extraordinaire, Adam Chatterley, the founder of Salon Business Secrets and the course, Bots for Beauty, to dispel the myths and misconceptions.

In addition to setting the record straight on how bots can support your spa’s customer service, he’s giving us his top tips to ensure all our communication is authentic and on-brand for maximum connection and conversion.

To ask questions and receive feedback and support, click here to join the free Aestheticians Connect community on Facebook.

With over one million leads generated for her clients in the last 24 months alone, it’s clear to see why I call Tara the “Facebook Ads Goddess.”

Among her clients are everyone from solo aestheticians to day spas, med spas, and wellness centers, and as she shares with us today, the vast opportunities that Facebook advertising presents for the spa industry are ours for the taking.

In today’s episode you’ll learn:

• The key targeting factors that will allow you to zero in and get on your ideal clients’ newsfeed
• How to structure your ads for success with some key do’s and don’ts
• The 3 creative elements of your ads that you should test to find your winning ad combination
• How to navigate the Facebook platform from a mindset perspective and avoid algorithm freakout
• Connect with Tara and her Successful Ads Club.

And to ask questions and receive feedback and support around digital marketing for your spa, click here to join the free Aestheticians Connect community on Facebook.

Rather than flying by the seat of your pants when it comes to your spa’s marketing, what if you had an organized, pre-prepared plan for all your promotions?

In today’s episode, we’ll cover the main reasons why you should be using a spa marketing calendar and how it can help your business with not just sales, but systems that enhance your level of service.

I’ll also walk you through how to set your promotional calendar up for success and tools to use to stay organized and execute your plans flawlessly.

Click here for a copy of the spa marketing calendar.

And to ask questions and receive feedback and support, click here to join the free Spa Marketing Made Easy Community on Facebook.