Why should ladies have all the fun? (The Male Market)

It's pretty easy to get a guy's attention with the latest electronic gadget or the biggest SUV to hit the market...but getting them to go to the salon or spa can be a bit more difficult. Men receiving spa treatments is still a fairly new idea, but these stats might surprise you.

• ISPA (Int'l Spa Assoc) reports that 31% of today's spa goers are male - that is up 24% from 4 years ago!
  
• A recent KSL Report online survey stated that 65% of male responders would interested in spa services that took less time (25 mins was preferred). Massage was winner for treatment choice, following by manicures/pedicures and facials.
  
• In 2004, the men's skin care market was only one to two percent of the total skin care market. Over the past year, mens skin care has been the fastest growing segment in personal care. Some statistics show that men’s skincare products grew by 16% last year, compared to only 5% for all other skin care product lines.
  

So what do these few stats tell us? Men are interested in your services and products! Now the mission is finding out how to reach the male market in your neck of the woods.

Some ideas:

• Create a male focused service menu. Keep it simple and grow into it. Offer massages, manicures/pedicures and facials using male focus products, keeping the service time length down and the price to match.
  
• Carry a male focused retail line. Stick to one our two lines you believe in and use them in your services. Many times men can be sold easier then women when you use the product on them and prove to them the benefits. Once men find something that works, they are hooked and are repeat buyers. Be sure to package them in masculine retail packaging --think blacks, gold, and silver. They don't want to carry the cute pink bag your lady clients simply adore.
  
• Start with what you know. Your female customers can be key to getting your male clients coming in. Offer package deals with wives or girlfriends --- think couples spa days for a romantic gift, or Father's Day specials, or Men Only Holiday Deals. The women will buy the special men in their lives these gifts, the men will enjoy the gifts, and thencome back for more!
  
• Go where the men are. Advertise at local sporting events in the sports programs, on the radio, at gyms (especially for hair removal treatments), restaurants, community events, etc...

I hope these tips help grow your male clientel. Men can enjoy the pampering women have enjoyed for years. Grow your market reach and grow your business!

Sell More Retail Products!

They say the devil is in the details... retail details! We all want to sell more retail product but many of us stumble on how to get there. Here are some quick hitting tips to help you sell more retail products.

1. Have a retail sales team! All your stylists, estheticians, massage therapists, receptionists are all sales personnel. Everyone is selling your services and products from the moment the customer walks in the door. Define your staff as a sales team and show them the way.
   
   
2. Put yourself in their shoes. Educate your staff on the benefits of all your retail products so they can fit the product to the customer. No matter what the question, your staff will know the correct product to recommend.
   
   
3. Supply support material. Brochures on the product are usually free from the product manufacturer or custom print your own. (Use our free art services!) These are helpful tools to quickly communicate the benefits of certain products. Offer skin care or treatment prescriptions to your customers -- write down the products you used during their service, when to use, how to use, how much to use etc... This makes it easy for your sales team to close the sale and for the customer to keep the results at home.
   
   
4. On-site, on-going training. One of your monthly team meetings should be revisiting the products and/or introducing new products. Keep educating them on the benefits of each product and what situation it will work best with. You can make it a game and offer prizes for the staff member that matches the product with the correct customer situation. Energy + Excitement = Sales!
   
   
5. Ask for feedback. Poll the sales team for their thoughts on products and promotions. They are on the front lines and hold a wealth of information. You will gain buy-in with your team if you let them participate in product selection and sales efforts.
   
   
6. Put the carrot where you want the behavior! Offer bonuses or commission based programs on selling retail products. You can add incentives such as gift cards, prizes, trips, continuing education classes etc.. Get creative and ask the sales team what would motivate them. Have a monthly chart and have a friendly competition. Anyway you can create excitement and make retail sales top of mind you will keep the momentum going.
   

If you don't put the focus on sales, they won't just happen. Build your team, build their product knowledge, build their motivation and watch out...be prepared for those retail products to start moving!

Brides, Dads and Grads

Late spring and early summer presents a host of promotion opportunities! From graduates going off to college or joining the work force, celebrating fathers, and the wedding festivities .... there are so many reasons to create excitement (and sales) for your business.

Here are some ideas to get your promotional juices flowing.

• Partnership - Work with local schools or clothing stores to offer Professional Make-Over packages to get that grad interview ready. Network with florist, bridal boutiques etc... to offer special pricing/packages. Ask to leave promotional materials such as business cards in their reception areas. Include a promotion code to track response. For Dads, partner with local golf courses, steak restaurants, or grill retailers. Offer a luxury shave or King-for-the-Day spa packages. You can group a round of golf or a great dinner with your services. Definitely a hole-in-one!
  
  
• Advertise - This doesn't have to break the bank. There are tons of free ways to get PR in local papers. Find out who your local "happenings" editor is and send them a press release on your partnership opportunities. Focus on how you are helping grads acheive success, or growing local business with your partner efforts. Other ideas - Contact schools, restaurants, shops for permission to leave your cards or menus. Many have free reception areas where you can leave a few materials. Make them snazzy (Action Bag offers free art services if you need assistance) and code them for tracking.
  
  
• Parties - Host events! This could be a Bridal Shower, Power Day for Dad, Professional Grad Days. Package your services, offer snacks, little goodie bags...make it an event to remember. Run a small ad in your local paper, post flyers, send postcards to current customers, or even run a quick 30 second radio ad. Talk it up!
  
  
• Be the expert! - Create a Bridal-Look-Book and have it in your reception area. This can feature the latest styles of hair, nails, make-up etc... Showcase the brides you assisted previously. Graduates want to look the part so create a how-to flyer complete with interview tips, how to dress and look professional (of course tie in your hair and nail services). You will help them look and feed good to secure their new job. Dads can be leery of the salon/spa world. Make them comfortable by creating a men focused area with masculine images and products. Showcase you're an expert in men skincare lines. Men are more likely to be open to the spa experience if you show them that other guys are taking part.
  
  
• Package Deals - People buy more when you group things together. You create a perceived value they are getting more for their buck. You can group complete systems in coordinating retail bags. Add in some free trial size products. Offer a Queen-for-the-Day Kit for brides with your most luxurious items. Dads can get the Power Tool Kit with shaving and skin products. For grads create the Look your Professional Best Kit. Offer various price point kits and viola - sales!
  
  
• Frequent Buyer Programs - Don't let your sales stop at these promotions. Create a reason for the customers to come back. Offer a reason for grads going away to college to come home to visit by giving discounts off services and special offers on retail products. If you are in a college town, create freshmen orientation kits with monthly coupons that keep them coming back. For Dads and Brides, include in your gift bags repeat buyer coupons or punch cards - for each use they get a different discount or free products etc.
  

The possibilities are endless. Take these ideas and make them your own. If you have run a great promotion, share your idea! You can add a post below or go to our MySpace page and enter our Promotion Contest. Click here to enter.

Prom Season is here... are you prepared to profit?

Prom season is a huge event for the beauty business. From young ladies picking the perfect dress and precisely paired jewelry, planning their hair, going tanning, finding the exact right shade of lipstick... the excitement is contagious!

Have you preplanned to be involved in this memorable event?

Promotion Ideas to assist you:

• pass fliers about your specials (target high schools or teen hangouts)
• send a postcard campaign to current clients with teen daughters
• suggest hair and make-up package deals (one stop shop)
• partner with local tux and dress stores, flower shops, restaurants (cross promotions)
• provide extra discounts for booking group parties
• take a % off retail products and ancillary items (hair accessories and jewelry etc...)
• offer prom inspired tanning packages for that extra glow
• give gifts of trial products for each girl (make them feel like a princess)
• take before and after photos for your website or myspace page (PR for you!)

If you are behind the beat, don't let this happen again. Sign up for our FREE Promotion Reminder Service. You tell us when, what, and how you want to be reminded. Set it and Forget it. Click here and sign up today!

Go Green!

Going green is every where these days --and it should be. Our choices have a ripple effect across the world. If everyone takes just one small step to be more earth friendly, the effects will be far reaching.

Take a tip from Milajne Soligo, VP of Megahair Family group of salons. She launched an EccoBuck incentive program. This program rewards customers who recycle empty hair care containers. For every bottle a customer brings in, they receive a dollar-off coupon redeemable towards a purchase at their salon. What a fabulous idea! Not only are they spreading the word about recycling, they are building stronger relationships with their customers, helping their community and selling more retail product. Genius!

Worried your professional persona will be stifled with earth friendly choices? You can Go Green and still be stylish. There are many options to help make your retail packaging earth friendly. See our complete Go Green Product Line by clicking here!

Not sure what being earth friendly is all about? Click here for our Go Green Tips. It simplifies the earth friendly jargon and provides easy ways to help you start your own go green efforts. Reduce - Recycle - Reuse!

Best Promotion Contest!

Share your best promotion idea and win a $100 Action Bag Gift Certificate! Post your most successful promotion you ran Examples -- special holiday event, a charity focus promo, a super sale, customer appreciate day. Share the details of how you presented the promotion and why it was successful. Feel free to post pictures. Our Action Bag team will pick the best promotion from the bunch.

The winner will receive $100 gift certificate for goods and services at Action Bag. Wait there is more.....We will also highlight the winner on our website and this blog...FREE PR for your business. Post your Promotion Entry below today!

Welcome to the Action Bag Blog!

Hi There! I'm Jaimey Alumbaugh, the Marketing Manager at Action Bag Company --your retail packaging and promotion experts. This is the new place to share ideas, promotions, building your brand and so much more.

Feel free to share your ideas, comments, suggestions, problems or concerns. This is a forum for everyone. I want to facilitate the discussions and hopefully help you grow your businesses.

See our complete product line at www.actionbag.com. You can Profit from Packaging and Promotion!