Men coming to the spa is not a new trend, but studies show that an increase in male clients is a growing demographic for spas. Is your business male-centric? Do you have a regular male clientele coming in each month? If not, this may be a good goal for 2023. Have you set a plan for your business in 2023 to increase your overall revenue or attract more new customers? We all want to increase our revenue year over year, but the more specific you are, the easier it is to achieve your goals. How about we change our goal and be more precise, like Increase Overall Revenue by 10% by adding five more male clients weekly? (On a $120 average ticket, this is about $31K annually). The reality is that increasing your male clientele is super easy and will help you stand out from the competition. So, are you in? Start with these five tips and commit to growing your male clientele in 2023.
Top Five Tips to Growing Your Male Clientele
1. Help a Male Guest Feel More Comfortable
One of the easiest and most often overlooked ways to ensure you’ve created a comfortable space for male clients is by looking at your spa with fresh eyes from a male perspective and asking yourself if YOU would feel comfortable as a man. You can even bring in a male friend, husband, brother, or your dad and ask them if they would feel comfortable as a spa client in your space. It often helps us to step outside our comfort zone and visualize our spaces as our guests see them. Another simple way to help a male client feel comfortable is to make sure you have robes and sandals that fit! I mean, have you been in a relaxation room of a lovely spa when a big and tall gent comes out of the locker room looking like he is wearing a mini skirt, and when he sits down to wait for his service, all his junk showing? No one feels comfortable in this situation, and it is downright embarrassing. As a spa, we should never make clients feel uncomfortable and like they don’t fit in.
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2. Now, Let’s Get Creative
One of the most fun things to do as a business owner is to get creative and create innovative products and services. Creating a “Men’s Corner” or a “Just For Men” Menu is easy. BUT, how about a Men’s Grooming Menu? Or do you have an underutilized space where you can create a Men’s Only area? Have you considered a men’s memberships or a referral program just for men? Creating signature products and services for the male client is a way to be fun and inclusive.
3. Offering Gender Neutral Services
Remember, a Brazilian is not just for women! Think about creating a “Signature” or “Customized” service using Buzz worlds that men can relate to or connect with, like “performance,” “result-driven,” and “targeted.” A Sweet Bourbon Body Rub sounds much better than a Swedish Massage to any Gender!
4. Educate Me
Men are looking for an experience but are also interested in education. Men are there to relax and see results, but they are also interested in how you achieve them. This doesn’t mean talking throughout the whole service. However, it does mean doing a thorough intake before the service, at least two check in’s during the service, and if you are performing a service with multiple products, be sure to introduce each step and the benefits as they are applied. Men do not believe in the skin care fairy as much as we ladies; they want to know how and why. This will also help you sell home care. Send your client home with some at-home tips to enhance their results…you may create a forever client.
Contribution by Julie Pankey
Industry expert, Julie Pankey is the founder of JMPankey Partners and the SpaHive VIP, the only elite private online community for spa, hospitality and wellness professional. Specializing in spa operations, development, training and education as well as wellness tourism, Julie and her team of recognized experts have been sought after by television and consumer publications alike.
5. Male Marketing
I was just recently scrolling Instagram and searched #genderneutralspa. FYI, there are not a lot of posts, so this could be a good hashtag for you to use! Anyway, as I searched the spa businesses that have used this hashtag, I needed clarification on whether they served men or made the male clients feel comfortable as a client. This is alarming to me! Your marketing and messaging need to feature men in your social media, email campaigns, and website. You do not need to have a bro fest but go back up to Tip One and think, if I were a man, would I be attracted to this business?
Growing your male clientele comes down to simple but purposeful steps that help create a culture of inclusion and acceptance. In the end, each of us wants to find a place where we say, “This is my place .” We want to walk in and feel like we belong, that the team gets us, and that we can escape the world for a while and re-emerge, feeling like the best version of ourselves.
