We don’t have to intimately know the ins and outs of your business to make the bold claim that your entire audience is online.
Yes, your entire audience. Even if you cater to mid-lifers and those that are older, the largest growing population of internet and mobile-device users fall into this age demographic.
Gone are the days where digital marketing meant just having a functioning website and posting to social media semi-regularly. Embracing the full digital marketing landscape is important because your audience has come to expect being able to interact with you across all platforms, including social media. American consumers repeatedly report that the information they find on social media has a direct effect on the decisions they will make, not only for healthcare, but also for their aesthetics purchases.
When it comes to booking a consultation or purchasing a service or product, they will likely check social media to find others who have been made happy with your work and recommendations. Digital marketing, and specifically social media, give you the opportunity to interact and build trust with your clients without you physically being there. It does the talking for you. So, how do you tap into this and make it work for you?
And if you can meet them where they are, and use strategy to leverage your online presence, it can mean serious business by way of increasing your cosmeceutical sales!
1) Use Social Media As a Conversation Starter
You know your business needs a social media presence if you want to keep up with today’s digital marketing standards…that’s a no-brainer these days. What’s not so intuitive is how to use social media to make an impact on sales. Maybe you regularly promote your services, monthly promotions, and products on social media, but all you hear are crickets.
That’s because social media isn’t really meant for selling, it’s meant for socializing (hence, the social in social media). The more you think of social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram as a place to meet and mingle with potential clients and customers, not sell to them, the easier job you’ll have of moving those people further down the sales pipeline a little later on. While selling directly on social works, it almost like a cold call. You want people to be able to “warm up to you” so that when you do ask them to purchase, you already have a pseudo-relationship started, and your conversion rates will be higher.
For example, rather than asking people to purchase their skincare regimen straight through social, use your presence to promote an open house-style event at your spa or practice, where you extend a welcome to come spend time and learn from you. Then, at your event, you’ve already sufficiently warmed up your potential clients and will be more successful with converting them into a paying customer.
You can also promote educational and entertaining content such as blog posts, demonstration videos, and client testimonials to build interest and credibility around your business without directly pushing for a sale. We strongly advocate this here at Aesthetic Influencer. People want to know who you are, and social media is a fantastic place to show off your best!
By using this predominately non-selling strategy, it makes your promotional posts, for example, when you directly promote a cosmeceutical product launch, much more effective because at this point, you’ve built anticipation and credibility within your audience.
2) Nurture and Sell Through Your Email List
Speaking of “warm” leads (aka people who are somewhat familiar with your business and are more likely to purchase at this point in their buyer’s journey), your email list is a fantastic pool of primed buyers.
Except…email, no one really loves email. Email may feel antiquated, but it’s still one of the best digital marketing tactics to get your audience to click “buy" or book a consultation with you. However, this still requires some strategic thinking.
It’s not enough to just ask for your potential client to buy with every single email you send; you still need to woo them.
One of the most effective methods of doing that is by bringing subscribers onto your list by providing high-value content that educates and informs and continuing to provide that nurturing content balanced alongside emails that directly promotes your products and asks for your subscriber to buy.
An example of this would be writing an email that educates on the wonderful benefits that growth factors have for skin, and if they are interested in experiencing those benefits themselves, you can purchase your full regimen by clicking “here”. In our industry, education does many things, but most importantly, it builds trust, and helps you sell.
3) Generate Consultations With Highly-Targeted Ads
In case you haven’t jumped on the bandwagon already, know that this isn’t any rickety old cart that’s about to go bust with the next wave of digital marketing trends. We all know the power of a good aesthetic consultation when it comes to the opportunity to sell skincare products. Want a good way to have a consistent flow of them coming in? Read on.
In fact, it’s currently the most powerful advertising platform in the world…
That’s right, if you haven’t guessed, we’re talking about Facebook ads.
Facebook has the greatest targeting capabilities that have ever been available to business owners, making them a fantastic incorporation it into your digital marketing strategy.
From being able to target your exact ideal client demographics down to income and interests, to targeting by zip code and even to people who like the pages of your competitors, Facebook ads allow you to gather high-quality leads who you know will be interested in your offerings.
Facebook ads also allow you to track activity that you can directly tie to your cosmeceutical sales so you can determine the immediate return on investment of your ads (in case you haven’t learned by now, we are HUGE fans of tracking metrics here at AI).
The good news is when you consistently practice these strategies, your return on investment grows greater over time.
Because while someone might take three, six, or nine months to buy from you after being nurtured through meaningful and educational content via compelling ads, social media, or being on your email list, someone who only gets asked to buy over and over again not only isn’t going to buy, but will eventually tune you out altogether.
Of course, successful cosmeceutical sales are also supported by a variety of additional factors such as knowing your metrics and having a reliable sales process in your practice, but when you incorporate a multi-faceted digital marketing strategy, you’re ensuring your sales success for the long haul.
Any questions? Follow @aestheticinfluencer on Instagram and send a DM! Can't wait to see you there!