Holidays Ahead: The 12 Do’s of 4th Quarter PR & Marketing You Need to Jump on TODAY!

For this month’s Marketing Muse, our goal is to help you prepare for the ever-busy holiday season. Your patients and potential patients are busy prepping for their best festive experiences yet – and that prep includes investing in top aesthetic treatments to help look and feel their best!  The holidays can also bring its own share of skin challenges, which is why experts recommend preventative skincare ahead of the busy time. From aesthetic treatments to skincare products, to lifestyle changes – small investments can make a substantial difference to skin quality. That’s why we’ve collected some expert social media and PR management tips from our talented marketing and communications team. We love to help keep you ahead! Here we go! 

• Provide value – this goes without saying, but really showcase why investing in your treatments can improve your patients’ self-care regime not only for everyday life but during a hectic holiday season. Demonstrate your understanding of skin science, and your desire to provide true value to your patient base. Get creative while keeping your brand in mind!

• Prepare a social media calendar for October – December. A social media calendar is a document containing key information such as which platforms you’ll post on, what assets you’ll post, what copy (written message) you’ll include in each post, associated hashtags, and exact publishing dates. This is a flexible document you can change as you go but having it in place will take a load off you during a busy time of the year.

• Don’t underestimate the earning potential of October and November. Many of your potential patients will be looking to get proactive in their treatment journey – ahead of the holiday season. Be sure to promote this approach on your social platforms and in your day-to-day outreach. You’ll find patients that are looking for that energy from their treatment providers, who they rely on for personalized, expert advice.

• Consider hiring extra help if needed to manage incoming phone calls, online inquiries and more. Creating a support network and delegating tasks can mean you don’t miss incoming inquiries and don’t lose out on key opportunities. If you have a team, evaluate the current strengths and weaknesses in your customer services approach. Appreciate what’s going well, and provide learning resources, such as refresher trainings, to foster further growth. This can boost employee morale and ensure a smoother holiday season ahead.

• Promotions and giveaways bring a strong online following, especially in the beauty and wellness industries. Plan a giveaway to gain more followers and get people stirred! People enjoy being a part of exciting experiences, and who doesn’t want to try their chance at some luck? You can arrange gift certificates, provide samples, or collaborate with other local businesses to secure some gifts and engage in valuable cross-promotion. You can get creative! ‘Tag a friend in the comments section to enter’ type giveaways are easy to do, and always popular!

• Offering gift certificates at your establishment is a great way to give and receive value. Not only are you offering them a high-quality gift option and further solidifying your brand’s value in their lives, but you also get free promotion! Be they digital or physical assets, have a plan in place to smoothly sell and redeem these gift certificates. Make sure your staff is aware and trained in the process; confusion or barriers in accessing this offering can mean business disruption, unhappy patients, and bad PR for your practice.

• Capture the moments! Are you preparing your office for the festivities ahead? Adjusting your practice’s operational times to better accommodate your patients? Creating more experiences for your employees to connect, unwind and celebrate? Showcase memorable moments on your social media to foster a sense of community and openness!

• More business means more opportunity to snap key pictures for your social media! Have your camera/s and release forms ready. Having a release form for your patients to review and sign allows you to safely share their images for your promotional purposes. Ask them if they’d like to offer their social media usernames to be tagged, or even better – share their own images from their accounts and tag your practice! User-generated content goes a long way in establishing greater trust and brand credibility.

• Again – your camera is key. Quality visual assets bring more attention and credibility to your brand. Consider a mobile tripod for more stable images. Experiment with your camera settings and sharing options. Consider reels, stories, short videos and more!

• You already know it. After two years of lockdown and social distancing, people are looking for memorable experiences to catch up on the life they’ve missed. You must have seen an influx of concerts and events abound. Why not offer your patients an amazing experience! This can be a great opportunity to strengthen your brand image or revolutionize it into something different! After all, it’s going to be a new year! You can host a memorable holiday event for your returning or most exclusive patient pool. You can offer an interesting photobooth experience at your reception area to engage your patients and bring more attention to your happening practice. Again, it’s the time to get creative!

• Make some time to reboot and recharge! The hustle bustle of end of year can often leave us feeling like there isn’t enough time to do anything and everything. Your own self-care can easily fall to the bottom of your priority list. However, taking some time to rest, reboot and recharge can not only keep you in a better physical and mental state, but also improve your business results. Daily rituals to promote a sense of calm, mindfulness practices to better manage stress, proactive strategizing to foster smoother business operations. Even the smallest tweaks can make a significant difference to your total experience – and your patients can feel it!

• As you prepare to wrap up 2022 and set your goals for 2023 don’t forget to celebrate your wins! Although it may seem like there’s still some time to go, being proactive during these final months of the year can take your success to another level. You’ll feel the effect when the clock strikes to 2023, into the new year and beyond! Carpe diem!