Why Surveys Are a Great Tool to Help Your Spa Business Grow

Great salons and spas give their clients exactly what they need. To find out what your clients need, you have to get the inside scoop on them.

How do great spas and salons get the insider info? They use surveys! Survey clientele to collect feedback on your staff, your services and what else you can do to wow the client. Follow these do's and don'ts to make your surveys a success.

• Don't bombard your client list with surveys all of the time. Quarterly is enough. Try mixing up which clients are surveyed. Send to them your regulars one quarter and clients you rarely see the next. Clients who haven't used your services in a while will give great feedback about why they haven't come back.

• Do keep your survey short and sweet. It should take less than 5 minutes to complete. If you want to do a longer survey, give something in return. A free service, product or a discount on a future service are appropriate if you want to do an in-depth survey.

• Don't ask for too much personal information. You'll get more honest feedback if it's anonymous. Give the survey respondent the option of giving her contact info so you can follow up on negative feedback. Follow up right away and do what you can to make it right.

• Do try different formats. See what your response rate is if you use an online survey versus a comment card. Use a free online survey tools, such as survery monkey and zoomerang and send the link to you email list. Another option is to have comment cards available at the reception desk. Train your reception staff to offer comment cards to all your clients.

• Do use surveys targeted at different client segments. Ask clients about a specific service they received rather than general questions. Targeted feedback will be more helpful than general information.

• Don't ask too many open-ended questions. Instead, use multiple choice questions and give them the option to offer comments. Clients are more likely to respond if they have the option of answering multiple choice questions.

Clients like to give feedback and share their opinions. Invite them to tell you about their experiences. Openly accepting feedback assures them that you value their opinions and care about their experience with your spa or salon. You'll learn from the negative feedback and the praise feels great.

Use surveys as a regular part of your marketing so you know how to grow. Use the feedback to make changes and add services. If you're thinking about adding a service, survey you clients before you invest. You may find out you would do better investing elsewhere. If a service is lagging in sales, survey clients to find out why. The information you gather using client surveys will be critical to your growth.