Small businesses were hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly 100,000 businesses permanently closed their doors. Every business owner felt the impact and many are still struggling to regain the normalcy they once knew. That’s why we at Business Warrior wanted to dedicate a blog series for post-pandemic problems and solutions that many small business owners are facing in various industries.

Today’s topic: the med spa industry. 

How COVID Impacted the Med Spa Industry 

The med spa industry is an interesting case study. Because it’s a combination of a medical clinic and a traditional spa, it doesn’t seem like the perfect candidate from an online transition. However, many med spas found a lot of success when they went virtual. 

How? It’s because of their focus on holistic health. 

Success During the Pandemic 

As quarantines and lockdowns became the national norm, people everywhere were forced to spend a lot of time in their homes. We couldn’t go anywhere, eat out, or have fun like we used to. On top of that, job security was threatened and the entire world was unsure of what the next day would bring. 

All of this created the perfect storm for self-care to skyrocket in popularity. We were starting to do things we enjoyed from the comfort of our homes to cope with the stress of the pandemic — long baths, finding new hobbies, resting more, and turning to virtual counseling sessions. 

In short, we all started finding new ways to invest in ourselves. The med spa industry was the perfect place for many of us to turn to. While we couldn’t go in for a massage or go to the gym, we could talk with physical therapists and learn stretches, or we could get great tips from an online trainer about how to fit leg day in at home.

Additionally, a lot of the nutritional, skincare, and general well-being advice thrived online as well. People were learning how to eat right, new skincare routines, and new ways to stay active while at home. 

All of this being said, med spas were not immune to the post-shutdown problems that have been emerging in industries all over the United States.

Post Pandemic Issues and Solutions for the Med Spa Industry

While some med spas found their voice online, not all of them did. Those that could not transition onto Zoom experienced hefty shutdowns and limited occupancy. Some had to close down entirely, and others had to lay off employees — either temporarily or permanently. 

This leads to several significant issues with staffing. The med spa industry in particular is facing a unique problem: getting clients off of Zoom and back into the clinic. What’s the solution? 

The best place to start would be updating your website and assets to highlight your return to normal. Here’s what you do: 

1. Update all of your ads that say “Online sessions available” to advertise and push for in-person sessions. 
2. Make sure your website, social media pages, and hours are updated as well. 
3. Finally, check your Google My Business listing to make sure everything there is up-to-date as well.

Once all of that is done, it’s time to push for advertising to get new customers. If you’re new to the advertising world, there are a few things you can do quickly and for free. We’ll get into that later in this blog. 

Facing New Influx of Traffic 

Reopening to full capacity means managing a new influx of customers. You need to be ready to handle them by re-working your staff’s schedules, hiring new people, and changing when you can take appointments online and in person. 

Remember, not everyone will want to transition back into an in-person model. You’ll have to accommodate those who like to stay at home, which means a total rework of your internal systems. This doesn’t happen overnight! 

If you’re not ready, don’t hide from that fact. Acknowledge it and act. Use the power of your online listings to let your customers know of any potential gaps in service. You may be surprised how many people respond to your honesty as you’re transitioning back to an in-person model.

This is where advertising really comes in handy. You can boost your job listings on Indeed and Glassdoor, but if potential employees don’t know who you are, you’re likely not to get many applications. 

To fix that, you need to put yourself out there online. 

Putting Your Business Online

Putting yourself out there online can be terrifying and exhilarating at the same time. You only get one first impression when you go online, so make it a good one. We at Business Warrior can help. Our free platform scores your business on how easy you are to find online. If you’re not on Google, Bing, Facebook, or Yelp, then you’re losing potential new customers and potential new employees.

Everything is easy to follow as well, empowering you to make the best decisions for your business. It shows you where you’re listed and where you are not. If you need a little help getting listed, our Scout version gives you a step-by-step guide. 

Sounds like a lot? We get it too — as a business owner, you’re busy and you don’t always have the opportunity to sit at a computer and work on getting your business on Google, Yelp, Facebook, or Bing. If you choose the Pro tier, we’ll do it all for you. It will save you time, money, and effort — we’re advertising experts who will do it right the first time so you’re listed online faster. 

If you want to be sure that your listings are showing up accurately, sign up for a free Business Warrior account and get a free listings report in less than 1 minute.