Free Tans

[Glowtanning530]

Gotcha...

[SSmith]

Ok I had a great response and my computer crashed so here is the short version.
1) Went to Starbucks today and yes they give out free samples of coffee if you have not tried it (i asked)hey did you know you can get FREE refills if you stay in the store at some locations (who knew)
2) Know your market everyone is different
3)Each salon and market area is different and if you have been in business awhile you have an established clientele so you dont have to offer the free tans, for newbies I "Reccommend" trying it out a few different ways:
a) first free tan
b) Second Free Tan
c) In store pakcage credit for first drop in
d) Coupons
e) Free tanning week or weekend
See what generates the most new business for you.. Make sure you track it effectively to see what works best, dont shoot yourself in the foot just because someone or a bunch of people say NEVER DO IT!

Ok I am ready to be shot down

[daredvl_edm]

Honestly i like the idea of Bye one get one. That makes a great deal, with a coupon. You buy a session you get one free, this way you are still making money and they get 2 for the price of one. I am in a smaller community and their is a fabutan and another tanning salon here. I know fabutan offers first tan free, but I am not fabutan, and I ensure good customer service at my salon, and that is why people keep coming here.

[Tanning Queen]

SSmith, you just confirmed what W8 said. YOu didnt get a FULL cup of coffee for free did you? NO, you got a sample. Getting a refill is like buy one get one free. But you had to actually lay out money in order to get the refill. Kinda like buying a package.

Maybe let the client use the bed for 2 minutes in order to see if they like it. THat would be the same as a sample of coffee.

[SSmith]

SSmith, you just confirmed what W8 said. YOu didnt get a FULL cup of coffee for free did you? NO, you got a sample

Just like I dont give a free visit in any bed just my entry level

[Tanning Queen]

NOt the same. Did they give you a full cup of their regular joe? No. Still only a sp or two. Can't compare the two.

Day spas dont offer a free massage just cuz you never had been there before. They MIGHT send you a coupon for one later if you had bought one before. Even then, most likely it is just a discount on one.

Hair salons dont give you the first cut free. Hell, they even charge for a trim of the bangs.

Find me a service oriented biz that gives you something for free without needing to purchase something. Doesnt happen. Oh wait, it does in tanning.

[SSmith]

Banking, service charges At my other job our credit union the 2nd biggest in Canada offers Free Chequing to all our members
There's one.
You can't compare tanning to massage, one massage costs your 60-100.00 and a tanning session can range from 5-45..

My point is give them a taste whats it cost you?Over and above what you are already paying?
I am not reccomending that you give them a free tan in you high end equipment or HP..

[Tanning Queen]

Nope, still not the same. You have to deposit money into the bank in order to get the stuff for free. THey are making money off of your deposit. Try again.

It doesnt cost ANYTHING to cut hair other than time. Still that isnt free for first time clients.

[SSmith]

Nope dont have to deposit and its does not pay interest, or charge you anythign so how is the bank making money. The bank gets nothing by allowing you to have money in your chequing account.. Its smart marketing..
Why because were you have your chequing you will probably want a credit card, mortgage etc, but there is no requirement that you need to have the other things with them, and then you will tell 10 friends a great place to bank is here and you should switch because I get it free.
In todays maket people want everything for nothing, give them piece of pie and then they want the whole pie they will even buy it

[SSmith]

I just noticed my bad typing skills sorry all

[Tanning Queen]

ok, if you dont deposit money, how are you able to write a check?

Banks make money off of the entire amount in their bank. They dont charege you interest on it, but rather pay it. And they can pay it becuase they are making money off of YOUR money.

You cant use the services unless you have money there. Very simple.

Give me a more related example of an industry that gives free shit.

[W8INLINE]

Don't get me wrong guys, I do give and sometimes even more than just one free session, but it's not a rule for EVERY NEW CUSTOMER. It's up to me after I offer them a tour, and judge them on how serious they are.

You guys are talking about advertising and sending out flyers with a free tan....that is different than a salon policy of a free tan to all new customers.

For one whole year I did freebies. I even went as far as offering a custom 1 week membership for new customers to tan for free...you know what? worst return i ever had... all it did was attract leetches and nothing more. The people who bought after that promo, would have bought regardless.

I average 3-4 new customers a day with NO advertising and most come in saying their friends come here and they sign up because they see the results on their friends.

When I do advertise I do offer agressive offers. I have done 1 free, 1 week free, 1 month free etc. They all work...they average dozens of new customers per day...but those are advretising campaigns and not offered everyday to everyone...

I don't think free sessions should not be given, but they should be used as means to a sale....not as a way to kiss their ass because they've never been there before and most wont be back.

P.S. Free only on your base beds? That's another thing... I thought the point of FREE was to impress customers by showing them what youre all about....don't you try to impress tham with a freebie? or are you trying to impress people who would only use the base beds....then again....customers who tan on the better beds want value... get their moneys worth...results.....not a free session

[SandiGirl]

Originally Posted by daredvl_edm

She brought in one male friend to tan and i let him tan for free, then 2 days later she brought in a different guy to tan. I asked him if he has ever been here before he says "No, I never tan". So she is just letting him come here so he can tan for free, so I asked her if she wanted him to use some of her minutes, or if he wanted to buy a session. She said, well what about the free tan "BINGO"!!!!!! I then mentioned that you are allowed a free tan for a friend, and she has already used up her free tan. So he used some of her minutes. :-) Problem solved. If I would have let him tan for free, next week she would have brought in another friend. Nope, it doesn't work that way, so I put a stop to it right away.

Ahhhhh in the words of my wise friend...gotcha

[joetann]

Years ago, when we had brain damage, we used to give free tans with Guest Passes (free basic tan in the shitty bed in the end room). Redemption was about 40% of those distributed (10's of thousands). Only about 2% resulted in purchase.

We then had successful brain surgery and went to a 50% off Guest Pass (50% off any single service HP and Mystic included). Redemption is about 25% of those distributed (10's of thousands) with 30% resulting in a repeat purchase.

ANY MATH WIZARDS OUT THERE?

FREE is devaluing, attracts those in the lower income bracket, attracts less serious customers, attracts younger customers and attracts flies. If you don't use "free" wisely you will soon be "free" of your tanning job! What Starbucks does is "limited sampling". Unfortunately this is not possible with tanning as there is no way to give someone a measurable result in a 2 minute exposure.

There is one thing worse than a "free tan" ..... that's a "free tan" in a shit bed. Guaranteed "NO SALE"!

Back to "Free at last .... Free at last .... My Tanning Salon is a thing of the past"!101

[Natureboy]

-No free tans
-No free goggles
-No free lotions
-No minutes
-No "unlimited"
-No refunds
_____________
No bottom feeders