SIX WAYS TIKTOK CAN TRANSFORM YOUR SPA BUSINESS

By Tracey Stapleton

Around 4.6 billion people use social media, that’s more than half the world! It all started in 2004 with Facebook, which is still the most used platform, followed by YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram, We Chat and latterly, TikTok.

While being just under a third of the size of Facebook, TikTok has witnessed spectacular growth over the past two years, developing faster than any other channel and becoming a launch pad for discovering new trends and brands.

TikTok specialises in authentic short-form video content, which continues to be one of the top social media trends, so much so that Instagram has recently been testing a feature that will put video more front and centre too. This use of vertical full-screen video and its ability to dictate trends has made TikTok a useful platform for brands.

At this year’s Hotel Marketing Conference in the UK, one of the most popular seminars was on TikTok and how spas are now using the platform as part of their marketing campaigns. The top three reasons for using TikTok were to raise brand awareness, increase brand engagement and gain new customers.

Here we look at some of the campaigns spas have been running and six ways that TikTok can be used to your advantage.

Staffing continues to be a challenge for the spa industry. According to Statista US, those aged between 10 and 19 years old make up 25% of the TikTok demographic with those between 20 and 29 accounting for 22.4% and 30 to 39-year-olds making up 21.7%. These are prime age groups for potential spa staff who may be spending their leisure time on the app.

Rudding Park Hotel in Yorkshire, UK ran a campaign that made existing members of their staff the stars of TikTok videos with the aim of attracting others to want to work for them. They used trending topics such as ‘a day in the life of’ and ‘when your besties are on the same shift’ in order to increase engagement.

The TikTok audience is fascinated with ‘how to’ videos and this extends to treatments, which can either transform or mesmerise the user through their repetition. Think about even the most tiny details – one of the most popular videos is someone having their hair washed! Any unusual ingredients or close-ups on facial or massage tools used in treatments are popular too. Combine these with round-ups of your best facials, wraps and beauty products, and see if you can associate any of your treatments with current trends beyond TikTok. If you offer cryotherapy or a bathtub treatment, can you perhaps recreate a Wim Hof-style ice bath?

TikTok is all about joyful entertainment and Carden Park Hotel in Cheshire has mastered this with its authentic but beautifully shot compilation videos of the experiences you can enjoy at the spa. Grouping under popular target audience search terms, the Spa at Carden features ‘girls weekends’ ‘couples breaks’ and ‘date night’. By combining this with popular hashtags such as #luxuryspa and #tiktoktravel, in a very short period this multi-awardwinning spa has managed to deliver a number of viral videos and attract over 1.7 million likes.

TikTok creators live and breathe the channel. They have already built up a loyal following and know what their audience likes to see. Research the popular TikTokers producing the type of content you would like for your spa. Grow your audience by inviting them to visit and film their trip under the heading ‘come to the spa with me’.

One content creator we worked with recently generated more enquiries for our spa client than national TV coverage! Remember to target the travel and lifestyle accounts, which often do regional round-ups such as ‘best places in the UK for a spa break’.

Look to TikTok’s own insights for help in identifying trends through popular hashtags such as #trendingtoday #trendinginyourcountry #viraltrends. Scroll through the platform’s ‘For You’ page for inspiration and browse the channel’s Creative Center to see what songs are trending.

Sound is integral to the TikTok experience as music makes the content more relatable and generates longer watch times. It also creates a positive feeling around your brand.

Fresh ideas for marketing campaigns often come from looking outside your industry and there are thousands of brands on TikTok we can learn from. Take a look at Ryanair’s talking planes that address customer complaints, or Duolingo’s mascot, which has become a TikTok icon by making the brand more relatable and acknowledging the key issues of language learning.

Storytelling is key to this success and it starts your own customer narrative. Address these in an entertaining way and there’s every chance your next TikTok video could go viral.

MEET THE EXPERT: After a decade and a half in consumer public relations, 16 years ago Tracey Stapleton began to specialise in spa and wellbeing. Now managing director of The Spa PR Company, she offers a targeted range of PR and marketing services to spa and hotel operators as well as beauty and wellbeing product brands and services. www.thespaprcompany.com