Increasing SPF Sales

If the shimmering sun outside your salon windows is drying out of all your business, believe it or not, sunscreen could be the answer. Though sunscreen manufacturers, along with dermatologists, vilify the indoor tanning industry in the media, you shouldn’t let their disdain overshadow the fact that millions of people buy SPF products, and more importantly, that those people could be buying their SPF products from you.

Especially now, as we head into the summer months, your customers can and will tan outside—and even when they’re not tanning, they’re probably involved in outdoor recreational activities, such as golf, swimming, tennis and running. Stocking SPFs and marketing them effectively can help boost sales during the slow season and provide you with an opportunity to educate your clients about the importance of responsible sun exposure.

Adding SPF Retail Products

From a business standpoint, every customer who walks through the front door should contribute some sort of revenue; most often, this is through the purchase of services and retail items such as SPFs and lotions. These contributions are referred to as “tanning dollars per customer.” During slow season, your dollars per customer will inevitably take a hit, but if your loyal customers know that they can stop in the salon during the summer to buy a certain brand of SPF and get a little advice from knowledgeable staff, they will.

“Several of the major manufacturers and suppliers to our industry offer SPF-type products,” says Jerry Deveney, executive director of sales for JK North America. In other words, if you’re looking to start stocking SPFs, contact the manufacturers and distributors you already have relationships with. Find out what they have available and what arrangements, such as co-op advertising options or SPIFFs, they might be willing to offer.

As people can buy SPFs at everywhere from Wal-Mart to a pharmacy, tanning salons have the challenge of keeping their prices competitive with the retail giants. Deveney offers a suggestion, though. “Include a bonus of one or two free sessions on your top level tanning systems with the purchase, and you can make Wal-Mart look like they're overcharging.”

The most fervent tanners will not be looking to buy any old SPF, either, because these customers aren’t interested in putting on a liquid sweatshirt that will compromise the bronze they’ve worked so hard to achieve. Therefore, clients will value your advice as an expert. What SPF is right for them? How long can and should they stay in the sun when wearing this particular product before burning? By boning up on SPF knowledge, you can provide these answers and build a rapport with customer as an expert. Similarly, you can inform your customers of your SPF offerings by reaching them through the contact information you already have on-hand.

“Tanning salon customers are among the most appearance-conscious consumers in the world,” Deveney says. “Every salon has an extensive database that they should be marketing to via e-mail, as well as inside the salon.” Deveney suggests an SPF marketing campaign that highlights travel and being prepared for the vacation sun. After all, summer is when people tend to go on trips to sunny locales and engage in outdoor activities while traveling.

From an ethical standpoint, tanning salon owners also have a responsibility to educate their clients about responsible sun exposure. It’s important for your clients’ well-being and it’s important for the industry. Carrying SPF products, encouraging their proper use and consumer education regarding sunscreen can help change the outlook that the indoor tanning industry is a profit-first entity that is not concerned with people’s health but only with preying on people’s vanity.

“Using an SPF to limit outdoor exposure is similar to using an FDA-compliant and properly controlled indoor tanning system,” Deveney says. “We all want to limit the dosage of UV we receive and to tan without overexposing our skin. Selling SPF products goes hand-in-hand with our industry's campaign to educate people on how to tan responsibly.”

New FDA Regulations

The laws surrounding the information that SPFs need to provide to users changed last year. Now, customers need to know how much protection they’re getting from UVA and UVB light, when in the past, they were only privy to UVB. Additionally, the range of recognized SPFs raised from 2 to 30 to 2 to 50. If you want to make sure that what you sell is FDA-approved, click here to read more.