Fix This Next: Make the Vital Change that Will Level Up Your Business

Dear spa owner, let me pitch you this question: does it feel like everything needs fixing in your spa business?

Trust me, I know the feeling; in fact, I was once in your exact shoes as a spa owner with a bazillion-and-one things that needed to be done on the daily. Whether it be growth initiatives, marketing plans, team to-do-lists, or hiring and recruiting (which I know is top of the list for many of you reopening your spa businesses amid COVID-19!), it’s easy for spa owners to feel adrift in their sea of responsibilities and deadlines. In fact, now more than ever I’ve had coaching clients of mine phone me in a panic about heightened staff instability due to COVID. 

In short? As a spa owner it can feel like there are always a mountain of priorities, but the kicker is that if you have more than one priority it’s no longer a priority. A priority, by definition, requires singular focus; having multiple not only dilutes that focus, but sends you headlong down a path of burnout.

So how do you determine the priority of the long list of to-dos in order to manage the time and impact of your spa business initiatives? 

Enter Mike Michalowicz’s newest how-to book, “Fix This Next: Make the Vital Change that Will Level Up Your Business”.

Michael Michalowicz’s Simple System for Prioritizing REAL Priorities 

If you tuned in to my last Thursday Spa Business Break, “How to Take Time Off From Your Spa Business in the Summer”, you’ll know that I referenced Michael Michalowicz’s book “Clockwork: Design Your Business to Run Itself”. Having loved “Clockwork”, I was thrilled when “Fix This Next” came out this Spring; what I love about Michalowicz’s writing style is the simplicity in which he breaks down his systems, making it easily digestible for even new spa owners. 

For example, Michalowicz’s prioritizing methodology, ‘the business hierarchy of needs’, is a pyramid.

• The bottom is sales, which is what spa owners should be looking at first when evaluating their spa business

• Next is profit, an aspect that I often look at with both my coaching clients and spa owners in my free spa owners-only Facebook group, Spa Business Mastery

• Next one up is order, which orbits around the operational efficiency of your spa business (a portion of spa business that I’m dedicating my upcoming eCourse to!)

• Above those sits impact and, finally, legacy. I actually discussed impact and legacy with one of my social media management clients recently when talking over the impact COVID-19 has had on her business, as the project she wanted to put the most effort into right off the gate was a legacy project. However, that project wouldn’t have as much of an impact as focusing on ecommerce to bolster sales would. The end realization? That prioritizing projects with the most impact for your business, especially during COVID, is absolutely essential for both your spa business’s present and its legacy

Your Spa Business’s Core 5 Needs

“Fix This Next: Make the Vital Change that Will Level Up Your Business” also explores in-depth the five core business needs attached to each of these levels, the idea being that, if you as a business owner can check off each of these needs, you’ll be in good shape to focus on the next level in the pyramid. 

The core five needs for sales are as follows:

• Lifestyle congruence: by mapping out what you need to make as a spa owner in order to continue your business; this isn’t an idealistic median, but instead a monthly or yearly marker for what you need to live comfortably. From there spa owners can set their sales goals in advance rather than shooting in the dark month-by-month

• Prospect attraction: also known as marketing, evaluating your marketing system’s automation and efficiency is vital for seeing where the chinks in your marketing armour are. Many spa owners outsource to my team when it comes to marketing due to the level of time, know-how, and consistency required to draw in quality leads, but for spa owners looking to do it themselves then evaluating your existing prospect attraction is vital

• Client conversion: are people converting into clients from visiting your website or having conversations with you? If not, then this needs to be a focus

• Delivering on your commitments: while this may come easy for the majority of spa owners, there are always many aspects of the client journey that could be bettered; whether it be stronger beauty outcomes, communication, automation, or team handbooks to keep the client journey consistent once handed over to your team, choosing not to evaluate your existing process is leaving money on the table

• Collecting on your commitments: although not typically an issue in the spa industry, collecting on your commitments means that spa owners need to be sure to get paid! 

“So Kirsten, What DO I Fix Next?”

Amid COVID-19, I have to recommend prioritizing on lifestyle congruence and prospect attraction in order to bolster your client conversion rates; dividing aspects of your spa business into tiers, like Michalowicz promotes, is a fantastic way to further break down what you need to prioritize in order to have the most impact.

If you’ve already picked up “Fix This Next”, let me know: do you love it? Is it your first book of his that you’ve read? What have been your biggest “aha” moments while reading? Contact me today to let me know (or ask further questions!)