Med Spa Success Strategies Podcast: Episode Summary

Title: 9 Common Med Spa Meta Ads Mistakes (And How to Fix Them!)
Host: Ricky Shockley
Release Date: May 19, 2025

Introduction

In Episode 9 of the Med Spa Success Strategies podcast, host Ricky Shockley delves into the frequent pitfalls med spa owners encounter when running Meta (Facebook and Instagram) advertisements. Aimed at helping med spa and aesthetics practice owners enhance their marketing efforts, Ricky outlines nine common mistakes and provides actionable solutions to optimize ad performance, ultimately fostering growth, scalability, and financial freedom.

1. Poor Positioning in the Market

Issue:
Med spas often fail to present themselves as the top choice among competitors, primarily due to inadequate positioning based on reputation, convenience, and pricing.

Insights:
Ricky introduces the Med Spa Selection Matrix, which evaluates how potential customers score a med spa out of 100 based on three weighted factors:

• Reputation and Affection (50%)
• Convenience (30%)
• Price or Promotion (20%)

Example & Quote:
At [02:30], Ricky explains, “If you have a 4.7-star rating while competitors boast near-perfect ratings, you're less likely to attract new clients.”

Solutions:

• Enhance your reputation through consistent quality and customer feedback.
• Improve convenience by targeting local demographics.
• Develop competitive pricing or enticing promotions.

2. Unexciting Offers

Issue:
Offers lack the appeal needed to attract and convert potential clients, leading to higher customer acquisition costs.

Insights:
At [05:45], Ricky emphasizes the importance of creating attractive promotions: “The cost to acquire a customer goes down when the attractiveness of our offer or our promo goes up.”

Example:
One client saw lead costs drop from $24 to $15 by reducing the Botox promo from $179 to $169, significantly enhancing ROI.

Solutions:

• Craft compelling new patient specials.
• Experiment with different discount structures to find what resonates best with your audience.

3. Offer Framing Issues

Issue:
Incorrectly structuring promotional offers can lead to inefficient ad performance and higher lead costs.

Insights:
At [16:20], Ricky discusses how framing offers as unit prices versus bundled packages can drastically impact lead generation. For instance, shifting a Disport package from $599 to $4.50 per unit reduced lead costs from $37 to $13.

Solutions:

• Test various offer frames such as unit pricing vs. bundled packages.
• Customize offers based on service type and market demand.

4. Ineffective Creative Elements

Issue:
Subpar visuals and copy in ads fail to capture attention or convey the value of the services offered.

Insights:
Ricky points out at [23:10], “Creative alone can be a massive variable for better success.” Simple changes in imagery, color schemes, or copy can halve lead costs.

Example:
A client’s Disport promo lead cost was reduced from $32 to $16 simply by altering the ad's creative elements.

Solutions:

• Continuously test and refine visual and copy elements.
• Ensure that creatives tell a compelling story and build trust.

5. [Missing in Transcript]

(Note: The provided transcript skips from Problem 4 to Problem 6. As such, Problem 5 is not addressed in this summary.)

6. Inadequate Follow-Up and Conversion Strategies

Issue:
Leads generated from Meta Ads often go cold due to poor follow-up, resulting in lost opportunities despite the low cost of acquisition.

Insights:
At [35:50], Ricky highlights the necessity of automated follow-up systems: “Automate until interested. This ensures your team engages only with genuinely interested prospects.”

Solutions:

• Implement automated text-heavy follow-up sequences.
• Incorporate phone calls where feasible to engage leads effectively.

7. Advertising the Wrong Services

Issue:
Promoting services that do not align well with Meta’s advertising strengths can lead to high lead costs and low conversion rates.

Insights:
At [42:15], Ricky explains that services like laser hair removal or micro-needling often suffer from poor targeting and low response rates on Meta platforms. In contrast, injectables like Botox and Dysport perform significantly better.

Solutions:

• Focus advertising efforts on high-performing services such as injectables.
• Use Meta Ads to upsell or cross-sell ancillary services to existing clients rather than promoting lower-performing treatments directly.

8. Improper Expectations and Data Analysis

Issue:
Many med spa owners lack a clear understanding of what constitutes successful ad performance, leading to misguided evaluations of ROI.

Insights:
At [51:00], Ricky shares that without knowing benchmarks, owners can misjudge their campaigns. For example, expecting a Botox lead cost below $10 when the promo doesn’t support it leads to disappointment.

Example & Quote:
Ricky states, “If you're running ads for Botox at $10 per unit, you might not see the desired results.”

Solutions:

• Utilize benchmarks to set realistic expectations for lead costs and conversion rates.
• Focus on long-term ROI by tracking client retention and lifetime value rather than just initial visits.

9. Lack of Tracking Mechanisms

Issue:
Without proper tracking, med spas cannot accurately measure the effectiveness of their advertising efforts, hindering optimization and confidence in marketing investments.

Insights:
At [59:30], Ricky underscores the importance of tracking: “If you don't know how many of your leads are closing and how much they spend, you're not going to have confidence in your marketing investment.”

Solutions:

• Integrate your EMR with a CRM like Go High Level for real-time data tracking.
• Maintain detailed records of lead conversions, spending, and client retention.

Conclusion

Ricky Shockley’s comprehensive overview of common Meta Ads mistakes provides med spa owners with valuable insights into optimizing their advertising strategies. By addressing issues related to positioning, offer attractiveness, creative effectiveness, follow-up processes, service selection, realistic goal setting, and robust tracking, med spas can significantly enhance their ad performance, reduce acquisition costs, and foster long-term client relationships.

Notable Quotes:

• “[02:30]** Ricky Shockley: “If you have a 4.7-star rating while competitors boast near-perfect ratings, you're less likely to attract new clients.”
• “[05:45]** Ricky Shockley: “The cost to acquire a customer goes down when the attractiveness of our offer or our promo goes up.”
• “[35:50]** Ricky Shockley: “Automate until interested. This ensures your team engages only with genuinely interested prospects.”
• “[51:00]** Ricky Shockley: “If you're running ads for Botox at $10 per unit, you might not see the desired results.”
• “[59:30]** Ricky Shockley: “If you don't know how many of your leads are closing and how much they spend, you're not going to have confidence in your marketing investment.”