A Look Inside a Leading Med Spa: Building Reputation & Loyalty - Interview w/ Seaside Skincare

Summary

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Med Spa Success Strategies Podcast:

"A Look Inside a Leading Med Spa: Building Reputation & Loyalty"

Interview with Seaside Skincare
Host: Ricky Shockley
Guests: Kylie Dilio (Chief Creative Officer), Kate Tomalis (Chief Marketing Officer)
Release Date: October 31, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this episode of Med Spa Success Strategies, host Ricky Shockley sits down with Kylie Dilio and Kate Tomalis of Seaside Skincare, a leading med spa with a 15-year track record. The discussion delves into how Seaside Skincare built its reputation, scaled through thoughtful service expansion, underwent a bold rebrand, and drove engagement and loyalty among both patients and staff. The episode is packed with experience-backed insights, actionable marketing tips, and real talk about building a sustainable, top-tier med spa business.

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Key Topics & Segments

1. Seaside Skincare: Origins and Growth

• [01:17–04:08] Backgrounds
  • Kylie, a founder, shares the family origins: her brother proposed a niche medical-grade skincare business, later involving his now-wife and their father (the medical director).
  • Kate’s diverse marketing background (from luxury children’s products to Grubhub and nonprofit), and her "weasel[ing] her way in there" (03:16) seven years ago, after a friend's recommendation.

“Day one, it was me, my brother, Chiara, and then my dad.” — Kylie [03:34]

• Growth Trajectory
  • Started with 3; now, 15 years later, the team is over 20.
  • They moved locations as needed, always expanding in response to genuine demand, never overextending.
• Key Insight: Start small and grow as demand dictates.

“We started with one esthetician, and then from there went to a nurse and then kept building.” — Kylie [04:53]

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2. Service Offering Strategy

• [06:08–07:55] Intentional Expansion
  • Began with a narrow service list—Botox only—and expanded slowly based on client demand and clinical data.
  • New services are added only if they are safe, effective, and backed by clinical studies.

“We are slow to add things... Our medical director is very data driven. Unless there are clinical studies backing that treatment up... it’s probably something that we’re not going to be bringing on.” — Kate [07:13]

• Value Add vs. Trend Chasing
  • Avoid chasing the "next big thing" unless its value to current clients is proven.
  • Maintain transparency with clients; never upsell unnecessary treatments.

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3. Patient Experience & Provider Consistency

• [08:55–11:44] Consistency with Flexibility
  • Core: Consistent training, aligned consultations, and documentation.
  • Providers’ personalities bring unique touches, allowing clients to find their best "fit."
  • Front desk staff uses a "vibe check" to match new patients to the right provider.

“Consults are pretty similar, but obviously personality comes into play... Delivery is very similar. Can’t talk, but personality comes in.” — Kylie [09:36]

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4. The Rebranding Journey

• [12:22–17:49] From Outdated to Outspoken
  • Trigger: Old logo/colors felt outdated and didn’t reflect the business’s “family feel.”
  • Solution: Hired an outside agency (“Bald”) for objective guidance.
  • Pain points: Unexpected resistance from staff rather than patients; adaptation took time.
  • Motivation: Stand out in the market instead of blending in with typical med spa colors.

“We wanted to be a little bit bolder, and we were solely just blue before.” — Kylie [14:33]

• Execution Tips:
  • Outside help can clarify vision.
  • Deep research: Analyze reviews, introspections, competitive landscape.
  • Patient response was overwhelmingly positive.

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5. Building and Maintaining Reputation

• [19:14–22:49] Culture and Team as the Foundation
  • Excellence from first point of contact (front desk) through provider experience.
  • Staff receive extensive training; many receive treatments themselves to speak authentically to clients.
  • Employee engagement: Internal contests for “Seaside Bucks,” staff perks, and product/service credits.

“Our front desk staff... receives a lot of treatments themselves, which is the best way to get people kind of talking about them.” — Kate [21:48]

• Driving Online Reviews:
  • Express appreciation instead of tips (“the best thing you could do is write them a Google review”), reinforced with post-visit messages.
  • Results: 400+ Google reviews with an average five-star rating [45:58–46:40].

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6. Community Engagement & Marketing

• [23:18–26:03] Deep Local Ties
  • Two large in-house events yearly, cause-driven drives (fire relief, animal shelters, toy drives), local business collabs (e.g., pilates studios).
  • Emphasis on giving and values alignment for genuine community presence.
  • Success measurement is intangible—but repetition and visibility matter.

“The easiest way is to really give back in some kind of meaningful way to a lot of the businesses that directly... support our community here.” — Kate [23:35]

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7. Promotions, Memberships & Loyalty

• [26:05–32:08] Pricing & Promotion Tactics
  • Annual marketing calendar, but adjust based on shifting demand and product launches.
  • Avoid predictability in promotions to prevent consumer "waiting games."
  • Membership program became successful after shifting from a Botox-only model to an all-services “bank your bucks” approach, with exclusive events as perks.

“We made it more generic. The more a credit they can use towards any service at the office. But there are discounts associated with being a member.” — Kate [30:21]

• Reward Programs:
  • Flexible use of manufacturer reward points ("double dipping" encouraged).

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8. Pricing Strategy

• [33:20–38:10] Balancing Competitiveness and Value
  • Regular, detailed financial reviews to ensure promotions and pricing make sense for both patients and the business.
  • Seaside avoids being the “discount” provider, positioning above mid-market while providing strong justification through provider skill, training, and patient outcomes.
  • Pricing regularly benchmarked against the local market.

“We know we’re not the cheapest med spa out there. We’re never going to be. And that’s for a reason... We know the skill level justifies the cost.” — Kate [35:34]

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9. Talent Retention and Staff Culture

• [38:18–41:03] Keeping the Best
  • Competitive pay paired with ongoing training (in-house and external), staff perks (treatments, “Seaside Bucks”).
  • Emphasis on cultural fit during hiring, with working trial days for prospective hires.

“Good people want to work with other good people, and that in and of itself probably lends itself to retention.” — Ricky [39:21]

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10. Industry Trends & Staying Current

• [41:05–43:26] Data Over Hype
  • Seaside is slow to add trendy new services, requiring clinical data and internal vetting.
  • Stay informed via tight industry networks, reps, and provider-to-provider conversations.

“Everything has to be very clinically backed and make sense and completely safe before we even think about bringing it on.” — Kate [42:18]

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11. Social Media and Digital Strategy

• [43:38–45:46] Focus Where Clients Are
  • Instagram and Facebook prioritized due to client demographics (35+).
  • The feed is seen as a trust-building tool rather than a primary acquisition channel.

“Our clientele isn’t like on TikTok or any of that... There’s a lot of focus on Instagram, even Facebook for that age range.” — Kate [44:19]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Growth:
  “We started small and grew out of necessity.” — Kylie [04:53]
• On Reputation:
  “Good is not good enough. You have to be great, and that’s a constant pursuit.” — Ricky [18:47]
• On Staff Perks:
  “The best thing that we do for our front desk staff is give them that experience all around.” — Kate [22:42]
• On Rebranding:
  “It was just time. We need to do it... We were kind of bored with the colors.” — Kylie [12:22]
• On Consistency:
  “All our providers are charting and documenting everything so we’re able to have that consistency.” — Kate [10:03]
• On Loyalty Programs:
  “They can double dip with those [points]... With any special.” — Kate [31:53]
• On Community Impact:
  “The easiest way is to really give back in some kind of meaningful way to a lot of the businesses that directly... support our community here.” — Kate [23:35]

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Timestamps for Important Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |----------------------------------------------------|-------------| | Origins and Early Growth | 01:17–04:08 | | Service Offering and Selection Strategy | 06:08–07:55 | | Provider Consistency & Patient Matching | 08:55–11:44 | | Rebranding Challenges & Execution | 12:22–17:49 | | Building Reputation & Culture | 19:14–22:49 | | Community Engagement & Local Marketing | 23:18–26:03 | | Promotions, Memberships & Loyalty Programs | 26:05–32:08 | | Financials, Pricing Strategy | 33:20–38:10 | | Staff Retention & Hiring Culture | 38:18–41:03 | | Staying Current with Industry Trends | 41:05–43:26 | | Social Media & Online Reputation | 43:38–45:46 |

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Final Takeaways

• Start intentionally: Grow only as demand dictates to manage risk and ensure sustainability.
• Let data guide decisions: New services and technologies must be backed by both patient interest and robust clinical evidence.
• Consistency is key: Training and process consistency underlie a great patient experience, even as individual provider personalities shine.
• Engage and reward staff: Firsthand experience plus engagement incentives like “Seaside Bucks” foster authentic, knowledgeable recommendations.
• Be bold in identity: Thoughtful rebrands and market differentiation can set your practice apart, even in a saturated space.
• Community matters: Grassroots involvement and cross-promotion establish trust and increase local visibility.
• Reputation is earned everywhere: From the website and social channels to in-office greetings, every touchpoint counts.
• Stay flexible and aware: Plan ahead, but stay nimble—adapt offerings and promotions based on demand and market shifts.

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For More:
Visit seasideskincare.com and follow @seasideskincare on Instagram.
For more strategies, tune in regularly to the Med Spa Success Strategies Podcast.

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Transcript

[A]

Welcome to the MedSpa Success Strategies podcast, where MedSpa and aesthetics practice owners come to discover strategies and tactics that help them better market and manage their practices so they can grow, improve profitability and have greater impact for their teams, their patients and their communities. I'm your host, Ricky Shockley with MedSpa Magic Marketing, and today I'm joined by two incredible marketing minds behind Seaside Skincare. Kylie Dilio, Chief Creative Officer, and Kate Tomalis, Chief Marketing Officer. In this episode, we dive into how Seaside built and scaled their business from the ground up. From the story of how it all began in 2010 to the rebrand that's helped them stand out in a competitive market. Kylie and Kate share what's fueled their success and growth, how they chose the services that they offer, and the thoughtful ways they've shaped their patient experience and reputation over the years. We also explore the marketing and community engagement strategies that have kept Seaside at the forefront of the industry, proving that creativity, consistency and connection truly pay off. Kate and Kylie, so excited to have you on the podcast. I know I've had this on my radar for a long time. To talk to both of you, you run a very successful practice. I think in this industry, what everybody's striving for is a great reputation and you all have achieved that in the business at a really high threshold. So I wanted to start with just your backgrounds and your backstories. How did you both end up in the business? Kylie, were you there first?

[B]

I was there first. I am one of the founders. So it's a family run business. My brother had the brilliant idea to start a niche business in the medical field. So he wanted to sell medical grade products. And then his girlfriend at the time, now wife, she helped too. And then I worked at the front. Chiara was kind of the brains behind the business. And then my dad's the medical director.

[A]

Oh, wow. I didn't even know that. I didn't know. That's cool.

[B]

And I've moved to the marketing side now.

[A]

What were you doing before this? Before Seaside?

[B]

I was a nanny.

[A]

Oh, nice. Cool. Yeah. And has the business been called Seaside from the origin? We'll get to this conversation in a second. What was that the original name?

[B]

Original name and we've stuck by it. Yep.

[A]

Awesome.

[B]

We kind of shortened it to Seaside, but with the SEO and stuff, we've had to keep skincare portion of it.

[C]

Yeah, yeah.

[A]

And then Kate, how did you. How did you become part of the business?

[C]

Yeah, so I've got a long time marketing background. I've Kind of. I've kind of done marketing in all different fields. My very first position was in a luxury children's, like, hair care skincare line. I also worked at grubhub for a period of time. So, like food services in Mark in their marketing department, not an actual food services. I worked for a nonprofit in marketing. But I've always really loved the aesthetics industry. And one of my very close girlfriends at the time was a medical esthetician here, and she kept saying, like, seaside would really benefit from some of the knowledge that you have. So I came in, met with them, kind of pleaded my case. There wasn't really a role for me at the time. And I weaseled my way in there.

[B]

Kind of. We needed her. Yeah, we needed her.

[C]

I weasel my way in there. And now I've been here for seven years, which is crazy, but wonderful.

[A]

So going back. Yeah. And going back to the origins, Kylie, how many people? Like day one, when you all opened the business? 15 years ago. Was it 15 years ago?

[B]

Yep, it was 15 years ago. We just saw how many people.

[A]

Day one.

[B]

Day one, it was me, my brother Chiara, and then my dad.

[A]

How many? How many people now here we are 15 years later.

[B]

20. 21. 20 or 21?

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Wow. And Kate, what was it when you started? Do you remember, size wise?

[C]

Fifteen?

[A]

Maybe.

[C]

Maybe less.

[B]

Maybe less.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

She was like, in the. In between her. Yeah.

[C]

Yeah. Because we've. We had a couple of. Yeah. Three nurses at the time, maybe.

[B]

Yeah. And now we have six.

[C]

Six.

[A]

Yeah. That's awesome.

[C]

Cool.

[A]

Cool.

[C]

No, it's. It's changed and transformed a ton in the time that I've been here. We. Right after I joined, we moved locations to the location that we're in now, which is very sizable, and we filled the space. So one of.

[A]

One of the things that's come up a ton on the podcast is the best way to start a med spa, and I believe this to be true, is to start small and grow as demand dictates. Would you say that that's the way that you all grew this business? Like, you started with a small team and a small office, and. And as you grew and had more patients, you added providers, and then eventually, Kate, you joined. You're getting a bigger space, but you're not really at any point along this process, you just didn't necessarily take a huge jump or a huge leap of faith. You were kind of growing out of necessity. Would that be an accurate description?

[B]

Very accurate. We started with one esthetician, and then from there we went to A nurse and then kept building. So then we had to go from space one to space two, Then we got some more nurses, and then from space two to space three, which we're pretty big now in this space, so we probably won't be moving anytime soon.

[A]

Yeah. That's awesome, though. That's like the thing that's come over. Come on the podcast over and over again is the idea that that's really the best way to grow. I think you see a lot of people, especially when they're just starting off, they've got grandiose visions and they get a big space and a bunch of team members, and it creates massive stress. Just probably not just financially, but emotionally, too. And this is a business that I think everybody thinks that the profit margins are huge. They're not generally huge in terms of percentages, and everything's got to be pretty dialed in to run an efficient, profitable business. And. And starting off without a clear plan and a big space, I think we've just seen that story play out over and over again. The amount of stress that that produces because it's hard to achieve profitability when you're starting from scratch and you have a. A ton of expenses.

[C]

Definitely seen that a ton in our area too. Where. Where medspots have come and they've gone just because they can't support it. They don't have the clientele to support. Support that kind of business yet.

[B]

Yeah. Start with a ton of services as well. Where that's quite overwhelming.

[A]

Yeah. Did you all. Did you all start with a smaller list of services and that's kind of just slowly expanded over time strategically?

[B]

Yes, we just did. With the nurses, it was just Botox. And then finally we started creeping lasers in there and then just kept building and building with the industry.

[A]

I told you, I'm gonna go totally off the rails with the question. So I already have three follow ups. Another thing that's come up a bunch is when you're adding services. And I just talked to. This is probably fresh in my mind because I just talked to Gina Graziano on the podcast about this. When you're adding services, how do you all decide what makes the most sense for your practice? Are you doing it based on, like, client demand? Any sort of research? How do you get a pulse on what the right thing to add is versus what you say no to? Because obviously there are a ton of options. So especially when you get into, like, lasers and devices, how do you make those decisions?

[B]

Yeah, it's always client demand first that gets us the idea for it and then we always back it with clinical data, make sure it's going to be good service for our clientele and obviously make sure it's a safe procedure as well.

[C]

Yeah, I would say we are slow to add things to our service list. We really want to make sure that everything is completely safe, that it's going to be effective. We're not the kind of practice that is just every new thing here and there. We're like, oh, let's add that. Oh, let's add that. We really take our time with it. Our medical director, our clinical director specifically is very data driven. So unless there are clinical studies that are backing that treatment up, showing all these benefits to it, it's probably something that we're not going to be bringing on. So everything that we perform we feel really comfortable with and we feel like it's going to be really safe and effect for our patients.

[A]

So you're not. I think, I think sometimes people are doing things in the opposite order. It's like is you're kind of just seeing the fine. You're making the decision based on financial pos and it's financial possibilities most of the time, not even financial realities. But you're saying, hey, what's right for our patients? Where do we have demand? What are, what are our existing patients going to like? I think sometimes people make the mistake of we're going to add a device hoping that it just opens up a whole other new pool of patients and if that doesn't work, it all really falls apart. So if it's a value add for your existing clients, it's a lot less risky and then selling it's not. It doesn't never feels like sales if you believe in what you're selling. So making sure that it's a product that's safe and effective and you believe in the result.

[B]

Yes, exactly.

[C]

Absolutely. And I feel like that's one of the big things at Seaside. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the thing we really pride ourselves on is just the transparency between provider patient. If there's a service that's not right for you, they're not going to sell you on that. They want to make sure that they're delivering the best possible result for you and if it's not the right treatment, we're not going to perform it.

[A]

Yeah, yeah. And another follow up question on a similar vein. If you don't have the answer off the top, that's totally fine. This is something though that I've, I've had a little bit of a contradiction and people do that seem to do this different ways. When you talk about your provider experience, is that something that you all are trying to make as consistent as possible from provider to provider? So where you've got things kind of streamlined like, hey, I want you to be able to come in with person A and if you See Person C 90 days from now, we want that experience and the consult and the way that they, they talk to you to be as aligned as possible. Or do you let those people sort of have a little bit of independence in how they manage their own client base? I've seen both options.

[C]

Interesting. I want to hear your answer first.

[B]

I would say all our consults are pretty similar, but obviously personality is going to come into play where everyone's a little bit different but results very similar. They're very well trained by the highest of high people. So I would say delivery is very similar. Can't talk, but personality comes in.

[C]

I totally agree. I think there is a level of consistency between the providers. Again, all trained under Michelle, who's an allergan trainer. So like she was saying, I mean, we get the best of the best here, so we're very lucky in that regard. But everyone's personality is a little bit different. We have some providers that are a little like warmer and, and there are some that are more clinical and it really, it's great for patients because I feel like they can find that provider that they really feel the most comfortable with because sometimes you want that person to kind of baby you hold your hand a little bit through the procedure. And other personalities might not really want that. They just want the, like to the point, someone who feels very knowledgeable and. Yeah, but as you were saying, results I would say are very similar. And of course all of our providers are charting and documenting everything so we're able to have that consistency.

[A]

Sort of like the training is consistent, the consult has some consistency that we're trying to make sure we're aligned on consistent result. And then the stuff that happens in the middle, personality based stuff, that's where it's a little bit more flexible. Do you have any sort of a way to get a pulse for like how to pair someone with the right provider? So if someone's coming in for their first Botox appointment, is there a way, either upon entry or as like a feedback mechanism post appointment to figure out is this the right person to provide service? Since they do have different personalities, there might be a different fit.

[B]

When I used to work up at the front and I sometimes still do, I just use My best judgment on when you're talking to someone on the phone, because obviously not everyone's coming in office or via email or text, you kind of just go on. Best judgment, I would say, on that, certainly.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Business needs plus vibe check, basically. Yeah. Cool. Jumping to the rebrand, because I know this is something you all worked really hard on, I think. I think this is something that. Especially if you started your business 15 years ago, for those listening that maybe been in business for a while, maybe you like what you're currently doing, but you want to do something different with the logo or the color schemes or update it. That can be very daunting. And I know this is something you all just went through, so I wanted to ask a few questions on that. I guess. First question is, what prompted the decision to. Not even the decision. What was the itch that was at the origin of this? That was, hey, we feel like we need to rebrand.

[B]

We've wanted to do it for a couple of years now, and then finally it was just the time. We're like, we need to do it. It's. It's old, outdated. I originally made the first logo, and we kind of just went with that. And we were kind of bored with the colors, I would say.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

And me and Kate do most of the design, so we were like, we need. We need something new.

[C]

Yes, certainly. I think it was the logo that was really, like, our catalyst for, oh, we really need a change. But we really wanted in the rebrand because the logo was created 15 years ago. We didn't really feel like it was reflective of kind of the way that the. The business has grown and evolved, because a lot of what we feel like makes us very special is kind of like the. It's like a family feel. And we felt like maybe the old logo didn't really convey that super well. So we were really excited for the change.

[A]

So. So basically, hey, this. We created this thing a long time ago. We kind of had just a little different iterations. If we were starting from scratch, that probably is not what we would do. So we want to do something different. Obviously, that can come with its own stresses. Right. People that have note, if you. Especially when you've been in business for a while, that's what they're used to seeing. I think maybe people are a little bit more attached to things than. Than they probably should be. Patients probably care less, I'm assuming. I don't know if you've. If you've gotten feedback from the patients. Did they.

[B]

We've had employees not like it, but I feel like they're. They're finally coming around. Change is hard. So I feel like a lot of them were having hard because we went from just solely blue, and now we have orange and cream in there. We still do have a blue as well, but I feel like the big change of the colors was very hard for a lot of people to come. Come around, but I feel like they're finally coming around.

[C]

We had a lot of staff. We had a lot of unexpected staff feedback about it, which I don't think we were anticipating because we were just upset. We were so excited.

[B]

We wanted to change, though, so I feel like might have played into it.

[C]

Yes. Yeah. And then.

[A]

And then the color, that's obviously a big switch going from, like, your. Your primary color. That was everywhere is this blue to orange. Was there a reason that you switched color scheme?

[B]

We wanted to be a little bit bolder, and we were solely just blue before. And so we were like, we need something.

[C]

Yeah, we popped out. Yeah. Yeah. Totally agree.

[A]

I think, Yeah, I think that is a challenge, right? Like, when you talk about branding, especially in the med spa space, it's. People are generally, like, living in, like, the neutrals to. Or blue. I think that's, like, a lot of med spas are in that range. So I think there is value, like, in just doing something that's a little bit different and trying to stand out. And if every other med spot kind of has they got the same color schemes, people are seeing ads, they're seeing stationary, Whatever it is, like, looks like generic med spa. I think there's value in something that looks different and is a little bit bold and stands out.

[C]

Yes, yes. Agree.

[B]

Yeah, we wanted to be so fun.

[C]

Yes.

[A]

Yeah. Yeah. Well, I had a friend that ran for the University of President. University president when I went to college, and I was like, his campaign manager. And it was so funny because you're running for the University of President, not President of the United States, but everybody would only use red, like, blue and red and white as their colors or some different variation. And, like, we're like, why would we do that? Let's stand out. We use lime green. So it kind of reminds me of just like, the same core concept of, like, let's do something that stands out. Anything else that went into the decision around the rebrand that you felt like was important, that you were excited about just the decision making, the strategy behind it, or even just advice on the execution and rollout if people do decide to go with, like, hey, I want to refresh this. I want this to look good. I want to do something different and something new or should people be aware of too?

[C]

So we started the process thinking that we would do it solely by ourselves. We tried. We started even redesigning logos, and we are just too close to it. We felt like we weren't accurately capturing it. So in order to actually execute on our end, we did end up hiring an agency that really guided us through the process. So there was a ton that went into the actual rebrand itself. There was a lot of looking at, like, looking at the reviews and seeing what common words that people were using to describe our space. There was a lot of introspective work that we were doing, talking about the business as a whole and what we were trying to convey in our messaging. Um, and so it was a really comprehensive process for us in terms of, like, putting all of that information together and evaluating where we were in the marketplace and where we wanted to be in the marketplace. And so it was a longer process, too. I mean, it took several months compiling all that information, going back on different iterations of what we wanted to communicate.

[B]

Yeah. And the company did great. We would go back and forth. We'd tell them our edits, and I feel like they nailed it. Yeah.

[C]

Shout out to bald. That's who it was that did our rebrand. They did a beautiful job with it, and we loved their team, and they made it really easy for us. We felt like they really understood who we were and what we were trying to convey. And now we feel like we've got this brand that we can be really proud of.

[A]

Any. Anything that was unexpected, other than, like, the team pushback. Have you run into any issues with patients being, like, confused or any.

[B]

I have actually not heard of any pushback from the patients.

[C]

I've heard nothing but positive from the patients. They love it.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Nice. That's the most important thing.

[B]

Yes, absolutely.

[A]

Hey, there. Wanted to briefly interrupt the episode to make a quick ask. If you're a podcast listener, it would mean the world to us if you'd leave a review for the podcast, whether that's on itunes or Spotify. It's something I hadn't really remembered or thought of asking for, but it does help us show up more frequently so that we can reach more people with the information that we're providing. So it'd mean the world to us if you'd leave a review on itunes or Spotify. If you're listening on audio. If you're watching on YouTube, make sure to hit the subscribe button. So you're in the loop for future videos and you don't miss any of the content that we're putting out. Cool. Well, speaking about, speaking of patience, we talked a little bit at the intro about, like, the reputation of the practice. I think this is a space where we always talk about being a minus isn't good enough. I think you hear a lot of people say, like, hey, we do a good job. Our clients like us, our providers are nice, the front. And good is not good enough. You have to. You have to be great. And that's like a constant pursuit. But when you. When you have the type of reviews and reputation that you've had and maintained for a lot of these for all these years, there's a lot that goes into that. What do you think are, like, the core pillars of why you've been able to maintain such a good reputation? I think you touched on a little bit this even just with how you select devices. But in terms of patient care, like, how do you ensure that the people that are coming in for services, like, they're having a good experience, they're clear on the expectations from start to finish. What's showing up online is very, very positive.

[B]

I think it's because we have a great team from start to finish. The moment you walk in, you're greeted very kindly. And the providers, very knowledgeable, have their extra trainings, their education, they're very, very well educated in all the devices and treatments we do here. So I feel like that plays a huge role into it.

[C]

Yeah, I totally agree. I think it is. It's the team as a whole. I think that is really. We love to take credit for those reviews, but it's really the team as a whole and the overall experience that the patients are having. I mean, from start to finish, from the market. Front desk, I was gonna say I.

[B]

Should have started with the branding because.

[C]

It starts with that.

[B]

See us there first.

[C]

It's the first introduction that a lot of people are having to the brand is. Is going on the website or seeing social or some.

[B]

And shout out to Kate. She did our website and it's quite beautiful.

[C]

Yeah, I love that they come in. Like she said, the front desk staff is so wonderful and really guides them through the process. Same thing with the providers, I would say. There's a lot of collaboration with patients and making sure we're not doing anything that they're uncomfortable with. And if they're. Some people are coming in for very small things, some people are wanting something more major and it's really just kind of assessing what each individual person is wanting and delivering that. Yeah, yeah.

[A]

So a lot of that boils down to like, this is still a business where people are buying from people and if the. In the service and the experience as a result of the people that are on the team probably makes all the difference in the world. So you talked a little bit about the advantage you have with how you recruit providers. I'm assuming that is one of those things that really helps you stand apart. Right. If the people that are doing the work are top tier, that makes a massive difference. What about the front office staff? How do you think about instilling like a culture where like the, the front office staff is really dialed in? They're the face of the business, they're the first interaction. Any tips or advice on how to ensure the front office is doing a really good job of not just winking, getting a quick wave and making them sign a paper.

[C]

Keep them happy. That's, that's my, that's. Honestly, our front desk staff is like the best of the best is the best of the best. And we do a couple different things to try and keep them motivated, keep them excited about the business.

[B]

Obviously everyone that works up there does love the aesthetic industry. So they are just, I don't know.

[C]

They'Re excited already about it and then is so wonderful and so generous that they do offer. Staff does receive a lot of treatments themselves which of course is the best way to get people kind of talking about them. Because when our front desk has experienced something, of course they can speak on it knowledgeably. And then we also run like various contests and things for them as well, specifically internally, just so that they can earn. We call them Seaside books, which gets them like credits for products or services here, which kind of just pours back into the business and then increases their knowledge base as well. It's a win. Win.

[A]

Yeah. That's a great subtle one that's never come up. If the people that are working the front desk that you want having these conversations are talking based on first hand experience with the services, that makes a massive difference. Yeah, really, really cool tidbit. I don't think anybody's ever mentioned that before, but it seems obvious now that you say it, but I don't think that's ever come up.

[C]

Oh, I think it's the. I think it's the best thing that we do for our front desk staff is give them that experience all around. All of us?

[B]

Yeah, all of the staff.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah. Awesome. Switching gears to some marketing stuff. What have you done Community wise. I think so many times practices, they want to just, you know, kind of be behind the scenes, behind the computer. They don't have anything they're doing as a practice to be like engaged with the community and to get their name out there. What we might call these guerrilla marketing tactics events, community involvement. What all have you done to kind of embed yourself in the community and make sure that people know who you are?

[C]

Oh, I can talk on that.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Okay. A couple different things. Of course. We've got, we've got events that we do. We do two large events a year.

[B]

In house.

[C]

In house, which is wonderful. We've also done so for instance, we had the fires affect LA earlier.

[B]

Gosh.

[C]

This year. Yeah, this year is flying. So we, I mean we ran, we ran a clothing drive and delivered it up and delivered it up to la. We ran a pet drive for a local animal shelter here in San Clemente as well. We've got an upcoming like toy drive as well. So in terms of trying to get ourselves kind of enmeshed in the community, I feel like the easiest way is to really give back in some kind of meaningful way to a lot of the businesses that directly, I mean, support our community here. And of course we do our, our own events to support like our seaside community.

[B]

We've also done collaborations with local businesses as well, like Pilates studios, things of that sort.

[C]

Yeah, anything you felt like. Good tie in.

[A]

Yeah, yeah. And I love the community involvement and like the, the charitable aspect too because I think when you have like values, alignment, if people care about those things and they see that you care, I think those are things that start to build a connection and the industry where it's a little harder to stand out sometimes, that's kind of stuff I think can make a massive difference. Kylie, on the, the engagements that you've had with other businesses, that's something we've mentioned a lot. I've mentioned it in some of like our videos and I always wonder, I don't know that I have any like first hand experience with it. How successful are those types of things typically? Are you kind of doing it just to kind of get your name out there? It's a little intangible in terms of like the.

[B]

Yeah, yes. It's kind of hard to see like how well it works, but then again you are just trying to support one another so I. And get your name out there.

[A]

Yeah, and it's probably one of those things too. You never know. Like you don't know that if somebody could have seen your Facebook ad. But originally they were connected at you through one of those events because they were at that studio, Pilates studio. Like you just never know. And I think we talked about in a recent episode too, we're so obsessed with data and trackability now that we forget that some of their this is like serendipitous. Like we're going to do things that, hey, you're going to give last touch attribution to, like my Google Ad or my Facebook ad. But it could be the, the fact that that person met you at a community event three years ago and then saw the ad is the reason they decided to go visit you over another practice.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Seven times.

[A]

Yeah. I mean, yeah. So I think the depth and the repetition matters and sometimes when you're doing stuff in the community, it's harder to measure, but I think it's impactful for sure. Like we've even seen that when we run ads, the people that have like, they're known in the community, they have a good reputation, they get better results from the ads. And I don't think that's by coincidence.

[B]

Yes, I agree with that one.

[A]

Cool. Pricing and promotion strategies. How do you all think about how you run specials to your existing client list? So when do you decide to push that lever? How do you schedule that? What kind of cadence do you have? And how do you try to make it unpredictable so that people aren't only buying when you're running that special or that promo. Any, any strategies there?

[C]

So we do build out our marketing calendar for the whole year. But I will say that when we build that out, it's a very much a rough, a rough outline of kind of how we think the year is going to progress. I think what we've kind of learned in terms of choosing promotions and things is that we can't plan it too far out because things in this industry are always kind of shifting and changing and we're kind of seeing where the demand is at that point within the year and kind of shifting ourselves around to kind of match that.

[B]

Or if we get a new or a new product or new service, obviously that's going to jump in to the mix as well.

[C]

Yeah. So I think it's a lot of like intuitive and shifting things around. Of course there are things in place like we're hyper aware of like the cost of goods and our provider time and all those things that factor into how, how we decide to price things. But in terms of like the seasonality of it, we have a rough idea just based on how previous years have kind of gone. But you're right. You don't want to be too, like, predictable predictable, because then that's, number one, boring. And number two, then patients are waiting because they're like, oh, I know this month you're gonna run this. And we don't want to prevent anybody from purchasing when they're ready to purchase.

[A]

Yeah. And I think I've seen people do it even worse where, like, the promotion is for the same service, and they just have the same thing every month. I'm like, well, now they're only gonna buy that. Like, at least if you're doing it, like, they can expect every November, they do this crazy deal on, like, Botox or just at least they. At least, you know, like, you got the other 11 months out of the year to have the business be more regular. And I love that.

[B]

We also started, I think, what, a year ago, our membership program. So that kind of locks them in and they get discounts on everything rather than what's happening that month.

[C]

Yeah. So those patients that are super loyal to us, they don't necessarily have to wait for that promo to run as a member. You do get exclusive discounts all year long.

[A]

Love that. So I like that you're starting off with a plan, though. Like, you're not just. The entire plan isn't just toying it last minute. You've got a base plan, and then you can adjust. You can adjust. You've got a plan. So I've got a default. I've got a fallback.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

If I don't make it, if I don't change my mind, there's still something there planned, and we reserve the right to change our mind and adjust. But at least we're, like, thinking about this ahead of time. I think a lot of people in this space, from our experience at least, it's like they don't decide what special they want to run until, like, 24 hours before they want to run it. Sometimes the morning of the. So I like the idea of having a plan ahead of time and then adjusting as things get closer to, like, the deadlines and being a little more strategic with it. The membership. I know we weren't planning to talk about this, but that's something that's come up a lot on the show is memberships. We've talked to people that make membership, like, a cornerstone of their practice, where, like, basically the only patients that are there are members. And on the other side, we've had people that don't do it at all, or they've tried and it's like, well, one out of a thousand people that have ever been into the Med Spa are members. And it's just kind of a value add for the people that are. How have you all gone about executing the launch of the membership program and trying to make that successful? Because I know that is a challenge.

[B]

Well, we've already tried one different membership and then we finally nailed it down and I feel like the one we have going on right now is very successful. Yeah, but we had to do trial and error too. And I would say our whole database is not a member. It's like we have a healthy balance.

[C]

Yes.

[A]

Yeah, but, but adjust if, like, so if you're starting with one option of membership and it's not what was, if you don't mind me asking, what was the first option that you tried that you feel like was less successful?

[B]

It was a Botox. Botox membership only. And our new membership is a seaside membership where you get discounts on everything across the board.

[C]

Yeah. So the first was. Yeah. Specifically Botox Disport. So that was the only service that it was for. And it was for a certain number of units. But per month we ran into a lot of issues with that.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

And so, yeah, we made it more generic. So now, yeah, the more a credit that they can use towards any service at the office. But there are discounts associated with being a member.

[A]

Yeah. So now it's like a bank your bucks kind of thing. Plus you get the discounts.

[C]

Right, Exactly.

[A]

And I think that's been what we've seen be like the kind of the most successful path. And I think we're also getting like a little bit screwed by just the fact that there's like this overwhelm of subscriptions. Because if you think about a membership to a med spot, if you're going to come there, the math, it makes total sense. Like it's. It's mindless. You're saving money, you're just putting it in there like on a cadence. It's kind of like you're budgeting for it for yourself. Like with the old like envelope system and the cash is there and it's ready to go and you're getting a discount. I think the only thing that hinders these from being more successful is like the overwhelm with subscriptions. You see like the TV commercials. I don't know if it's like rocket money or there's these apps where it'll show you all your. Because people are just scared. They have all these subscriptions that they have to think about if at any time that reverses, these membership programs will be off to the races. Do you want to do anything with loyalty programs in addition to membership? So is there like any sort of like ally points, like you use any of that in the practice?

[B]

We don't do that, but we do exclusive membership events, which is a nice perk. Yeah.

[C]

Oh, do you mean like Ali and Ali and Aspire points in combination? We do. I mean.

[B]

Oh yes, yes, they can use those.

[A]

So even non members are just doing like the. Those types of rewards programs. They've got that option as well.

[C]

Yeah, there's a lot of rewards going on.

[B]

You can double dip with those.

[C]

Yes. With any special.

[A]

Oh, interesting. Okay, so you can. Yeah. Since you're doing the alley rewards plus the.

[B]

Yep.

[C]

Yeah, we'll run a promotion and we'll allow them to use those points as well. I mean they've earned them, so they're entitled to them.

[B]

Yeah, they're their points.

[A]

Makes sense. This episode is brought to you by MedSpa Magic Marketing, my agency. We help med spas and aesthetics practices grow with more effective marketing strategies. And I know that's a vague phrase, right? That's a vague claim. So I have an offer for you. I offer this to any new prospects if you're interested in exploring any of them. Another marketing option, a new agency, or just getting into Facebook, Instagram, Google Ads for the first time. I'd love to show you why we're different, what we're doing for clients. And we can do that via a one and a half hour planning session where I'll outline a specific marketing plan and I'll give you all of the blueprints that we would implement if we were to do business together. Now you can take that, use that on your own, hire someone else to help you execute it or work with us. We really don't hold anything back on that strategy call. And I think you'll have a lot of confidence in how you manage your marketing investment moving forward, understanding some of the new nuances that can help you implement more effective marketing strategies for your business. So if you want to do that, you can go to MedSpa. Magicmarketing.com Kate, you mentioned being pretty dialed into like the numbers and where you have to push the lever when maybe something's slow and you're trying to pick up a certain service, a certain time of year. Talking about just profitability, numbers, financials. That's obviously a complicated part of the business.

[C]

It is.

[A]

What, what from your standpoint goes into like, hey, how are we thinking about provider time, profitability, just how we manage the overall financial picture of the business and how that ties into marketing.

[C]

Yeah, I mean, specifically, it really comes into play for us. I feel like with when we're creating specials, when we're doing promotions, is we really have to have that overall view of like, what, what actually is this costing our business? How can we discount this so that it still makes sense for the patient and for us? So we do have a great amount of visibility on that, which is wonderful. We also keep really close track of our numbers and where they are at all times. We've got a weekly meeting where Kylie and myself are both on it, where we kind of assess in every category where we are and what, what is kind of needed to get us to our goals in each of those areas. And then we can kind of play off of that and decide, like, what again, what levers we kind of need to pull in order to, to get us closer to that spot. So, yeah, it is. I mean, we evaluate things like the cost of goods, we know what our, our provider cost is. There's also a good amount of, like, market research. What are other people in this area charging for that service? Because that also needs to fall in line as well. So, yeah, it's all of those things that we have to kind of account for when we're creating any kind of promotion special, even just basic baseline price.

[A]

That's what I was, that's what I was going to ask for. Baseline pricing. We. So obviously you've got a few different thought processes on this and I've got probably what I think is maybe like an overly simplified thought process on pricing. I, I've heard people say that, hey, you want, do you want to be the luxury med spa, the high end med spa that has the premium price points? Do you want to be like the budget med spa? And I think some med spas do decide to go in one of those two extreme directions. But it seems to me, at least observationally, most people are trying to fall in the rank somewhere in between and they're trying to figure out how do we optimize for service quality and patient experience and charge reasonable price points. How do you all think about pricing strategy? Are you going on one end of the spectrum or the other? Are you just trying to maintain, like, competitive, reasonable price points and a great reputation?

[C]

Yes, yes, yes, yes. Yeah, we know we're not the cheapest med spot out there. We're never going to be. And that's for a reason.

[B]

Yeah, we don't want to be, I.

[C]

Mean, all of our providers, all of our providers are highly trained and with that level of skill there, I mean, you have to pay your providers accordingly. So we, we know the skill level that our providers have justifies the cost that we are charging our patients. If anything, in the scale of like, high end, low end, I would say we're more towards the high. I mean, we have a great, I mean, we have a great team here. Like I said earlier, our clinical director is an, she's an allergy trainer, so she's going into other practices, showing them how to get trained. Our staff is lucky enough, we just get that from her every day. So we know the skill level justifies the cost. So we're never going to be kind of like your discount med spa. But we also aren't egregious either. I feel like the prices that we charge are very fair. We do try and stay cognizant of what others around us are charging as well. But, yeah, again, we're never going to be the lowest of the low because the results that you're getting when you go to the lowest of the low are not the results you're going to get when you come to seaside.

[A]

I love that you said that though, because you're explaining the justification for where your pricing is. I think some people think they're just going to get the best of both worlds and in most of these things there's a trade off that you make. If you want to be a budget med spa on the lowest, that probably means you're going to be able to afford providers with less experience that are not necessarily as top tier like you, and you've got the goods to back the price points that you're putting out there. Like there's a justification for it. You're not just saying arbitrarily, well, we want to be, we want to be toward the high end just because we feel like it. We're going to be toward the high end because this is our business model and we pay our providers well. We're getting some of the best people in the business and to attract and retain that talent. This is what clients are going to have to pay to make the business work to, to get that type of service. And so there's like a justification there. We're not just pulling a number out of thin air and saying, we, we wish we could charge premium price point.

[C]

Right.

[A]

And I'm sure, like Kylie, when you started, you. And this is the other thing for med spas that are starting off, it's A little harder. You've got 15 years of a track record now and a reputation. You work your way toward that price point. For most businesses, it's a little hard to come out with no reputation. And maybe you're just feeling like you got a really good office and some good medical credentials. But without that track record and that reputation, it's hard to come out of the gates and charge a premium price point.

[B]

Yes. Agreed.

[A]

Got it. Cool. Anything to add to the pricing conversation that we didn't cover?

[C]

Gosh, I don't think so.

[B]

I don't think so.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

In terms of retaining talent, was. Would you say that just having good pay scales and good pay structures are critical to accomplishing that goal? And is that true for front office and providers?

[B]

Yes.

[C]

Yes. I think that's definitely part of it. Certainly you have to be competitive in the marketplace. I think there's other things we do as well to help retain our talent. I mean, all of our providers get really extensive training while they are here, both in office and off site as well. I mean, we actually have a training going on literally today. Yeah. In. In office. It's something that they're continuously getting from us that we're supporting them in that way. I mean, I'm trying to think of other.

[A]

Culturally. I know.

[B]

Seaside bucks.

[C]

Yeah. Treatments.

[B]

Yeah. Products.

[C]

We try and take care of our staff, like, the. The very best way we possibly can from kind of all angles.

[A]

Do you. Do you think that there's, like, a direct correlation, too, between, like, good. Good people want to work with other good people and that in and of itself, probably lends itself to retention.

[B]

Yes. I would say everyone in the office is nice.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Like, good attitudes, good vibe, good energy, good at their jobs. Like, people want to work with people that are competent. Yeah.

[C]

Yes, for sure. When we hire somebody, I think one of the most important things is making sure that they're a good fit culturally, because a lot of things can be trained.

[B]

Yeah. But your attitude cannot totally agree with that.

[A]

Yeah. Y. I know that's a side thing. I don't know how involved you are in that side of the business. Is. Is there. What does the hiring process generally look like? Is it. Is it like just a single interview and you're bringing people on, or is it a pretty extensive process?

[B]

It's usually. We usually try to go by referrals first just because we love everyone around us, so we try to go that way first, but if we cannot find them that way, we do search for them, but then they do go through multiple interviews. And then we have started doing, like a working in office day, too, to make sure they like their position as well. So that's something newer we started doing.

[A]

I love that. Yeah. I read a Dan Martell book. He said, don't work with somebody unless you've worked with somebody. And sometimes that's really hard to replicate and it can feel a little inconvenient. Like, hey, come work here for a day and then we'll see if this is a good fit. But I do think, like, how better? Yeah, yeah. No better way to see somebody, like, in action and, like, what they're going to be made of and how they fit culturally and to be around them for, like, a more extended period of time than just the 30 that actually did come up on a previous episode. So I think that's really, really, really good advice. Work with people before you work with people, if you can.

[B]

Yeah, I love that. I've never heard that, but I love it.

[A]

Yeah. Last question here to wrap. In terms of industry trends, this is obviously an industry. Like, the category is expanding. It's almost like a gray area. Like, what is a med spa beyond injectables, hormones, weight loss, cryo, red light, coolsculpt. It's just a lot of different stuff going on. How do you all go about kind of like staying up to date with trends and kind of figuring out what is the next thing and what is the next thing that's actually going to be sticky versus something that's just a flash in the pan?

[B]

As I think we said before, we aren't the first to jump at the newest trending, but we do. Our clinical director does like to research. Chiara as well, likes to research a lot before bringing anything new on. So we do keep our eye out on the trending thing and we might try it internally first as well before we decide to jump on.

[A]

How do you. How do you get a pulse on, like, what's even new? Because I found myself, like. Like a new service. No, that's a good. That was. That was an answer as well. But, like, I almost find myself, like, sometimes the only way I know a new service exists is one of our clients will bring it up. And I'm like, is there any way that you kind of plug into, like, do you look at competitors? And like, does it usually just float to the surface? Like, if it's gonna. If it's popular, it'll end up getting on your radar, essentially?

[C]

That is a great question. I feel like the aesthetics industry is actually like, very close knit and it's just it's a tight group and I feel like we're very dialed into that and that's kind of how we hear about things. And to be candid, we're like a fairly sizable practice and we do get approached very often by different reps from different companies and we, we get a kind of an influx of that. So a lot of that comes to us. But certainly like our providers seek it out, they always want to know kind of what's going on in the space. Same thing with our other owner, Kiara, like she mentioned as well. They always kind of have their eye out, their ear out to know what's, what's happening in our space. But like Kylie said, I would say in terms of jumping on a trend, the short answer is that we don't jump on a trend, is that we really again, everything has to be very clinically backed and make sense and completely safe before we even think about it. Think about bringing it on to our patients because that's at the end of the day that's like the most important thing to us is making sure that any treatment we're going to provide is going to be first safe and also effective.

[B]

Trainings. I would like all the nurses and estheticians. I feel like once they're talking to other people in the industry as well, that's where a lot of ideas come from as well.

[A]

I know I said that was the last question, but I have one more if you're up for it. I don't get to talk to that many people that are like in house on the marketing side too. I'm assuming you all are pretty active in the social media management.

[C]

Yeah, we are. It's not, we're not great to be honest. That's the one I think of our business that we are lacking or yeah. Are not as, as great at. I would say we're, we're good at many of the other components. That's not our favorite thing but certainly we can answer any questions. That doesn't mean we don't.

[A]

I guess even, even that question, what is. So what do you feel like you wish you were doing that you're not doing?

[B]

I, I think a lot more engaging on social.

[C]

I think yes. I think that's our area for growth right now is more, more engagement on social media. To be honest, our clientele isn't so our clientele isn't like on Tick Tock or any of that. Like we have a slightly older clientele. I would say 35 and up is generally the, the majority of the Demographic that's coming to CC side. So there's, I mean, there's a lot of focus on Instagram, even Facebook for kind of that age range that we see in office. Yeah. And again, it's just Kylie. Kylie and I have both done it, of course, and, and continue to do it, but certainly there's areas for opportunity there.

[A]

Yeah. And so the things that you pay attention to though, Facebook and Instagram primarily.

[C]

Yes. That would be where we place our focus because that's where our target demo is. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[A]

And that makes sense. Like your patience. We've always said, like your social media feed is probably not the thing that's generating new business. It's really just an engagement strategy with your existing clients anyways.

[C]

Exactly.

[A]

And then our assumption is just like when somebody's researching you, they found, they saw an ad, they found you on Google, whatever it is, they go to the website, they might go there but they're just kind of. They're not even there to like necessarily engage. A lot of the times they're there to just see like, is this a place I trust and I want to do business?

[B]

Yes.

[A]

So it's almost like just making sure it's ready and it's there.

[C]

It helps establish the legitimacy of the business. For sure.

[B]

For sure.

[A]

Yeah. Anything you all do for Google reviews. While we're on that topic of just like the reputation, how do you all go about requesting Google reviews from clients?

[B]

So we. So our nurses for them, we stay at checkout. A lot of people actually want to tip the nurses and it's not standard for our business for nurses to accept tips. So we say the best thing you could do is write them a Google review. I would say, yeah, it does request.

[A]

On the way out the door.

[B]

Yes.

[C]

It also does go out on our checkout message as well where we do request that if they had a good experience, we've been very fortunate. We haven't had to hustle too hard for them. Our clients have been really. Patients have been really wonderful kind of providing their feedback after one or two asks.

[A]

Yeah, well, you're doing a good job with it because 5 star rating on Google. Over 400 patient reviews as of this recording in a better place. Well, Kate and Kylie, thank you so much for joining the show. Where can people learn more about Seaside and about what you all are up to?

[C]

Certainly. So Visit the website seasideskincare.com youm can find us on Instagram also seaside skincare.com.

[A]

Skincare and if you're stumbling across this and you're in the area, you know where to go?

[C]

Yes.

[A]

Okay. Kelly, thank you so much. Thanks for coming on the show. We look forward to having you on, hopefully again sometime.

[B]

Yeah, we love it. Thank you so much.

[A]

Thanks everyone for tuning in. This podcast is a production of medspa Magic Marketing. If your medspa or aesthetic practice is in need of digital marketing services, help with advertising on Facebook, Instagram, Google lead generation and booking more appointments, please visit medspamagicmarketing.

[C]

Com.