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Hello my dears. Daniela here and welcome back to the Spa Marketing Made Easy podcast. If you are new here, I am so glad that you found us. This podcast is all about helping aesthetic professionals like you build a business that is profitable, sustainable and built around the life that you actually want to live. Okay, so today I want to revisit a topic that I've covered before on this show, but I'm revisiting it with a very specific intention because the last the landscape, if you haven't noticed, the landscape has shifted so significantly in the past couple of years that I believe that this strategy, which was already powerful when I first talked about it, it's really in a space that it's essential, it's a non negotiable and I don't say that lightly. Now, I believe deeply in strategic partnerships. Specifically, I want to talk about why building real relationship first collaborations with other local businesses is one of the biggest competitive advantages that you have as a SPA owner in 2026. Now, if you've been listening to this show for a while, you might remember episode 397397 where I did a deep dive on the how behind strategic partnerships. So how to identify potential partners, how to vet them, how to reach out, how to structure something that actually works for both businesses. We're going to link that up below this episode so you can still go back and listen to it or get a refresher if you've already listened to it before, it is still relevant. That framework still holds up. But what I want to do in today's episode is really zoom out. I want to talk about why the world that we're operating in right now in 2026 makes this strategy more urgent and really more powerful than it's ever been. Because the reasons I was excited about partnerships, you know, year and a half, two years ago, they're still true. And yet there are brand new reasons layered on top of them that I think are going to completely change how you think about where your marketing energy should be going. Okay, so let's get into it. So I want to start by talking about your ideal client and specifically her experience of the Internet, what it looks like right now in 2026. Because I think when we really sit with this, the case for relationship marketing becomes impossible to argue with. Now, your ideal client, just like you as a human being, they and you are being marketed to constantly. Every platform she's on, every search she does, every app she's open, she is being served ads, content and recommendations at a volume that was not even possible three years ago. And a significant and growing percentage of that content is AI generated AI written captions, AI generated images, AI produced emails, AI optimized ads. Now, just to be clear, I am not anti AI. I am actually in the deep end of the pool. I'm using AI in every single aspect of that I can. But the difference is that using AI is a skill. And if you don't know how to use AI properly, you are going to get extremely generic, boring content that, you know, we, we've said for years, the brand that does everything is the brand that does nothing. If you're not giving the tool, the AI tool, the information to properly create content that sounds like you, the nuanced things, you're going to get junk. And because it's such a low barrier to entry and there's not very many people that are really skilled in understanding how to get quality content out, there is just a onslaught of information that's being put out there. The captions, the images, the emails, all of that. Now, I am very pro AI. We are an AI first company. However, we want to use it on all of the administrative tasks and all the things that will save us time so that we can have more time for human connection. That is the really important piece of the sentence, the so that. All right, so we use AI inside of our business every single day. We teach spa owners how to use it to dramatically improve their operations and their marketing output. It is a very powerful tool that I believe in deeply. But here's the reality of what's happening from the consumer side, right When I said the brand that does everything is the brand that does nothing, everything starts to look and sound the same. The content is polished and optimized, but somehow it feels like it could come from anyone. When that happens, your trust erodes and we actually. I'm just gonna do like a little side note here just to convey, like, how crazy this is. When we had our event in Texas, we had our spa CEO event in Texas. And that was, you know, there's primarily, it's our growth factor students that are coming to these events, but we do open them up to the public towards. As the event gets closer and we had someone come to our Texas event that said, I didn't know if Daniella was real or not or if everything she was like, if she was an AI generated being. And I wanted to see her in person. I was like, that is a first. I am real. You can, you can give me a hug when you see me in person. But it was Just like I was like, wow, I've never heard that before. And that is probably something that we will continue to hear going forward. So, anyway, the important piece, especially in an industry like ours, is that it is built on trust. Right? We're going to be in relationship with our patients and we're going to be touching her face and touching her skin and hearing what she's insecure about. Trust is essential. It's something that we absolutely need to take very seriously. So what does your ideal client do when she doesn't know who to trust online? She's going to ask someone she already trusts in real life. She's going to ask her friend who has great skin. She's going to ask the instructor at her Pilates studio. She's going to ask her hairstylist. She might even go into a local Facebook group. This is word of mouth. Okay? Word of mouth has always been been powerful, but in a world saturated with AI generated content, with rising ad costs, with algorithm fatigue, it's one of those things that we need to have it in a way that we can kind of control the output. That was always the problem with word of mouth is like, you know, with ads, you can increase your ad spend and get more people in. With word of mouth, you don't have as much control over your own marketing strategy. And we have a little more control when we work with strategic partners. Okay, so strategic partnerships are how you systematically build the infrastructure that makes word of mouth happen consistently. Not just when you get lucky, but as a real, reliable, repeatable system. And, you know, we love systems over here. So let's get into paid ads. I was just talking about paid ads, but I think this is a really important concept for why partnerships also have become so strategically critical in 2026. Now, I shared before in that episode 397 about a lesson that I learned the hard way around ad costs. So I'd been running ads that were performing really well, and then in the lead up to a major election cycle, the cost spiked dramatically and the return just completely collapsed. Not because my ads were bad, but because. Or not because my offer was wrong, but because I was competing for limited ad space against campaigns with budgets that, like, made mine just completely insignificant. And so my cost per lead went through the roof. So that experience taught me something that I have never forgotten, and that is that I do not want all of my eggs in one basket ever. And that lesson applies even more powerfully today. So ad costs across Facebook, Instagram, Google, they are continuing to climb. The competition for attention is higher than it has ever been and it's not going to get lower friends. And as AI makes it easier and cheaper for every single business to produce more content and run more ads, the noise level is only going to increase. Which means the cost of cutting through that noise with paid advertising is only going to go up. Now, I'm not telling you to abandon paid ads. We are investing heavily in paid ads. We use them very strategically, but we are also extremely dialed in on who our ICA is. Okay, so when you use ads strategically, they absolutely still work and they're still a part of a well rounded marketing approach. But what I'm saying is that if paid advertising is your primary or your only strategy for new client acquisition, you're building on a foundation that is getting more expensive and less reliable every single year. Now, strategic partnerships, on the other hand, have a very different cost structure. The primary investment is going to be time and genuine relationship building. Genuine is the key word here. And in return, when the partnerships are right, they are going to compound over time rather than requiring constant reinvestment. A partner who genuinely believes in your work and consistently refers her clients to you is worth more than almost any ad campaign you can run. And she does not cost more every time the algorithm changes. Now, there's something else happening in 2026 that I believe is worth naming. And it connects directly with why local relationship marketing is having such a moment right now. There is a growing trust deficit online. People are becoming increasingly skeptical of the content that they consume, of the reviews that they read, recommendations that they receive from sources they don't personally know. And that's normal, right? It's completely normal. When you think about like influencer partnerships, how they're paid and, you know, oftentimes they're disclosed in a very fine print that nobody reads. When everybody's brand captions and emails and ads sound polished and professional and vaguely the same, and when it's genuinely hard to tell what is authentic and what is manufactured, people don't know who to trust, right? So what they're doing is really focusing on the people that they know, the humans that they can see and touch, that they interact with every single day. They're trusting their own networks more and more and outside sources less. Now, for a local spa owner, this is an enormous opportunity because you are not a faceless brand. You are a person in a community building real relationships with real people. And the trust that gets built through genuine community presence, through showing up consistently being involved, through being known and vouched for, for other trusted People in your area. That kind of trust is exactly what your ideal client is hungry for right now. Now, that's what I'm talking about. When I say go out there and be the mayor of your town. It is not just a cute phrase. It is a real competitive strategy. But when you're a spa owner that you know other businesses in your community, know and trust and genuinely recommend, when you've become woven into the fabric of your local business ecosystem, you have something that no amount of ad spend can buy. You have social proof that is personal, specific and trusted. And here's what makes this even better. Excuse me, excuse me, excuse me. Here's what makes this even better. Your competitors are probably not doing this. Why? Because it takes time and it takes stepping out of your comfort zone. I've told you guys before, I am not a fan of large groups of people. And so showing up at your Chamber of Commerce event or a women's networking group or entrepreneur group or whatever it is, it's hard, it's scary, and it takes a lot of time, which I'm guessing most of you don't feel like you're swimming in time. So that makes it an even more powerful strategy, because, again, so many people are not putting the effort in for this. They're probably doing what everyone else is doing, which is trying to figure out the algorithm, trying to keep up with content trends, trying to optimize their ad spend, the relationship building that feels slower, it's less measurable. So it's going to get moved to the bottom of the to do list. Which means that you, if you take up this strategy, if you commit to doing this right, you are going to just keep widening that competitive advantage in your local market. Imagine having your hairstylist and your yoga teacher recommending the same location to get a facial. Like these places that these businesses that these individuals are frequenting, if they're getting recommendations from multiple locations that you are the best spot in town. Imagine how powerful that is when they go and look you up and you're like, oh, this is the place to be, Right? It's really, really an incredible thing. All right, so let's talk about the mindset piece, okay? That is going to make this all possible. Because I think there's a belief that holds a lot of you back from really committing to this strategy. And again, in 2026, that belief is going to be more costly than ever. And this is the belief that other businesses in your area are your competition. I understand where it comes from. I get it. We live in A culture that frames business as a zero sum game. If she gets the client, I do not. And in a local market, that scarcity mindset can feel very real, especially when things are slow. But listen, this is something that is untrue. I want you to shift your mindset. I want you to operate from a place of abundance. I want you to believe that there are more than enough clients for everyone. I want you to believe that a rising tide floats all boats. When we work together, when you're competing with what makes you uniquely you, you have no competition, okay? So support other women in business. Support other spas. Celebrate when you see other spas opening, because that indicates that there is more demand in your area. You know, when I was still practicing, there was a spa that I was working at that it just felt like there was a med spa on every single corner. And yet all of them were thriving. All of them were doing well and thriving. I mean, like seven figure spas, okay? Not just something that is trying to get to that space, like really operating and having the capacity to serve at that level, okay? So keep your energy focused on the positive, on what makes you different, on how you can serve your people above and beyond. When you have that authentic human connection which is so, so important. And you have the abundance mindset, it's not just a nice philosophy. It is a genuine competitive strategy. Now, the other piece of the mindset shift is around patience. Relationship marketing does not produce results overnight. It's a long game. Just like building a business is a marathon, not a sprint, right? And in a world that is increasingly optimized for instant feedback, likes, clicks, conversations, and the patience that is required for relationship marketing, oh, my gosh, it feels like you're walking through molasses. Right? But the return on the patience is something that instant feedback loops cannot produce. It's a network of people who genuinely are rooting for your success, who send you clients not because of a transaction, but because they believe in you, who become, over time, one of the most valuable assets that your business has. And even better, some of these people are going to become genuine friends, genuine pillars in your life, both personally and professionally. Okay? So let's bring this home with something practical, because I never want to leave you with just ideas. I want you to walk away with some action items, some things that you can actually do. So if you want the full tactical framework for how to build strategic partnerships, then make sure that you go back and listen to episode 397 again. We're going to have that linked up. That episode is absolutely worth your time. But for today, I want you to do one thing. I want you to think about your ideal client and ask yourself one question. Who else is she already trusting in my community? Not who could theoretically be a good partner. Who does she already trust? Who does she already spend money with? Who would she listen to if that person said, you have to go see this spa owner? She's incredible. Write down three names. Three local business owners who serve your ideal client in a different way than you do. Businesses whose values feel aligned with yours. Businesses who genuinely you respect and admire. And then I want you to start showing up for them. Follow them. Engage with their content. Genuinely visit them. Give them business. Always lead with giving before you think about what you might get in return. And here's the thing. In a world where everyone is trying to optimize their way to connection, genuinely showing up as a differentiator. And little by little those small acts of generosity build something that no algorithm can replicate. That is your homework. Three names. That's it. I want you to start there. All right my dears, that is a wrap on today's episode. If this conversation has shifted something in a way that you are thinking about where your marketing energy should be going right now, good. That is exactly what I hoped for. Go back and listen to episode 397 if you want the full tactical breakdown on how to build your partnership strategy and then come back here and let me know in the Spa Marketing Made Easy community what partnerships you're building. I love hearing what you guys are up to. Now. If today's episode resonated with you, could you take 30 seconds and leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or on Spotify? Wherever you are listening. Reviews are the lifeblood of this show. They are how other aesthetics professionals find us and they mean the world to me personally. I read every single one. And if you know a spa owner who needs to hear this today, please share this episode with her. Forward it, drop it in your Instagram stories, send it in a group chat. Let's get it into the hands of people who need it. Remember, a rising tide floats all boats. Thank you so much for being here and I will catch you on the next episode.