ETS Tanning Bed Blog

Vitamin D may actually help relieve seasonal affective disorder.

I was reading a newsletter article by Dr John Jacob Cannell, Executive Director of the Vitamin D Council , and he said that while there is still a lot of research to be done, some groundbreaking research has been done by people like Professor Walter E. Stumpf at the University of North Carolina, who thought bright light and vitamin D would play a substantial role in seasonal affective disorder (SAD). (Tanning beds with UVB bulbs are a great source of vitamin D.)

Research has already shown that bright light (without any vitamin D from UVB rays) improves mood, and it has become an accepted part of SAD treatment.

In addition to the countless studies of oral doses of vitamin D on depression, researchers have investigated the role vitamin D has played in depression.

According to Dr. Cannell, we have seen depression on the rise in the last century, at the same time we have seen people reduce their sunlight exposure because of "urbanization (tall buildings and pollution reduce UVB ), industrialization (working inside reduces UVB exposure), cars (glass totally blocks UVB), clothes (even light clothing blocks UVB), sunblock and misguided medical advice to never let sunlight strike you unprotected skin."

While it would be great if we could all spend a couple hours outside to boost our vitamin D, the truth is that because of our urbanization, our 8-to-5 jobs, and our busy schedules, we just don't have the time.

That's where indoor tanning can be a benefit to people seeking treatment for SAD. Tanning beds already produce UVB rays, which produces artificial vitamin D. And, as researchers like Dr. Stumpf have shown, UVB can play an important role in improving one's mood, especially during the winter months. Just schedule a quick 30 minute trip to your local tanning salon and see if it helps lift your mood.

 
Since tanning beds are a major investment, it's important that tanning salon owners only use certified technicians to repair and maintain their tanning beds. That's because the technician is a professional who has gone through intensive training, and has the experience and proper knowledge to install, repair and check your tanning beds.

We only allow certified technicians to work on our beds, and operate a certified service for training these techs. This is for potential and current service technicians, and for those who need to keep up with our three levels of certification.

A new part of our training is that we hold it for six months of the year, running one week at a time. This allows for more chances to train technicians at all three levels.

Level 3 Techs get preferential scheduling

Working at Level 3 is vital. Our Level 3 techs get preferential scheduling and they can potentially get a discount on service parts. Level 3 technicians can be assured of getting additional work over the Level 2 and Level 1 techs, because they have received the extra training to handle more complicated problems. On non-warranty work, we tell the customer about the technician and their level of training.

Our new schedule change helps benefit all the technicians to achieve Level 3 much more easily. This cuts down on the 2 - 3 day classes, which reduces travel time, the number of trips, and lets the techs achieve Level 3 in one week, not three half-weeks. This makes it easier on everyone who had to take time off of their jobs, some possibly more than once a year to attend our certification classes.

And we've been receiving a great response on our Web site with as many as two to three service calls a day throughout the country. We're hoping to target one technician with a few backups in a certain area. We're always trying to target certain areas where we can expedite the work, but are finding the need for techs anywhere in the United States.

In his book Tribes, marketing guru Seth Godin gives the analogy of Thermostats and Thermometers. The analogy is an apt one, given the importance of temperature control on our tanning beds. A thermometer measures the temperature, a thermostat sets it. But in Seth's hands, it's a business analogy that tells us a lot about leaders and critics, doers and followers.

In business, Seth says, the Thermometer is the person who sits back and tells us what we already know, where we went wrong. The Thermometer whines and complains after something has already been done, or complains that a new idea won't work. The Thermometer measures the temperature, and doesn't do anything else. If hindsight is 20/20, the Thermometer has perfect vision.

But the Thermostat is the leader, the visionary, the person who comes up with the idea and then gets it done. The Thermostat sets the temperature for the room. They set the tone for the company. The Thermostat says "this is where we need to be," and then does what it takes to get to that point.

You only need one Thermometer in your business, but you need a lot of Thermostats. Or, if you're the only Thermostat, you need fewer Thermometers. In your house or tanning salon, if a thermostat is working properly, you only need one thermometer to tell you that, not seven. In your business, if you're the leader and visionary for the company, you only need one person telling you how things are going, not seven.

Do you have other Thermostats in your company? Do you have an employee who brings you great and even not-so-great ideas? Do they come up with new ways to save money, attract new clients, sell more lotion and package upgrades? Great! Encourage this behavior, and give them a way to shine. Their ideas and energy will grow your business and help you make money.

Or are you or your other employees telling them what won't work, or not even letting them try? Are your other employees downplaying their ideas, or even doing what they can to show how they won't work? This needs to change. A person who drags down ideas, will keep the business running at their competency, at the lowest common denominator. Too many Thermometers will drag the business down. You need more Thermostats in your business and fewer Thermometers.

Think back to when you started your business. You were a Thermostat. You had a vision – "I want to start a tanning salon" – and you probably had detractors. People who said, "That won't work." "Why would people pay for something when they could lay outside for free?" "People can't afford luxury items right now."

If you have more people in your life or business who are telling you why things won't/didn't/couldn't/can't/shouldn't work, stop paying attention. All they're doing is telling you things you already know, or maybe even things you shouldn't be paying attention to. (After all, thermometers are not always accurate.)

But, like a true visionary, you did what you needed to do. You set your goals and pursued them, and you're now running your own business. You were the Thermostat that set the temperature for your business.

So what are you now? And who have you surrounded yourself with? If you're surrounded by Thermometers, maybe you need to start spending more time with Thermostats. Surround yourself with people who are just like you.

Join your Chamber of Commerce or other networking groups in your area. Spend time with other successful business owners and entrepreneurs, people who have set their own temperatures, and see what you can learn from them. You're the sum of the five people you spend the most time with, so make them Thermostats.

Installing tanning beds is one of those details whose timing is critical. There is actually a bad time and a good time to install tanning beds. Finding the right time can make everything go smoothly, keep installation times short, and can even save money. A bad time can result in damaged beds and delayed openings.

Installing a bed while the building contractors are still working is risky. It's just smarter to have the contractors doing their finishing touches, or even finished, when the beds are installed. If installers show up too early, and have to work around the contractors, it can actually take longer than waiting until the contractors are done.

If contractors are still fixing drywall, installing the floor, or painting, the tanning beds can be damaged. We've had clients who ended up with paint on their beds, drywall dust, and even dents and scratches.

One of our customers, who's opening his third salon, understands what it takes for a smooth installation. He makes sure to have everything ready for us, and as a result, his installations are the smoothest we usually have.

Everything in his new salons are nearly complete – rooms are drywalled and painted, the electricity is on – which ensures his contractors and our installers are not disturbing each other or waiting for others to finish. The installers can actually get done in a single day, rather than working for a day-and-a-half. This saves installation costs, and makes sure his salon opens on time.

We understand the eagerness for new salon owners to get their tanning beds installed. But it's more beneficial to have everything in place rather than to rush and risk damage to the beds. By making sure everything is completed before the installers show up, you can reduce the risk of damage, and keep extra costs at a minimum.

Yesterday, we talked about how tanning salons can get started on Twitter. Today, I want to give you some ideas on how you can use Twitter to grow your tanning business.

CoffeeGroundz, a coffee shop in Houston, Texas, is credited with having one of the first commercial transactions on Twitter. It all started when one of their regulars sent a direct message (DM) to the shop for a breakfast burrito pickup. Since then, they have turned their Twitter presence into a regular communication method with their customers, even holding a special Twitter meetup (called a Tweetup) that not only let their regulars meet with each other, but brought in big sales that day.

So how can you use Twitter to grow your business?

CoffeeGroundz tapped their regulars for their efforts, so start with yours. Ask them if they're on Twitter – if they're not, get them on it – and start following them. Send out regular Tweets to your clients, and build the expectation that you use it regularly. When that happens, your clients will start communicating with you too.

Once you've built up a Twitter following, and are using it on a regular basis, here are some ways to use it.

• Send out announcements, sales, and special offers to your followers. ("Special Twitter sale: Refer a new member, get 2 weeks of free upgrades.")
• Send out cancellation notices to fill a spot: ("We had a spot open up from 3:30 - 4:00. First DM gets it.")
• Forward articles to your followers about the industry, tanning techniques, and things that might affect them (this is where it pays to get to know your clients).
• Create a "message-ahead" program. Let clients DM you for appointments and cancellations.
• Use GroupTweet.com to create groups of clients. Maybe you can communicate with your premier members with one message, regular members with another, and a third to occasional members.
• Run Twitter-based contests where the winner gets a special prize. ("Tell us your most outrageous vacation story, win a free bottle of tanning lotion."
• Make sure you send Tweets that are actually interesting to your clients. While it's good to have 1-on-1 conversations with your followers, if that's all you're doing, your followers will get bored. Get a personal Twitter account if you want the personal conversations.
• On the other hand, participate in group conversations with your clients. See if you can stimulate conversations between them, and build a community of Twitter tanners (Twanners? Why not?). (Asking questions to your followers, like the outrageous vacation example above, will generate this conversation.)
• Use a program like Tweetdeck – a Twitter client that sits on your desktop – and keep it open all the time. If you have an iPhone or BlackBerry, there are special Twitter clients for them too.
• If your clients are going on vacation and putting their tan to use, encourage them to Tweet photos to you via TwitPic , and retweet them to all of your followers. This will help build your community.

If you can build your Twitter following, you will have made your tanning salon a special place to be for your clients. The more they feel a sense of belonging – a sense of community – the more they'll stay involved. Occasional clients will become regulars, regulars will become premier members, and they'll refer their friends.

That's a great ROI for a free application that only lets you send 140-character messages.

Twitter has been in the mainstream media for the last several weeks, which means it has probably reached its tipping point. It was on Charlie Rose last night, on our local FOX station this morning, in the New York Times, and a lot of other mainstream media outlets.

Tanning salons are in a great position to take advantage of social networking tools like Twitter. Twitter is an important way for people to communicate with a lot of people quickly and easily. By typing a 140-character message, you can ask questions, provide information, tell people about books or articles you're reading, and even make plans with friends.

You build up your readers – called followers in the "Twitterverse" – by following them, and they'll follow you in return. Pretty soon, you have a small community of people with shared interests, geography, or relationships. Then, when you send out a message, your followers will see it, and respond. If they write a message back, their followers will see the response. It's like instant messaging in a crowded room.

Among the countless health subjects that are making national news, one that should be of particular interest to tanning bed owners and customers is Vitamin D. The UV Foundation had announced February is Vitamin D Deficiency Month. A little late for us now, but something to keep in mind for next year.

"New scientific studies continue to confirm the enormous health benefits of Vitamin D, while supporting significant health consequences of being deficient," said Tim Miller, Communications Director for the UV Foundation. "We launched "Vitamin D Deficiency Month" to educate the public about the dangers of this growing problem and to 'shed some light' on potential solutions."

Dr. Nancy Snyderman, in a February interview on The Today Show, said many Americans suffer from a lack of Vitamin D. The negative health effects of Vitamin D can be devastating. Lack of Vitamin D can increase the risk of heart disease, the nation's number one killer and also increases the risk of Parkinson's disease, rickets, several types of cancers and can compound ailments like fatigue, depression and aches and pains.

And according to a Harvard Medical School study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, 60 percent of Americans are Vitamin D deficient.

Wintertime is an especially vulnerable time as many people stay inside during the cold, snowy seasons in the Midwest, North and Northeast. And since it's known that sensible exposure to sunlight or UV light is a good way to help the body manufacture Vitamin D, a solution would be to visit a local tanning salon in addition to eating the proper Vitamin D fortified foods.

For years, since the tanning industry began, dermatologists and the American Medical Association (AMA) have been talking about the harmful effects of ultraviolet sunlight and have continued to demean the industry nonstop without any real scientific research or evidence to the contrary to tie the harmful effects to cancer. Over the past few years, dermatologists and the AMA have said Vitamin D has proven to give significant health benefits.

Thousands of articles have been written, showing the mindset that we should hide under an umbrella or nearly-opaque SPF sunscreens. However, thousands more have been written showing that getting Vitamin D through UV rays is more beneficial than the detrimental effects that are still questionable.

Still, this raises the question: Can tanning beds offer some of the same health benefits as sunshine? The best source of Vitamin D is through ultra violet exposure which tanning bed lamps provide as well. Thus,  tanning bed lamps provide tanners with similar ultra violet emissions as the sun but in a controlled environment under the guidance of salon professionals.

Tanning beds, while not as popular as the sun, still provide ultra violet exposure in a controlled environment, especially when the weather is too cold to be outdoors in the sun.