30 December 2021, by i-sopod
If you’re considering adding float therapy to an existing business, you’ll want to go through the points on this article carefully.
We’ve laid out the main advantages and what you need to look at before you invest in a float tank.
This report on the float industry in 2019 recorded that 74% of businesses offer other wellbeing services alongside floatation.
Grouping wellness therapies that complement each other under one roof is a great strategy, as a customer who comes in for one therapy is more likely to get curious and try another. This means higher client retention rates and a positive ripple effect for your business.
Here are some examples of businesses where floatation can really optimise and complete your offering:
- Gym / Fitness Club
- Spa
- Hotel
- Holistic Therapy Clinic
- Yoga Studio
- Members Club
How a Float Tank will Boost Your Current Business
Floatation: a Gateway Drug for Wellbeing? *
Floating is increasingly popular and very accessible. You could even see it as an entry level wellness therapy: For the most part, people aren’t scared to try it out. Floatation is often a gateway for people to start taking better care of their wellbeing, and to move on to explore other tools and practices.
So, if you offer holistic therapies, a float tank could attract customers who wouldn’t come for a therapy session. After they get familiar with floatation, they might be more inclined to try something else.
*Floatation isn’t actually a drug of course, but it can have some pretty positive mind-altering effects!
For a Better Massage Experience
A float session relaxes your muscles, making the body easier to work on in a massage. So if your business includes bodywork, suggesting a float pre massage means the massage therapist will be able to go deeper and the client will reap more benefits.
Broaden Your Scope
Floatation has hit the big time: a lot of people are talking about it and trying it out. So, whatever your current business, having float tanks could be the ticket to appealing to a wider market and getting more people through your doors.
Low Running Costs
Once you’ve made the initial investment, if you already have a space and staff in place at your current business, then the costs for running a tank are impressively low.
Floating Does Wonders for Sport Recovery
After a strenuous work out or training session, floatation helps reduce blood lactate and eases aches and pains, making it ideal to have at your gym. Check this out for more about how floating benefits a fitness regime.
Stand Out From Competitors
As a spa or boutique hotel, a sleek, state of the art float tank will be a unique attraction for your guests or customers. Floating perfectly complements the spa experience, whether you group it with steam and sauna sessions, and/or ice baths, massage and more.
With a pod at your spa you’ll be offering a unique circuit of therapies, which puts your wellness package ahead of the game. And, your customers’ respect for and trust in your business will increase when they see your commitment to developing your wellness offering.
Promotional Opportunities
There are endless options for how you can incorporate float sessions into promotional deals with the other services or therapies you have available. You now have the option to offer discounted bundle deals and incentives that will encourage your clients to try out everything you have on offer.
A Timeless Investment
Float therapy has been evolving and growing in popularity since its inception in the 1950s, and researchers and scientists are only uncovering more of its benefits – both physiological and psychological. A float tank is a worthwhile investment that will stand the test of time.
Plus, once you and your team are educated and up to speed on how to keep it running happily, your tank will be fairly low maintenance.
Things to Consider Before You Invest in a Float Tank
Here are some things to consider carefully before you take the plunge:
Adequate Space
Your premises needs a room that is 3m x 4m for the tank to sit comfortably and for the service to be a pleasant experience for your customers. A bit smaller than this will also suffice, but bear in mind that your customers will want comfort, serenity and privacy when going in for their float.
You should also consider where that room is, and how much noise or passing traffic there will be as the clients enter and leave the room for their session.
Proper Shower and Changing Room Facilities
Ideally, you will have a shower installed in the room where the tank will be, plus access to changing rooms for before and after the session.
Space to Chill
As we mentioned, your float clients will want and need a peaceful ambience around their session – create a space where they can relax afterwards (it doesn’t have to be a huge space, but it does have to be peaceful).
Staff Training
Get your team up to speed on exactly what floatation is, how it works and what the benefits are. The best way? Get them floating! The more your employees get into floatation the better for marketing your new service.
You then need to make sure they’re fully trained on the maintenance and running of the tank to keep your standards high, and both pod and customers floating happily!
Don’t Stretch Yourself (and your business) Too Thin
We’ve all seen it before: a business that tries to do too much at once, and sinks under the weight of it all. Be realistic with yourself: is this an addition you can feasibly manage on top of what you already have in place?
It’s always better to do a few things properly than trying to tick too many boxes. It’s better for your business in terms of branding, and it also means your operations won’t suffer: you want the standards of your business to remain high.
Have a good think about whether this is a step you can really manage right now, or whether you should park it for a bit, or first cut down on some aspects of your offering that aren’t really working out.
Upfront Cost
Of course, there is risk involved when you make an upfront investment. Crunch your numbers and do your market research. Be ready to advertise your tank properly so your existing clientele are keen to try it out, and to start attracting new customers too.
If you’re a gym owner, hotelier, or a practitioner with a holistic clinic, branching out into floatation could be a great move for your business. Wellness is the biggest industry of our time (valued at $4.5 trillion!) and floatation will bring your business to the forefront of the industry.
If you still have some questions, see these tips from float centre owners.
Another word of advice from us: FLOAT MORE!
The more you personally get familiar with floating, the more you’ll understand what you’d be offering your clients, and how it can work alongside what you currently offer.
Get in touch if you have specific questions and we’d be happy to share advice and support.
