With winter and holiday vacations to warm destinations on the horizon, outdoor sun safety is as important as ever this time of year. It’s a good thing 83 percent of indoor tanning businesses said they teach their clients sunburn prevention and other principles of outdoor sun safety, in a SmartTan.com poll.

When we do our jobs correctly, tanning facility owners and operators are at the forefront of proper sun care and skin care education, whether it’s indoors or outdoors, and it’s apparent that salons around the country are taking their jobs seriously.

It all starts with sunburn prevention. As shown in Smart Tan’s UV Tanning Certification training, professional indoor tanning operators can help even the fairest skin type 2s gradually develop enough of a base tan to be able to enjoy some time outside and continue to develop their tans. We’ve seen this process work even with people who had previously never been able to spend more than a few minutes outside in the sun due to their tendency to burn.

Whether it regards base tans, indoor tanning lotion, outdoor sunscreen use, or other skin care products, our clients see us as their go-to skin care experts. And those businesses that don’t embrace this role and teach their clients the complete sun care process are missing out on a great opportunity. It’s easy for clients to find a new place to go get a tan, but it’s much more difficult to replace a salon that they really trust and that provides a total tanning experience. This type of care is one way that excellent, professional salons are distinguishing themselves from the crowd.