It sounds to me like you are doing it exceptionally well. Probably very wise to decide on a plan for the night - then you don't have to think of anything when you are tired and half asleep.
Night light? Not everyone's cup of tea.
Doing a full sweep of his room with him (commando style) before getting in bed?
Radio on? (Again, not everyone's cup of tea, but it can distract from a scary noise)
Like PZ said, a special monster/boogey man spray?
how good is his language? i know with my son, if he's anxious about things - and he frequently is - i can use active listening skills to figure out what exactly is worrying him and that generally leads him to work out his own solution.
oh, and I didn't read your post properly. it sounds like you've already figured out a way that works for him?
My friend asked about something very similar a couple of days ago. Her daughter is worried about monsters. I'll copy and paste what I wrote to her rather than rewrite it, but you'll have to swap "monster" with "scary red man"...
Some child "experts" believe that if you acknowledge there is a monster by "getting rid of it" you may just be encouraging the fear. I'd acknowledge her fear of monsters without reinforcing them. So maybe talk to her about what is scaring her by saying something like "I understand that you are afraid of monsters and that must be scary". That way she will feel understood rather than belittled if you just tell her monsters aren't real. Her fear is real so to her the monsters must also be real.
Then maybe do some imaginative play with her where she could pretend to be a monster while you pretend to be a scared child. I bet she'll find it hilarious. Let her control the game so that she can feel empowered. If you play it during the day you can let Spencer be a scared child or even a monster and they can gang up on you, hehe. Once she's happy playing the monster game during the day you can try doing it with the blinds closed and lights off, and then eventually at night in the dark.
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