You’ve been there countless times throughout your hair and beauty career, seeking the latest marketing techniques from seemingly reputable sources. From booking online courses with self-proclaimed “salon success coaches/gurus” to purchasing countless books on marketing your business and joining various hair and beauty groups, all with limited results. Here’s the problem - marketing your salon isn’t the only thing you should focus on when growing your business and making a profit.
Marketing is the outward promotion of a business, product or service that draws the interest of potential buyers. The classic question of “how do I get more clients?” directly correlates with it - after all, you gain more customers through effective promotional activities, but in most cases, marketing is a one-trick pony.
Marketing is expensive - especially if you use a number of mediums, such as social media ads, hiring a marketing manager or even utilising old-school promotional methods, like handing out business cards or flyers. Sure, they might bring you new customers and increase sales, but in most cases, the profit earned from such campaigns is rarely significantly higher than your break-even point. Plus, a one-time customer brought in by a marketing campaign doesn’t always become a returning patron - if you spend roughly £200 on marketing campaigns for attracting one client, and they choose to book a trim for £15 and never return, then you’re burning money.
There are other marketing channels, such as social media posts, which don’t cost a penny, however, their effectiveness is poor at best. But one option stands out from the rest, and salon owners swear by it - SMS marketing. This option allows you to send marketing messages directly to customers, and the open rate is at an astounding 98%. Clients who receive your promotional campaigns via text are more likely to take advantage of your offers as well. However, it’s important to note that relying solely on this method isn’t enough to truly grow your business - but it’s a fantastic start.
Tip: Start sending SMS text messages directly to salon clients with Booksy - your free account is at the end of this article!
Loyal clients don’t simply grow on trees - they’re customers who have special bonds with their favourite salons, which means promotional activities alone can’t attract them. Every loyal customer was once a first-time client that had a marvellous experience at your salon and decided to keep coming back. Sure, a Facebook or Instagram ad can attract potential loyal clients, but the rest is up to you. If you only rely on marketing to take the wheel of your salon, your business isn’t going to make it.
There are a number of ways to encourage clients to visit you more regularly. You and your team are responsible for providing a wonderful pampering experience for each customer, with the intention of having them become regulars. But simply treating them to coffee or talking about the weather while they’re in your chair won’t be enough to create lasting bonds. Instead, you need to ask yourself: “How am I to reward customer loyalty?” A discount on the client’s next visit may sound tempting, but it’s far from unique. Instead, offer them a service package with an additional treatment or a goodie bag as a bonus. They will be happy to get something extra to complement their favourite service, and you will be sure they will keep coming back to your business to redeem the package.
Imagine a car dealership - they’re notorious for bright advertisements on gigantic banners that are a great marketing strategy. They catch the attention of a would-be buyer who makes their way to the lot and inspects the cars. But instead of the dealer encouraging the would-be client to make a purchase, they wait for them to choose a car that interests them. See what happened there? Without a sales strategy, there’s hardly any point in marketing - and businesses which don’t make any attempts at selling don’t tend to last long.
Now place yourself in the salon - you’ve posted an ad on Facebook that promotes your business and maybe a few of your treatments. A client books your highlights, pays for the service and goes about their day. Although your ad is bringing in fresh customers, if you’re not trying to sell complementary products or services, then you yourself are putting a cap on how much profit you make. Without implementing sales techniques, you’re only going to make minimal profit, and without marketing, you have no one to sell to.
Any salon owner that has a marketing budget can create a campaign, there’s no trick to it - but doing so strategically is how to make your salon business grow. Let’s say you love pastel hair colours and you’ve just introduced a pastel variant of your balayage to your menu. Naturally, you need to get the word out about it - you hop onto your social media pages, create a few posts promoting the treatment and cross your fingers. You might get a few of your loyal customers interested, but your campaign certainly isn’t going to fill that appointment book.
What happened? Well, not everyone follows you on social media, and those that do might still miss your posts on their feed. As a result, your marketing campaign is kaput, and here’s exactly what went wrong:
Marketing should never be treated as the heart of your business. It is essential for attracting customers, however, without a proper hair or beauty salon marketing plan, a concrete understanding of customer loyalty and the ability to sell, your business is a sailboat without a breeze. With all of these factors in mind, combined with a top of the line salon system, your salon will grow like never before! Your free, fully-featured Booksy account awaits you - sign up today and make your campaigns truly effective.
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