So, you run a hair salon with an incredibly happy customer base and super talented stylists? But maybe marketing isn’t your bag. And in this competitive landscape, particularly when customers are spending less, reaching new ones can be harder. Fear not though. We’ve got you covered with some handy, practical marketing tips for your hair salon.
Increase Customer Loyalty
So, keeping your current customers will often prove more cost effective than winning new ones. And in a competitive landscape where your competitors are trying to take your customers from your, keeping them happy is more important than ever.
There are a whole host of ways to go about that including loyalty card schemes and discounted cuts for regulars.
One of our favourites is with gift bags for regular clients.
Offering free products and samples has been a strategy that many businesses have utilised, and it is something that could help your salon.
Making up gift bags full of samples that may benefit your client is a great way to encourage them to trust you, as it seems you are knowledgeable and can personalise your service to their hair needs. For example, if you have a client that has had a colour treatment, giving them a sample of hair toners is a great idea. You could also pop in a little chocolate or other sweet treats.
Furthermore, some hair salons have samples and so forth given to them by the brands themselves, cutting the cost of producing the bags. And these samples might even result in the customer buying product from your salon – meaning a gift bag could even entice more spending.
To make sure this strategy is viable you could only offer gift bags once a client has spent over a certain amount or if they have referred a certain number of people. You could also consider giving gift bags out at networking or community events.
Get Creative with Social Media
Social media can be such a great way to reach a lot of potential clients relatively quickly. In the UK there were 57.6 million active social media users in February 2022.
Now, organic reach on social is diminishing on many platforms. But advertising can be effective providing you have the right content and budget for it.
But what sort of content will work on social for a hair salon?
One idea is before and after photos on sites such as Instagram and Facebook. This allows clients to see your work rather than booking in without seeing your skill. Choosing a new hair stylist is a big decision for many, so showing off your finest work to a local audience on social could be a real winner.
If you are tech-savvy, you might want to consider making short videos to post online. They could be videos of the processes you use on a client’s hair or quick videos answering questions from your followers.
Another content idea is competitions! Running competitions on social media can be a great way to get people to interact with you. You could always ask people to interact with a certain post to be in with a chance to win a free haircut or a discount. This will generate interest and get people looking at your other posts and website.
Google My Business
If you run a single salon in one local area then making sure you’re showing up when people head off to look for their local salons in Google is imperative.
Google by Business is Google’s free platform for showcasing you business on Maps and in local search.
Some tips for making the most of it:
- Claim and complete your profile in full
- Add photos and videos wherever possible
- Make sure all your information is up to date
- Ask clients to review you on your local listing
You can add new posts to your listing regularly too.
Think Branding
Having a clear and unique brand can help to make you stand out in a crowded market. When designing your brand, think about the colours, font and imagery you want to use. Your brand needs to sum up your business and personality.
The first step is having a clear logo that makes it obvious what your service is. This logo can be plastered all over your social media and your physical premises, but it can also be printed onto promotional items that you could then pop into your gift bags.
A memorable name and brand identity will, hopefully, make you more memorable once people have seen you.
Keep them coming back
Of course, once you’ve won a customer for the first time, they’ll only come back if they’re happy with your handiwork. And that’s all down to your skill and customer service. So now it’s over to you to do what you do best and deliver excellent hair cuts!
