#SalonProblems: It’s Not Cutting Hair That’s Hard, It’s Getting and Keeping Customers
Keys to Success: Mix Online and Offline Promos, Coupon Advertising, and Social Media
It’s not easy running a salon, but what’s keeping owners and managers up at night? Getting new customers in the door.
A 2014 survey from Phorest found that drumming up business lagged behind only managing staff for owners and managers of salons, and was followed closely by customer retention.
“To put that in context, managing and motivating staff is almost as challenging as getting new clients and retaining existing ones combined, i.e., the greatest challenge lies internally within the business more so than in the marketplace,” the study found.
Put in more detail, the problems ranged from generating marketing ideas, letting potential clients know you are there, and frustration when ad campaigns on sites like Facebook seemingly fail to bring new customers through the door.
Luckily, there are plenty of great options and salon marketing tips out there for generating new business and keeping the business you already have.
Does Your Work Look Great? Show It Off!
Instagram, with its image-heavy content, geo-location ability, and hashtag following, seems custom-designed for salon advertising.
Instagram marketing for salons mixes eye-popping images with product posts—for great examples, check out this list from Salon Guru.
But before you hit the post button, consider your hashtags carefully. Instagram allows up to 30 with each post, but it’s not as simple as that. First up, there is legitimate debate out there that using all 30 can look spammy, and no matter what, Instagram’s algorithm favors those that are specific and relevant. Further, shadowban paranoia has not gone away in 2018, so you’ll want to test your page and keep up with the latest in posting news.
What hashtags work best? That depends on what you are promoting, but Cirius Marketing suggested #salonselfie, #beauty, #salon, #naturalhair, #instahair, #goodhair, #curls, and #hairfinity. Phorest agrees to a certain extent, adding hashtags like #newlook, #happyhappy, and #transformation.
Instagram Is Fun, but Coupons and Promotions Have Concrete Results
It’s fairly well-known that social media likes stimulate a dopamine high, and while that makes you feel good, it may or may not be helpful to your biz if someone in Bulgaria likes your buzz cuts.
Salon promotion using print ads, coupons, and business cards offer targeted advertising with a wealth of benefits, including the ability to track and measure results. By using codes or even colors salon owners and managers can easily see what coupon attracted which service and even where the customers came from.
“The pros of offering coupons include introducing new customers to your store, introducing new product lines, providing a way to get rid of unwanted inventory to make room in your warehouse or store for newer product, (and) encouraging customers to try a new brand that is more profitable to you or getting customers to come back to your store,” wrote Investopedia. “The key to maximizing the advantage of coupons in today’s digital world is using coupons as a way to build your customer base. Coupons can become a crucial part of your social media marketing provided you use them strategically.”
Well-designed coupons can include not just your name, address, and a promotion, but also build brand identity and display powerful images.
Don’t forget to include an expiration date, great color, and impactful text, explains The Balance. Entrepreneur also suggests leveraging the psychology of discounts and creating a sense of urgency.
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