Now more than ever, it’s important to keep your loyal customers happy while enticing new ones to walk in through your salon doors.
Back in the good old days, it was simple – you put up flyers in nearby business windows, place an ad in the local newspaper, or ask some of your customers to hand some flyers out to their friends.
Ba da bing ba da boom, you had at least 1 or 2 new customers!
But in today’s digital world, these old fashioned methods will only get your business so far.
The younger the crowd gets, the more tech savvy they are. And in a world where everything seems available with a click of a button, you have to shift your marketing to cater to all ages.
So you can still print and share your flyers, but you also have to have an online presence.
But where to begin? Build a website? Create a social media account? Make sure you’ve got good reviews on Yelp?
It can be a little overwhelming, but we’ve got you covered.
According to WordStream, they have 30 of the best ways to promote your business in this digital age.
But we’ll just talk about a few options and let you decide where to begin.
Leverage Google’s business tools
Let’s start with Google. It’s safe to assume most of your existing customers use Google (or know someone who can at least navigate the search engine), so you can definitely reach some new customers by appearing in the top Google search results.
But how do you make this happen?
Well, for starters, you want to create and verify your Google Business profile.
Per WordStream, the key to optimizing your business profile is to verify ownership of your listing through your free Google My Business account.
With the right type of engagement and management, you can reach a point where your business is promoting itself.
So now that you’re appearing in all the Google searches, what else can you do to entice newcomers into your salon?
You build a website that’s meant to promote your business but also make you more relatable.
Customers want to know what services you offer, whether you’re appointments-only or walk-ins welcome, and even your “about us” story.
Create a website
Your website also allows you to run promotional ads, post customer reviews and even link to your social media pages.
You can build your website for free, but you can also hire a professional to give your site a polished look that screams “CLICK ME”, on sites like Wix.
You can even add a blog link to your website. Blogs allow you to be even more personable.
You can share your thoughts on the latest hair trends, your collabs with different industry artists, or even at-home maintenance tips before your customers’ next visit to the salon.
Show your customers that you’re interested in keeping them well informed, and would like their feedback (aka try to respond to any comments they may have to your blog posts).
Using social media
Let’s take your online presence one step further and tackle SOCIAL MEDIA!
The most popular options for business pages are Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter.
But you can also use platforms like Pinterest, TikTok and YouTube.
Like your website, you can use these platforms to post your latest product launches, customer appreciation day specials and even the occasional “hi – stop by on by!” post.
Your Facebook business page is a great place for ads (e.g. new salon location opening soon!), specials (e.g. buy one service, get one half-off) and customer engagement.
Instagram and TikTok are perfect for posting images, stories, behind the scenes content and reels (and do viral tiktok challenges)
And you can use YouTube to post how-to videos (e.g. how to use salon fave products).
You may be wondering how or where you’re going to create content for your website, blog and social media accounts.
Well, the first place I’d start is using your own content. Create informative social media posts about various, catchy topics, for example:
- Washing best practices for curly hair
- How to keep your face fresh in 2 steps
Make a reel of day to day operations, and share the stories of consenting customers.
Encourage customers to tag you in their stories – and then repost it on your pages! I mean, there’s nothing more personal than real-life customer testimonials.
But you can also utilize a site like PosterMyWall to up your salon marketing game.
Use it to create social media posts, Instagram stories, and even videos, whether you have little to no artistic experience – or if you’re a pro graphic designer on the side.
Whichever strategies you choose to implement to get a younger audience interested, know that you have multiple options and resources at your fingertips as well!