Keep Those Stylist Chairs Filled!
Congratulations! You have started your new hair salon, and it wasn’t an easy feat. Now you have another hurdle to tackle, the marketing. How will you get people to notice your salon? Who wants to open up a hair salon for it to be dead? We feel your pain, and that’s why we are sharing with you 15 marketing tips for salon owners. So let’s get started on your journey to bomb marketing for your salon!
Marketing Tips for The Win!
#1 Hire a Publicist
“If I had one dollar left, I’d spend it on PR” -Bill Gates
Even Microsoft founder, Bill Gates, understands the power of pr (Public Relations). While everything else here is essential, I think tip #1 and tip #15 may be the
most valuable unknown nuggets that we will share with you. Hiring a publicist that specializes in public relations can help bring so much exposure and
brand awareness to your salon. They help you build relationships and get the publicity that could lead to more sales for your business. While the title of a publicist may sound pricey, many publicists offer very affordable rates. If you can’t afford to have them on fulltime consider hiring them part-time, another option is getting a consultation from them so that you and your team can implement their advice in your marketing strategy. Many publicists offer consultations at a more convenient fee than their full-time or part-time services. So this may be a more affordable route for you. There are also many college students looking to get their feet wet in public relations. Consider bringing on a college student as a PR intern for your salon and have them handle this part of your business. You can pay them by offering college credit, a stipend or even free services at your salon.
#2 Create An Instagram Profile
In this day and age, an Instagram profile is necessary for just about everything, everyone, and every business. If you don’t have one, it is almost like your business doesn’t exist. Creating an Instagram should be one of the first things you do to market your salon. You can use salon themed hashtags and post client before and after photos to draw attention to your page. Offer giveaways and incentives for your followers as well as create Instagram ads which you can run for as low as one dollar. Getting your clients to tag you in their selfies and use your location as a geo-tag will surely get you noticed. You can also use Insta-stories to engage with your followers. Show the behind-the-scenes of your business and mini hair tutorials as well as new deals. Instagram is such a powerful tool and its
free! Who doesn’t love free marketing? If you need some help navigating the world of social media check out our two bomb articles about social media and the hair industry below: “
How To Brand Your Instagram For Success” “
How Social Media Is Changing the Hair Industry”
#3 Create A Facebook Page
Since we are already on the topic of social media, I have to mention Facebook. Creating a Facebook can be great for business. Facebook offers so much for businesses such as ads, analytics, groups, and exposure. Many companies are on Facebook because of this fact. Just like Instagram, you can create Facebook ads for your business to increase your salon’s reach. It also allows customers to leave reviews which can be great for your business and build trust for potential customers.
#4 Have A Website
Having a website is imperative for any business that wants to have a mark in the digital space. A website can also be used to host products and drive sales. Your site should showcase your services and also allow potential customers to book appointments at your salon. Your website serves as the digital portfolio for your salon, showcasing both your salon’s services and work. Having a site means that when people search salon’s in your area, you may pop up!
#5 Start a Blog
With a website, having a blog section is a great way to market your salon. You never know what people are searching. Having a website and blog with searchable content will allow people to find you! A blog is a great way to become a resource in your industry and prove you as an expert in your field. If people love and trust your salon’s blog, they are likely to visit your salon. Create content for your salon’s blog that is valuable, informative and helpful. We will go more into this in the next tip.
#6 Create Content
Your hair salon is a business and a brand. What's a better way to showcase that than by creating valuable content that is shareable? You can create various types of content from videos to photo shoots. All of this can be used to market your brand. You can showcase this content on your website, blog and social media platforms. Here are three types of content that you can create:
Blogs
- Having a resourceful blog with tutorials, tips, and valuable information is a great way to build content. We covered more of this in tip#5.
Videos
- In this day and age video content is the way to go, especially for those in the hair industry. We have all seen hair tutorials going viral on social media and with tons of views on Youtube. Video content is a great way to build your brand and potentially go viral with it.
Photoshoots
- Photoshoots are an excellent source of content for your brand. Not only can you use the photos from the shoots as promo for flyers and handouts but you can also have photoshoots for your blog and create videos of the shoots for your Youtube channel.
A brand photoshoot is a great way to showcase your salon’s skills and draw customers in through captivating visuals.
#7 Brand Ambassadors
Having a
brand ambassador for your salon is a great way to evangelize your brand. A brand ambassador (Check out this article:
brand ambassador contract) can serve as the spokesperson, face, and advocate for your salon. You can get them to host events, create videos, model and so much more. The duty of a brand ambassador is to literally be the ambassador for your brand. They should advocate for your brand and serve as brand evangelists. They play a significant role in getting the word out about your salon. Learn more about brand ambassadors and how they can help your business in our article, “
How to Select Hair Ambassadors for Your Extensions Business.”
#8 Host Events
Anyone who has a salon should consider hosting events. There are so many different types of activities that you can have at your salon. From classes and workshops to hosting a grand opening event, having events is a great way to introduce the community to your salon and services. Offering
classes and workshops cause you become a resource to other hair lovers in the area. People are always looking to learn more about the
hair industry, what better way to help out than to teach them. You can even charge a small fee and use the profits to upgrade your salon even more.
#9 Use Your Salon as an Event Space
Not only can you host events at your salon but you can open up your salon as a space for others. There are probably many local business owners looking to host various events in your community. Offering your salon as an event space gives them the option of hosting their event with you. Even the guests that they invite may consider hosting their next event at your salon. Opening up your salon as an event space is a great way to gain exposure for your salon while also getting some extra coin. You can post your location on sites like
EVENTup for more exposure. This will help bring in a new crowd of people that may not know about your salon.
#10 Word of Mouth
I know we all love social media and press but never underestimate the power of word of mouth marketing, especially when it comes to hair. Word of Mouth marketing is one of the most natural marketing techniques to do because it comes naturally. Not to mention everyone has a mouth. Word of mouth marketing can be done by your brand ambassadors, staff, clients and most importantly you! At times some business owners are hesitant to talk about their business to others. They don't want to seem like they are showing off or bragging. Well, I'm here to tell you if anybody should be advocating your business it should be you! You should be the biggest and strongest evangelist for your brand, and one of the easiest ways to do this is through word-of-mouth. So next time you're somewhere, and someone brings up business,
hair, salons or anything related I want you to tell them about your business!
#11 Newspaper
Believe it or not, yes, people still read the paper, and they always go to it to find out about local businesses. Having an ad for your salon in the newspaper is a great way to attract clients to your salon especially older clients who are known to be loyal. You can offer coupons and exclusive discounts to readers that they can redeem at your salon. Another great way to get your salon in the newspaper is to have an article written about your salon. The article can talk about the various services that your salon offers while even giving some hair tips to readers.
#12 Radio
Local radios still get tons of listeners. A quick commercial advertisement talking about your salon on the radio can get you some buzz. Make sure the advertisement is straight to the point and very catchy so that listeners will remember your salon. Also, include the address and phone number for your salon so that anyone who wants to visit can do so with ease. You can use a service like Adfresco to help secure deals for top radio spots.
#13 Pass out flyers!
One of the classic ways to promote your salon is by passing out flyers. While many may think that this strategy is old school, flyers still work in this day and age. Flyers can be helpful for those times where you want to tell somebody about your salon, but you don't have too much time. You can even hang them up as posters around town, where it is permitted. Flyers are also pretty easy to make. You can hire a graphic designer or get an intern to make you fabulous flyers. They are bound to grab anyone's attention. If you can't find someone to make your flyer for you, you can make one yourself using Canva.
Canva is very simple and easy to use for creating graphics. Make sure to leave some flyers at your salon so that clients can take some with them to pass out and help spread the word.
#14 Offer Special Discounts on Certain Days
Incentives like special discounts will get the community hype. You can offer coupons or special discounts on specific services or specific days. Doing this strategy will cause your salon to be the go-to salon on that day or for that particular service. You can also offer college discount for your salon’s services. College students are always looking for the new hot spot to get their hair done. If you can make a college student happy with excellent service and a great deal they will spread the word about your salon. Your salon could become the go-to place for the college students in your town!
#15 Have An Email List
I cannot reinforce this last tip enough. Having email list is one of the
best ways to market your salon. This advice is so valuable that we dedicated a podcast episode to it, "Email Marketing for Your Hair Company." An email list allows you to have a one-on-one connection with potential clients for free. All you have to do is write an email which everyone had. Not to mention in the digital world an email is technically the only things that you own.
Market Your Salon Like a Boss
It is vital to not only market your hair salon but to market it effectively and efficiently. These 15 marketing tips are various ways to create traffic outlets for your business and to make it known. Being consistent in your marketing efforts as a salon owner will set you apart from the masses and get you successfully established. I hope these tips were helpful! What are some marketing tips you recommend to salon owners? Let us know in the comments below.
