Linkup recently did a series of courses covering getting the most out of Facebook. When the doors of opportunity were opened for most of these busy salon owners, and they were shown what Facebook can really do, many of them looked at me and said: “Where do I start?”
This was only in reference to Facebook; what about the rest of the social media jungle? What about the rest of the online marketing you should be doing to drive business? What does a time-strapped salon spa owner do?
Take a step back. Think about what you’re trying to achieve here. Are you looking to get new clients? Are you looking to retain existing clients? Are you trying to do both? How about employee retention? There are lots of things that you may be trying to achieve, but writing down all of your business objectives and then creating a bullet list of things that you do in marketing to try and achieve those things will help you to make sure you aren’t wasting energy and resources on something that isn’t helping to balance out your strategy.
After you are clear on what you are trying to achieve and what you are already doing to help you, think about how your online efforts will extend your efforts as well as balance out your marketing plan. For example, everyone wants new clients as attrition is a part of life, but ignoring strategic efforts to retain clients can turn your business into a revolving door and unnecessarily increase your marketing costs.
The salon marketing world is split into two areas – existing clients and new clients. All of the activities in either (or both) of these sphere’s all point to one destination online – your website. So, if you don’t have a website and are wondering where to start then this is the obvious gaping hole in your marketing plan. If your website is antiquated and not ranking well online, this is also the first port of call for you. If you aren’t sure if your website is making the mark, a previous blog covering the top five mistakes on salon spa websites might give you some helpful insight.
If your website is already spiffed up and doing it’s job, then consider your networks that are giving you a two-prong benefit (the overlapping circles) as that may help you achieve more by managing one activity. With these activities, however, you will see that there is an increase in the amount of time that is dedicated to making these work. These are not like tossing out a coupon or a direct mail campaign, they are much more complex.
If this sounds too complicated, consider starting with something that sits in each sphere, like getting your clients to review you on Yelp! or City Search to entice new clients to try your business and also start an email marketing program to help nurture your existing client relationships. This way you are ensuring you are bringing clients in as well as keeping them with your business.
Author Bio: Valorie Reavis
Social Marketer, foodie, closet geekA marketing professional who has focused primarily on the hair and beauty business for of the past decade, Valorie now runs linkup marketing, a digital marketing agency for the hair and beauty professional. Valorie works to engage clients in the marketing process and help them successfully engage with their clients and community. Energetic and passionate about the industry, Valorie focuses on blending traditional and digital media in order to bring salons closer to their clients.
