When someone wants a haircut or a blow dry, they look for salon options close to where they live. Not many people go to the salon in another state.
In a salon, people look for pampering, glow-ups, and convenience. This is why most, if not all of your clients will most likely be from the neighborhood you’re operating in.
It follows then, that when you do your salon marketing, you must advertise to people within your locale.
You don’t want just any old marketing plan for your salon. You want to stand out and make a splash. Get customers all lined up outside your doors. This will happen if you have a dynamic and exciting promotional campaign to advertise your services.
You might feel that by catering to only a small subset i.e. the local population, that you’re limiting yourself. However, that’s simply not true. You’re far more likely to gain a customer base by marketing to people nearby than by marketing to the general public across your state that may not actually have the means to avail your services.
In this blog post, we’re outlining some of the most important location-based marketing tips for your salon that you can’t do without.
1. Run geo-targeted ads
When you put out an ad, you want it to be seen by people who will immediately pick up the phone and book an appointment with you. If you’re in New York City, it’s unlikely that someone from Chicago will do this. So why show them the ad at all? Instead, your focus should be New York City, or in other words, your ads should be geo-targeted.
Geo-targeting allows you to show ads to only specific people in a specific region. This way, you narrow down your reach to only the most relevant people, and you’ll only get clicks from people who could actually benefit from your services. Not only is this incredibly cost effective, but it also saves you time otherwise wasted on demographics too remote from your salon.
So, make sure your ads are targeted to people within a particular locale, and also make sure that the content in the ads is location specific. For instance, “Only for folks in Georgia!” is a statement that makes it very clear who you are targeting. And there’s the added bonus of people from Georgia feeling like they’re being offered an exclusive deal (which they are).
To get started with geo-targeted ads, check out websites that offer them. For instance, Google allows you to target your ads to specific locations. You can set it all up in a few easy steps. Similarly, Facebook offers location targeted ads based on country, region, or city.
2. Hand out flyers
Handing out and putting up flyers is probably one of the most effective location-based marketing tools to date.
Put up flyers in public places, like parks and malls, where people will be able to see them clearly. You should also stuff them in people’s mailboxes or send them out with morning newspapers. A key demographic for salons is working moms. They’re often looking for some nice, affordable pampering at the end of the day. Thus, this strategy will work in reeling them in.
Before you put up flyers in public places or even in people’s mailboxes, it’s important to check local laws and guidelines on what is and isn’t acceptable.
Making flyer designs doesn’t have to break the bank either. PosterMyWall offers incredible salon flyer templates, salon posters and a free flyer maker that you can browse through to find the one that fits with your salon. Customize your template within minutes at minimal cost and great convenience.
You can also use PosterMyWall to create other types of printable content in easy and quick ways. For instance, we offer gorgeous hair salon flyers, salon brochures and price list templates that you can use to list all your services and prices for when people visit your salon. You can also use price lists as flyers because they give potential customers an idea of what the pricing and services look like.
Make your flyers colorful and dynamic to get the greatest amount of engagement. CEO of Hair by Ms Mari, Mariam Davis, suggests using a flyer to let customers know what your brand identity is. Ultimately, when you advertise your services, you’re selling a brand and a lifestyle that you want people to get on board with. Communicate that through your flyer by incorporating brand colors, graphics, and information customers should know.
3. Invite people for free haircuts
Free haircuts are free publicity. They’re also a chance for your staff to practise and experiment with different styles and cuts. It’s truly a win-win situation for everyone and a wonderful marketing technique.
Spread the word around your locale about free haircuts at your salon, and people are bound to tell their friends and other people in their neighborhood. A haircut is easy to do for free because you’re not spending any money on materials. All you need is a pair of scissors and maybe a blow dryer.
Once people are in the door, try to get them to avail additional services or ask them to visit you for their next monthly salon appointment.
Toni&Guy is a hair salon that famously uses this approach to market its haircuts. Whenever they have a new round of trainees, they invite people for free haircuts so their trainees can practice. At the same time, they get a ton of publicity as people spread the word around.
You have to make sure not to go overboard with this approach though. There is such a thing as too many free haircuts. Know when to introduce the strategy i.e. when you’re trying to get more customers through your door, and when to discontinue it i.e. when you feel like you’re getting way too many customers looking for freebies.
Like Toni&Guy, you can advertise your free haircuts with ready-made barber flyers and hair salon flyers.
4. Set up booths and kiosks in malls
Malls see a ton of traffic during the day. And you’ll also see all kinds of people, including children, teenagers, adults, and the elderly. Many of these people will be on board to visit the salon every once in a while. This means that all of these people could potentially be customers. So why not market directly to them?
At your booth or kiosk, make sure to have one or two representatives that can answer any questions people might have. Also have flyers and information booklets out so people can refer to them later. To get people to your booth, you can offer free nail paint application or a free consultation for a haircut. People love free things and they’ll soon be flocking to your booth.
A mall booth is essential for a business because it is an opportunity for you to advertise in real time. Essentially, you get to put your best foot forward and show people why they should come to you. You also get the chance to publicize your booth, and invite people to come and visit (and people are more likely to because it requires less commitment than going to an actual salon.) Once they have one foot in the door, you can work your magic and turn them into real customers.
This will also help you create a buzz around your salon, and if people are happy with what you tell them, and your free services, you’ll soon see an influx of new customers in your store.
5. Use location-specific hashtags on social media
Digital marketing is a key aspect of your marketing plan, and it must not be neglected. People are always looking for products and services online, so when someone looks for a good place to get a haircut or a manicure, you have to make sure that you’re on top of the list.
Instagram is a great place for marketing with hashtags. While Facebook allows hashtags as well, Instagram does a much better job at increasing visibility based on the number of hashtags used.
Here’s what you have to do. Put up posts of your work, whether it’s hair dye, a manicure, a makeup look, or a haircut. All of your posts should be tagged with your location. You should include other hashtags too, however, location based hashtags are the most important when it comes to finding customers in your locale.
So the next time someone in your town searches for a salon, your profile will pop up at the very top because of the relevant hashtags you will have used.
6. Give coupons for prom night
Prom night is a very important event for teenagers living in your area. You should capitalize on this by offering high school seniors exclusive discounts on hair and make-up at your salon. This is also a great way to bring in new customers, who will likely stick with you if they love your services.
Bliss Hair is a salon that gives special prom night hair discounts to high school seniors. Their marketing technique has helped them style hundreds of prom queen hopefuls and in the process, they have managed to generate huge revenues.
Because in many ways, prom night is a community event, ensuring that your salon is a part of it will establish you as a trusted salon that everyone can recommend to each other. Other types of community events such as balls or fundraisers should be used in the same way.
In fact, why not take things a step further by going to school administrators directly and signing an MOU with them that allows you to style all the students at a low cost. If it’s something the school is up for, it will be a big win for you and it will also set the ground running for any future partnerships you may want to have.
7. Host parties at your salon
People like to work with brands they trust, which is why you must be as open and accessible to your clientele as possible.
One way to do this is to host parties at your salon. Bella Salon does this by dedicating a page on their website to information about how people can rent the salon space for parties. They provide skilled beauticians and nail technicians at the event so that people can have fun and enjoy some much needed pampering.
A great party to host in a salon would be a bachelorette. Advertise your salon as the perfect place to bring gal pals and enjoy a night of music, styling, and partying.
This strategy is ideal if you want a younger section of the community to become regular customers. If people feel at home enough to party at your salon, it is likely that they will come to you for future services as well. In this way, you will build a network of loyal local clients that you can count on.
8. Get featured in the local news
Lots of people still watch cable news and morning shows. So if you were to make an appearance and market yourself at one of those things, you will see a huge spike in brand awareness within your community.
Sure, you could go the traditional route and take out an ad. But there are two problems with that approach. Firstly, 86% of all viewers tend to skip over ads or not pay attention to them. Secondly, getting ad space is extremely expensive. And if you’re on a limited budget, that may not be the best idea.
Getting featured in the news, however, is free and a lot more beneficial. Do a live makeover on a model. Alternatively, give someone from the network’s staff an impromptu haircut. Not only will this demonstrate the skill and talent of your stylists, but it will also get the word out about your salon and get you free publicity in the neighbourhood.
9. Get local influencers on board
Local influencers may not have as big of a following as big-name influencers, but they are still more effective marketers than the latter. According to one study, influencers with over 100,000 followers see an engagement rate of just 1.7%, while micro-influencers enjoy an engagement rate of 4%. That’s a huge difference. It can be chalked up to the fact that smaller influencers generally have more dedicated followers.
As a small business, you should capitalise on this by partnering up with local influencers. Bring them to your salon and offer them your services. Afterward, ask them to post a picture or a video to their social media accounts, showing people the finished results. Make sure to reach out to lifestyle influencers who will be more likely to have followers who fall under your target audience.
And there you have it. Follow these location based marketing strategies and watch your salon take off in your community. Remember, the discounts you provide should be strategic. They should be geared towards bringing in more revenue in the long run. As far as customers are concerned, you must focus on keeping them coming back and becoming permanent.
The bottom line is that you want your community to accept you as a tried and tested, trustworthy salon choice.
So make your salon stand out from the rest by using PosterMyWall to design unique and professional promotional content such as beauty salon flyers in minutes.
Qasim is a senior editor at PosterMyWall. Qasim is a reader and writer during and after work, and likes to explore a wide range of topics and niches. Outside of work, he likes to meditate, listen to good music and journal.
