How is your salon competing this Valentine's Day?

Finally! January has crawled by and here we are at the lover-ly month of February! Valentine’s Day is always a great excuse for salons to go all out because it’s half celebrating the return of business after January being a quiet month for most. 2015 and the big day falls on Saturday meaning everything has to be bigger, better and more competitive to get those bookings in advance. 3 weeks to go so here are some of our ideas to pull out the stops this year <3…

· Appeal to men and women. Valentine’s is a great excuse for a double pamper day with your S/O but if your salon cannot cater for that then at least aim for both sexes when marketing. Some men can get stuck with gift ideas for their partners. Even though they might enter a salon sometimes the environment, treatments and smell can all become a bit too much resulting in a panic gift. Why not make it easy for them this Valentine’s Day and offer a gift card as the perfect treat to pamper their loved one. Sell it as the ideal, perhaps wrapped in a box with surrounding goodies to entice and close the customer there and then.

· Promote express makeover, waxing or mani/pedi treatments to make your client’s look and feel their best. If you have some package ideas why not name them something Valentine’s related. Try theming your treatments with love heart sweets! ‘New love’ or ‘be mine’ could be express visual treatments such as a makeover and manicure, whereas ‘I love you’ could be a complete pamper package inclusive of a relaxation massage and premium treatments.

· If you can cater for couple’s services then definitely do and offer at a special rate! Try getting really creative with your tempting treatment list. Think about relationships levels such as dating, relationships and marriage. New partners might prefer something a bit more subtle so join with your local florist and provide "flowers and a facial" (MUST PURCHASE IN ADVANCE) for newer couples. Other ideas might include couples massages, for a great excuse to relax and enjoy a romantic day together. It might even help with tapping into the male market too if that's something you don't yet offer.

·  Make sure you are adding a little touch of sparkle on to every treatment. Maybe get some lovey dovey cupcakes and champagne on the day for clients whilst they are enjoying their treatments. Maybe even retail some different products to what you usually would, such as romantic massage oils. This can be a great way to prompt customers to add on to their purchase and treat partners to a luxury pamper for the evening after their day at the salon.

· Anti-valentine’s day services! Don’t exclude the singles market. Entice groups of female friends to still celebrate the day with special pamper packages.

Digital Marketing! (What you need to know...)

Hi guys, Rachel here!

As some of you may know, I am the Marketing and Sales Manager over here at Salon Tracker and I'm back with a social and digital marketing blog in order to help you and your business. 

If you follow our blog then you may have seen we have released many social media marketing, digital based blogs that aim to help you grow your business. (I have linked some articles below, if you would like to flick to those after this read.*) Today I am going to focus on an area we haven't touched upon before which is going to oversee social media marketing both paid and organic advertising. Upon the entrance to 2015, a lot of clients have requested information on this particular subject which is why I have decided to blog about it so you can refer back, should you need to. Happy reading! 

Your businesses digital presence is just as important as your business itself which means it’s absolutely vital to invest money into it if you want to grow. There are many online essentials that are widely recommended for business development and lead generation such as Google CPC, SEO (on and off page optimisation) and of course the inevitable, social media.

This last decade, social media has grown to become one of the most explosive marketing tools ever known to man. Although initially gracing us as a predominantly social network between peers, businesses have recognised the opportunities to build rapport and up-heave customer satisfaction with social channels like never before.

Most social channels such as Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter all provide advertising opportunities, but still many businesses aim to grow organically rather than use their marketing budget, because essentially, you can. What many entrepreneurs aren’t aware of, are the possibilities of expansion, growth and development if you are willing to integrate marketing funds. Since the beginning of my career in marketing, I have witnessed many businesses grow their brands through social media marketing and can honestly say there is a huge opportunity to grow your business if you are willing to apply some adaptations. 

Salon Tracker Tips;

- Educate yourself on Facebook Ads! Facebook are simple in their approach and offer many articles to help aid your journey in the creation of an ad. For a B2C market with a social background, Facebook can work wonders and you can triple your existing database which means your niche audience is tripled. Although debatable, I am confident most businesses can find explosive success with Facebook Ads as long as you are targeting your market correctly and measuring your ROI too. 

- If you are more confident with or hold a larger audience base on Twitter, there are a few options I would strongly recommend both paid and non paid advertising. Twitter Advanced Search is a great way to find your niche market or people who are in requirements of your services and is completely FREE. Twitter Ads on the other hand is a paid technique and can be expensive if it is not measured or researched. I have heard great results from clients who have integrated this into their business.

- LinkedIn is another social channel which is extremely up and coming and still so underused. It offers great opportunity for corporate news or events and is designed to hold all limited company information. If you operate in B2B, LinkedIn is great for outsourcing, content and lead generation.

- For those of you who are always posting to various networks from your phones or laptops, the next pointer might really help you out. ‘Hootsuite’ is essentially a social media executives dream since it saves time and can post in advance to multiple networks. It allows the ability to keep your content consistent, fresh and engaging if you can plan in advance. You even have suggested posts which finds relevant content based on your "interests".

- If you haven’t already, create a professional and working website. Everyday there are people browsing the Internet for services. If you are not present on Google then you simply do not have a chance ranking against your competitors with regards to SEO. In 2015, Google introduced the latest Google Algorithm change which stated all websites had to be fully functioning on a mobile. This was a huge movement for digital and is so important. As a business you are potentially losing out on over 60% worth of business if your website is not mobile friendly.

- Make sure you are on all relevant networks. Some might say join every network you can, but this isn’t necessarily correct. Corporate companies for example are generally opposed to sites such as Instagram. Whereas Instagram and Pinterest are fantastic opportunities for the beauty industry since it is visually focused. I would say for salon owners the top 5 of the minute are the obvious, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and Google +. 

- If you know you’ve got a great team who are talented in their profession, use social channels to show them off! There’s nothing better than a business owner who takes pride in and advertises their employee’s expertise. You are the professionals and therefore hold an authority in industry tips, tricks and advice- use this angle to entice onward.

- Don’t just showcase your own news, share articles your clients might be interested in. We are always sharing visual graphics and future trends because everyone needs a little inspiration from time to time.

- People on social channels, generally scroll through their news feed until they see something they like and share so it has to be enticing and draw the reader in, relevant to your market.

- If you have a full appointment calendar, chances are your client’s are happy with their services. LinkedIn, Google+ and Facebook are all great channels to ask for reviews and testimonials from your clients. especially but even Facebook now offer reviews. Try just asking your client’s politely if they would be willing to review your services, usually if they are happy with you, they are happy to extend this.

- Measure! We cannot stress the importance of measuring. Google Analytics is a great place to calculate ROI. Was expanding your marketing budget worth it? Hopefully so. If you have any questions on the above, please feel free to reach out and I will be happy to talk you through this.

Thanks for reading,  

Rachel

* 'TOP 5 TIPS: How to use social media' and 'Getting the most out of social media for your business' 

Have you got a marketing strategy in place for 2015?

Although seemingly tedious, a marketing strategy is all in support of increasing sales and interaction continuity with clients and potential consumers. Don’t worry marketing doesn’t have to cost everything you own. Adverts, whether on social media or magazines can be very short lived so even if you’re only putting a £50 budget on your Facebook Ads a month but you run them consistently, you will see some positivity and optimisation. 


You need to be aware that marketing efforts require careful planning and, in order to you assess your return on investment and effectively plan future marketing, you must keep a record of the sales generated as a result of your campaigns. Try and set some time aside each week for brainstorming new ideas or calculating your business growth.

Capture Data
Build a mailing list. This will enable you to target your campaigns more effectively. Collecting the names is the hard part, so give your prospects a reason for them to provide you with their name and address – competitions, an emailed newsletter, the promise of advance information and discounts, maybe even a loyalty card. Work at keeping your list accurate and up to date. Try to get hold of email addresses as well as (or even in preference to) landmail contact details: email is cheaper and more versatile than postage.

Maintaining customer relationships
This is especially important in the service industry. Once you have captured your client’s data, utilise it! Concentrate on customers more than prospects: they will be more valuable to you, both for repeat business and because they’ll act as a reference. It is estimated to be up to four times more expensive to attract a new customer than it is to maintain an existing customer. So be personal. Remember birthdays and anniversaries. Say "thank you” when they buy (if only by email). Offer them the chance to comment and criticise. Give them special offers not available to anyone else. Make sure they know that your Christmas ‘thank you’ gift is going to a selected few, and they’re in the group.

Selling new treatments
Invite your regulars to check out new products or services: they appreciate being treated as special, and you will lower barriers to purchase because the risk associated with trial is lower and they will therefore be more likely to purchase the treatment in the future. Look at their past purchase history if possible, and tailor special promotions to them.

Competitions
Run competitions. They are an excellent way to garner mailing list names while sending branding messages: the kind of contest your run implies the kind of company you are. A chance of winning hamper full of lovely products, chocolates and a bottle of Chardonnay could prove irresistible to customers for the mere exchange of their phone number and address.

Rewarding Loyalty
Start a loyalty programme. The customer gets a good deal, you get a keen customer (and their contact details). A simple approach is to give customers a card that is marked after each purchase and results in a free or reduced-price offering after a specified number of regular-priced purchases.

2015 Changes...

The festive frenzy has officially come to an end and we're well and truly back in work with a bang!

January is notoriously the quietest time of the year, making it the ideal opportunity to evaluate last years success or albeit, lack of. Whatever happened with your business last year, 2015 is a new start which means its the perfect time to give your salon an overhaul, and renew or introduce a new software system. 

Computerising your salon comes with many benefits including streamlining your operations and making business more profitable and efficient. It will also help you to provide exceptional customer service and keep your salon ahead of the competition. 

January isn't just the best time to revamp your business, it is also the perfect time to attract new clients. If you have pushed your marketing efforts during this busy peak many customers will be looking to cash in their January vouchers, hopefully bringing you healthy footfall this January. It is vital that you record and keep track of any new customers to convert them into loyal customers for 2015. 

Take advantage of January being the season of change! Promote new products and services to entice new customers and inspire loyal customers to try out new treatments. It is important all new treatments are well marketed to your customers and a salon software system will help with this with their advanced marketing features, enabling you to select from your customer base clients that will be interested in a particular new treatment from their previous purchasing history, this will allow you to customise your marketing efforts to suit the needs and wants of your clientèle.

New Year, New Start!

NEW YEAR, NEW START! Noooooooooope, not in the salon. New Year= everything stays the same! Wanting to switch up your Feng Shui in the salon for the new year but can’t really afford it because of how quiet January is? Well here’s some great news. You can still have a little revamp of your current space, at an affordable price! 

As much as you might want a lick of paint, a new mirror, new floor and new chairs- this might rock the money boat a little. Our suggestion is to focus on the area used most by clients, is this the reception area or the treatment rooms? Cushions and key table items are a great way to mix your colour pallet up a bit. Why not change your mocha brown to a splash of red or pink for the winter months or a cool lime green for spring time? You will be so surprised at how much this actually helps. Why not try and change the room around somewhat. Get a pencil and some paper for ideas then grab the nearest pair of muscles and give it a go. A new space all for under £100!

Salon Tracker TIP: Recycling is all the rage now! All you need is a couple of old palettes and a creative mind and you can really work wonders. Check out Pinterest for some amazing inspiration!

Salon Tracker supports Children In Need!

We recently supported our beauty and spa network in raising money for Children in Need with their marketing campaigns and publicity. I would like to personally thank everyone who took part for their hard work and generosity in aid of Children in Need. Please see our published article in Salon Magazine.....

Make this Christmas a cracker!

The key to success is forward planning, SalonTracker salon software will help you plan and manage your salon over the busy Christmas period to ensure you win new customers, grow your business and improve your profits. Here are some helpful guides to plan for the festive period...

•  Ensure your salon is fully stocked to handle the Christmas rush. Make all your purchases in plenty of time to avoid any disruptions. SalonTracker will monitor and keep track of your stock levels and the system will even flag up when you need to reorder more products ensuring your salon is running as efficiently as possible.

• Christmas is the dominant retail period as people will always spend money on gifts. Make sure you have a range of gift ideas with different price points to appeal to your clients' differing budgets. Your clients are looking for ideas and help on what presents to buy, here is your chance to offer professional advice on beauty products emphasising their popularity as presents, creating the opportunity to increase your profits and sales. Why not add value to your gifts and promote free gift wrapping upon purchase.

• Promote gift vouchers as the ideal present for Christmas giving the recipient an indulgent treat to look forward to in the New Year. It is important that you manage the gift voucher process in order to ensure you achieve the optimum results for your salon, they are not only an extra revenue stream but they can bring in new regular customers also. SalonTracker will help you manage this with its gift voucher tracking function and also with the ability to store and track client information and purchasing history.

• During this busy time be sure to manage and keep track of your staff. Ensure you are aware of holidays that are being taken around the Christmas period and make sure you have adequate staff members to support extended Christmas opening hours to enable you to take full advantage of a back to back appointment book.  SalonTracker will allow you to see from the click of a mouse when your technicians are working and will block out any holidays from the calendar to ensure you remember to accommodate cover. With all of these details recorded in the system, your new holiday hours will not be a cause for confusion.
• Ensure all your Christmas promotions and offerings are well marketed, you may have the most appealing offers to clients but if they are not aware of them they may go elsewhere. SalonTracker’s advanced SMS and email marketing feature will enable you to filter your client database based on numerous categories such as age, gender, spending and visiting habits allowing you to produced targeted more personalised promotions. Why wait for the seasonal customers to come to you, target them now and ensure your salon is busy and profitable in the run up to Christmas.

• Finally, know your strengths. It is important to understand where the largest percentage of profits comes from within your salon; for example how much is derived from retail sales, gift vouchers and treatments, it is also vital to be aware of the clients your salon attracts and for example what gender and age range are your biggest spenders. SalonTracker  software will provide you with this key information through its advanced reporting and charts feature which will help you prepare and generate a Christmas campaign that is likely to bring you the most success.

Don’t just take our word for it try before you buy with our free trial. Call today on 0113 350 8230.