It’s a crazy competitive world out there! Standing out in a sea of other salons can be really difficult. No one wants to run a boring, run of the mill salon. We want to stand out! We want to be memorable! And we want to have a lasting impact on our favourite people – the customers!
Figuring out what makes your salon unique is a really important step in the journey to running a successful business. When you know what makes you unique, you know how to position yourself in the market. You learn how to stop going after the wrong type of customer and how to become the number one choice for your ideal customers.
If you’re not sure what makes your salon stand out from the crowd, these are just some of the things that make for a memorable salon experience. Ask yourself which most closely matches your salon personality…
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Your customers are your entire business. If you don’t generate repeat bookings, you’ll soon struggle. Learning to treat every person who comes through the door as a VIP is a great way to make your salon stand out.
And the thing is, anyone could be a VIP these days. You might be a high-end salon helping celebrities get red carpet ready, or you might be a small town salon helping ladies get ready for a Friday night. The arrival of micro-influencers levelled the playing field and made both just as relevant. A local beauty vlogger with 10,000 highly engaged Instagram followers could bring huge attention to your salon.
Anyone who walks through your door has the power to rate or slate your salon. So don’t just reserve the best treatment for the obvious VIPs. By using the right salon software, you can keep track of regular customers and reward them for their loyalty.
Do you follow the trends or do you make the trends? Being the only salon in town to offer that crazy new treatment is a great way to expand your research. People might not know your salon, but they know their treatments. And if you’re offering it, you can guarantee more people will flock to your door.
Offering something new and unique also gives you something to shout about on social media. And if you’re the first to offer something, people will always remember you as the home of that particular treatment. This can give you a huge boost in search engines, as you’ll always have a long-standing reputation for offering that service.
And it doesn’t really matter if people lose interest in the trend. What’s important is that your salon is the one that is willing to try something new and daring. Never stop exploring new treatments and new ways to make your customers look and feel great.
Two-thirds of 18-34-year-olds will think about the “instagramability” of a travel destination before booking a trip. It’s no secret that we love sharing our lives with the world, and a trip to a stunning salon is pretty high on the list of things you should definitely share online.
Do you bring out beverages in super adorable teacups? Do you have an awesome mural on your wall? Do you have a giant neon sign that visitors can’t help snapping a picture of? Being an instagrammable salon is now enough to make you stand out from the crowd – own it!
People love a good time-lapse video on social media. And nothing is quite as addictive as watching incredible stylists work their magic to fix home hair dye gone wrong. How you engage with people on social media can be a unique selling point in itself. Turning these small victories into inspirational videos can be hugely empowering for your salon.
Rather than joining in with those who might ridicule someone for attempting an at-home balayage, you’re the salon that makes dreams come true. So when someone is having an awful hair day and they think no one can fix it, you’re the port in a storm.
There is a whole movement of people turning their backs on single-use plastics and hard to pronounce chemicals. But just because they’re weekend eco-warriors, it doesn’t mean they don’t want to feel special and pampered every now and then.
Finding ways to make your salon more eco-friendly will not only help you to cut down on costs, but it can also help you attract a whole new crowd of fans! Organic and natural hair products are also a huge draw for many people who want to rid chemicals from their lives.
You don’t have to choose one way or another, but you can offer your customers a choice and they’ll absolutely love you for it!
