While it may not be for everyone - making a short video about your Salon’s online shop and the products it sells using one or more of the various social media platforms out there like Tik-Tok and Instagram are very fast, visual and effective ways to educate your followers. All you need is an account, a smartphone and perhaps a bit of confidence. In today's reducing attention spans, a short but engaging video can really ramp up your brand and help put you front and centre. Check out this guide on how to make an Instagram reel
Tip: These platforms are packed with tools that can add real value to your videos such as before and after split screens, backgrounds and more. If you can’t find what you are looking for just 'Google', chances are there is a 3rd party app maker that has something that will do the job.
For less than €50 you can go to one of the many online printers where you can create a “VIP Card”. These are in fact postcards where you can upload a series of attractive images of the products and ranges you carry in your online shop. Then in a prominent position, you add your online shop's web address or better still add a URL QR barcode (create one here) and insert it into one of the corners. Finally, you can add a text box that contains a discount code, example “15% Discount” with an offer that can be used at the checkout in your online shop (not in-store at the salon).
The cards can be given as recognition to loyal customers as a thank you or offered to new clients as an introductory gift.
This approach can be a really effective way to educate people that you have a shop, provide an incentive to visit it and enables you to thank your client for their business.
Tip: This approach is a reward to thank loyalty and recognise new clients so don’t tarnish the gesture by giving out too many.
A variation of the idea above is using the product prescriptions concept. This is a really great way to formalise product recommendations as a result of a salon consultation. The staff member who has performed the treatment and has discussed the client's ongoing requirements writes a product recommendation on a “Product Prescription”. This provides an opportunity to discuss with the client the benefits of a specific product or range and how it should be used. The prescription can then be redeemed at checkout and/or used later, potentially for repeat orders, on your online shop. The prescription should prominently display your online shop’s web address either in long form or via a QR barcode.
Tip: Properly design your prescriptions and get them professionally printed to give them more authenticity. While you may currently make most of your retail sales in Salon this will educate clients that they don’t have to wait until the next appointment to get products.
Well-placed posters in your Salon that provide details of products that you stock can be used to inform your clients that they can be bought directly from your online shop. High-quality images of glamorous models from your brand suppliers will gain attention and the engagement of your captive audience. Prominently display your shop web address preferably using a large URL barcode in one of the corners. Make sure they are high quality and put them into a good quality frame.
Tip: Your local brand representative should be able to make official high-quality brand resources to you that you can use for free.
Everybody likes a free sample. Product samples are a very good way to introduce your clients to products complimentary to ones they already buy or to new ideas and concepts of things they can buy from your store. They are usually free to you from the manufacturer and can be given out as appropriate to your clients and used in conjunction with some of the ideas we have already discussed. Some basic guidelines on when and how to give our samples are below but a more comprehensive guide can be found in this article The Beginners Guide To Free Sample Market to Promote Your Products.
Gift card sales are an extremely important tool to enhance retail sales that have many additional benefits:-
Tip: Offer a range of gift voucher values that do not start from too low a value and increase in €25 increments e.g Start at €50, €75 etc
You can convert your personal WhatsApp account into a business account using the same telephone number. Once you have achieved this and have gained permission from your clients, you can set up a “Broadcast List” of all your client numbers and text offers to them in a broadcast (received individually). Find out how here. This is a fast and effective way to communicate with
your client base. The text messages can contain links to specific products in your online shop that you want to promote that when pressed will take your clients directly to that product in your shop or alternatively to a “Storefront’ where you can create a promotional area, see following suggestions.
Tip: Under European Legislation you must get your client's permission before you can market your products. One way of doing this is to get clients to sign a simple consent form when they are leaving your salon during payment or as part of your new Client Set up the process as part of the initial questionnaire form.
You can provide an online consultation service to new and existing clients using your website and/or online shop. These can be marketed via social media with a link that will take them to your consultancy webpage. A product recommendation can be made after the client has uploaded photographs or videos of their skin or hair and these have been evaluated and a client consultation undertaken by zoom or phone by a qualified practitioner. Check our “Your Salon” demo shop to see how it can work.
Tip: The key here is to charge a nominal amount for this service, for example, €50 but make this amount fully redeemable against the purchase of the recommended products bought from your online shop.
You can configure your online Salon shop to make complimentary suggestions to your clients when they make purchases or review
a product in your online shop. Most clients habitually buy the same products over and over again. By configuring your shop to align complementary products to each other, when a client makes a habitual purchase, you can make
recommendations that introduce new brands or broaden the options to them in a given range.
Tip: Use upscale recommendations in conjunction with a promotion for example free shipping.
Running a simple competition is a great, cost-effective way to attract new customers to your online shop and Salon. It can be used to generate interest in the products and treatments that you offer and by choosing the right prize you can capture the interest of a specific target audience that you might be interested in developing. In addition, it can be a great way to conduct a market research survey with your clients as part of the competition. For
example, you could ask a tickbox survey on the “Usability” of your website” to get feedback on it or ask a question like “would they download and use” a Salon mobile app if you had one created? You can video the winning entry being pulled out of the “hat” at random and post it to social media. Combining this approach means you get direct feedback on investments and changes you plan to make to your business, market a specific product or range in the form of a prize or reward and make your client aware of and bring them to your online shop using a prize voucher and code. Real bang for the buck!
Retail sales should account for up to 70% of your turnover and a large portion of these should be coming from your online shop. If this is not the case then you have a huge opportunity to earn more money from your business. Don't have an online shop then check out "10 Reasons Why Your Salon Needs an Online Shop"
