As a salon suite owner, the past year has not been easy, but things are beginning to look up! Most states have lifted a majority of their restrictions and people are feeling more comfortable getting back out into the world. It’s important to position your salon suite for success. A lot has changed in the last year and potential clients have become pickier about where they spend their money and what businesses they support. When it comes to boosting your client base, the most important thing to consider is positioning your business as dependable and reliable in the space. A dependable salon suite owner understands the client’s wants and needs and creates flexibility to meet their expectations.
Now you may be asking how do I reach a new client or even a past one that stopped coming due to the pandemic? We have compiled a list of 8 impactful reopening techniques that can help boost your client bookings.
Update Hours To Accommodate Clients
With more people working from home than ever, it’s important to keep these updated schedules in mind for current and new clients. While a work-life balance is important for yourself, its equally important for a client. Create a schedule that is flexible for yourself and for your clients. Try adding in walk-in hours where busy clients can have more opportunity to find time in their schedules. Try opening up booking times earlier in the day and later in the day as many clients have experienced changes in work schedules and childcare schedules.
Redesign Your Space To Be Clutter-Free & Aesthetically Pleasing
One of the biggest ways to make a client feel relaxed is to have a suite that is organized and looks nice. A cluttered environment can trigger anxiety for clients, especially those who are nervous to be back into the regular world post-pandemic. As you look to reopen and reignite your client base, look to add aesthetically pleasing elements to the space. Add plants, art or home décor items that don’t take up too much space but add to the environment in a positive way. Pick items that may be a conversation piece that can help you build a rapport with your clients. Additionally, keep the space organized and clean as this alone will put your client as ease.
Use Social Media To Let People Know Your Back In Business
Technology can be a great way to reengage with previous clients and reach new potential ones. Start posting your work on Instagram, Facebook, and other social media to let people know you’re open and show what you can offer them. An unique feature of Image Salon Studios is that we provide a free directory of our salon professionals. This helps our clients list and market their services directly on the website. Others have had success in creating their own business page on Facebook and Google My Business where clients can read reviews (we will come back to this) and see your new flexible hours! Test out an automated emailing service (like MailChimp) to connect with past clients on your new hours and potential new pricing.
Stay Up To Date On Health & Safety Guidelines
Your health and safety should be your number one priority! Keeping your space and your clients safe and in a clean environment is vital to success. It’s important to keep up to date on any state mandated guidelines that you need to follow and be able to relay them to clients as well. If a client has a question or concern, you should be able to address it immediately.
Communicate With Previous Clients
Like we mentioned above, clients have become very picky about where they spend their money and who they trust to perform certain services. It is more important than ever to build a rapport with previous clients and continue engaging with them. Connect with them through your social media, whether it be tagging them in a post after their appointment or reaching out to them after a few months to see if they want to rebook with you. Another way is to have automated emails or texts sent out to clients after a set amount of time after their appointment. This can remind them to book again, let them know you have certain products in stock or even offer them a discount for coming back in.
Contact Product Sales Reps
If there are certain products you know your clients love to buy from you, ensure you will be able to keep them in stock as there are many delays in production at the moment. Connect directly with a sales or product rep to ensure you have a clear line of communication to the product and see if they offer any ordering discounts for small businesses.
Word Of Mouth Referrals
Your current customers know a lot of people, use their connections to build your client base! Incentivize them to refer their friends and family by offering a referral bonus to both them and the person they referred! This can be discounted service prices, or it can be a free product when they book an appointment. It needs to make sense for your business while also being enticing enough for someone book an appointment.
Ask Customers To Leave Reviews
With the way our current world works, online reviews are extremely important for the health and growth of a small business. It can be difficult to acquire new online reviews without some sort of automation in place. There are many services that can send a client an automated text or email that allows them to leave a review. A high rating on Google and Facebook can help your small business show higher in search results and show potential clients that the business is reliable and credible.
While these strategies will certainly help you overcome the reopening hump and drive new business, the most important thing is to remember to be patient. Just like reopening didn’t happen overnight, neither will building up your client base to pre-COVID levels or more. Work to build your businesses authority online and continue to build a relationship with your client base.
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