Top 5 Salon Automated Marketing Tips

We are at that time of year when we see our salons busy with our stylists and therapists doing what they do best, looking after their clients and making them feel great for the festive season.  

We have put together our top 5 marketing tools that you can use within SalonIQ to ensure you are running your salon as smoothly as possible.  

 

1. Appointment reminders 

This is a must and ideally sent via SMS for maximum effect. Keep the message clear and punchy, making sure that you do not go over 160 characters in length.  

Add customisation to the message using the merge fields so that it still reads with a personal touch and sounds like it is being sent from you.  

Here are some examples of what your appointment reminders can say 

“Hello Hannah We are looking forward to seeing you on 10th September at 10 am, Tops Hairdressing 01234 567890” 

“Hi Sue Your appointment is on 10th September at 10 am, Tops Hairdressing 01234 567890” 

“It’s nearly time, see you on 10th September at 10 am, Tops Hairdressing 01234 567890” 

We advise you to send your appointment reminders by SMS to your clients 2 days before their appointment. This gives you enough time to fill the space if they choose to cancel.  

To set up your appointment reminders on SalonIQ please click here > http://faq.saloniq.com/knowledge/setting-up-appointment-reminders  

 

2. Appointment confirmations 

Appointment confirmations are another great way of confirming a booking that you have made for your clients. We advise to send your confirmations out as soon as the booking has been made, the date, time and service/s booked will show within the message.  

An email works well for these messages, you can also then add in your cancellation policy to ensure your clients are aware of what they need to do should they wish to cancel. Providing links to your cancellation policy giving more detail and even a Book Now button can be included too.  

The goal when sending emails to your clients is to: 

• Keep your message clear 
• Add in a call to action (what do you want them to do) 
• Include your contact details 

To set up your appointment confirmations on SalonIQ please click here > http://faq.saloniq.com/knowledge/how-to-set-up-appointment-confirmations 

 

3. No shows 

No-shows can be a huge cost to your salon business if you do not monitor them, it can be surprising how much a couple of no shows adds up to in revenue, missed upgrade opportunities and homecare sales.  

What do you currently do when a client does not turn up for their appointment? 

Quite often many salons will try to call once and then forget about it if they can’t get through, unfortunately, this does not resolve the problem.  

We advise you to review your no-show policy, what are the consequences of your client not showing up? Better yet, what do you have in place to prevent a client from not turning up to their appointment? 

It’s all about educating your client and then reaching out to them when they do not show.  

• When taking bookings online make sure you have deposits enabled. This will filter out all the time wasters or those that are not committed straight away.  
• Switch on your No-shows SMS’s, this takes away the confrontation straight away. More often than not once your client has received a no-show text they will call you and be very apologetic. 

• Review your no-show policy, what do you have in place currently and what is the process that your team need to follow when a client does not show? 
• Get your team behind your no-show process. It is crucial that your team understand why you have a no-show policy in place and that they stick to it every single time.  

SalonIQ’s No-show messages can be short punchy but straight to the point. Here is an example of what you can say: 

“Oh no! what happened? We were expecting you today at 10 am, we waited for you. If you haven’t rescheduled, please call. Tops Hairdressing 01234 567890” 

“Hi Lucy, you missed your appointment, we waited for you at 2pm today, please call Tops Hairdressing 01234 567890” 

To set up your no show messages on SalonIQ please click here > http://faq.saloniq.com/knowledge/how-to-set-up-no-show-smss  

 

4. GRS (Guest Retention System) 

You will already be fully aware of the effort and time it takes to gain just one new client into your salon. Therefore, make sure you are looking after the clients you already have coming into your salon.  

An industry standard is for a client to have an appointment with you at least 3-4 times with a frequency of 8-10 weeks in between each one. Once they have been to see you 4 times you can me confident in knowing they are a regular client of yours, however, this does not mean that you can become complacent.  

SalonIQ’s GRS enables you to keep in contact with your regular clients if you begin to not see them within a certain time frame. GRS is a 7-point program which automatically reaches out to your clients at certain times throughout the year if they have not had an appointment with you.  

To out 7-point guide please click here > http://faq.saloniq.com/knowledge/g.r.s-guest-retention-guide  

 

5. Guest Journey 

You have a steady stream of new clients coming through your salon doors, now you need to blow them away with an amazing client experience and a fantastic haircut of beauty treatment in the hope they rebook and return to you time and time again.  

Using SalonIQ’s Guest Journey system enables you to keep in contact in those very early days of a new client coming a regular. This works on auto-pilot meaning you can continue to focus on gaining new clients into your salon and ensuring your team are giving them the wow factor.  

See SalonIQ’s Guest Journey guide which shows you what we recommend to send to your clients as an SMS and email.  

To view SalonIQ’s 7-point Guest Journey please click here http://faq.saloniq.com/knowledge/g.j.s.-guest-journey-system  

 

Key Focus 

Make sure you are focusing on your re-booking percentage for your salon and for each of your team members. This is so important as it will ensure future business in your appointment book in 6-12 week’s time. 

60% of your clients should be making their next appointment before they leave you, better yet with those coming into the salon during September and October, encourage them to get their next 2 appointments scheduled so they get the day and time they need.