This is the time of year when salon guests are in the mood for shopping and gifting!
Visit your local grocery store or shopping mall and it’s clear: signs of the season surround you! November and December signify the end of the year, the holidays, and time to prepare for what’s ahead. This is the time of year when salon guests are in the mood for shopping and gifting! If you make it easy on them, you’ll see your revenue grow in the process.
There are heaps of ways for you to get festive and promote your business at the same time. This month, I touch on three topics that will set you up for sweet seasonal success.
Seasonality & Promotion Prep
A successful seasonal promo can increase sales by increasing your visibility among possible patrons. Your promotions can also stimulate regular customers to try a variety of your services, and that is exactly what you want.
Not sure what you want to promote this month? This is where seasonality comes in, according to Investopedia, a financial education company, “Seasonality refers to periodic fluctuations in certain business areas that occur regularly based on a particular season. A season may refer to a time period as denoted by the calendar seasons, such as summer or winter, as well as commercial seasons, such as the holiday season.” If you recognize the seasonality of your business, you’ll be more apt to make decisions such as the types of promos to offer, how much product to order, how many employees you need and how much revenue you should expect to generate. Once you’ve pulled the reports, pair up your popular services with new or not-as-popular options. This way, guests can try services they may not have had an interest in previously, and you can track their feedback.
Just as we change our attire from summer to fall, our body care and wellness routines will most likely change, too. So, those of you with retail boutiques – this is your time to shine! Create beautiful gift baskets, theme them or include locally-made products.
Include a collection of products or service options that will suit diverse needs. If you’re short on time, check with your vendors – some may sell pre-made packages or have suggestions on what to combine. For instance, cooler weather calls for an exfoliator to remove dry and dull skin, and a thick body butter to hydrate parched parts. This duo is a must-have for home care, especially with services like airbrush tans and body wraps. Pair up two products with two services, and boom! You just made someone’s perfect spa day!
Got Gift Cards?
Encourage purchases of gift cards and memberships for family and friends. By doing so, guests are essentially providing you with a referral, and you can make gift card purchases more enticing by offering a session upgrade, product sample or “thank you” gift.
Another great gift card feature: they encourage future buying. You can also get guests back in the door after the holidays by creating and offering coupons that they can use when they come back to see you.
Care for Your Community
Get involved with a local food drive, Toys for Tots or other community charities. Offer a small discount or raffle entry to guests who donate. Giving back is more effective when everyone gets involved and charitable donations are much needed this time of year. Announce your plans on social media and see if you can get any media coverage while you’re at it … the more donations the merrier!
If a promo doesn’t seem to “take off” right away, don’t fret! Simply alter it and take note of the promotions that do work. Next month, you can start fresh with new ideas and even bring back this month’s crowd favorite. Just be sure that you don’t run too many promos at once – your team should be making sales at regular prices, as well.
