How to get more clients?

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Hairgurl

Active Member
Joined
Jun 1, 2021
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Location
London
I’m a self employed hairdresser and used to be mobile, then 2 years ago (right at the start of the pandemic) I joined a salon renting a chair, as I had really started to hate travelling around. I love working there, my rent is cheap and my collegues are lovely. I’m the only self employed rent-a-chair one, the stylists are employees. My job is to do my own clients, my own bookings and treat it as my own work space just like when I was mobile, using my own products. The issue is, I’m finding it so hard to get new clients, as I don’t do the salon clients, just my own, that’s in my contract. It’s much harder to advertise now than when I was mobile as I don’t really know what my USP is, and clients seem to get confused over whether I’m working for the salon or for myself, obviously people just expect a salon to run as a salon. I use my social media to its full advantage and I do get the odd new client from that, and I run a recommendation offer which hardly anyone really bothers with. Any other ideas?? Covid has hit my business so hard and my diary is getting more and more empty.
 
I am a solo Nail tech renting a studio in a massage therapy business so i can kinda relate. I recently started a marketing class and some things i have taken from it to help:
1) Put your business on google maps if it is not already (yes you can have the same address as the salon).
2)Have a facebook page and pay for ads on there (I personally found that facebook helps find local clients more then google does)
3) Google ads, it can help if you have your own website to use key words like "hair stylist near me" and those sort of key words, if your really interested in google ads i can give you my sources for key word finders but it is a lot of technical work and sometimes goes over my own head.
4) seasonal promos, Nothing helps a client pick between stylists more then a good deal. Yes it can cut into your income but when your really struggling to get clients it really helps people to try you out, then tell their friends about you.
 
I’m a self employed hairdresser and used to be mobile, then 2 years ago (right at the start of the pandemic) I joined a salon renting a chair, as I had really started to hate travelling around. I love working there, my rent is cheap and my collegues are lovely. I’m the only self employed rent-a-chair one, the stylists are employees. My job is to do my own clients, my own bookings and treat it as my own work space just like when I was mobile, using my own products. The issue is, I’m finding it so hard to get new clients, as I don’t do the salon clients, just my own, that’s in my contract. It’s much harder to advertise now than when I was mobile as I don’t really know what my USP is, and clients seem to get confused over whether I’m working for the salon or for myself, obviously people just expect a salon to run as a salon. I use my social media to its full advantage and I do get the odd new client from that, and I run a recommendation offer which hardly anyone really bothers with. Any other ideas?? Covid has hit my business so hard and my diary is getting more and more empty.
In addition to what @ChloeBluNails said, consider "How does your skill set or specialty fill a "gap" for the salon? How does it enable the salon to "offer more" or "offer something unique, or different.". This could be your USP, showing how your presence on site gives the salon a stronger offer to clients. What do you offer that is not readily available at that salon. Put that messaging on your digital properties like website and social media
 
I think many people have noticed a down turn in salon visits post covid so your not the only one out there struggling. Doing what you are doing is hard - customers that come to the salon may go to what they see as the permanent staff more readily. I always found Facebook to be a great way to promote yourself - join local groups and you don’t need to pay for advertising at all. Post when you have free appointments at a discount. The rule was always that if you get a customer to come in 3 times you have them as a customer so once you have a new client in give them a 50% off for their next appointment or a free blow dry - blow drys are easy no cost treatments, only book on off peak times. Colour discounts usually need to be booked with a haircut so the customer is covering your x’s and your not spending your own money on the products you are using. Think about the offer you are giving the customer as a way to upsell your service and get them to spend more/come back.
Increase your existing customers spend per head offer discounted colour to those that are virgin colour clients or sell treatments and hair products.
The friends offer never really worked as well in my opinion.
I think there is a whole group of people that have realised having been forced to do their own hair through covid they can manage without so many salon visits so getting those back in especially with cost of living rises is hard.
Maybe speak to your salon manager and see if you can go through old diary arrange a deal with her/him to be able to get in touch with those clients that haven’t been back in the salon and send them offers.
Run a charity fundraising day - haircuts for donations to your chosen charity.
Make sure you use your Instagram and Facebook pages properly - advertise regularly what days you are at work and make your posts engaging I.e. in ways to get to see what your followers think and what they like. Get someone else’s opinion of your social media pages and see if fresh eyes will point out what would improve your reach to customers. Go through and delete anything too personal/opinionated keep it all professional.
Best of luck
 
In addition to what @ChloeBluNails said, consider "How does your skill set or specialty fill a "gap" for the salon? How does it enable the salon to "offer more" or "offer something unique, or different.". This could be your USP, showing how your presence on site gives the salon a stronger offer to clients. What do you offer that is not readily available at that salon. Put that messaging on your digital properties like website and social media
I am the colour correction specialist, I advertise this myself but because I don’t do the salon’s clients and have to find my own, nobody really knows about me unless they see my social media. Which is where I get ALL of my work from, nowhere else. It does work for finding new clients but it’s extremely slow, and sometimes I wonder if really I’m just putting a great advert out for the salon rather than my own work specifically.
 
I am the colour correction specialist, I advertise this myself but because I don’t do the salon’s clients and have to find my own, nobody really knows about me unless they see my social media. Which is where I get ALL of my work from, nowhere else. It does work for finding new clients but it’s extremely slow, and sometimes I wonder if really I’m just putting a great advert out for the salon rather than my own work specifically.

I get the whole USP thing in business but in hairdressing it has its flaws- just trying to put a viewpoint from a customer looking st social media out there - maybe if you are marketing yourself as colour correction specialist it’s too niche I.e. c/c clients are probably 10% of a salon income. If you are a stylist cutting hair you market that and it covers every client that walks in the door which = 60-80% of salon income.
I think the people in my salon that made the most money were the ones that worked the hardest, chatted the most and made the receptionist or the person booking all the appointments their best friend 😀
 

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