As a salon owner, you have a lot on your plate. From getting your salon up and running daily without fail to ensuring customers receive top-notch services, phew…it can be a lot of work.
At times like these, it’s understandable that building and maintaining a website might not be your top priority. However, having a website is an important part of your salon’s marketing strategy.
The days of a friend recommending a salon to another acquaintance are diminishing. These days, everybody with a smartphone searches for the top salons in their area using Google or Bing. Creating a website that attracts clients for your salon will help you reach a wider audience and fill those chairs.
Why Salons Need a Website: Beyond a Digital Business Card
Your salon website serves as more than just a means of communication. It gives out essential information, such as your address, phone number, and business hours, but you can also use it to highlight your offerings, include client endorsements, run exclusive deals, and more.
Around-the-Clock Accessibility
A website will allow potential or repeat customers to schedule their appointments at their convenience—even when your salon is closed. Customers will also have the opportunity to go through your services listed on the website, beforehand. Make sure to include your business hours prominently and have your stylists time slots updated in the appointment booking system so that clients will know when they can visit your salon to get a service from their preferred stylist.
First Impressions Count
You can’t build a website and leave it be for the foreseeable future. It is important to keep updating your website every few months with the latest happenings at your end. An outdated, unresponsive website will only turn customers away. A sleek website with updated pictures conveys to your clients that you take your business is open and rocking!
Online Booking Integration
Being able to book appointments online is no longer considered a luxury—it’s an expectation. With nearly 59% of internet traffic coming from mobile devices, having a mobile-friendly website as well as booking system gives you a significant advantage. It also reduces the need for constantly being by the phone, as clients can conveniently book appointments online.
Display Service Catalog
Marketing your services effectively plays a huge role in convincing clients to use your services. Pictures speak a thousand words, and your website should be a reflection of that. You might want to consider investing in professional photography to showcase your services, whether it’s haircuts, nail designs, or spa treatments.
As a rule of thumb, create one page per service on your website. This helps in search engine rankings and only presents the website visitors with the information about the service they are interested in.
Make sure to update your service pictures frequently in order to keep your website fresh and current. The images should be eye-catching and blend well with the layout of the website.
Optimize for Search Engines
You need to optimize your website for Search Engine Optimization (SEO) or you run the risk of not being found by potential customers on the search engines. SEO helps your website rank, making it easier for potential clients to discover your salon. As discussed in the previous paragraph, you should create dedicated pages for all the services offered and include relevant keywords.
For example: if you’re offering spa services in New York, one of the keywords you must include should be “Spa Services in New York”. It might take some time for your website to rank on page one, but SEO plays a significant role in increasing your online visibility and attracting new clients.
Follow Latest Trends
One of the best, and easiest ways, to keep your website fresh is to write about the latest trends in the beauty industry. You can blog about the latest hair coloring techniques, skincare treatments, or product reviews. Remember, when you share your expertise, clients are more likely to see you as an industry leader and trust your opinions. Having a blog will also allow you to optimize for SEO. You can include relevant keywords in your blogs which will help your articles to rank on Google.
Offer Promotions & Discounts
Customers like to feel valued and there’s no better way to reward them than by offering special promotions or discounts. You should create a dedicated section for these on your website, catering to both, existing and new customers. You can offer discounts for seasonal holidays (Christmas and New Year), special birthday promotions, or even offer a loyalty program. You could also offer gift cards or referral vouchers to encourage the promotion of your website.
Share Customer Testimonials
According to research, 87% of customers read online reviews before choosing to opt for a service. Adding positive testimonials to your website will boost your salon’s credibility and improve your brand image. You should also encourage happy customers to leave positive reviews on social media platforms like Facebook, Yelp, or Google My Business, and add those reviews to your website.
Showcase Your Team
Clients appreciate being able to see who they’re stylist is gonna be. Use your website to include information (and pictures!) of your team. You should also highlight their past experiences and what skills they bring to the table.
This way, a client can browse through your team members and see who is the best fit for them, before they even walk through the door. You can create a dedicated “About Us” or “Meet the Team” page to feature stylist bios, fun facts, and even behind-the-scenes videos.
Build A Website That Works for You
At the end of the day, you need to have a website that’s a digital front for your salon, answer all the queries visitors might have and eventually book an appointment with your salon. So that you can get back to keeping your clients and staff happy.
Sure, you can build a pretty website and leave it at that, but you would be missing out on so much more your website has to offer—right from allowing potential clients to view your services to creating content that resonates with your target audience.
Need help with creating or optimizing your salon/spa website. Schedule a FREE call with our salon marketing experts!
Hey, I'm Anshul and I'm a 2-comma club award winner with over a decade of experience in the digital marketing industry. I specialize in helping salon and spa businesses scale their business using proven digital marketing strategies.
Throughout my career, I've had the privilege of working with a diverse range of clients, from world-renowned motivational speaker Tony Robbins to marketing guru Russell Brunson, as well as internet sensations like Julius Dein and Dan Henry.