Beauty - Salon&The Internet. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
area of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is vast but it it’s definitely worth doing your research if you want to attract new customers, so check out search engine policies online and try to find out what you need to bring your listings to the top of the page.
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ensure your clients can access your details 24/7.
“One of the best ways to advertise on the internet is to set up your own salon website,” explains Audrey Hefferan of Hennessy Hair & Beauty Supplies. “This is great for getting your name out there and letting people know exactly what treatments you provide in your salon. Special offers can be displayed on your website as well as an online appointment system, whereby clients can book their appointments through your website. You could also display and let clients purchase the retail items you have to offer; retail items can generate alot of aditional revenue.”
To make your website more aesthetically pleasing for potential clients try to include relevant images that will help to convey the treatments you offer i.e. a picture of someone having a relaxing massage, or if the budget allows why not ask a professional photographer to take photos of the different areas of your salon?
If you have a beautiful shop front, for example, you could ask them to take a photo of the outside – be warned that these are often the trickiest shots to take though as you can’t always control what happens outside your salon! Alternatively ask your photographer to stick to the inside –
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welcome areas, treatment rooms, manicure desks and even your retail displays can all help to entice would- be clients off their sofas and into your salon.
For those of you who are mobile and do not have a salon to photograph, or those of you who are simply tied down by budget restraints, why not try searching the Internet for stock images? Sites such as iStock, Shutterstock and Getty Images, to name but a few, all offer high quality photos for a small fee that can be used on your website as exemplars, providing the correct accreditation is included and you are careful to avoid misrepresentation.
Alternatively, try approaching your brand suppliers for images to use, as often the brands will have libraries of images that have been designed specifically to promote their products and if you’re already purchasing your products directly from them, I’m sure they will be more than happy to help where possible!
Whilst creating your website, think carefully about the wording used within the online content as this can have a dramatic effect on your visibility in search engines. Think about key words people might use to search out your business; beauty, for example may be the obvious one but how many other sites will also be thrown up in the same search? The
Now that you’ve got your website up and running it’s time to get interactive with your clients, again this can be done through a variety of mediums such as online booking facilities – check with your software supplier, if you have one, as often this feature can be integrated with your website – and don’t forget those all-important social media platforms; from Facebook, to Twitter and even blogging websites such as Blogspot, this is where the real customer engagement happens and best of all – it’s completely free!
But which to choose? I personally feel that if you can do one you really ought to do them all especially since there are programs available that can help you combine all platforms into one easy to use system, however it’s important to remember that Facebook and Twitter users are often looking for different things from their news feeds and tweets. Twitter users for example like the fact that tweets are short and straight to the point whereas Facebook users can read about promotions in detail rather than having to be redirected elsewhere.
Amy Barker, Marketing Co-ordinator for Dermalogica explains the pros of Twitter: “You can use Twitter to talk about promotions, appointment availabilities, announcements, giveaways, and so much more, and you won’t be the only business to do so – studies show that 56% of Twitter users say they use the service for business purposes. Also, we know that 80% of Twitter usage occurs on a mobile device, which means that many people will see your updates on their phone, allowing them to take you up on the last minute appointment opening!”
With stats like that it’s easy to see why many people sign into Twitter but according to the previously mentioned Mintel report, Facebook is still the preferred vehicle to express
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