How Long Does It Take To Build Salon Clientele Base

So you’ve just opened your new salon, now what? Building your clientele base will be your number one priority for you to begin turning a profit. An established clientele base is one of the most important factors in determining success or failure as a salon. But how long will this take you to ask?

On average, it may take anywhere from 12-24 months to build your ideal clientele base. However, you are ultimately the determining factor in the length of time it takes to build your base. Here are my four tips for quickly establishing a clientele base for your salon business.

1. Dedication
2. Visibility
3. Build Your Bench
4. Above-And-Beyond Service

1 – Dedication

Being the owner of any business is not a nine-to-five job by any means. It takes tenacity, perseverance, and above all, dedication. Your overall commitment to making your business success will be the driving force in building your clientele base. 

What does dedication mean to you as a salon owner? Oftentimes, dedication is mistaken for motivation. False! Motivation is simply the desire to initiate a task where dedication is the desire and action taken to get that task done. In this case, dedication to increasing your salon clientele base will do two major things for you. First, it will be taking the initiative to come up with great ideas to build a business and create repeat business as well. Then, it will be the driving force in taking action to implement those ideas. 

If this isn’t a trait that you possess as a salon owner, stop reading here.

2 – Visibility

Simply put, if no one can “see” your salon, no one will patronize it. Making your salon visible to the public in any and every way possible will keep it relevant and at the forefront of potential clients’ minds. 

This is best exemplified by Titan Marketing when they say “One of the most crucial aspects to your business’ success is your visibility. How well do people know of your existence? If you don’t appear in front of your ideal audience, they will end up choosing someone else with more visibility who provides the service you offer. The best way to increase your chances of gaining customers is to increase your business’ visibility by learning why and how.”

Now that you know why visibility is important, here are three ways that you can become visible to your audience.

1. Online Visibility – Your name should come up on the first page of a search engine to maximize your online visibility. Paid ads on other sites may also serve to increase your online presence.
2. Social Media – Posting often and at strategic times during the day will keep your followers in the know about what your salon has going on and keep you relevant in their minds.
3. Location – This must be part of the planning process early on. Is your building in an open location that maximizes visibility for not only foot traffic, but drivers as well? Your location should assist you in your quest for visibility.

Finally, let’s delve deeper into the type of visibility that is most relevant today and that will most effectively build your clientele base; digital marketing. Digital marketing is a targeted plan that will help you instantaneously build brand awareness if used correctly. Below are ten tips from MediaBoom to help you get started with a great digital marketing plan. 

1. Establish your salon’s website – Nearly 90% of people use the internet to find products and services. Without a website, your salon is potentially missing out on a huge chunk of business.
2. Create a blog – Creating a blog for your salon not online increases your online visibility but also the traffic through your salon’s website.
3. Make SEO a priority – Stands for search engine optimization and is important because it means that with a better SEO strategy, your salon will show up to more people at a faster rate.
4. Off-Site SEO – This refers to the things that you do online that aren’t related directly to your website such as responding on social media, getting online reviews, or creating a Google business listing.
5. Social Media – Optimize your content for maximum engagement across platforms.
6. Capitalize On Email Marketing – According to benchmarkemail.com, email marketing provides an ROI (return on investment) of $38 made for every $1 spent.
7. Paid Ads – Set up ads in the most visible sites such as Google, Facebook, and sponsored blog posts.
8. Encourage Online Customer Reviews – Statistics show that reviews make customers 71% more comfortable purchasing a product.
9. Content Partnerships – A mutually beneficial marketing strategy for two separate brands.
10. Collaborate With Influencers – By employing an influencer to support and promote your brand you are entering an online community that passively aligns with your salon’s values, therefore, building your follower base. 

Check out our tips for advertising on Instagram HERE!

3 – Build Your Bench

Business growth starts with recruiting the top talent that you can to staff your salon. Employing the best people in their respective fields is an effective marketing strategy in that a great service speaks for itself and word-of-mouth advertising has been and will indefinitely always be the best and most trusted form of marketing.

Now let’s discuss how to obtain the best talent for your salon. Here are LinkedIn’s four tips for effective recruitment. 

1. Passive Candidates – These are potential recruits that already have jobs. They are qualified and successful but will need to be enticed with a better opportunity to relocate.
2. Use Speed To Your Advantage – The average candidate is available for approximately ten days whereas the average job listing is open for approximately twenty-nine days. The quicker you are to act, the better chance you have of enticing the candidate. 
3. Dig Into Your Network – Use your professional circle or references to source the best candidates.
4. Know Your Industry – Use your insight in your pursuit of new candidates. 

4 – Above-And-Beyond Service

Finally, the end-all-be-all of building a loyal clientele base. Guest services. What does it mean to give outstanding service? Giving great service, first, means meeting expectations. That’s the baseline. Continuing down the path is the idea of always making “yes” the answer and going above and beyond in what you do for your clients.

If there is something that someone sitting in your chair wants that you can reasonably make happen, do it! You will only make a loyal customer and create a marketing machine in favor of your salon. In addition to making going above and beyond in any request, here are some additional ways that you may provide excellent service from Entrepreneur.

1. Passion – Your passion (or lack thereof in some instances) for your craft will be felt by your guests. Show and tell them why you love doing what you do!
2. Treat Others How You Want To Be Treated – Cultivate an environment of service and it will become second nature.
3. Always Wear A Smile – Having enthusiasm for your business will always impart enthusiasm from others.
4. Listen – Be mindful of what your guests are asking and expecting out of your services. Create a tailored experience.
5. Respect – Give it to give it.
6. Resolution – If you are unable to meet expectations provide realistic options and a timeline for completing the job as expected.
7. Exceed Expectations – Offer something unexpected. As small as it may be it’ll add value to the experience and give the guest that something extra to keep them returning.
8. Build Rapport – Identify with the guest. Learn about what makes them tick individually.
9. Document – Keep detailed notes on your guests. Knowing their likes, dislikes and habits will allow you to tailor their experience every time they patronize your salon.

Related Questions

What are some other ways to ensure that you are providing great customer service?

According to statistics, 46% of customers will abandon their experience if the employees aren’t knowledgeable about the service they are providing. Knowing your industry as well as knowing your guests will build trust and credibility. The ability to solve problems quickly and remain human in any situation also ranks highly on the ways to provide great customer service.

Are there any ways to build a salon business more quickly?

Below is a list of nine ways to quickly and efficiently build repeat business provided by TheSalonBusiness.com

1. 1. Run a limited time, for you only, intro offer
   2. Create street visibility that disrupts
   3. Activate your already existing network and ask for referrals
   4. Make your salon visible in ALL search results already today
   5. Setup win-win partnerships with other local businesses
   6. Have the local paper write about you
   7. Offer superior service and give the unexpected extra
   8. Encourage your clients to recommend their friends by rewarding it
   9. Always rebook clients

What are some great recruitment strategies to use to get the best talent?

First, establish all of the things that set you apart from your competitors. What is your company culture and why is it best for fostering careers. What makes your benefits package better than the next salons. How is your business model more lucrative. Next, support your claims with facts and statistics from your current employees and solicit their testimonials in support of hiring new talent. Finally, use all of your business networks to capture the best passive talent possible. 

Looking to start your own Salon? Get the documents you need to get organized and funded here.

Please note: This blog post is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Please consult a legal expert to address your specific needs.