According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), U.S. consumers will spend upwards of $25 billion celebrating Mother's Day in 2019 alone. To make the most of this, small businesses should identify opportunities to leverage the holiday to attract new customers and strengthen their brands. In the beauty industry, this holiday presents a lot of potential as consumers treat their mothers to days of pampering and relaxation -- such as incorporating catchy promotions to increase gift card sales, get mothers in the door and differentiate themselves from the competition.

To see the most success on this holiday, salon owners should brainstorm creative ways to interact with their customer base and show mothers some love. Here are a few ideas for salons to leverage as promotional tools this upcoming Sunday and for future Mother’s Days:

Mother and Child Discounts

Running a promotion for mothers and their child(ren) can increase visits to a salon and shows that the salon honors the special parent-child bond. On Mother’s Day, salon owners should provide a special where mothers can get free services if they’re accompanied by their child(ren) who is receiving the same service. This promotion can entice first-time visitors to re-engage, so salon owners should be prepared with a strategy to encourage rebooking or automatically enroll them in the salon’s loyalty program.

Additionally, providing a voucher to first-time customers at the end of their visit can be a sure-fire way to ensure a revisit. Owners should also add new customers to the salon’s mailing list to keep them up to date on future promotions. Odds are, if they visited the salon because of a promotion, they are likely interested in future opportunities to save.

Host a Special Mother’s Day Event

Holding a special Mother’s Day event in-store is the perfect way to get customers excited about visiting the salon. Partnering with local spas and nail salons can also provide customers with an ultimate day of pampering filled with massages, facial treatments, manicures and, of course, hair services.

Leading up to the event, it is important for owners to get creative and think outside the box. Make sure to promote widely online and to existing customers via social media and e-newsletters. Using referral discounts can also entice customers to bring their friends along.

Social Media Giveaway

Social media is a great platform to target millennials who are struggling to find a way to treat their moms on Mother’s Day. Engagement often drives purchasing decisions in young people, according to data from Stitch Labs, so an interactive social media event like a giveaway can be a good strategy. Salon owners can create a giveaway that comes with a prompt or question such as, ‘Share This Post & Tag your Mom to Enter’ or, ‘Tell us Why Your Mom Deserves Pampering for a Chance to Win!’. The post will see much greater engagement and, in turn, will promote the salon’s services.

If the salon already has a large following on social media, they should get great results just by pushing the giveaway out on all current channels. If the salon is still working to increase exposure, using paid promotions and social media ads to boost the post is a smart move. Fortunately, social media platforms allow users to target audiences within a specific region and who fall within a particular demographic, giving the salon the power to see where and who the ad is reaching.

Promote Your Gift Card Offerings

According to advisory company CEB TowerGroup, consumers spend more than $130 billion on gift cards per year, but $1 billion go unspent. Salons should make sure that they are stocked up on gift cards in order to obtain its high margin revenue benefits. Busy people love having easy gift options, so salon owners will want to make sure gift cards are displayed front and center in-store and on the front desk. Salons can also create paired offers that encourage purchases and get two customers through the door at once such as, ‘Buy Mom a $100 gift card and get $20 for yourself!’.

If time and money permits, salons could also design special Mother’s Day themed gift cards, with messages like, ‘Best Mother’ or ‘Mom of the Year.’ Teaming up with other local businesses, such as florists or card shops, can help salons reach wider audiences. Most businesses will be more than happy to collaborate and offer joint special offers. For example, ‘Order flowers for Mom and get a $25 salon gift card free’.

To plan the best promotions for the salon, owners should try to imagine what the ideal customer looks like and determine what might get them in the door. A simple customer profile will help owners make much better promotional decisions, which will get salons the most out of a marketing budget, even if it’s limited. Staying on top of these promotions will also be beneficial to owners as they increase customer inquiries on the holiday. To do so, some salon owners are investing in salon management software, which can store customer data for marketing promotions, quickly activate gift cards and ensure the salon is stocked with necessary products ahead of the holiday.

Mother’s Day is a huge event for salons, and planning the right promotions is essential if businesses want to make the most of this holiday. Salon owners should draw customers in with giveaways, creative special offers for the holiday and social media contests to ensure a successful holiday for all.

About the Author: Jeff Dickerson is CEO of DaySmart Software, the makers of Salon Iris, a leading salon business management software for appointment booking, staff management, payment processing, marketing and customer communications for salon professionals worldwide. He has 25+ years of experience building software companies and developing technology that empowers and drives real business results for customers.