In today’s socially-connected society, it is still somewhat of a surprise to me that not all salons are utilizing social media to outreach and connect with their clients. If that’s you, it’s OK!  After all, you know the saying ‘better late than never,’ right? The same applies to social media, however starting from ‘social’ scratch on Facebook can be intimidating. 

In this Modern Salon blog, I’ll help walk you through the steps to get started on Facebook. Take a look at the suggestions and best practices below on how to get started:

1. Establish a Routine with Your Content

To understand what information your audience wants, you need to figure out who your audience is. Take a step back and put yourself in their shoes…or better yet, your chair. What do you talk about when they are in the salon? Pop culture? Celebrity trends? The latest and greatest products and promotions you are running at the salon? From there, you can start to build a content calendar around topics that will be appealing to your clients.

For example, maybe every Monday you dish on the last Hollywood hair trend, Tuesday you feature a great at-home tip from your stylists and Friday you kick off the weekend with a great promotion. Once you have established subject matter by days, stick to it – your clients will come to expect that information on those particular days! 

2. Use Graph Search

Now that Facebook has rolled out graph search this makes searching for relevant content easy! Try searching for similar pages to your salon, or your related interests. For example, we love Refinery 29 and StyleCaster’s Facebook pages and often share fun information we see on our social networks. Often like-type pages spark great content ideas that you can also post on your page.

Another cool way to use graph search is to search topics such as: “favorite interests of people who like Wella.” Those search results will pull up pages and interests from clients that are already like similar products you carry – then, you can use that information to tailor your content to your audience favorites! (Side note: more on graph search in my next blog!)

3. Offer Exclusive Information

Create valuable content. Providing fans with tips and tricks to look fabulous will make you look like a trusted source for information. This can also drive traffic back to your website.

So you want to be the ‘go-to’ salon for bridal up-do’s? How are your prospective clients going to trust you on their big day if you post nothing on bridal looks (never thought of it that way, have you?). When a woman is searching salons to look her best, she wants a place that is in the ‘know’ about popular styles. By posting trends, tips and styles from your salon, that bride-to-be can start to form a trusting relationship! 

4. Use #Hashtags

If you check out my last blog on hashtags, you now know that they are really gaining traction in the social media world…especially on Facebook. Hashtags are a great tool to reach a broader audience. To get started leveraging hashtags and their searchability, research what hashtags are currently being used in your niche and start using those within your content as well. If done properly, you can start reaching more people who aren’t currently fans of your page, but are interesting in your niche topics.

Here’s a quick example from Visible Changes Salons in Texas. We suggest always utilizing your salon name as a hashtag (#VisibleChanges), and also, include a hashtag with your location (#TexasSalon) so when a potential client searches for a salon in Texas, your salon shows up in the results. And if your post is a how-to, you could add in a hashtag (#HairHowTo) as well.  

Once you have mastered these four steps you are ready to connect with your clients outside of the salon and provide content they want to see. For more information, be sure to head over and ‘like’ our Evoke Brand Strategies facebook page where we’re posting tips and more how-to’s on a daily basis.

As always, feel free to contact me at: kehlers@evokebrands.com with any questions or comments.

About www.StyleSync.me:

Style Sync is an on-line social media training, personal branding and business education platform designed specifically for salon owners and stylists to help them magnify their image and multiply their results.

Style Sync, a division of Evoke Brand Strategies, is an on-line, subscription based social media training, personal branding and business education platform designed to help individual stylists and salon owners turn social media prowess into more clients and more money for your salon.

About www.EvokeBrands.com:

At Evoke Brand Strategies we develop digital, social and mobile strategies for salon professional, beauty, hospitality and entertainment brands. As branding and public relations veterans, yet early adopters of all things digital, we understand the importance of creating measurable, buzz-worthy campaigns that generate bottom-line results.