10 Creative Ways to build business between St. Patrick’s and Mother’s Day

10 Creative Ways to build business between St. Patrick’s and Mother’s Day

There is a steady drum beat of holidays and events beginning with Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah and other December holidays, the New Year and Valentine’s Day (whew! no wonder you are tired, that is at least 6 major observances in only 5 months!); but in the weeks between Valentine’s and Mother’s Day, it might feel like there is not much going on in your salon or spa (or other service based business). Here are 10 creative and fun ways to celebrate and build business while you are waiting for the next major holiday to arrive.

1. March 14 is National Pi Day
No, not pie, but Pi. Celebrating this mathematical constant will light up the eyes of math-lovers, engineers, scientists, doctors, lawyers and geeks in your clientele. To celebrate Pi Day, hold a spot quiz for clients when they check out. If they can tell you that Pi is 3.14, reward them with a branded tchotchke, sample, add-on for their next appointment, or some other reward. Or publicize this celebration in advance and create $3.14 pricing for added-on products or services or as $3.14 discounts to add-on services, multiple retail product purchases, etc.

(Pi is the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter, and believe it or not, it is perhaps the most important mathematical constant. It appears in various formulas throughout math and science in fields as diverse as physics, statistics, and sociology. Although pi is defined in terms of the geometry of a circle, most applications of this number do not directly involve circles; it is used in a lot of calculations and is an unresolved number, meaning it has no end. To start out its 3.1415926 but it goes on for millions and millions of decimal places.)

2. March 14 is Learn About Butterflies Day
People that know me know that the Butterfly is my personal logo. Butterflies are about transformation. They are vulnerable, beautiful, strong, capable (hello, they can fly!) and they work to spread not only pollen to help ensure the circle of vegetative and floral life but also produce happy, delighted responses wherever they go. Harbinger of spring and a reminder of the beauty that exists in creation, I love these vibrantly colored beauties!

Celebrate Learn About Butterflies Day by promoting your own butterfly makeover packages and by featuring the products and services that you offer that provide transformative benefits.

Use butterfly trivia and facts to create your own quiz-sheet, or to conduct spot-quizzes for small prizes at the point of purchase or on Facebook (such as, the first person to answer this question will receive… etc.)

Put together four “butterfly eyes” eye shadow and makeup looks and demonstrate to clients, hold a 30 minute butterfly eyes happy hour with instruction and demos, and sell bundled sets of the products used to create each look.

3. March 14 is Everything you Think is Wrong Day
A great reminder to all of us that we need to keep an open mind and an open heart; we need to be open to new ways of doing things, and we need to stop giving power to those obstacles that we believe are standing in the way of our success. To celebrate Everything you Think is Wrong Day, create fun and interesting posts that you can place on Facebook, your Blog, in your Email Newsletter and on Bag Stuffers dispelling popular myths about the salon and spa industry or products; such as the myth that salon and spa professionals do not receive formal education or do not receive continuing education, and myths about there being “no difference” between any hair, scalp, skin care or makeup products as compared to those that can be purchased at any retail outlet. Talk about what is different in the products or services you provide. You can also intersperse your industry-knowledge posts with humorous, fun and pop-culture-related ‘myth-busters’ on other subjects to keep things light and interesting. If you are stuck for myth subject matter, you can visit www.snopes.com – the unrivaled master of all things urban legend!

4. March 20 is Proposal Day
Join forces with local date-destination spots such as restaurants, recreation facilities, horse and carriage drivers and the like and create options for those among your clientele who may need some help proposing to that special someone. Top the package off with a pre-date appointment for both parties (be careful not to spill the secret!) and follow up afterward by inviting the happy couple to a bridal look demonstration happy hour, tea or other event.

Create your own bridal and wedding service and product menu brochure. Or add engagement-party makeovers to your current slate of services. Create bridal-look display sheets and bundled sets of the products used to create each hair or makeup look.
Make a special “proposal” to your clients of bundled or series services so that you can enjoy a “long engagement” period with them!

5. March 21 is Fragrance Day
Purchase branded room or personal fragrance sprays for gift to your most important clients, as contest awards, as gift-with-purchase premium or to add to your retail at the point of purchase as an impulse buy and then to transition into your regular retail offerings.

Partner with an independent party-style fragrance seller to hold an event at your salon or spa where clients can come and “create” their own personal fragrances; develop a personal fragrance for your salon, or even in honor of each stylist at your salon and give one to each as well as add each of these personal stylist-named fragrances to your retail offerings on an on-going basis.

6. March 26 is Make Up Your Own Holiday Day
As a staff, brainstorm together and create your own salon or spa holiday. Celebrate by holding a special happy hour or open house for clients as well as special holiday-only service or product offers, or series/bundled package offers. Or celebrate by closing early and holding a special employee and guest/s happy hour or all-employee celebration.

Hold a contest for clients to see who can make up the most creative “holiday; ” your entry form might include fields for: Holiday name, who would observe it and how it would be observed, fake holiday history, fake holiday song, etc. Reward the winner with a gift card and product basket, and reward runners up with product samples. Everyone that enters should receive a special fake holiday bounce back offer.

7. April 1 is Fun at Work Day
A healthy, happy business begins from the inside out. Partner with local businesses to create special goodie bags for all employees including samples, coupons, and special offers designed specifically for, and offered only to, employees and their families.

Surprise employees on Fun at Work Day with special on-the-spot surprise thank you notes, group recognition and/or rewards. Include client kudos and raves in your employee and client communications.
Partner with a local business to provide lunch for employees or with a local restaurant to hold a special ‘happy hour’ for employees after work.

8. April 7 is No Housework Day
Partner with local housekeeping businesses for cooperative offers or cross marketing. Create packages together to market as PERFECT Mother’s Day gifts – including a pampering or makeover service at your salon or spa as well as 2 hours of housekeeping, a series of appointments for both, etc.

Take nominations from clients and the public via Facebook, your web site and in the salon and reward a local housekeeping professional with a day of pampering.

Partner with a housekeeping service and reward a deserving or contest-winning client with pampering in their home in the form of 2 hours of housekeeping and in the salon or spa with 2 hours of services.

As an employee team, donate volunteer hours to a local senior community and assist residents with common housekeeping and maintenance chores. Leave gift cards for salon services, product samples, etc., with the senior center. Write a press release and submit a great happy-people-picture from the day to local newspapers, city publications, radio stations, etc.

9. April 8 is Draw a Picture of a Bird Day
Hold a coloring or drawing contest for the children of your customers (or any kids) and allow entries in-store as well as via your Facebook, Blog or Email. Reward the winner/s with a joint appointment service or mini-makeover for mom (or dad) with child. Use this opportunity to extend special offers for the children of clients who may be very loyal to you, but who may take their children to a walk-in or other competitor. Extend family rates or multi-appointment booking rates to parents who bring in children for appointments at the same time.

10. April 10 is Scrabble Day
Hold a special Scrabble happy hour event in your salon or spa or in conjunction with a marketing partner bar, restaurant, or other destination.

Print off blank Scrabble-board styled sheets and give clients letters (or simply list available letters on the bottom, clients can x them out as they are used in each word). Ask them to use the letters to build out their own Scrabble Board contest entry with the names of your products or services, and/or words that they would use to characterize their experience in your salon or spa. At the end of the day (or week or month) total up each entry using the points system you assigned for letters, and reward the winner/s with a special service and product prize basket.

 If you want, allow people to play not only when in your salon or spa but also make your game sheet available online via your web site, Facebook or Blog, and via Email communications. Ask clients to return the entry personally to the salon or spa in return for a free branded tchotchke or product sample.

As with any event or contest, extend a special offer to all entrants following the event.

There! That should definitely keep things busy in your business between now and Mother’s Day, and may provide you with some great extra opportunities to promote your Mother’s Day, Bridal and Wedding packages to clients in these months leading up to Mother’s Day and the coming Wedding “season.”

Get creative! Create more ways and moments where you can interact with clients. Use non-traditional, low-cost, FUN ideas to help generate new clients, referrals, add on services, retail sales, and more. Build a bigger role for your business in the lives of your clients!

Elizabeth Kraus is the author of 365 Days of Marketing.
365 Days of Marketing for Small Business

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