10 Back-to-School Salon Marketing Ideas to Build Year-Round Business

10 back to school salon marketing ideas you can use to build business that will make going back to school easier for teachers, parents and students — all year long!

Parents and teachers have so much to do to get kids back to school; it’s the perfect time for you to show them how you can make their lives easier and better. Here are 10 ways you can make going back to school easier for teachers, parents and students, all year long!

  1. Hold an educators open house featuring easy-maintenance, current hair and makeup styles for teachers. Plan to hold an open house just for educators (this could mean just for teachers or could be extended to include anyone who works or volunteers for local private or public schools). Send a copy of your event invitation to the offices of local schools and the district office.
  2. Hold a back-to-school hairstyle and makeup show for students and their parents; solicit volunteers to model youth-trendy hair styles, makeup, etc. Teach attendees how to recreate the looks at home and extend event-only offers that include the tools and products needed.
  3. Throughout the season, use photos featuring younger celebrities or models to help you make suggestions and to stimulate conversations about trendy cuts and styles. Talk about the products and tools needed to create the looks at home.
  4. Have clients whose kids receive their services somewhere else? Extend special multi-booking appointment times so parents can bring all their kids in at the same time at a family rate. Offer to rebook the whole family 6 weeks later (or 3 weeks later for the guys) together, at the same rate.
  5. As you do back-to-school haircuts on kids this month, tell parents about scalp, hair or skin issues you see and write up ‘prescriptions’ for recommended reparative products as well as how to use them.
  6. Consider extending a special, on-going offer just for teachers, such as a break on retail purchased at appointments, or a free retail product for every third haircut, etc. Create a refer-a-teacher reward.
  7. Promote the giving of your gift certificates and your best-selling products (like serums, shine products, aroma-therapeutic lotions, etc.) as gifts for teachers all year long. Plan now to create special gift sets designed as holiday gifts for teachers, and begin marketing these early in November. Be sure that each of these gift sets also includes your business card, menu of services, and new client (or teacher’s) offer.
  8. Create a salon or spa-branded school year desk or wall calendar to give to all your clients that includes a product or service of the month spotlight as well as a monthly promotion for the spotlighted item.
  9. Create a school year booklet that features teacher-only special offers for each month of the school year and order enough copies to send them in bulk to offices of local private and public schools, and school district offices.
  10. Inquire with your local school district, local public schools and local private schools about opportunities to advertise in school newsletters and the school annual, to donate to school auctions, to be a ‘booster’ for sport teams or provide support for choirs, orchestras, dramas or other arts programs, to support literacy or after school programs, etc.

Elizabeth Kraus – 12monthsofmarketing.com 365 Days of Marketing is available on amazon.com in book and digital formats.

2 replies
  1. elizabeth kraus
    elizabeth kraus says:

    Charlotte, you're welcome! My mom started her professional career as a teacher, and my brother married a teacher and my husband's sister is married to a teacher — so I really do care about them as a 'target market' and appreciate how much they do out of pocket in their own classrooms. It's also difficult to think of any professional group (outside of hairstylists!) who are connected, influentially, to more people in our communities. If I were to add a #11, it would be to partner with a classroom (it can even be your child's classroom) for events throughout the year. Send pizza for the class (along with a take-home nail buffer/file, manufacturer's sample, age-appropriate makeup or hairstyle how-to, branded chapstick – something – and a bounce-in offer to the salon for students and their parents. Get involved in classroom projects. Host a girls' sleepover or makeup/blow-out how-to party. Send the teacher a gift certificate and/or a free travel-sized product once each month so that they can try new products and tell co-workers about them. Ask them to provide you with a review or testimonial to share on a promotional piece for the teacher's lounge. Ok, maybe that is #11-15! Elizabeth Kraus, author, 365 Days of Marketing

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