Pass it on: Word of Mouth Salon Marketing Myths
If you are a regular reader of my blog, salon marketing books or salon marketing calendars, you have probably heard a rant or two on how most small business owners claim that word of mouth is their best marketing without really understanding what word of mouth marketing is. Why is it so important that you understand what word of mouth marketing is and how to get it?
A recent BrightLocal survey revealed that 79% of U.S. consumers have shared a business recommendation with a friend, family member, co-worker or another acquaintance – recommendations that resulted in driving local traffic to businesses, businesses just like your salon or spa, or directly to you as a booth renter, hair stylist, make up or skin care esthetician, nail technician or massage therapist.
Even though last year I wrote this post about a little white marketing lie, “Word of Mouth is our Best Marketing,” let me start by saying: of course word of mouth is your best marketing.
In fact, when it comes to marketing your salon or marketing yourself as a hairdresser, esthetician, nail tech or another independent beauty professional, it would be sad if word of mouth weren’t your best marketing and your biggest source of new clients.
But even though word of mouth is your “best” salon marketing tool, that doesn’t mean you’re doing it well, or that you truly understand it, at all. For many salon owners and hair stylists, word of mouth marketing is their best form of marketing because word of mouth is their only form of marketing. And even that isn’t completely accurate, because in many cases, word of mouth marketing occurs by accident, rather than strategically. Usually it’s a case of a salon owner or hair stylist doing their best behind the chair and then hoping it’s enough to get their clients talking.
But simply doing your best and hoping isn’t enough to get clients talking, and it’s not likely to generate the kind of word of mouth client referrals you need to build a thriving salon business.
So what is word of mouth marketing, anyway?
Word of mouth marketing is simply the passing of information:
About a business (like your salon or spa) and which might include any number of different aspects:
- convenience
- customer experience
- deco
- location
- size
- scope of services
- menu
- number of options offered
- price
- value
- rewards
- loyalty program or reputation
- product lines carried
About a business’s products themselves:
- the professional salon products you use in the course of service
- the retail products / lines you carry for client home hair care, nail care, skin care, etc.
- the performance of specific favorite products
- the scent of products or aromatherapy products such as candles, personal fragrances
- the specific benefits to hair, scalp or skin by certain products or product lines (the problems those products solve or perceived benefits they deliver)
About a business’s services offered or provided:
- unique services clients would not find in another salon or spa
- the quality of the work that you provide as a hairdresser, skin care esthetician, make up artist, nail technician, massage therapist or another type of booth renter
- the amount of time in which clients are serviced (with an emphasis either on convenience and time savings, or the extra time that you spend to indulge clients as part of the customer experience)
- the extent to which a client feels that you are going out of your way to give them the results they want
- the creativity with which you suggest styling options
- the concern and authenticity with which you provide home care product recommendations (and which deliver on your promises)
- the level of customer service your salon or spa provides
- how you remedied a problem or dealt with a dissatisfied customer
As you can see, it’s a whole different thing to generate word of mouth referrals accidentally vs. thinking through the long list of details above, any one of which could make or break your ability to garner word of mouth recommendations from your clients and build client loyalty and engagement.
As you delve deeper into the idea of analyzing each and every detail of the client experience and strategically planning what occurs at each and every customer touch point, you will begin to strengthen your word of mouth marketing more strategically, ensuring that you are controlling those things which are within your ability to influence, and leaving left to chance.
Ultimately, strategic thinking when it comes to your word of mouth marketing enables you to build a bigger, more influential role for your salon or spa in the lives of your clients by making yourself an expert resource for hair care and hair dressing, make up application, skin care, nails or whatever your particular salon or spa specialty is. You will find a systematic approach to marketing for every area of the salon or spa in Make Over Your Marketing: 12 Months of Marketing for Salon and Spa, or you can get short and sweet tidbits to help you improve and build your salon business in the most current Salon and Spa Marketing Calendars – all available on amazon.com.
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