If you own a barbershop, you know the importance of advertising and getting the word out to reach as many customers as possible.
In this article we are going to reveal 8 practices that you should keep in mind regarding the marketing of your business.
1. Marketing starts at your premises
Whether you work in a store, rent a chair or own your own barbershop, make sure your space conveys the right message. This will be an important factor in keeping a customer coming back. Make your space inviting so your customers feel comfortable.
It’s also important to consider convenience and service. Do you offer good service at a reasonable price? Are your hours comparable to other barbershops in the area? The more boxes you check as “yes”, the more chances your business will have to promote itself.
2. Offer a unique experience to your customers
Offer a unique experience that your customers won’t find anywhere else. Offer them refreshments, such as freshly brewed coffee, while they wait. Meet them when they are in their chair. Talk to them.
Ask them about their family or their plans for the weekend. You can also offer some freebies, such as a facial hair trim with a haircut or free product samples. The goal is to make your customers feel welcome, appreciated and valued.
The problem with many businesses, including barbershops, is that they keep a very distant relationship with the customer. It seems like it’s all business and cold. If instead you treat them as you would a friend, you will be giving them a better experience.
With these small details, you will get them to come back again and again. And best of all, doing this is free.
3. Know your ideal customer
You can’t grow your business if you don’t know your industry well. It’s important that you stay ahead of the hottest styles and trends in barbering and men’s grooming. You’ll also want to understand how the seasons, vacations and even the economy in general could affect your business.
If you want to advertise and promote your services, you need to understand the big picture of men’s style and fashion. Once you understand the market, you can choose when and how to offer special discounts and promotions. These discounts and promotions will help you build clientele in your barber shop.
4. Word of mouth, the best advertising for barbershops
Word of mouth is still a great advertising tool, and now it doesn’t just happen person-to-person. It can happen on the Internet, where a single customer can share the good news about your barbershop with hundreds of their followers.
So don’t forget to ask your current clients, especially those who praise your services, to recommend you to their friends and family, and to share their positive experiences on their social networks, whether it’s Instagram, Facebook or Tik Tok.
Your own friends and family are also a good network. Ask them to pass out your business card to their co-workers, roommates and friends. Every time someone hears about you, it’s a new opportunity to capture new customers.
5. Promote your barbershop on social media
Word-of-mouth advertising has gone digital. Social media allows you to easily and effectively promote yourself as a barber. Chances are most of your clients are on social media, but so are their friends and their friends’ friends. Don’t miss out on this great opportunity. Create business profiles on sites like LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram and start sharing what you do and how well you do it.
Increase your reach on these social media channels. It’s a great way to showcase the awesome work you do (with your clients’ permission, of course). On your Facebook page or Instagram account, post before and after photos of your great work. Announce special events and promotions on the platforms. Ask your clients to post testimonials of your work.
Create a YouTube channel and share video tutorials of new techniques and styles you’ve learned. Use the platform to demonstrate your skills in action. The more you post on social media, the more people you can reach.
Ask your clients for permission and share before and after photos. Take photos and videos of hairdressing events and competitions you attend. Post information about new men’s hairdressing techniques. And share it all on social media. Be sure to pay attention to users who like and share what you do. And regram, retweet and repurpose what they do. A single retweet or re-gram of your photos or stories has the potential to go viral. Even if you’re not famous, you can get the word out about your store by posting regularly.
6. Your business card, your best weapon
those events and contests you attend? Don’t go without a barber business card. But even if you can’t get into a conference, go online and network.
Reach out to bloggers and business professionals as well to see if they want to try your services and give you a positive review on social media.
Connect with future clients, but also with people who do what you do. LinkedIn is a great place to make professional connections. Find out what they do and how they do it. Always learn and you will grow.
7. Incentivize with discounts and promotions
what’s the best way to motivate someone to do something? Give them an incentive. Offer a discount, or a free shave with the purchase of a haircut to new clients. Create a loyalty program that offers customers a free service after a certain number of visits.
You can also offer some kind of incentive in exchange for them sharing a photo of your barbershop on their social networks.
8. Flyers and door hangers. Nothing more effective than traditional advertising
There is no more cost-effective and economical advertising than flyers and door hangers. If you really want to grow your business and make everyone around you aware of it, flyers and custom door hangers are powerful advertising tools that you need to include in your marketing campaign.
Most businesses underestimate the power of these advertising products because they believe that nowadays everything moves online, but the reality is different, traditional advertising is still much more effective than online advertising.