How to Create a Salon Marketing Plan in 9 Steps

The global salon services industry is projected to reach $355.45 billion by 2029, up from  $215.65 billion in 2022. However, much of this growth is in other regions, as North America spending on salon services is holding steady. Consumers in the US and Canada are inundated with at-home alternatives like press-on nails and luxury at-home hair dye kits—making the bid to win over local clients even more competitive.

To succeed, you need a solid salon marketing plan that helps you both acquire and retain local clients.

No more guessing, hoping, and constantly changing course.

It’s time to create and follow a strategic plan.

What’s in this guide:

• Step 1. Understand your target market
• Step 2. Determine your budget
• Step 3. Clarify your brand differentiators
• Step 4. Choose your acquisition channels
• Step 5. Choose your retention strategies
• Step 6. Assemble your team and tools
• Step 7. Plan out your marketing activities for the quarter
• Step 8. Implement and measure your plan
• Step 9. Adjust your plan for the following quarter

Step 1. Understand your target market

First, get clear on your target audience.

As a salon owner, you need to consider factors like demographics (age and gender) as well as geographical location (which neighborhoods or areas of your city to target). People in the 35 – 54 year age range are the biggest segment for salon services and make up nearly half of the industry’s total revenue.

Make sure to also define your target client in terms of their desired experience and transformation. What do they care about? What are they interested in? Do they want to save money, enjoy a moment of luxury, or walk away with an alternative hair cut? Jot down what makes your ideal client tick.

Step 2. Determine your budget

Next, it’s time to calculate your marketing budget. The average marketing budget is 9.5% of a company’s total revenue, but most small businesses aim to spend between 2 – 5%. If your salon is newer, you might need to invest closer to 10% of your revenue, but if you’re already established and have a healthy flow of repeat clients and referrals, you can spend around 5% or less.

Step 3. Clarify your brand differentiators

Before you start coming up with content or hiring marketing agencies, you need to get crystal clear on what sets your hair or beauty salon apart. When you market on a strong foundation, all your efforts are more likely to succeed.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself to come up with your differentiators:

• How is the vibe and decor of our salon different from competitors?
• What unique services or treatments do we offer that set us apart from other salons in the area?
• How do we personalize our services to cater to the specific needs and preferences of our clients?
• What is our approach to customer service, and how does it differ from competitors?
• How do we maintain a welcoming and comfortable atmosphere?
• What efforts do we make to stay updated with the latest trends and techniques in the beauty industry?
• What sets our pricing apart from other salons, and how does it align with the value we provide?
• What feedback and testimonials have we received that highlight our unique differences?
• How do we leverage technology to enhance the salon experience in ways that competitors may not?

Use this research to write down our core three to six differentiators. They’ll come in handy when it comes time to create content.

Step 4. Choose your acquisition channels

The next step when marketing a salon is to choose channels that work well for your business type.

The best tactics for hair salons and beauty salons include:

• Search engine optimization (SEO): You can rank in search engines and map results with organic strategies like blogging, optimizing your website pages for keyphrases, and linkbuilding.
• Pay per click advertising (PPC): Google Ads and Bing Ads place your business at the top of search results, and you pay for every click to your website.
• Social media: You can grow your audience on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube through strategic content.
• Referral partnerships: Build relationships with other local businesses and refer clients to each other.
• Salon events: Host salon parties and events and encourage clients to bring their family and friends.
• Local sponsorships: Getting your brand name and logo out into the community is a great idea, particularly in small towns. Sponsor high school plays, sports arenas, nonprofit programs, etc.
• Email marketing: Keep in contact with clients and leads with beauty tips, special promotions, and announcements.

Unless you have a large budget, it’s best to implement only one or two new channels at a time. If you need new clients quickly, go for PPC and referral partnerships. But, if you can afford to take a slower route, you might opt for SEO and sponsorships.

Step 5. Choose your retention strategies

As a salon, marketing isn’t just about getting new clients. It’s about retaining existing clients. Repeat business should make up the bulk of your revenue.

We recommend that you implement all these retention strategies:

• Set up a two-step review management system so you can collect customer feedback and prevent negative feedback from going public.
• Create a loyalty program that automatically gives clients points when they book services, refer friends, etc.
• Launch a client app where clients can book appointments, purchase products for pick-up, track loyalty program points, and cash points in for rewards.
• Regularly promote your app and loyalty program via email, SMS, and social media.

Below, we’ll dive deeper into making these strategies a part of your marketing plan.

Step 6. Assemble your team and tools

Now that you know what types of marketing strategies need to be implemented, it’s time to rally your resources.

For each channel or strategy you move forward with, you’ll need to decide who’s doing the work.

Will you hire a local marketing agency to help? Need to purchase a course for your assistant? Will you learn new skills on your own?

You’ll also need to implement the right technology to get things done. To make your life easier, implement an all-in-one salon software like WellnessLiving, which offers email marketing, client apps, appointment bookings and notifications, review management, loyalty programs, and more.

Step 7. Plan out your marketing activities for the quarter

When creating a marketing plan for your salon, it’s best to use a quarterly approach. This gives you a better bird’s eye view than a monthly plan—but is not as overwhelming as an annual plan.

List out the channels and strategies you will implement. For each one, write out the activities that need to be accomplished. This might be as simple as hiring an agency and reviewing their reporting at the end of each month. Or, it might be as complex as social media tasks that need to be completed each and every week.

To document your plan, you can use a free marketing plan template, like these slideshows from Canva or these spreadsheets from Airtable.

Step 8. Implement and measure your plan

Now that you’ve taken the time to strategically choose your audience, budget, channels, teammates, and tools, it’s time to implement your plan. Follow it through for the entire quarter and avoid making changes unless you really have to (such as a necessary budget cut).

To figure out what’s working, check your marketing reports. WellnessLiving offers robust, filterable reporting on all our marketing-related features, from apps to emails to text messages and beyond.

You can also ask new clients how they heard about you (either in person or by including that question in your lead form or appointment-booking process).

Step 9. Adjust your plan for the following quarter

On an ongoing basis, you’ll continue to set your quarterly plan—not taking off more than you can chew. Each quarter, you might add a new channel or optimize an existing one.

As you go along, it can be helpful to have an overall focus for your quarterly salon marketing plan. One quarter, you might really focus on events (while your other marketing strategies are running in the background). Another quarter, you might do everything you can do improve your loyalty program and give it your all.

Ready to grow your business with the best features and customer support around?

Request a demo of WellnessLiving to see our salon management and marketing platform in action.