From scissors to hair care products, salon owners have many areas to which need their attention in order to keep their salon running successfully. As many salon owners have learned the skills and methods to stick within the budget of creating a smooth sailing business, they still struggle to learn which areas they could be saving a lot of money. Shampoos, stylist, hair dyes, and more, salon owners invest a lot of time and money into people and products they know will help develop a profit in return. Month to month, Salon owners review processed payments to calculate the percentage of profits made and ultimately whether or not they’re on track to make plan. Being a business owner comes with a bumpy ride. However, learning the right strategies could help improve revenue and save money for salon owners overall. Here are the top 5 ways salon businesses can save:

1) Reporting

Currently using Excel or a notebook to track weekly/monthly reports? Move to an automated system to eliminate the headache in admin hours. Some software options include:

• Payscape Mobile
• Vagaro
• NCR Silver
• Square

Using a software to track important metrics not only helps access files in a timely manner but gives you the ability to track trends, such as the amount of client’s you have daily/weekly/monthly/yearly. By utilizing such software, like the ones listed above also gives owners the feature of back office to track the amount of products and merchandise they have available to sell. Tracking the amount of merchandise, you have on hand not only ensures that salon owners have certain items in stock but also allows them to eliminate the question of whether or not clients can purchase products recommended by stylists.

2) Inventory Management

This is a big money saver! Generally, merchants prefer to purchase products varying from most popular to least popular. However, buying products in bulk saves money in the long-run. Purchasing professional beauty products from wholesale salon and beauty supply distributors like SalonCentric gives salon owners a wide variety of items to choose from. Not only do you have the ability to save money by purchasing products from wholesale websites, but salon owners can also learn about the latest styles and trends as well as business building techniques by clicking on the “learn” tab. Using websites like SalonCentric not only helps salon owners save money by purchasing products in bulk, but also provides salon owners with methods and strategies on how to build clientele. Being up to date on what is currently trending will help salon owners know what to promote in order to attract their target audience.

3) Payment Solutions

Payment solutions is one of the most important ways a salon could save tons of money. Developing research before committing to a financial technology service with competitive rates can help increase revenue leading to a successful business for all salon owners. Not many businesses are aware of the rates they are paying. Developing relationships with your merchant services provider is key to having a pulse on your account and exactly what you’re paying in fees. Weighing your options is important. Unfortunately, providers in this industry make it difficult for merchants to understand the rate structure they’re on and the total amount of fees they incur each month. Having trouble reading yours? Contact us to get a fresh set of eyes as well as a free rate evaluation and cost analysis report.

4) Effective Social Media Marketing

Engage with your current followers on your social media platforms to promote your product or service more affordably than resorting to paid advertisements. Social media is one of the biggest platforms to promote businesses and build effective relationships with clients and followers. Platform sites like Instagram and Facebook are very important for any business owner in any industry. According to Adweek, people spend, on average, up to 50 minutes a day on social media. That’s a lot of time for followers to view, like, and potentially contact merchants to purchase certain products or make appointments. This is a huge opportunity for salon businesses to attract clients as well as build relationships with followers by having them promote the brand. Utilizing your followers by having them post content that will drive the interest of potential customers will lead to salon businesses increasing revenue and saving more money. Some social media content ideas to help promote business include:

utilizing the digital space by creating awesome will save on printing cost for promotional material.

• High-quality photos
• Before and after pictures
• Including information on which stylist performed the makeover
• Monthly blog posts from stylists
• Utilizing the live video features to show off amazing transformations
• Awesome branding and identity

5) Customer Relationship Management

As we all know, without our customers there would be no business. Maintaining relationships with clients is key to making sure all businesses are reaching their monthly and quarterly goals. Show a little appreciation to your customers by providing them with an incentive to show how much you value their business. Some easy, money-saving options include:

• Loyalty programs. This is great for all businesses because it gives companies a promise in repeating customers. Not only are you making money but customers are also knowing that they’re getting an incentive in return. It’s a win-win! So, to all our salon owner friends, give your clients a point reward system where if they receive a certain number of points, they get a selected service for free!
• VIP member system. Show your veteran clients some love by setting up a VIP member program. This program should be used to provide your loyal clients exclusive offers like discounts and promotions on selected services. These offers will solidify strong relationships between the salon and its clients.

Another opportunity would be to save time on having your clients call to make appointments by using software systems like StyleSeat, Acuity, Mindbody, and Vagaro. These software programs give clients an opportunity to choose their stylist and appointment time. Manage your time by focusing on your clients in the salon rather than running to the phone to book appointments. Giving your clients your undivided attention will reduce the stress on both ends and guarantee your clients return for future cuts and colors.

Utilizing these strategies will help all salon owners save time and money, letting them focus on what’s important, customer satisfaction. Although it may seem overwhelming, it is vital to your overall return to invest time and effort into curating such strategies to connect better with your current and future clients. This will ensure that your brand stands out amongst your competition.

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