What is Your Salon’s Story?

I just recently finished an excellent book called “All Marketers Tell Stories” by Seth Godin.  It was a quick read and the message inside was very potent.  If you want to learn about how great marketing works – I highly recommend reading it.  But for the rest of you, I’m going to give you the “cliff notes” salon industry version right here. 

But first, let me ask you a question.  What is your salon’s story? 

Have you ever really thought about it?  Before I ever build a web site for a salon, I always pose a specific question to the salon owner.  And here’s the question.  What makes your salon different than any other salon in your area?  Well, that’s another way of asking “What is your salon’s story?” 

In a recent blog post, I talked about the power of “Word of Mouth” advertising.  Getting clients to talk about your salon (especially evangelists) can be an incredibly powerful way to build your business.  But always remember this: People like to tell stories!  They do it everyday.  They tell stories to their friends, family, co-workers, stylists, and just about anyone else who will listen. 

But, if your salon doesn’t have a good “story” – what are they going to tell about you? 

Here is another important point to keep in mind, people believe what they want to believe.  So much so, that they make most things a self-fulfilling prophecy.  We all have a specific “world-view”.  In other words, we see the world in a certain way.  People with the same “world-view” tend to hangout in the same groups. 

For example, if you think that a Prius is the best car to own – then you see the world in a certain way.  If you think that a pair of $150 Puma sneakers are dramatically better than a pair of $30 running shoes (even though they’re both made in China for $3) then you have a different world-view as well.  If you only buy Kiehl’s special skin lotion because it’s offbeat, unique and aggressively original – then, you too, have a certain world-view. 

The Prius tells a story, Puma tells a story and so does Kiehl’s.  A modern day story is now being told by Moroccan Oil.  In fact, I was just in a salon the other day and I heard the entire story about how the company was founded.  If you go to their web site, you can read all about it.  Are there other “Argan Oil hair products” on the market today?  Sure, but Moroccan Oil tells a story.  That’s why it’s one of the fastest growing companies in the salon industry today! 

Here is another example of a story – Aveda salons.  Now, some salon owners may scoff at the notion that Aveda is the best way to go.  But there is no denying one thing – Aveda tells a story and it’s believable to a cult following of people with the same “world-view”.  This makes it very easy for those salons to attract a certain type of client. 

Well, what type of clients are you trying to attract?  And what story can you craft to attract them?  Will your salon story be based on superior cutting techniques or world-class service or simply a friendly neighborhood atmosphere with “value” pricing? 

Now, here’s a very important thing to remember when you’re crafting your “story”.  Be authentic!  The authenticity of the story determines whether it will survive scrutiny long enough for the consumer to tell the story to other people.  And that’s the real key here.  We want the story to be told to other people just like them. 

People notice things that are different.  They want to tell everyone they know about their experience.  Think about what can make your salon different in their eyes.  

Best Regards, Steve Sampson 

HairMax Salon Software is a product designed to be the best investment your salon has ever made.  It is not only the easiest and most powerful salon managment software on the market.  It is from a company dedicated to becoming the ultimate VALUE source to the industry.