As social distancing and mandated shutdowns due to the COVID-19 virus become more a part of our daily lives, deciding how to adapt your salon business to the quickly-evolving landscape becomes ever-more challenging.
With that in mind, here are our top tips that you can use to effectively communicate with your guests during COVID-19 while your salon temporarily closes, or remains open.
While your salon closes during a mandated or preventative shutdown:
Website:
Update your salon hours of operation on Google my Business if you have adjusted operating hours. GMB will allow you to Set Special Hours during this time. For instructions on how to do Set Special Hours for your business on GMB, click here.
If you haven’t already, you should post a communication (and email it if you have guest email addresses) about how your salon company is responding to this situation. This will likely evolve so you can post new updates as they arrive. Directing people to a link on your website would be the most effective way to do this (see next point) as the information will be easier to read, it makes your website a destination for guests to get information, and it will help your SEO at the same time.
Make finding information about your salon’s operation and safety measures easy to find on your website. We would recommend that you place a pop-up directly on the homepage of your website that triggers automatically when someone lands on your site. This pop-up should inform the guest that your salon business is closed, the reason (mandated or preventative shutdown) plus a means of getting in touch with you (like an email address or contact form). Guests will feel reassured knowing that there is still a way to reach you if they have questions. Just be sure that you are actively checking that account/voicemail box/other, and responding to inquiries. Once your salon has established a re-open date, build excitement by placing a count-down timer on your homepage within the pop-up, so guests can get excited about coming back to your salon.
Address rebooking options clearly. Will you be reaching out to the guest to reschedule? (recommended) Should the guest contact you to reschedule? When and how? Be clear and concise. Guests will want to be reassured that they can have their services performed in an appropriate time frame from the date of re-opening.
Remove any Specials or Promotions that are no longer valid from your website. We highly recommend creating an eye-catching image that encourages your guests to check back soon for upcoming promotions, and place that in your Promotions page until a confirmed re-open date has been established.
Keep your website fresh and up to date, so your guests know that it is a reliable source of current information for your salon.
Social Media:
Create bold-looking posts that alert your guests that the salon will be closed, and continue to repost that image 1-2 times per week (depending how active you are – you don’t need it to be every second post). Change your caption each time to reflect the current state of affairs. Maintain a positive and optimistic tone.
Continue to stay active on Social Media. Try to maintain the same posting schedule as when your salon is open, to remain consistent in your follower’s feeds. Post images of either your work, or other inspirational images (celebrities, upcoming trends, seasonal looks) that will inspire your clients for when they are able to come back to the salon. Focus your cations on looking forward to once we are past this time. Everyone will be wanting to turn the page, a fresh look, and be looking to you for inspiration and guidance. Be inspiring, be uplifting, be you.
Use the same voice that you’ve always used online to connect with your audience. Stay true to your brand while being as human as possible. When your guests see that you are consistent and familiar, it will have a reassuring affect.
While it is important that messaging in your Social Media posts remains positive, avoid posting jokes or making light of the current situation. This has a greater chance of evoking negative feedback than making someone smile.
We advise that you avoid posting facts or re-posting articles/news about the virus – no matter how valid the source. There is a lot of misinformation on the internet and you don’t want to accidentally promote false facts. Even if you are 100% sure that your information is correct, it is better for clients to receive information about the virus from the original source. Your guests do not expect you to be the COVID-19 expert in your community, your role is to continue to be the beauty expert and a supportive community citizen.
Encourage your team to follow the same suggestions on their own respective pages.
If your salon company closes for a time, we highly recommend reaching out to your clients individually once you have reopened, to personally invite them back to the salon. This can be done either through email, text messaging or personal phone calls. It can seem like a lot of work, but the return will be well worth your time, to get your business up and running again as quickly as possible.
While your salon remains open:
Website:
If you haven’t already, you should post a communication (and email it if you have guest email addresses) about how your salon company is responding to this situation (more in the next point). This will likely evolve so you can post new updates as they arrive. Directing people to a link on your website would be the most effective way to do this as the information will be easier to read, it makes your website a destination for guests to get information, and it will help your SEO at the same time.
Make finding information about your salon’s operation and safety measures easy to find on your website. We would recommend that you place a small banner at the top of your homepage with a button that links to a separate page with further information. You want it to be easily accessible, but not intrusive. Here you can post the measures that your salon is taking to protect your clientele, and also remind guests that you are still open for business. You can also outline any modified cancellation policy you may have in place. (More in the next point.)
Address cancellation options clearly, anywhere on your website where they are already mentioned, plus, include this information on your COVID-19 safety measures page. Make canceling an appointment as easy as possible for your guests by creating multiple ways of contacting you – phone, email, message, or other. Make an effort to avoid making your guests feel guilty or stressed about having to cancel appointments. Be reassuring and understanding. That is what everyone is looking for and what they have come to expect from other top companies who are handling this crisis well. It will affect the way they see your company and their chances of returning in the future.
Update any Specials or Promotions that you are running during this time. Be clear about eligibility and timelines.
Keep your website fresh and up to date, so your guests know that it is a reliable source of current information for your salon.
Social Media:
Utilize 1-2 posts per week to address the current situation and reassure your guests that you are taking every precaution to protect their health and well-being. These posts should be the exception, not the rule. Try not to make these posts too repetitive also. What unique things are you doing in your salon to keep it clean or prevent person-to-person contact? Pick one thing and focus on it for that one post. Take a fun pic of a guest and a stylist bumping elbows or tapping toes to say hello. Keep your caption positive and friendly.
Stay active on Social Media. Continue to post images of client photo shoots and shots of your staff having fun, so others can see that your business is still in regular operation, and that the salon is a safe place where your guests can come and feel taken-care-of.
Use the same voice that you’ve always used online to connect with your audience. Stay true to your brand while being as human as possible. When your guests see that you are consistent and familiar, it will have a reassuring affect.
While it is important that messaging in your Social Media posts remains positive, avoid posting jokes or making light of the current situation. This has a greater chance of evoking negative feedback than making someone smile.
We advise that you avoid posting facts or re-posting articles/news about the virus – no matter how valid the source. There is a lot of misinformation on the internet and you don’t want to accidentally promote false facts. Even if you are 100% sure that your information is correct, it is better for clients to receive information about the virus from the original source. Your guests do not expect you to be the COVID-19 expert in your community, your role is to continue to be the beauty expert and a supportive community citizen.
Encourage your team to follow the same suggestions on their own respective pages.
This is indeed an unprecedented time in our world’s history and everyone is doing their best to navigate how to communicate and interact with one another while we collectively wait to see how it all unfolds. Remember that you are far from alone and hopefully these tips help to create a road map for the days ahead. We’re travelling it alongside you. Feel free to reach out with any questions you might have – we are here to support you in every way we can.
For more industry resources on this topic, we recommend that you check out this guide from Summit Salon Business Center, by clicking here.