How do you maintain customer loyalty?

Salons today focus vast amounts of time and resources into attracting new customers. It is vital however not to forget your existing customers as they provide your best immediate sources of additional profits and increased business; maintaining customer loyalty is therefore essential.

A question that is at the forefront of salon owners minds is how do you continue to add the value that will strengthen your relationship with clients during the long periods between purchases?

There are numerous marketing strategies that businesses can adopt, however with the introduction of the trendy new social media outlets, there is one valuable tool that seems to be frequently overlooked, and that’s email. This is surprising, as research has shown that email marketing consistently delivers the best return on investment and email can set the key groundwork to your on-going marketing program. Emails are also likely to be received on mobile devices therefore enabling you to contact your customers at work home or on the go.

Here are some basic points to remember to help consolidate your message with clients. 

v  Be personal. Personalising messages helps you communicate on a more one to one level, you can increase your click-through rates by up to 650% by using your contacts name, because they feel like they already have a relationship with you, an email message that begins “Dear Customer” is likely to be given the delete button.  You can personalise your email easily by capturing as much client data as possible.

v  Consistency. Emails should go out to customers about once or twice a month. More often and your clients may feel bombarded and less often, they forget about you. Being consistent with your customer heightens familiarity which leads to increased customer loyalty.

v  Use client purchase history. Utilize information you have stored about existing client’s purchase history to target them more effectively with offers and information. Research has shown that emails are more likely to be read if they are of relevance to the reader, so make your content informative and make the tone friendly.

v  Use pictures and Logos. A few years ago the vast majority of emails sent were text only. Well-chosen imagery and colour enormously enhances its impact, encouraging customers to read the email the may normally have passed over. Branding is important in order to distinguish your company from similar competitors in the market, therefore all your communications should be branded this includes using your logo on emails.  The style of your logo should fit in with the image of your business you are trying to project.

v  Customize. It is possible to tailor messages to a customer’s gender, age, purchase history and lifestyle interests this therefore ensures you only target them with appropriate products and services saving you and your clients time.

v  Keep it short. People receive a vast amount of emails each day and usually have no time to read over long messages, it is important to keep it short and get to the point, they will appreciate it.

StudioTracker salon software management system allows you to store all client information in one place, such as hair type, colouring history and even how your client takes their tea making it simple to personalise your service and develop customer relations with your clients. StudioTracker tracks client purchase history allowing you to target them more effectively with relevant marketing material and cross sell more easily. The software also allows you send out both appointment reminders and promotional offers from the system using SMS, emails or letters.