Social media marketing for salons

Facebook and Instagram are the best free marketing tools for salons, spas & clinics.

But many salon owners do not recognise the amazing potential of social media in increasing income and attracting new clients.

Salon Guru has been working with over 220 salons, spas & clinics and has 20 years of experience in social media marketing for salons. This page provides useful information on how to effectively market your salon on social media, giving you social media marketing tips, and links to detailed salon social media guides, with examples of how to market your salon or spa using Facebook and Instagram.

There is a lot of information about Social Media on this website, so use the buttons below to jump to the relevant section....

Instagram tips for hair & beauty salons

Salon marketing using Instagram - a guide for hair & beauty salons

As a visual industry, it's important hair and beauty salons show off their work using Instagram - especially if you want to target the 18-34 age group (the main users of Instagram).  

Instagram is simple to use and allows you to showcase your work, inspire others, be inspired, keep up with industry trends and keep an eye on what your competition are up to!

Before you start setting up or improving your salon's Instagram, ask yourself these questions: "If your perfect client were to browse the pictures on your Instagram feed, would they feel your salon is a place they'd enjoy? Would they be excited by the images, products, team pictures, salon images you have posted?"

If you are sadly shaking your head, then you know it's time to improve your salon Instagram page

Instagram for salons - the basics

Think of Instagram as your virtual shop window.  It allows you to show people fabulous hair images, great pics of your salon, your latest offers, products, team members, before & after images... and so much more!  Read Salon Guru's Salon Social Media Marketing Tips below to get started...

Understand How Instagram Works - Take time to understand the platform before you begin.  Always follow best practice, watch and learn from industry peers and keep up-to-date with the latest Instagram rules and regulations.

Invest In A Ring Light & Background - Buy a ring light so you can glow up your images and videos and make them look more professional.  Consider investing in a background so your photos of hair before & afters, for example, all have the same framing.  Failing that, make sure you use a plain background and remove the gown/cape as no one wants to see mess and clutter. 

INSTAGRAM TIPS FOR HAIR SALONS

The best images for Instagram - Make sure you crop into the image so there is not too much background on show. This will give your image more impact.  When using before & after images, do NOT combine those images into one shot. Let the audience scroll between two or more images.  

Encourage salon team engagement - Instagram is a great opportunity to motivate your team.  If one of your stylists has created a stunning haircut or colour, share it on Instagram, making sure that you mention them personally and tag them in. Many of our Salon Guru clients incorporate Instagram within team pages on their websites to help potential salon clients identify with a particular stylist.

Encourage clients to share their hair images on Instagram - Is there a way to encourage your clients to #snapaselfie in your salon,  place it on their Instagram feed, and then tag you in?  This is the perfect way to grow your following within your local community.  Think of incentives to encourage this - maybe offer a free in-salon treatment as a reward or perhaps run a competition.

Use your best salon images on Instagram - Instagram offers inspiration for stylists and clients, so think about image quality and make the most of filters and cropping tools when necessary.  Whilst suppliers that you work with will be happy to provide professional model images, your clients will also expect to see #snappedinthesalon style visuals and before & afters. Read our guide The Rules For Taking Salon Before & After Photographs.

Reflect your salon brand & personality on Instagram - Whilst Instagram should certainly be a place to showcase your work and products - remember not to bombard your followers with advertising material. There needs to be a mix.  Consider adding some fun or inspirational sayings or memes too, or reels and videos! 

INSTAGRAM FOR SALONS

Be fun, informative & educational - Enhance the client experience and build your reputation as an expert.  For example, why not be a ‘hair doctor’ and show DIY 15-second videos, weekly blow-dry tips, or share product knowledge for specific hair types or problems?

Be #hashtag savvy - Hashtags are a fabulous social tool that allows us to become part of global communities ( #wella), global conversations (#balayage), or help you to be found locally (#yourlocaltown).  Try not to over-use hashtags and always make sure they are relevant to the image or video you are using. 

INSTAGRAM FOR HAIR SALONS

Add Geotags - Geotagging shows your location which could send people into your salon.  Simply tap “Tap “Add Location” from the “New Post” screen. Instagram will automatically provide a list of possible locations near you. You can select one of the suggested locations, or you can type in any other location of your choice.

Understand your salon Instagram audience - Your Instagram needs to tell a visual story that will leave a positive & lasting impression of your salon.   View your Instagram page as important as your salon front window - after all, this is where new clients will discover and judge you.  

Have fun on Instagram - Post good-quality images and engage with your network by liking and commenting on their feeds. Use video clips and collages to tell a story and capture the imagination.  Remember it is about quality NOT quantity!

Avoid cross-platform posting - You may feel that connecting your Facebook and Twitter accounts to Instagram is a great time-saving option.  But each platform needs different content. Your loyal clients will possibly follow you on all platforms and will expect different types of content on each.  Remember it isn’t just about posting…..it is about engaging with your community and clients.

Find out more about Salon Guru's social media services for salons.

DID YOU KNOW?  If you simply do not have the time to get your Instagram and Facebook pages looking fabulous and working for you, Salon Guru are experts in Salon Marketing Online. We offer 2 expert services for your salon's social media:

  • Social shadowing for 3 months with expert guidance and tips every week.
  • Regular posting to your salon's Facebook & Instagram pages.

Find out more about Salon Guru's social media services for salons.

The best salon Instagram accounts

Instagram for salons has become the most talked-about social media platform over the past decade. But, how do the best salons on Instagram use this brilliant marketing tool? Read Which are the best salon Instagram accounts?

Taking better social media photos

Your team members are creating beautiful, head-turning hairstyles and hair colours, so how can you share their work for clients to see but also protect your rights as the salon owner? Read our guide Taking in-salon before & after photographs

Facebook for hair & beauty salons

Market your salon on Facebook - a guide for hair & beauty salons

Facebook is mainly a social networking site which makes it an ideal channel to allow you to 'chat' and communicate with your clients and potential new clients. It is also essential if you want to advertise to the wider community using your social media channels.  We focus on social media advertising for salons lower down on this page.   

Facebook for salons the basics

While Instagram only allows you to post photos and videos, Facebook lets you post photos and videos, articles, quizzes, website links, and longer videos.  You can respond to client comments and generally be more engaging on Facebook. 

Set up your Facebook page - Create a Facebook page for your salon. Add the basic information including the name of your salon, a photo of your salon, contact details, online booking link.  To find out how to set up a Facebook page, click here.

Encourage followers - Promote your new Facebook page to your clients.  If you have lots of email addresses, send out a newsletter with a link to your Facebook page, asking them to 'Like' and 'Share' your page with their friends and family. 

Add great videos, photos & captions - Showcase your salon, before & after hair images, videos of team members having fun working, hair or beauty tips, products, memes,  inspiring or fun quotes.  Make sure your captions are clear and include a Call To Action on many of the images along the lines of 'Call our salon on XXXX to book now' or 'Book Online here'. 

Before & after images - Make sure you get the client's permission before sharing their hair images. 

Hashtags - Hashtags turn topics and phrases into clickable links in your posts. This helps people find posts about topics they're interested in. To make a hashtag, write # before the topic. Here are some examples #balayage #Wella #blondes

facebook tips

Encourage people to comment - Think of captions that will encourage people to comment and share the image.  Ask a question such as Pixie Cut, Bob or Layers?  What's your favourite look?

Geotagging - Geotags share your location which could send people to your salon.  To geotag a photo you already have on Facebook, browse to the photo, click "Options" near the bottom of the picture and select "Add location." Fill in the "Where Was This Photo Taken?" box on the right and click "Done Editing."

Post testimonials - Create a lovely image using your branding to showcase your client reviews.  Add up to 3 a week.  

Post regularly - Post at least once a day, preferably twice daily.

Make a note of your followers - Keep an ongoing check on how many followers you have from day 1.  You'll soon have a growing network of  followers.  While you're there, check out what your competitors are posting!

DID YOU KNOW?  If you do not have the time to get your Facebook and Instagram pages looking fabulous and working for you, Salon Guru are experts in Salon Marketing Online. We offer 2 expert services for your salon's social media:

  • Social shadowing for 3 months with expert guidance and tips every week.
  • Regular posting to your salon's Facebook & Instagram pages.

Find out more about our social media posting and shadowing services for salons

Facebook & Instagram adverts for hair & beauty salons

Attract new salon clients & recruit staff

Advertising on social media can generate impressive results, particularly if you are looking for new salon clients or want to promote a new service or stylist with an impressive hair or beauty offer. Recruitment advertising can also work well as it allows you to get the message out to all Facebook and Instagram users in your location that you are looking to recruit new staff. 

Salon Guru has won awards for the social media adverts we run for salons.  One award-winning New Client Social Media Campaign generated £276,000 ($340,000) over 12 months - bringing 4132 new clients into the salon.  The cost per client acquisition was just £3 ($3.70), which makes this an incredibly effective use of your advertising budget! 

melanie richards social media ad campaign

New client social advert examples

Check out some of Salon Guru's social media campaigns using Facebook and Instagram to help salons find new clients, including our award-winning salon marketing campaign which generated £276,000 in new income in one year for one salon group. 

Social media advert set-up

We have created social adverts for salons & clinics in the UK, Ireland, USA for many years and have unbeatable knowledge of what works.  Read set up a Facebook & Instagram advert to find new clients or staff for your salon.  

Need help with social media?

You need to focus on running your salon or clinic, so why not let the social media experts at Salon Guru help with your Facebook and Instagram pages and social media advertising needs?  Find out more about our Salon Social Media Services