How To Prepare Your Salon For The Holiday Season

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! The Holiday Season is quickly fluttering in, and it’s a good idea to start getting your salon ready for the busy months. If you’re like so many other salon owners and managers, you’re feeling behind the eight ball; your salon is showing no signs of the upcoming season, and you’re starting to feel the panic build. Well, it’s not too late to make your salon holiday ready. Just follow our tips, and your bells will be jingling as customers clamor inside for your holiday cheer and special services.

How To Decorate Your Salon For The Holidays

You don’t have to spend a fortune for your salon to be decorated to the nines. There are plenty of stores that sell reasonably priced holiday decorations that won’t break the budget! Also, think about partnering with a local company that specializes in holiday decorating. Your salon is the perfect showcase for them to attract new clients. They decorate for you for free or at a discount and you advertise for them...a win-win for everyone. Keep in mind, not all your clients celebrate just one holiday, so it’s nice to somehow represent all of them.

Don’t forget the windows. Festively decorated windows can spark the interest of people walking by, too! Add tinsel and lights. Keep a color scheme or go color crazed!
Tease the senses. Have holiday music playing in the background. Use aromatherapy in holiday scents strategically around the salon: apple spice, pine, any scent that is reminiscent of the holidays!

Light it up! If nothing else, then string decorative lights around the salon. Without going overboard, it still gives off the holiday spirit!

Keep it simple. It’s easy to get into the whole decorating thing, but going too far can make it look chaotic and messy. So, keeping it on the simple side can still create the wanted effect, without the unwanted shudders!

Mix it up. Highlight some of your best-selling products by using them in the decorations. They’re a simple and subtle reminder to your guests that they NEED these things!

Gift Holiday Favors To Your Clients

At Marlo Beauty Supply, we have some great products, perfect for you to create little holiday gift, or to just give out individually. Your clients will love leaving the salon, not only looking great but with a thoughtful present in hand.

Nail favors: An individually wrapped nail file, along with a bottle of one of the seasonal nail polishes makes even the most difficult client smile widely!

For the guys: Your male clients will be thrilled with a little aftershave or a male grooming set.

Skin and spa: There’s no such thing as too much hand lotion, and scented lotions make a great surprise holiday gift.

Appliances: Curling irons, blow dryers, trimmers, and flat irons to present to your VIP clients (we know you have some, but don’t worry, we won’t tell). Or, stock up so you can have them as add-on sales or holiday specials.

Create A Digital Holiday Plan For Your Salon

Your first step is to get your staff prepared for the upcoming holidays. Once that’s in place, you’ll need to get everything else in order, especially your social media strategy. And, everyone in the salon can pitch in if you don’t have a designated social media person.

Create a content calendar. One of the easiest and most time effective things you can do is to schedule out your Facebook posts weeks in advance. It’s great, especially during the busy holiday season, to set it and forget it. Facebook has a scheduling tool right on its platform. Or, you can use a third party scheduler such as HootSuite. Have your staff help by promoting to their personal pages, as well. It can spread the word farther and faster if everyone is involved.

Highlight your hours. Whether you choose to open earlier and close later, or stay open seven days a week until the holiday season is over, that’s up to you. But, once you decide your holiday hours, make sure to post them not only in your salon, but also on your Facebook wall. You can pin a post to the top of your page with your temporary holiday hours so all your followers will have a chance to see them. Also, encourage your clients to book way in advance!

Showcase your products. Highlight a different product each day on each social platform you’re active on. Make certain to use the right hashtags on Instagram so that your posts have a better chance of being seen.

Promote your services. Promote your popular salon services for the holiday season, haircolor, makeup, brows, lashes, updos, etc. Create deals or package pricing for a combination of services. Don’t forget New Year’s Eve!

Utilize your email list. Make use of your email list and send all your clients, past and present, a holiday flyer highlighting your hours, specials, and products you have for those last-minute gifts they can buy while they’re visiting the salon. You can also add a coupon on your email offering a free gift or a percentage off certain or all services.

Plan Special Holiday Time For Your Staff

Without your staff, the magic wouldn’t happen. They’ve worked hard, throwing their work-life balance on the backburner to keep up with the holiday schedule.

As a great big “thank you,” you can repay their giving holiday spirit with a company holiday party. Whether you choose to host a potluck or make reservations at a five-star restaurant, give your staff a little extra gift with special holiday festivities especially for them from you. Keep in mind, it’s probably best to hold your holiday party once the rush of the season has died down. That way, your exhausted and overworked staff can take deeper breaths and enjoy the time.

With a prepared staff and the right touches, your salon will have a happy AND successful holiday season. And, even more importantly, Happy Holidays to You and Yours!