Salon Marketing Strategy: 90-Day Plan and Proven Ideas

Set clear goals, budget and KPIs

Start by defining what success looks like. Decide how many new clients you need per month, how many lapsed clients you want to win back, and what average ticket you are targeting for services and retail. Translate this into a simple marketing plan for salon business with specific channels and numbers you will track weekly.

• Goals - Examples: 30 new clients per month, 20 reactivations, 15 percent retail attachment rate, 80 percent rebook rate.

• Budget - Many salons invest 5-10 percent of monthly revenue. Earlier-stage salons or when launching a new location can go higher for 90 days to accelerate demand.

• KPIs - Cost per new booking, booking rate from website visits, email revenue per send, SMS response rate, show-up rate, add-on attach rate, package sales, lifetime value.

• Attribution - Always ask new clients how they found you and capture the answer in your booking system.

Example budget math: If monthly revenue is 50,000, a 7 percent allocation provides 3,500 for marketing. Assign initial splits across your marketing mix for hair salon initiatives - for example 30 percent paid search, 25 percent paid social, 15 percent email and SMS tools, 20 percent content and local SEO, 10 percent creative. Review and rebalance monthly based on results.

Your 90-day salon marketing execution roadmap

Speed beats perfection. This 12-week plan builds the assets that keep working - while testing paid channels that can be scaled when they pay back.

Own local search with SEO and Google Business Profile

Local visibility is the foundation of any marketing strategy for beauty salon or spa. Claim and complete your Google Business Profile, use your salon name exactly the same across directories, and keep hours, phone, services and pricing current. Add real photos of the salon, stylists and results. Use GBP Posts to publish seasonal offers or new services. Fill the Q and A section with helpful answers to common questions clients ask on the phone.

Build intent-driven pages on your site to win more local searches. Target service plus city terms that match how clients search and mirror that wording in page titles, H1 and copy.

• Service pages - Hair coloring, balayage, keratin treatment, men’s cuts, gel nails, facials, massage - each with its own page, gallery, FAQs and booking button.

• Local modifiers - Add neighborhood, city and near me language naturally in copy and alt text.

• Internal links - Link related services and your pricing page to help users and search engines.

• Schema - Add LocalBusiness and Service schema to improve search understanding.

Make your website and booking effortless

Your site should load in under 2 seconds, be mobile-first, and make booking obvious from every page. Place Book Now buttons above the fold and repeat in the footer. Show clear service descriptions, transparent pricing, and before-after galleries. Reduce form fields and enable guest checkout where possible. Add a simple lead magnet - for example, a guide to choosing the right treatment or a first-visit perk - to capture emails from visitors not ready to book. Integrate online booking with your calendar to eliminate back-and-forth.

Email marketing and salon newsletter that sells

Email remains a top revenue driver in any marketing strategy for salon services. Build three essentials first: a welcome series for new subscribers, a post-visit thank you with rebook prompt, and a monthly newsletter with timely promos and education. Segment by service history and frequency so each client sees what is relevant to them. Use Build targeted salon campaigns to set up and automate your promos and flows.

• Welcome series - 2 to 3 emails that introduce your brand, showcase signature services and invite first booking with a time-bound perk.

• Post-visit - Send care tips, product recommendations and a 6-8 week rebook reminder matched to the service.

• Monthly newsletter - Rotate themes: new stylist spotlight, seasonal hair promotion ideas, express add-ons, last-minute openings, event invites.

• Personalization - Use client name, last service and preferred stylist to raise click and booking rates.

• Metrics - Track revenue per email, rebook rate, and list growth. Clean your list every quarter.

Pair email with SMS for time-sensitive offers or schedule changes. Together they form the core of a digital marketing strategy for beauty salon growth.

SMS that gets read

SMS open rates dwarf email. Use it for confirmations, rebook reminders and limited-time offers. Keep messages short, include a direct booking link, and allow replies for two-way conversations. Get explicit consent, respect quiet hours, and limit promo frequency to protect trust. Use SMS to notify waitlists about last-minute availability, to highlight an add-on at check-in, or to remind clients to claim loyalty rewards. Integrate SMS with your booking system so actions automatically update appointments and notes. For time-critical updates and no-show reduction, try Direct notifications to salon clients.

Social media strategy that fits your team

Pick 2 platforms you can run consistently. Define 3-4 content pillars such as transformations, stylist expertise, education and promotions. Batch-create content weekly, use templates for speed, and post with a clear call to action. Align your salon social media marketing ideas with business goals - more model calls when you need content, more how-to reels when you want retail sales, more offer posts when you have open slots. Track profile visits to booking clicks.

Paid ads when you need predictable demand

Facebook and Instagram Ads

Turn organic posts into structured campaigns. Start with two simple objectives: new client acquisition and retargeting. For acquisition, target people within 3-8 km of your location, layered by interests like hair care, nails or spa. Use before-after carousels, short reels with process shots, and clear offers for first bookings. For retargeting, show people who visited your site or engaged on Instagram a gentle nudge to book. Optimize for leads or website conversions and judge success by cost per new booking, not just cost per click.

Google Ads for local intent

Catch high-intent searches such as balayage near me, keratin treatment [city] or nail salon open today. Use exact and phrase match, add negative keywords, and set a tight radius around your salon. Add call extensions and scheduling so clients can tap to call or book online. Start with a modest daily budget, measure calls and online bookings, and cut keywords that do not convert within the first 2 weeks. When cost per booking is within your target threshold, scale gradually.

Revenue-boosting promotions that protect margin

Promotions should raise average ticket and retention, not train clients to wait for discounts. Plan campaigns into your beauty salon marketing plan by season and by goal.

• Seasonal campaigns - Tie offers to events like weddings, graduations and holidays. Bundle a high-demand service with a profitable add-on instead of discounting the core service. Example: Summer Blonde refresh + bond repair mini treatment for a fixed bundle price.

• Express add-ons - Create an add-on menu that takes 10-15 minutes and requires minimal product cost - scalp massage, gloss, brow tidy, paraffin dip, chair massage. Script stylists to suggest 1 add-on per client. Track attach rate per stylist.

• Packages - Sell 3, 5 or 10 packs for blowouts, facials or gel fills. Price so the effective discount is earned by commitment, not one-off cuts. Highlight savings and priority booking as a benefit.

• Gift cards and last-minute fills - Keep digital gift cards available year-round, and use SMS to fill cancellations with waitlist clients at standard prices.

Content that converts clicks into bookings

• Salon tour video - A 30-60 second walkthrough of your space, services and team builds trust. Pin it to your site homepage and your Instagram profile highlights.

• Local hashtags - Use a mix of service and neighborhood tags such as #balayage[city], #[city]hair, #[area]nails to increase local discovery.

• Insta-friendly space - Create a well-lit spot with a neutral backdrop and ring light. Add a small sign with your handle and preferred hashtags so clients tag you.

• Posting tactics - Keep a clear link-in-bio to your booking page, write captions with an action verb, and add an availability line for the next 7 days.

Retention systems your clients actually feel

Winning a new client is expensive. Treat retention like a product. Start with rebooking at the chair: train your team to recommend a timeframe based on the service and to offer 2 time slots before checkout. Add a small reminder card or SMS follow-up if they decline on the spot.

Next, implement a loyalty program that rewards the right behaviors. With Authic Labs’ white-label loyalty app, salons, spas and clinics can run mobile-first rewards and challenges that integrate with existing booking systems and e-commerce. You can award points for bookings, retail purchases and referrals, set tiered rewards, and send push notifications about expiring points or bonus days. Unlike old punch cards, a personalized app makes each visit feel recognized - which increases rebook and visit frequency. If you want to see how this could work in your salon, book a demo and we will map it to your services and tech stack. Start with Design salon loyalty rewards aligned to your services, tiers and perks.

For more salon-specific examples, explore Salon loyalty solutions for beauty & wellness.

Finally, turn your team into promoters. Give stylists a simple weekly checklist - 1 transformation post, 3 story frames, 5 rebook asks, 3 add-on suggestions. Feature stylist bios and specialties on your website to help clients match with the right pro.

Measure, learn and optimize

Run a 30-minute marketing stand-up each week. Review last week’s bookings by source, cost per new booking for ads, rebook rate, and add-on attach rate. Note 1-2 bottlenecks and choose 1 improvement to test. Monthly, rebalance budget toward channels with the best cost per booking and away from those below target. Keep a simple dashboard - spreadsheet or lightweight BI - and make decisions based on numbers, not hunches. To tie bookings and revenue back to campaigns, use Measure salon marketing performance.

FAQ

What is the marketing strategy of a salon?

A salon marketing strategy is a focused plan to acquire and retain clients profitably. It aligns goals, budget and channels - local SEO, a high-converting website and booking flow, email and SMS, social content, and paid ads - with clear KPIs like cost per new booking and rebook rate. It also includes promotions that increase average ticket, a loyalty program to raise visit frequency, and weekly measurement so you can double down on what works.

What are the 5 P’s of marketing strategy?

The 5 P’s adapted to a hair salon or spa look like this: Product - your services, add-ons, retail. Price - transparent pricing, packages, tiered talent levels. Place - your location, Google Business Profile and online booking. Promotion - SEO, content, email, SMS, ads and partnerships. People - stylists and front desk delivering the experience and rebooking. Use the 5 P’s to audit gaps in your beauty salon marketing plan.

How to attract customers in a salon?

Own local search with an optimized Google Business Profile and service pages, make online booking effortless, and run targeted ads for high-intent queries and nearby audiences. Offer a compelling first-visit experience, suggest express add-ons to raise value, and rebook at the chair. Nurture with a welcome email and timely SMS. Use a loyalty app to reward bookings and referrals, so new clients become regulars.

What are the 7 steps of marketing strategy?

For salon and spa marketing strategies: 1 define goals and ideal clients, 2 set budget and KPIs, 3 build local SEO and a fast website with online booking, 4 launch email and SMS flows, 5 create a consistent social content plan, 6 add paid ads for predictable demand, 7 measure weekly and optimize - then repeat in quarterly cycles.

Ready to build a loyal client base with mobile-first rewards that integrate with your booking and webshop? Book a demo with Authic Labs to see a tailored loyalty program for your salon.