Instagram is the perfect social media platform to promote anything beautiful, being a highly visual community. Showcasing your beautiful nailwork on Instagram is a great way to boost your salon’s visibility and attract more clients.
If you are yet to build your instagram following or have been trying out different instagram marketing strategies but to no avail, here are some tips to up your Instagram marketing game.
- Leverage user-generated content
This is not only an excellent way to social proof but also to create a sense of community and make your existing and prospective followers more engaged. Encourage your customers to share their photos after their appointment and tag your salon. You can incentivize them by giving them coupons, discounts, or other exclusive offers. Repost their content to your instagram feed or stories and acknowledge and show gratitude for their support. Do this continually and before you know it, you naturally build a momentum of brand advocates who come back to you time and time again.
- Post content regularly
When it comes to winning on social media, consistency is key. You want to be top-of-mind and stay top-of-mind. To do that, you need to always stay visible. Create your instagram content calendar and mix up posting different content throughout the week. You can post testimonials, time-lapse videos of your work, or even more educational posts like nail care tips. Use relevant hashtags to boost discoverability and just keep at it because posting consistently will and shall pay off.
- Use Instagram Ads
In the beginning, you won’t be able to make a lot of business out of your initial follower base. Growing your following takes time, and since you need bookings asap, instagram ads are a good way to generate traction– fast. The targeting ad campaigns on instagram allows you to set the demographics of your target users and you can further refine your targeting strategy as you go about your ads campaigns.
- Run promotions and giveaways
People love giveaways. It could be as simple as ‘Tag a friend for a free mani” or “10% off your next visit for a share”. There are lots of ways to create buzz through contests, giveaways, and promotions. You can try out your exciting ideas or check out what the competition is doing and gain inspiration in coming up with your own insta buzz!
- Engage with your audience
No comment or DM should be left unresponded. Respond to all comments both positive and negative. Show how you care and help as much as you can. It’s not about doing business but also about creating connections and maintaining relationships. Your customers can literally be your lifelong customers if you just give them all the reasons to choose you every single time.
- Collab with influencers
Posts created in collaboration with influencers have engagement rates that are 4.7 times higher than those produced without influencer involvement. People buy from people, and people love recommendations instead of working with faceless brands. Influencer marketing works, and as long as you work with the right ones, they can help you gain instant traction and business.
- Use hashtags effectively
Make sure that you and your influencers use hashtags when creating posts for your brand. Create hashtags whenever you run a new campaign or special event/promotion. You can reach a broader range of audience when you add hashtags to your posts as they can rank higher in instagram feeds and search results. When following trends, you can use relevant hashtags as well to ride the wave of popularity. And since your nail salon is operating locally, adding city-specific hashtags is a great way to reach nearby Instagram users.
- Create Salon Flyers
You may think that printed marketing materials are no longer as relevant, but outdoor marketing can still help you attract customers– as long as you play it right. Just make sure that your flyers are as eye-catching as possible. You don’t have to hire an expensive graphic designer to make one. There are lots of beautiful salon flyer templates you can use online. You can also add a QR code to your instagram page for easier access. You can post or distribute your flyers in your local neighborhood in partnership with other local businesses like beauty supply stores, gyms or fitness studios, spas, and even coffee shops. The tangible presence of flyers, which can be touched and held can help people better remember your brand as compared to digital ads that just disappear with a scroll.
Bring more clients through your doors with the instagram marketing tips above. Focus on delivering the best nail services and document your magic for the world to see. Let Instagram be your platform to show off your amazing results and watch your salon grow one like at a time!