If you’re thinking that this year’s Small Business Saturday might look a little different than before, you’re so not alone.
Because the days of blow dry parties, cramming clients into your salon for a champagne toast and cookies, and, you know, the usual, are on hold for most of us, right?
It might feel like everything has changed this year…but celebrating Small Business Saturday doesn’t have to! In today’s post, we’re sharing our top three strategies to celebrate 2020’s Small Business Saturday.
Because even though our industry has gone through some major shifts in the past months, how we celebrate (and network and market!) on Small Business Saturday doesn’t have to.
But wait…just what is Small Business Saturday?
Glad you asked! Started by AmEx in 2010 (yep, this year is the 10th anniversary!), Small Business Saturday is dedicated to remembering and celebrating small local businesses and their impact on the community.
It encourages locals to skip the big box stores and head to small businesses to pick up holiday gifts or even to just do their Saturday shopping.
Sounds amazing, right? But exactly how do you cash in on this as a stylist?
It all comes down to one big question: In the long haul, do you want to sell more retail or get more clients?
For most of us, it’s a no-brainer, right? More clients all the way because retail is mostly a secondary source of income. It’s the client service work that’s our primary income, right? So your Small Business Saturday efforts should shift fully to that.
Why? Because people only need so much shampoo. So skip the buy two get one promos, the 20% off retails signs because a retail-based Small Business Saturday promotion won’t get you ahead if you want to get more clients in your chair.
Instead, think of how you can support your fellow local business owners, build up your network, and even expand your clientele. Game changer, right?
Strategy #1: Do a heart-centered give back to 10 local small businesses.
The heart-centered give back is exactly that: taking time to celebrate other businesses in your community.
Consider which businesses you could partner with that would give you the most target market clients, you would like to know more, or who have employees/clients that would be a good fit for your business.
Think of a business that helps your network, gain some potential new clients, and where you want to give back because it feels good. Maybe a local coffee shop that your target market loves or a clothing boutique whose staff is your dream client.
Here’s how to make it happen:
Got your list of 10? Perfect. Now it’s time to decide your budget.
If you were closed down for most of the year, maybe your Small Business Saturday promotion budget is a little smaller. If you’re on track to make 2020 your best year yet, maybe it’s a little bigger. There’s no right or wrong answer, just what works for you and your business.
Once you have your total budget, divide it by 10 to get a sense of how much you can spend on each business. If you have $20 per, maybe it’s a little more low key. If you have $200 each, you can go a little bigger. Keep in mind how many employees each business has. Is it the owner behind the cash register 24/7? Or does she have an amazing team of 10 supporting her?
Next, decide what to give each business. Based on your budget, create a gift basket (or gift bags if there’s more than one employee per business) that’ll make their jaws drop. Maybe a nice shampoo or conditioner due with a gift card to come see you. For a more budget-friendly option, get some clear cellophane treat bags and put in two candies, plus a gift card to see you. (This promotion always does really well, usually with a 15 to 20% return).
The gift card is where the magic happens because if you can get them to come in and retain them for cut and color services, you’ll come out with thousands of dollars on the other side. The trick is to keep the card’s value less than the cost of a service. So if your haircut’s $25, the gift card should be $15 off, right? It doesn’t need to be free to get them in the door but strong enough to make somebody consider taking that leap of faith to sit in your chair.
Strategy #2: Host a testimonial contest
This is an amazing way to get testimonials all over social media without being scammy or spammy. But keep in mind that it only works generally only this time of year and if you do email marketing.
Here’s how it works:
Send an email to your list the Monday before Small Business Saturday announcing the testimonial contest. Let them know you want to give back to them if they’ll give back to you, and then dig into the details.
The details are up to you, but here’s the basics: If they share a photo of work you’ve done (like a selfie or video testimonial) on their profiles with a caption telling how much they’ve loved working with you and tag you in, they could win a service gift certificate. Make sure the email includes when (and how) you’re announcing the winner.
You could even have criteria about what they need to share to enter—maybe tagging the location of your salon and your Instagram profile to enter?
The best thing about this contest is there is no better sales and marketing pitch than a client telling their friends and followers how amazing you are.
Strategy #3: Start a small business loop
Chances are, you’ve seen loops on Instagram, maybe even entered a few! These are contests on Instagram that say “Hey, I want to introduce you to some of my friends. If you follow me, [name], [name], [name], and [name] on Instagram and tag two friends in the comments, you’ll win this amazing prize!”
It’s an amazing way to pick up between 100 – 400 local followers in one day because you’re partnering with other small local businesses with decent social media followings—like the restaurant across the street, day spa, clothing boutique—because everybody in your community who follows those businesses will want to win.
Here’s how to make it happen:
First, look for five local businesses with good social media followings and ask if they’re interested in doing a Small Business Saturday share promotion.
Then decide the ground rules. Will each business pick a winner who gets a gift basket from one business or will each business contribute to the gift basket (five businesses contributing, five gifts in the basket)? Don’t forget to decide how much each business will contribute.
(PSST: Think gift cards over styling aids if you want to get more clients in your chair.)
On Small Business Saturday, each business posts the same carousel post featuring photos of the businesses that says, “Contest! Support [your community],” and then break down how your businesses are giving away over $1,000 in prizes (if that’s what you’ve all contributed) this week/today and you’re choosing five lucky winners.
Then explain what they have to do to enter to win: maybe like each account, tag in a certain number of friends, or whatever you’ve decided. Make it clear that one winner will be selected from the entries on each page, when the contest closes, and how the winners will be announced.
This strategy is one of the best ways to get in front of a real, local clientele and fast!
We’ll be the first to admit that this year’s Small Business Saturday might be unlike any one we’ve had before, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of all the amazing networking, marketing, and opportunities to get out in front of real, local potential clients!
And to make your Small Business Saturday even easier this year, we’ve got a free guide for you!