Marketing Communications Agency Deane and Co. share their tips and tricks for social media success.

We have a saying in our business, that the first step for any brand is to “get your house in order.” Particularly when it comes to social media, it’s vital to make sure you have strong foundations as it’s often the first place a potential customer will interact with your business. Unfortunately, it’s a step that we see clients and businesses miss all too often, resulting in a poor first impression and experience for customers in an industry driven by service.

So, how do you get your house in order and ready for social media success? Read on for five easy-to-action tips we share regularly with clients.

Get Professional Photos Taken Of Your Salon/Team

They say a photo speaks a thousand words and the visuals you share tell a customer or prospective customer as much about your business as the words on your website or service menu. Great imagery showcases your creativity and professionalism to clients, so give yourself the best chance to be seen positively on social media by investing in a photo shoot with a professional photographer. A 2-hour photo shoot can produce enough images for you to use across social media and e-newsletters for 3-6 months. We do recommend refreshing imagery at least twice a year. Brief the photographer to take photos of the salon space, team members interacting with customers, product photos, and photos of your team. Photo shoots like this don’t need to break the bank. There are affordable options available like photography service Snappr where you can book a photographer for around $149AUD for 2 hours.

Have Your Bio And Handles Updated

Imagine opening a bricks and mortar shop and not having stock on your shelves or the address listed. The same goes for your online channels. Take the time to make sure your contact details, links to online booking for appointments and bios are up to date and correct. Customers want to be able to easily contact you if needed or book an appointment online – don’t make it harder than it needs to be by sending them on a virtual goose chase and potentially losing their custom.

Have A Schedule

Consistency is key and it is recommended that you have at least one post a day scheduled on Instagram (you can easily aim for 5-6 Instagram stories a day), 3-5 times a week for Facebook and aim for one email newsletter (eDM) a fortnight. Interestingly, we are seeing a lot more users interact with Instagram stories and this is a fantastic way to invite customers to see behind the scenes content, learn more about what you do and a day in the life.

You can easily schedule eDMs in advance within Mailchimp, and there are plenty of free social media scheduling platforms. For Instagram there is Planoly or Schedugram, and for Facebook or LinkedIn Hootsuite, that let you batch the task. We suggest setting aside one hour a week to schedule your social media and 5-10 minutes each day to monitor and reply to any comments or messages. After all – social media is a two-way conversation between you and your community, not just a platform for you to talk at your fans.

Decide On Content Pillars Or Themes

Knowing what to post is half the battle. The first step is deciding the purpose of your content. Are you aiming to educate, inspire or entertain? To make it easier on yourself and your team, come up with 3 to 5 content themes that you will regularly post about. For a hair salon these might be, for example: Trends (Inspire), Client Results, How to Style tips (Educate). Then, work out how frequently you will post about these. You might decide that every Tuesday and Thursday you share posts about the trends you’re seeing on the European runways and Fridays you share a ‘how to’ video for people getting ready to go out on the weekend. Don’t forget to include a sales pillar – remind people to book in for appointments, share when you have time free, post about your opening hours and encourage people to come and see you.

Know Your Hashtags

Hashtags are how people can follow the conversation and find what you have posted. Save time and have these saved either as a note on your phone or in an easy to cut-and-paste location so you can add straight into the post. If you want to find what hashtags are best for your business, the easiest way is to open the Instagram app and search the hashtag you’d like to use by tapping the magnifying glass icon in the bottom of your screen. You can also use free services like Hashtagify. Try to include a combination of local hashtags to allow those in your area to find you, and some more general hashtags that speak to your brand. This might include #brisbanehairdresser and #pinteresthair

Deane & Co are an integrated marketing communications agency that work with business owners to find and engage with their community, develop strategies that grow operations and contribute to success. You can find out more about Deane & Co at www.deaneand.co

Catch up with INSTYLE and Styleicons!

• Subscribe to our bi-monthly magazine
• Check out www.styleicons.com.au
• Subscribe to our twice-weekly newsletter
• View our digital magazine
• Follow us on social media on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn