Groupon can give salons and spas a quick, artificial boost in business, but it can also damage your long-term brand. Here’s how to use Groupon effectively.
More than 500,000 “groupons” are redeemed each day and 77% of Groupon users are women. Given these numbers, there is a lot of potential for salons and spas to gain some extra business. However, bargain shoppers can cause problems if you don’t manage your Groupon offering correctly. Here are four tips to using Groupon effectively:
1. Educate.
Usually, people looking for deals do not appreciate the processes involved in beauty treatments or the value of those services. If customers are unfamiliar with typical results they may view the treatment as a failure, resulting in a missed opportunity and possibly a poor online review.
To avoid this problem, clearly explain in your Groupon the processes involved in the treatment you are offering and the typical results a new customer can expect to see. Also, make sure you mark the appointment as a “Groupon” user in your appointment book and train your staff on effective ways to educate these customers by explaining the treatments before and during the service.
2. Build Relationships.
Groupon users typically focus on the next deal, never actually becoming a loyal client. One way to grapple with this problem is to build a personal relationship with your Groupon customers. Studies show that personal relationships are the key for small businesses to build brand loyalty. Try offering Groupons that include a series of services (typically 2-5 services) to give your salon or spa the opportunity to build a relationship with the new customer through multiple visits.
3. Pricing.
When a customer’s first experience with your salon or spa comes through Groupon, it is very difficult to transition those customers to regular prices. In addition to a educating on value and building a personal relationship with them, make sure you have competitive pricing in place to reduce the temptation your Groupon customer feels to continue deal hunting after their services are complete. You may also try giving Groupon users a “returning customer” discount or a special membership offer to keep their coupon seeking feeling satisfied.
4. Track Clients.
No matter what happens with your Groupon campaign, make sure you track these potential new clients. Salon and spa Groupon users tend to look for local businesses, so odds are that new customer lives close by and has a high potential to return. In order to market to these qualified leads, train your front desk to gather as much information as possible from the new customer (i.e. email, address, birthday, anniversary, etc.) so you can include them in marketing campaigns and discounted offerings in the future!
One reply on “Using Groupon Effectively”
I spent four year working with Gilt City and found it very profitable with a high return! Your suggestions are correct. Group On tends to have a much younger audience with less money to spend. There are other companies that have an older data base with clients who have more money to spend. I will say that I booked extra time for these clients to sell products and really develop relationships with their skincare needs. If you are not retailing then the profits won’t be as high. It was a lot of work but worth the effort. Things are changing now, and I have found after several years of companies like Group On offering deals the interest is down. So the companies have had to change their format and how they bring on clients and customers. Now I’ve focused with my IT guy on getting a lot of reviews on Yelp and Google. That is where my main stream of new clients come from. I always offer a deal up front and have good follow up.