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Being a marketing consultant I am frequently bombarded with questions related to good marketing practices. I have been in the business for so long yet every time this question comes up, I am forced to rethink from scratch. The question becomes quite difficult when it comes to small businesses. Recently one of my friends, who owns a beauty salon, asked me about the best marketing practices that she can use for her salon. I had never thought along such lines before as most of my clients include big companies. And consulting for a small business would be altogether a different thing. So here was a new opportunity for me.

As a marketing consultant I have always given high regard to professionalism of the staff , good equipment, great customer services and support, smart marketing ideas and practices rather then advertising though it cannot be ignored. What I feel is that these businesses are made on the basis of personal relations. The way you are going to treat a customer sets the tone for whether he would be coming back to you or not. And customer retention has greater value for these small businesses than making new customers. Though it is always important for any business, but I am talking about relative importance regarding small businesses.

To start with I started visiting various beauty salons to get a feel of various marketing techniques that are being practiced by these people. I randomly chose 10 salons, in the area for my research. I talked to the owners and the staff to get an idea of the common practices in business. It was amazing to see the level of competition in salons. I would have never guessed it if I had not experienced it myself. I feel that in the case of salons and other small businesses the interaction between the staff and customers is more dependent on the 'personal touch'; the more you meet your customers in a warm and kind way, the more are the chance of his or her revisiting. I visited this salon Go Laser In Kitchener, Waterloo area, and I was overwhelmed with the warm welcome of its staff, it seemed that I was the most prestigious client for them. I talked to Mirjana and Vedran Hasanagic owners of Go Laser, to know the essence of their services and all those aspects that have always been important for them. They proudly told me that how Go Laser (Kitchener Waterloo) has always looked forward to provide best services in the industry to its customers. The products used in the salon are one of the best and are FDA (Food and Drugs Administration) approved, to avoid any after effect on its services. These meetings with the owners and staff took me deep into knowing the marketing practices that are being followed by these salons to attract potential customers and retain the visiting ones.

Now coming to customer support and services, the most important aspect of marketing, as far as marketing experts think. Different salons have come up with different and rather creative ideas for providing better support and services to their customers. One of the salons, called Razzmatazz, has designed its services according to the demographics of the area. Dennis, one of the senior executive, elaborated that Razzmatazz has services that focus on various age groups and tastes. On the other hand, Carsten, owner of Stage One, believes in good customer support, and has come up with its advisory services for its customers. Go Laser has blended both its services and support rather intelligently and keeps changing according to the latest trends in the industry. It has also initiated an advisory service online for providing better support to its customers. Moreover it also provides financing services for various treatments in association with Credit Medical Corp. And that's an intelligent aspect worth considering for others.

Now let's talk about marketing ideas and practices that are being followed by these people. 'Hair We Go', yeah it's a salon, has a catchy name, and I loved it the moment I heard it (now that's a smart idea). So is 'Razzmatazz '. But what I feel is that these aspects will bring customers to you, but finally your products and services are the main aspects that will help retain them. Consider for example, Go Laser has its logo printed on every business gift, just to add glamour to its services. And almost every salon has its especially designed carry bags; the one I liked most was that of Stage One and Go Laser as these were trendy and stylish, something that everyone would like to have. That's a good marketing practice, believe me, it gives additional exposure to your salon in the market. One of the most important things that you need to consider is that you should make your customers feel special. Always keep some form of contact with your regular customers. Send them holiday gifts or cards. Keep them updated with your services through emails or newsletters, and don't forget to personalize these items, that's very important. Although most salons follow these practices, quite a few don't.

I collected my data for all these aspects and rated all the salons on a nominal scale, awarding 10 for excellence in that particular aspect and 1 for poor performance. Go Laser topped the list with close competition from Stage One that is just 1 point behind. There was lot to learn for me from the marketing and customer services practices of these two salons. The practices are especially designed to retain as well as attract customers. Businesses thrive on building relations with customers and if you are good at it then there will be no stopping you.

And to conclude things, I would like to share some aspects worth noting, from my experience, that may be useful to all you budding entrepreneurs,

Always pay attention to your customers and make them feel special.

If you have a complementary business such as nail salon, fitness center or restaurant, link it with your salon, it will help you in increasing number of clients.

Try to use electronic information system for promoting your salon, it is economical and has greater reach.

You can also try using some affiliate schemes to promote your business.