october 008 - Stylist and Salon Newspapers

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The Who, What, When, Where and Why of Advertising
Beauty
Business Buzz
Shannon Wells
Advertising… any successful business
owner knows there is no surviving without it.
Only a few know the true secret to successful
advertising, the kind that gets the
results intended without paying into a bottomless
pit. From where to advertise to how
much to spend, let’s take a look at some of the
keys to success when creating an advertising
plan and what you need to know to make sure
you’re getting the most bang for your advertising
buck.
The Who: The first thing to determine
is exactly who your ideal audience is. Many
companies have an idea of who their ideal
client is, but you’d be surprised at how many
companies do not.
When determining your ideal client, you
need to be specific. Age, type of occupation,
income level, location, even gender are all
important characteristics to nail down. If you
aren’t aiming to bring in a certain type of client
then you are missing a great opportunity to tailor
your message, your efforts and eventually
your results. Determining a list of attributes
that fit your ideal client will give you great
insight into how best to reach them.
The What: Many people are lost on the
concept of advertising. I’ve seen many salons
and spas dump random amounts of money
into various forms of advertising hoping for
results, and then repeat the same thing the
next year, never knowing the actual outcome
of their advertising dollar.
According to Michelle Bautista, business
advisor for Your Beauty Network, a
great place to start is to allocate a specific
percentage of your budget to advertising.
“We recommend businesses use 1.5 percent
of their total service sales towards advertising.”
This recommendation provides
a specific number to use for advertising
rather than throwing endless funds at this area
of your business.
Measuring your results is also imperative
to managing your advertising dollars. Bautista
adds, “A great way to manage and measure
your results is to make sure your return on
investment is at least three times the amount
you spent on the advertising in the first place.”
Use these tips to measure what you need to be
spending on advertising.
The When: Deciding when to start your
advertising campaign depends on what you
want to accomplish. Are you announcing
something new? Are you attempting to win
new clients or send a message to existing
clients? Are you announcing a time-based
promotion? Traditionally it takes two to three
months to penetrate a market. Plan your advertising
accordingly so you get the word out
in advance of when you want to see the results.
If you have a product launch or a holiday
Determining a list of attributes that
fit your ideal client will give you great
insight into how best to reach them.
special, you want to get the word out a couple
of months in advance.
The Where: There are so many options
and mediums in which to advertise your business
today. Television, radio, billboards, magazines,
yellow pages and even the internet are
some of the most common methods used and
can be very successful if there is some strategy
to which ones you select.
Your best choice of advertising medium
goes back to who your audience is. Which of
these items is your ideal client most likely to
use? Where is the client located and which of
the mediums will reach them there?
For example, if your ideal client is a
business executive, radio ads running during
traditional work hours will not likely be heard
by your ideal client. Make a list of the likely
habits of your ideal client and it will dictate
which mediums you should select as well as
the specific genres of the medium. Attracting
moms as your ideal client, for instance,
may dictate you advertise in local kid’s
activities publications.
The Why: Advertising really is a
matter of necessity. It is essential to getting
the word out, generating interest,
reaching new clients and portraying a
positive image of your business.
Understanding what you want to
accomplish with your advertising and creating
a planned and measurable budget is essential
in ensuring advertising success. Determining
your ideal clients and then going to where they
already are to spread your message is an effective
way to make sure your message is getting
to the right people. Make your plan to find out
the best fit for your business!
Shannon Wells is the Marketing Manager of Your Beauty Network, a
beauty industry ongoing business support service. It offers a membership
based business support resource used by over 700 salon and spa owners.
For more information, visit www.ybn.com, call 866-364-4926 or e-mail
shannon@ybn.com.
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14 | OCTOBER 2008 | CALIFORNIA STYLIST & SALON
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