5 Great Ideas for Mother’s Day Salon Promotions

Mother’s Day has been recognized as a national holiday since 1914, and this year? Mothers worldwide have done extra duty throughout the coronavirus pandemic, often holding down full-time jobs from dining room tables while also administering school and planning for dinner.

It’s a great time to show moms some love and get some clients back in the door with some super Mother’s Day Special Events! From special Mom’s Only Events to running an online photo + essay contest on your social media channels, this holiday is ripe for promotions.

Keep reading for five awesome salon promotion ideas to use in the run up to Mother’s Day this year

1. Mother / Daughter Discounts
Everyone LOVES a great deal. Running a promotion for mothers and daughters is a great way to increase visits to your salon, and it also shows that you honor that special parent-child bond. You could designate one day in the week before Mother’s Day where mothers get free services if they’re accompanied by a daughter who is receiving the same service. This could be a great enticement for first-time visitors, so be ready with a strategy to encourage rebooking or automatically enroll them in your loyalty program.

You might consider giving these first timers a voucher at the end of their visit (20% your visit next month), be sure to add them to your mailing list, or capture social media handles. Other options include a free treatment for any mother who visits on a specific day, a voucher for daughters to give to their mom, or a special discount in the week leading up to Mother’s Day.

salon promotions
2. Host a Special Mother’s Day Event
Why not pull out all the stops this Mother’s Day?

Holding a special Mother’s Day event in the week prior is the perfect way to get people excited about visiting your salon. You could hold a themed event, like ‘Girls Only Slumber Party’, with face masks and manicures, or ‘Ultimate Mother’s Day Pampering’, including massages and facial treatments or a ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’ salon dance party. Try to plan events that mothers will enjoy attending with their daughters or friends since most won’t want to celebrate Mother’s Day alone!

You could even plan special events where teen daughters get a free makeover while Mom enjoys some much-needed pampering. Get creative and think outside the box, and be sure to promote your events widely online, and to existing customers – and use referral discounts to get your best customers to bring in their friends.

salon promotions
3. Gift Bags to Mothers
Looking for salon promotions that are simple and effective? Look no further.

Putting together a special Mother’s Day gift bag doesn’t take long, and is a great way to attract customers and keep your salon top of mind. Opt for a bag branded with your salon name (print your own stickers and apply them to stock gift bags if you’re short on time), and then fill them with product samples (ask your suppliers for help with this) and discount vouchers that encourage people to come back for more. Round it out with your newsletter, candy, a comb… it doesn’t take much.

Be sure to create some social media ads promoting your Mother’s Day gift bags – it might be the difference between a customer choosing your salon or visiting a competitor. If you’re struggling to get customers through the door, try giving out your gift bags in a public place, like the mall. People love freebies, and there’s a good chance they’ll be curious enough to check your salon out.

salon promotions
4. Social Media Giveaway
Looking for salon promotions to target Millennials struggling to find a way to treat their Mom on Mother’s Day?

Social media is THE place to do it.

It’s been shown that engagement often drives purchasing decisions in young people, so an interactive event, like a giveaway, is a great choice. You could create a giveaway that comes with a prompt or question, like, ‘Share This Post & Tag your Mom to Enter’, or, ‘Tell us Why Your Mom Deserves Pampering for a Chance to Win!’ You’ll see greater engagement on your social channels, get to promote your services, and see more customers through the door – what’s not to love?

If you’ve already got a large following on social media, you should get great results just by pushing your giveaway out on all your current channels. If you’re still working to increase your exposure, using paid promotions and social media ads to boost your posts is a smart move.

Facebook ads are a great option since they offer very specific personalization and localization options and allow you to set a budget before you start. For example, you could target mothers within a specific age range, who live within a few miles of your salon, and are interested in health and beauty. Social media is a powerful marketing tool – don’t ignore it.

5. Promote Your Gift Card Offerings
The go-to last minute gift is a gift card.

So make sure you have plenty on hand in the weeks before Mother’s Day.

Busy people love having easy gift options, so you’ll want your gift card offerings front and center in your salon promotions and on your front desk. You could create special offers like, ‘Buy mom a $100 gift card and get $20 for yourself!’ This way, you encourage purchases and get two customers through your doors at once – hopefully leading to repeat visits.

Salon Iris e-gift card

You could also design special Mother’s Day themed gift cards, with messages like, ‘Best Mother’ or ‘Mom of the Year.’ Teaming up with other local businesses, like florists or card shops, is a good way to reach a wider audience. Most businesses will be more than happy to collaborate and offer joint special offers like, ‘Order flowers for mom and get a $25 salon gift card free’. Salon Iris customers have a dedicated team providing custom gift cards as well as e-gift cards, check it out here.

mothers day gift cards
Plan Your Salon Promotions!
Mother’s day is a huge event for salons, and planning the right promotions is essential if you want to make the most of this holiday. Encourage Millennials to treat their Moms with social media advertising, draw customers in with giveaways, create special offers for the holiday, and be sure to promote gift cards as an easy (and appreciated) gift!

To plan the best promotions for your salon, try to imagine your ideal customers. How old are they? Which marketing channels are they exposed to? How much are the likely to spend?

Even a simple customer profile will help you to make much better promotional decisions, which means you’ll get the most out of your marketing budget, even if it’s limited.

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