Looking for unique salon service ideas? We’ve got 11 for you here to set your salon business apart from the competition.
It’s the best way to bring in new customers and encourage repeat business. That will keep your salon both more stable and more profitable.
Stand Out from the Competition
The salon industry today is a highly competitive one. As of 2023, there were nearly a million hair salons alone in the United States. That represents a growth of 0.2% per year over the last five years.
And that’s just hair salons. It doesn’t include other kinds of salon businesses, like nail salons, brow experts, and tanning places.
Therefore, you want your business to stand out from the competition.
Think about the businesses you use most in your community. Chances are they offer something special that keeps you coming back. Maybe it’s a bakery that makes croissants that rival what you find in Paris. Or perhaps it’s the local hardware store that offers special paint colors you can’t get elsewhere.
You want to make people see your salon in the same way. Rather than just blending in with all the other salons nearby, you want to show how your salon is unique.
Making your salon distinctive can help you bring in two cornerstones of any successful business. These are repeat customers and brand-new customers. Both are important to your revenue stream.
Regular clients give your salon a steady income by making appointments every month or two. Since they’re obviously happy with your services, they’re more likely to refer you to friends and family.
People move, and their needs change over time. A new baby or job might mean someone has less time to get their nails or brows done than before. New customers help fill in when regular customers stop coming to the salon.
If you do your job right, your new visitors will eventually become repeat customers. That creates a healthy cycle for your business over the long term.
Is your salon as profitable as you would like it to be? One study showed that salons maintain an average profit margin of 8.2%. This is higher than the general business average of 7.7%.
But that’s the average. Some salons profit as little as 2%, while others as high as 17%. A margin of 10% or even more is definitely feasible. But it takes both trimming overhead and smart marketing to make it happen.
You want to keep things fresh for existing customers so they don’t feel like they’re in a beauty rut. And you want to attract new clients. Therefore, adding unique service ideas will create a great experience for them all.
RELATED ARTICLE: How to Get New Clients in a Salon: 9 Tips to Fill Your Chairs
11 Unique Salon Service Ideas to Dazzle Guests
Looking for inspiration to up your salon game? Here are 11 ideas you could try, individually or in combination.
Keep reading through the last section. That’s where you’ll find tips on how you can start implementing some of these ideas right away.
1. Little everyday extras
The sublime salon experience starts when your customer walks in the door. Someone should be there to greet them at reception. No one should be left standing there feeling lost or ignored.
Offer to take your client’s coat and parcels. Direct them to the changing room if they will be putting on a smock or robe for services.
If your client will be waiting, be sure to have a comfy spot for them. Try to create a buffer between the waiting area and the checkout, as they have different vibes. And you don’t want customers in robes sitting by the door, where it’s less private and unprotected from the weather.
Offer customers something to drink. A glass of sparkling water, a cup of tea, a cappuccino, or a flute of champagne is always welcome.
You might have a few snacks on hand, too, for busy people. Cookies, protein bars, chocolate truffles, and fruit are a nice touch.
Do you have clients who bring their tiny dogs with them? Or perhaps some young parents have small kids in tow? Having something for them, too, shows you are being attentive.
If clients have to wait longer than expected, offer them a little complimentary service. They won’t mind the wait as much if they’re getting a hand or scalp massage or a cuticle treatment.
Have up-to-date magazines for waiting customers. Lookbooks with the latest trends in hair, nails, brows, and body pampering can help them narrow down their services for the day.
2. Freebies for high spenders
Your salon probably has a group of clients who spend at the top tier. They come in weekly for blowouts or take a full spa day once a month with a massage, facial, pedicure…the works.
You particularly want to reward these customers. Beyond the everyday extras, how can you give them some free services?
Maybe you can give them a gratis service of their choice once per quarter. Or you could offer them a surprise service to introduce a new treatment. This can help launch new services as well as thank your biggest clients.
For some affluent clients, simply giving them a salon freebie isn’t a big deal. Attention and personalized appreciation will dazzle them more.
If you have truly high spenders, consider giving them a carefully selected birthday or holiday gift. Send them flowers on the anniversary of their first appointment. You know your clients better than anyone else. What would wow them most?
3. Concierge services
A hot trend right now in employee recruiting and retention is offering concierge services. You could do the same for your customers.
This would be especially welcome if they’re busy parents or executives. They may struggle with work-life balance and feel rushed during salon appointments. It’s also a fantastic extra if you’re located in a large city with traffic and difficult parking.
What kinds of concierge perks could you provide?
- Running grocery errands
- Picking up online orders
- Fetching dry cleaning
- Dog walking or grooming
- Valet parking
- Making reservations
- Getting their car washed or detailed
- Gift wrapping
- Booking home services
Concierge services are especially helpful for large groups coming in together before events. Salons always have wedding parties, for example, where everyone’s time is at a premium. How great would it be if you could make their lives easier?
The same applies to salons that occupy retail space in condominiums or apartment buildings. Consider how you might work with the building’s staff to offer new residents perks and to try your services.
4. Specialty days
Your salon clients likely travel hither and yon for all their personal services. What if you could bring some of those to your salon instead? It would save the customer a separate appointment. And it would increase your income at the same time.
For instance, if you operate a hair salon, do your clients go elsewhere for manicures and brow treatments? You could have a nail or brow specialist set up at your salon, say, two days a week.
You could also have makeover days. Hire a makeup expert to give customers a fresh look for free. Have makeup there for them to purchase if they like the results. Throw in something for free as a thank-you for their time and interest.
Specialty treatments you could offer include:
- Manicures and pedicures
- Paraffin hand treatments
- Facials
- Brow sculpting
- Massages
- Hair updos for events
- Waxing
- Spray tanning
- Dermaplaning
- Eyelash tinting
- Makeup consultations
This is a perfect solution for small salons that want to be more competitive. You probably have workstations sitting empty a couple of days each week when staff have days off. Not everyone works Tuesday through Saturday.
Specialty days let you book more appointments on slow days. And they can simultaneously bring in new clients while cementing your relationship with existing ones.
5. Luxury treatments
How long has it been since you’ve added anything new to your menu of salon services? If it’s been a while, consider making some new additions. And make sure some of those are luxury treatments.
Luxury services don’t have to be long, complicated hair coloring jobs or facials that take hours. They can be 30-minute treatments that add something extra for the client.
Some luxury services you could add include:
- Vitamin C facial
- Reflexology massage
- Scalp renewal
- Color protection treatment
- Hair volumizing
- Full-body exfoliation
- Quick brow shaping and tinting
- Lash lifts and tints
- Hairline-only color touch-up
- Refreshing eye treatment
- Moisturizing hair mask
- Color deposit/gloss treatments
- Waxing services
6. Thank-you parties
It’s nice to show your clients you appreciate them by throwing them a party occasionally. You could associate it with a major holiday or set the date on the anniversary of your opening.
The start of summer or the school year are two times when people think more about their appearance. That might also be the ideal time to host a bash.
Start in the evening so people who work during the day can attend. Send out invitations about a month in advance, giving invitees plenty of time to schedule.
Provide food and beverages, as well as music, lighting, or custom entertainment. Having a tarot reader or fortune teller is fun. You could also hire a magician or comedian.
You might want to organize your thank-you party around a theme. It could be tropical, winter wonderland, etc. Add some decor to create an immersive atmosphere.
Be sure to offer some complimentary light services at the party. This is where clients can try out new things and see the effects on others. They can also mingle and talk up your salon, reinforcing repeat business.
7. Loyalty perks
Loyalty memberships used to be the purview of the hotel industry. There’s a reason, though, that everyone from coffee shops to oil change garages has loyalty programs these days. They encourage repeat purchases.
Roughly 90% of Americans participate in some type of loyalty program. Lately, inflation has driven this figure. And because of the huge number of programs available, consumers are getting more demanding about benefits.
Starting a loyalty program is a no-brainer if you own a salon. Data shows that you can earn 56% to 77% of your investment back in a year.
That ROI is primarily in the form of repeat business. Remember, a large portion of your revenue will come from repeat customers. And it’s always less expensive to keep your existing clients than to get new ones.
The easiest way to start a loyalty program is with a physical or virtual punch card. You can offer perks such as:
- Purchase 5 services and get the 6th for free.
- Buy 4 treatments and get another for half off.
- Book 3 appointments before [date] and get a surprise freebie.
- Accumulate points for every dollar spent, which you can use for services.
- Sneak peeks or “guinea pig” discounts for loyal regulars ahead of a full launch to all clients.
You can also offer bonuses for referring friends, family, or coworkers. For instance, your nail salon might give free manis or pedis to anyone sending a new customer for the same service.
You can up the ante for clients who have been with your salon for several years or longer. Maybe they get a free full-service day every couple of years. Or, for the month following their salon anniversary, they get 50% off all services.
You could give valuable members priority appointment dates. Maybe you have a few hours each week for walk-ins from VIP members.
The key here is to have an organized and automated customer relationship management (CRM) system. This keeps track of things like:
- Important dates
- Service history
- Spending volume
- Preferred staff providers
- Products used and purchased
You can also use your salon software to collect email addresses for every participant. Keeping a mailing list is valuable for sending newsletters and announcements.
RELATED ARTICLE: 6 Salon Referral Ideas to Grow Your Business
8. Sports team support fun
Do you operate in a locale with a Big Four or top college team? You can join fans in celebrating team loyalty.
Consider offering special services on game weekends or during championships. These could be free with the purchase of another service or offered for a reasonable spur-of-the-moment cost.
For example, you could provide temporary hair coloring or braiding in your team’s colors. Bling Strands are a way to add color and sparkle to hair with a temporary accessory. Or hire a face painter for similar effects before big games.
Nail colors in team shades are another popular way to show sports loyalty. If you find custom nail creations take off, you could also sell nail polish in your team’s colors.
Proms and homecomings are another use for this service.
You can take your salon to the heart of the action as well. What about smaller events where the community Little League or high school volleyball teams are playing? Those sporting events often have vendor booths for rent to support the team. You could bring Bling Strands or face painting there for fans on the go.
9. Selfie station
Are your customers thrilled with their new hairstyles, nail designs, or brow jobs? Why not create a selfie station where they can show that off? Let your customers take photographs to share with friends or post on social media. How?
- Create an attractive background.
- Provide flattering lighting.
- Offer to help snap pics or provide a selfie stick.
- Give suggestions for model-like poses.
Have your clients tag your salon in their social media posts. That way, you can share them on your business page as well.
You could offer a discount on the customer’s next visit if they share a selfie on Facebook or Instagram. Or give them an extra freebie for a certain number of likes or shares.
It’s a win-win when your customers are proud of your results, and your business gets free promotion too.
10. Care for waiting family
Many salons cater to parents of young kids or retirees who show up with their spouses while running errands. Where do you put these extra family members?
You could let them go with the customer during their appointment. But there may not be space for them at the staff member’s workstation. And a chatty spouse or mischievous kid may keep the client from relaxing. They might also disturb the experience for adjoining customers.
One idea is to have a space for them, either in the waiting room or elsewhere. Even better, why not cater to them?
You could offer snacks and drawing supplies to young children to keep them occupied. Your business could even offer babysitting on, say, Wednesdays and Saturdays.
Be sure to provide some magazines that appeal to everyone who comes in, not just men or women exclusively. A TV where waiting family members can catch a game or a little indoor putting green could be fun.
11. More online conveniences
With every passing week, consumers expect more services to be available online. Your salon should follow this trend by keeping up with the latest tech.
Offering online appointment booking is a perfect place to start. This gives clients 24/7 access to your business. It also frees up receptionist time for them to work with customers in person.
You can integrate your online booking feature with your salon schedule. You’ll get real-time updates and can make decisions if, for instance, a client cancels at the last minute.
With automated scheduling, you can also send reminders to customers about upcoming appointments. This helps keep your salon running on time and reduces the aforementioned surprise cancellations.
Another common salon online offering is virtual gift cards. Customers can order them without leaving home and send them to friends and family. It’s yet another way to reap new customers.
Letting customers purchase products and prepay for services online is one more convenience you can provide. Just be sure they know how tipping is handled. Is it included in their online payment, or will they need to tip with cash at the salon?
One final idea is to consider using a virtual hairstyle try-on program. If you run a hair salon, this might be a game changer for you.
You might have used similar technology to virtually try on clothing or buy furniture for your home. This software lets clients test different hairstyles and colors online before committing to a big change.
RELATED ARTICLE: Salon Client Retention Strategies
How You Can Start Offering Unique Services Right Now
If you’ve been inspired by the ideas above, there’s good news! You can start implementing some of these right away.
Here are six expert tips you can use to take action today:
- Get current on trends for your salon type. Visit some high-profile salons in other locations. Take a class or dive into industry publications. What looks best for your business?
- Not sure what new services would best fit your clients? Ask them. Survey your salon customers to see what they would like that you’re not yet providing. You might be surprised by the results.
- Start small and grow if clients respond. For example, set up a snack and beverage bar in reception—that’s an easy one to add. Add specialty, concierge, or luxury services one day per month at first. You can always increase the frequency based on popularity.
- Crunch the numbers to see which unique service ideas are both affordable and profitable. Where can you advertise new programs for free? How can you leverage your existing setup to minimize expenditures?
- Don’t just add new services randomly. Make them part of your overall growth plan. Set periodic milestones to evaluate your progress. Be ready to change strategies if something is not working as hoped.
- Use salon management software to help automate and streamline your operation. You can employ it to schedule appointments online and manage email lists and membership programs. Keep track of expenses versus profits to the penny. You’ll know if your new, unique salon service ideas are paying off.
RELATED ARTICLE: 6 Tips for Creating Business Goals for Your Salon
