WHAT´S YOUR POINT?
The first thing to consider, according to spa and salon business expert Andrew Finkel-stein, owner of the Beauty Resource, is to ask yourself what your site should do for you. In other words, what are your goals with it? “It´s either there for you as a vanity plate,” he says, “or you intend to attract and retain clients and/or other people associ-ated with the business, such as staff or agents.” You may also decide that you want your site to sell product. “The cult of personality site is okay if you decide that you don´t need the site to work for you,” he says. “If it´s just there for vanity, that´s fine as long as you have the time and money to spare.”
But chances are, you do need the site to work for you. If you´re trying to attract agents, book jobs or photo shoots, and appeal to other high-end salon pros, then slick highly-designed sites such as those used by Aldo Coppola (www.aldocoppola.it) or Biguine (www.bi-guine.com) are perfectly appropriate. If, however, you´re a smaller business looking to attract and retain clients, you may want to con-sider something a little less grand and a tad more functional.
Kimberly Acworth, owner of the Indulge Salons in York, Pa., (http://theindulgesalon.com) says that her goal in creating an attractive, simple, and user-friendly site was to make money and drive custom-ers to her salon. To that end, her site is all about the client, including pages dedicated to problem solving by hair type, pages with coupons, and a coherent message throughout. Her site, she says, “Is just one more way to support my customer and [tell them] why they should continue to come to our salon.”
David Spagenthal, co-owner of the Timothy John Salon in Manhat-tan (www.timothyjohnsalon.com) says that he and fellow owner Timothy John intended the site to be used in part for advertis-ing, and also “to convey the feeling of the salon on the page.” They both wanted the look of the site to mirror the quality of the work performed in the salon. The site´s clean lines, warm colors, and easy, intuitive navigation certainly work together to inspire confidence in new and returning clients. “It´s definitely helped our business grow,” he says.
For Aura Mae, owner of Azarra Salon (www.azarra.com) in Tacoma, Wa., a successful site for her small, four-employee salon “is going to minimize the time we have to spend on the phone. All questions should be answered online.” To that end, Mae´s site is a simple, stripped-down model of pure functionality.
To further connect with clients, Mae maintains a blog as part of her site. “Why not? It´s free!” she points out. Plus, she says, this helps potential clients get a taste of the salon. “Pre-screening the client means you´re more likely to attract repeat customers,” she says.
MUST-HAVES
Sure, goals can vary — but to effectively communicate with your in-tended audience there are some basics that every Web site worth its salt should contain, and it all starts with the home page. First and foremost, make sure that your contact information is there (and on every single page). After all, no matter how elegant, functional, and innovative your site is, if no one can figure out how to get in touch with you, it´s all for nothing.
It´s tempting to make your home page all about you, but as Finkelstein points out, your future clients don´t care about you - they care about themselves. What can you do for them? Are you the right fit? “You have to speak to [your potential clients] right up front,” he says.
As Aura Mae points out, even if people don´t find you online they´re probably going to research you there. “Every salon needs at least one page, with your phone number, address, hours, and general pric-ing information,” she says.
You should also include photos or video clips of your work so that potential clients can get a sense of your aesthetic. General pricing information is important as well. “I like transparency and authentic-ity,” Finkelstein says. “The client wants to know how much it´s going to cost — why not let them know?”
As long as you have a Web presence, consider adding an online ap-pointment feature. While some clients will still prefer to call and speak with a live human being, the convenience of online booking is attractive to many.
Always remember what you want your site to convey, and stay on message. Keep it simple, keep it easy, and above all keep it user-friendly.
MISTAKES TO AVOID
It can be tempting to get fancy and show off, but slow-loading sites, complicated Flash pyrotechnics, and just about anything that needs a plug-in are huge turn-offs for many people. “Flash is great, but the purpose of getting someone to your site is to get them to stay awhile, and Flash stops that,” Finkelstein says. “You´re saying, ‘I´m go-ing to take your time, I´m going to make you wait, and that setsa bad tone.”
Adds Spagenthal, “We live in New York, and people don´t want to wait. They want the information now!”
It´s also important to be accurate. David Ranson of Basement Broadway (www.basementbroadway.com) designed the Timo-thy John Web site, and says, “Things like a poor design, spelling errors, or an outdated price menu can undermine a client´s confi-dence in your ability to help them look their best.”
NOW WHAT?
Once you´ve figured out your goals and gathered ideas, it´s time to actually design the site and get it online. Before you reach for the nearest DIY template, however, you may want to reconsider and find a real designer. “You´d probably agree that it´s not such a good idea for me to cut and color my own hair,” Ranson points out. “Technology changes rapidly — and it´s not just computer hardware that becomes obsolete. Web browsers and browser plug-ins are constantly being updated in ways that can affect site operation or performance. Com-monly used software programs like Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Dreamweaver are expensive to purchase and upgrade. And who do you call when you hit a snag or your site crashes?”
When shopping for a designer, make sure to look at sites he or she has designed, and speak to other clients about their experiences working together. The perfect designer might be right under your nose in the form of one of your own clients — if you´re on a budget, maybe you can even work out a barter arrangement for services!
While it is the designer´s responsibility to help you create the right look, it´s your job to provide the appropriate content. To help cli-ents stay organized, Ranson encourages them to think of the site in outline form, “with each page as a Roman numeral and each page´s content as points under that Roman numeral.”
Filmmaker, web marketer, and educator Yianni Stamas maintains that strategy is even more important than design: “The more keyword specific each page is, the more likely it will be indexed by Google.” Stamas recommends taking one of his online Web marketing classes at www.videofilmweb.com/takeaclass. And Finkelstein suggests checking out the Web Site ToolKit, available at http://www.action-plan.com/mkttools.html, which he says will help you learn how to create a site that really works for you from a marketing standpoint.
Of course, once the site is launched the work doesn´t end — you have to keep the site current and updated or risk losing potential business. “It´s alive and organic,” Finkelstein says. “If you haven´t updated the site since 2005, what does that say about you?” You can either have your designer do updates for you (of course you´ll provide the content) or you can do them yourself. If you go that route, Ranson suggests you hire someone to customize a content management system for your salon.
Sure, getting a web site up and running is a lot of work, but do it right and it will be worth it in the end. As Kimberly Acworth points out, “Is anything worthwhile ever easy?”
Comments (0) 
Print this Article
Email to Friend
