Attracting customers to your barbershop is the most fundamental way to build a successful business. In an increasingly competitive market, growing your client base starts with great haircuts and excellent customer service, but also requires creating an inviting atmosphere, strategically positioning your brand to stand out, connecting with your community and retaining high-value patrons. Understanding your potential customers, learning to address their needs and effectively marketing to them can get you more clients as a barber.

In this guide, you’ll learn the best and smartest ways to attract more of the right customers to your barbershop. These tips will allow you to grow a loyal clientele and develop a thriving business, whether you’re a seasoned owner or a new barber wanting to set up shop.

How To Think About The Marketing Process

As a barbershop, your customers are the backbone of your business. Learning to attract and turn customers into loyal clients is essential to your success. When you think about your barbershop marketing, there are four critical steps to consider.

Step 1: Know and Understand Your Market

Determining your market starts with understanding your community, its demographics and needs. How many people live in your area and what percentage are males? What is their average age? What kinds of hair trends are popular in the community? Will your shop be a family-friendly establishment? Do you cut men’s hair, women’s hair, or both? It can be tempting to appeal to everyone, but it can often backfire and leave you without a specific brand identity.

Dividing your market into segments puts potential customers into groups based on their common interests. Segmentation makes tailoring your marketing and services to meet specific needs easier. For example, if your primary market segment is Black men between the ages of 25 and 70, you can offer and market services they are most likely to seek, such as haircuts, shaves, and beard care.

Step 2: Define High-Value Customers

High-value customers are those who are most likely to have a positive impact on your barbershop’s bottom line. These people openly appreciate your skills and pay you a fair price. These valuable customers also provide word-of-mouth advertising by recommending your barbershop to their friends and family.

Most importantly, high-value customers return to your barbershop when they need a service you provide. According to customer retention statistics, 65% of a company’s business comes from repeat customers, and 80% of the revenue generated comes from a mere 20% of a business’s customer base.

Step 3: Create and Tailor Your Services

After identifying your ideal customer, list things the customer will likely want and compare those factors to the services established barbers in the area already provide. Look for ways to fill gaps in the market, whether that involves offering a different service altogether or improving on an existing service.

The most common services include haircuts, hair care, braid installation, shaves, eyebrow-related services, hair coloring, permanents and relaxers, and custom hair designs.

Some barbershops offer membership services that save customers money on the services they need most. For example, instead of paying $30 every week for a shave, you may consider offering up to four hair and face services a month for $100.

Step 4: Test and Get Feedback

After tailoring your services to your ideal market, pay close attention to how your customers respond. If you are receiving complaints, determine why your customers are not thrilled with the service. If your customers rave about your service and recommend it to their friends, family, and colleagues, you are on the right track.

Surveys and questionnaires are some of the best ways to collect customer feedback. Surveys should take less than two minutes to complete, ask yes or no questions, and provide consumers with ample space to write about their experiences. You can even offer a small discount on your services in exchange for a completed survey.

Every business across every industry receives criticism and complaints at some point. These complaints do not indicate failures; instead, they are learning experiences. When you receive a complaint, pay close attention to what you could have done better and implement those changes in the future.

The Most Effective and Affordable Ways To Get More Clients For Your Barbershop

Create Your Brand

Cultivating a brand identity involves much more than designing a logo and putting a sign on the door. Your brand tells the world who you are and helps you stand out from your competitors. What are your business values? Do you want to provide a classic barbershop experience complete with the red and blue pole, or do you want to provide a more modern and trendy experience? Successful barbershop branding is all about building a comprehensive image, from your logo and brand colors to the atmosphere inside your shop.

Start A Website To Build An Online Presence and Get Reviews

A user-friendly website is essential to your barbershop’s success. The well-designed site should reflect your style and show visitors what makes your shop unique. At the bare minimum, your website should include the following pages:

• Homepage: A homepage introduces your barbershop and provides access to other pages through a straightforward navigation menu.
• About Us: The “About” page allows you to tell your customers who you (and your employees) are on a more personal level. Including professional headshots and a short biographical snippet makes your barbershop appear more approachable.
• Gallery: Your Gallery should include some of your very best work for every service you provide. You can also include reviews and testimonials alongside these images.
• Services: The Services page lists every service you offer, from haircuts to custom designs. This page allows potential customers to confirm that your barbershop can meet their needs.
• Appointment Scheduling: Giving website visitors an opportunity to schedule their appointments online can convert those visitors into paying customers. Be sure to include all the relevant information, including prices, your cancellation policy, and the available payment methods.

There are countless benefits associated with creating and launching a website for your barbershop. Not only does your site affirm your brand’s identity, but it also improves your visibility, helping more people find your barbershop when they want or need your services.

A quality website builds trust and credibility with your community and even opens the door to new digital marketing opportunities with standard and local search engine optimization (SEO).

Use Social Media To Showcase Your Barbershop and Skills

Consumers use social media to discover and connect with businesses in every industry, including barbershops. Creating and maintaining social media accounts across popular platforms is one of the best ways to engage with potential customers, show off your best work, and build a following. Sharing photos and videos on platforms like Instagram, Facebook and even YouTube showcases the quality of your cuts and services.

One of the most significant benefits associated with social media is the ability to reach your target audience. You can input preferences such as location, age, and interests to narrow down your marketing efforts and make every post count. You can even engage in two-way communication with your audience, allowing you to answer questions, address concerns, and build relationships within your community.

Create A Yelp Page and Google Business Profile

According to recent data, 35% of consumers look to online reviews before booking an appointment. As many as 88% of those consumers said they would not visit a barbershop with less than a four-star rating.

Creating a free business profile with Yelp, the most popular online platform allowing consumers to rate and review local businesses, gives consumers an easy way to find and write reviews. s

A Google Business Profile allows you to list your barbershop with the nation’s largest search engine, making connecting with your ideal audience more effortless than ever. Listing essential information, such as your location, phone number, hours of operation, and website, allows consumers to locate all the information they need in just seconds.

You can even create posts on your Google Business Profile to promote your grand opening, reveal discounts and special offers, and keep existing and potential customers updated.

Invest In A Stylish Barber Shop Interior Design

Getting customers in the door is only one part of your barbershop marketing. Providing a memorable and comfortable experience inside the shop is equally important. Your barbershop’s atmosphere and interior design reinforce your branding efforts in a way that attracts and retains customers and staff.

A vintage aesthetic might include ample wood, checkered tile floors, and a classic barber pole. An industrial shop might have high ceilings, exposed pipes, and chrome or stainless finishes.

A modern or contemporary barbershop offers more flexibility, allowing you to choose bold colors and sleek, comfortable furniture. Some barbershops choose a specific theme, such as an old-school motorcycle vibe or a Vegas-inspired aesthetic complete with neon lights.