Marketing To Your Clients Through Computer Software

Marketing To Your Clients Through Computer Software

by Amy Nelson

All business owners know that an effective way to reach their market is through direct mail. This is definitely a way to reach new and existing clientele. You can do this the old fashion way by mailing a flier or brochure via regular mail, i.e., snail mail. However, this can be an expensive way to market due to postage costs.

With all the new technology available today, another way to mass market is via electronic mail. E-mail is a cost-efficient way to reach hundreds, even thousands of new and existing clients. As a business owner, there are many promotions and marketing ideas you can send clients through e-mail that won’t incur additional costs beyond a monthly Internet charge. For example, you can create a monthly newsletter for existing clientele informing them of any promotions and specials you may offer that month, or to educate your clients on the benefits of indoor tanning.

E-mail marketing enables you to proactively communicate with existing clients and prospects instead of passively waiting for them to return to your store, Web site or call you on the phone.

You also can network with local business owners in your area, such as a fitness center or a restaurant, to sponsor a monthly drawing. Have consumers drop their business cards in a box or jar to be eligible for a free tan, service package or lotion. The business cards will give access to potential clients’ contact information including e-mail addresses. The next step is to create an e-mail newsletter with a special promotion to recruit new clientele.

Another way to reach your market is by SMS (Short Message Service) Text Messaging. Text messaging has gained enormous popularity in advertising and marketing because it is an inexpensive marketing medium and allows businesses to reach out to targeted consumers.

Most, if not all, cell phones are equipped to handle text messaging that contains brief information from friends, clients and businesses marketing their products and services. You can send promotional messages, discount coupons and much more. If you sign on a new client, you can send them a “thank you” for their business, or any other customized message of your choice.

You also could send clients reminder messages directly from your salon management software reminding them of their next appointment. These are things that will set you apart from your competitors and keep your clients coming back to you.

A third way to use marketing through salon management software is by gift certificate and/or coupon tracking. Coupon tracking is a great benefit for tracking your Return on Investment (ROI) coupons in local advertising. For instance, if you did an advertisement last month in your local paper for a promotion including a coupon for buy one tan get one free, you would want to figure if your cost of advertising in the paper was a profitable ROI. You could track your coupons within your software to analyze your advertising investments.

There are a few things to keep in mind when marketing to your clients. First, only send content that is relevant to your clientele in your market. As salon owners, keep your content to the tanning industry. Your market is looking to you to be an expert in your industry, not on local happenings and such. Second, be consistent with your sending frequency. Send out your marketing once a month (or as frequently as needed) with promotional information, rather than only when sales are lagging.

When looking into salon management software, you want to make sure that it is capable of being able to send e-mail directly through the software and from your client database. Your software solutions company also should be able to provide you with text messaging directly through the software.

As with anything, do research about software you want to have in your salon, as it’s an investment from which you want to see returned profits. Marketing via your software can be extremely profitable.