My 7 Reasons Why You Should Kickstart Your Very Own Salon Blog Comment

One of the most dumb ass and frustrating things that can happen to you when interacting with people is be ignored. I read (you can too @ 7 Reasons Why You Should Kickstart Your Very Own Salon Blog) Connor Keppel’s blog post: “7 Reasons Why You Should Kickstart Your Very Own Salon Blog” and felt the need to comment – My brilliant comment didn’t get to see the light of day – I Was Ignored! Dafuq!

It is So frustrating because filling in those bloody comment boxes (I’ve got one just like it!) is Bullshit – If a real person takes the time and effort to comment, and comments are open, they’ve got the right to be heard. Suck on that Connor Keppel, Marketing Manager at Phorest Salon Software!

Anyway, I run a blog, I can post it here – well a new version of it because I wrote the original on the Phorest Salon Software’s website and therefore it doesn’t exist any more. I Have Rewritten It.

Here is my phenomenal response to: 7 Reasons Why You Should Kickstart Your Very Own Salon Blog ;-)

Firstly, I think that I had better say that I have been blogging for a long time, almost as long as blogging itself! I started my first SlashHair blog in the winter 1997-1998. And I run a number of other blogs which are about website promotion.

The main reason I wanted to comment on Connor Keppel’s blog post was because I felt it needed some ‘clarification.’ But just to say, theoretically, I did agree with most of what Connor said. There are however, some important caveats for the new, virgin, would be salon blogger.

The main issue I have with Connor’s blog post is the expectation of success he raises for the reader, which is all very well, but the reality is that people are not interacting with blogs in the same way as they did five years ago. The reason for this is simple: most blogs today don’t allow worthwhile ‘linkbacks’ to the commentator.

(Linkbacks or should I say, “Incoming Links,” are links that point To the commentator’s Website. They are very important to the commentator and represent ‘one of the main ways’ future visitors will find the commentator’s website. Incoming links from Blogs also help with Search Engine Optimization (SEO) because they are often One-Way. Meaning: they are an un-reciprocated link pointing to Your website – I could drone on for hours and hours about this subject (SEO and Website Linking), but I won’t, even though I want to!)

The reason the linkbacks are almost worthless, is because most Blogs stop the search engines from following the link (good for their SEO, bad for commentator’s). So the value of a linkback is actually determined by what you have to say in your comment that makes people want to visit your website – if you get my drift?

And the reason Blogs have stopped the search engines from following the “Commentator’s Website Link” is partly because of spam comments which are written just to get the link!

People who do not own a blog or a website (and therefore are not interested in website promotion), do read blogs, but they rarely comment!

Writing a blog, like keeping an expansive diary, is extremely difficult and time-consuming. There is an effort::reward calculation; producing high quality, well written / produced content that is informative, engaging and entertaining on a regular basis (Blog 3 times a week) is very hard. Actually, I would say that unless you are able to ‘come-up-with-the-goods’ I would not recommend writing a blog. There are other ways to engage with clients and prospective clients via the internet – and in the real world.

Poor blog content may even damage your reputation or brand!

Another way to effectively engage with people is by writing articles and post them on your own salon website. Articles can create the valued website content that you talk about Connor. As for article subjects: anything that clients frequently ask about, popular/new product information, fashion trends and style predictions, tips, tricks and important information…

BTW, people like photographs, galleries are a good idea.

Number Four: you say, “Drive more traffic to your website.” I agree, blogs can do that, but only when used in conjunction with SEO; which means: high quality relevant content and loads of incoming links!

Number Five: I say, synchronizing social media is a very dangerous thing to do, especially for hairdressers, who repeat/spam the same information everywhere, day after day. Even exciting and informative news can still look spammy when synchronized. Let’s face it, if I follow you on Facebook and Twitter, I don’t want to read the same stuff – if I do, I’ll unfollow one of your accounts! We are not helped by the social media who actively encourage synchronization, maybe as a collective act of self-promotion and togetherness?

Each social networking platform, be it Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, or dare I say it, Your Website, has its own niche, an identity created by its owner for its users – Facebook isn’t Twitter isn’t Linkedin isn’t your website – the differences may seem subtle sometimes, but they are important to the individual user. Always use different content on the different social networking sites, so when people ‘click around’ they don’t read the same bollocks over and over again, because that’s boring, disengaging and a massive, massive, massive turn-off – even for the client who loves you! The true promotional value of social networking is always measured by what you have to say! Syncing will hurt you.

If you want to set up a website or blog I recommend WordPress. WordPress.org is for people who want to host the blog themselves, and WordPress.com is a free blogging platform which is easy to set up if you want to try your hand at keeping a Blog!

I am wondering why Phorest Salon Software did not approve my comment???

Why do only 17% of clients return to salons regularly

Bruno's book of haircutting

PhorestSalonSoftware – @thephorestword tweeted during #hairhour:

Well it really is a staggering statistic – I replied listening to my gut feeling, “Quality of work?” And when I say quality of work, I’m thinking; why would a client who’s happy with her haircut want to change her hairstylist?

Jump back in time to the mid to late 1970s, I was working at Ricci Burns in the King’s Road, Chelsea, London and I thought that hairdressers in the provinces (everywhere outside London) were rubbish! Sounds very snobby, judgemental and biased – I know, but it was born out of some personal experience. My clients demanded excellence, their careers often revolved around their appearance, an inferior, sloppy hairdo would not have been accepted. On the other hand, the demand for a high quality hairdo in the provinces didn’t appear to be there; dare I say that clients in the provinces (the general public) wouldn’t’ve even recognised a good haircut in 1976 – yeah, I know that’s a massive generalisation, but what I’m talking about is a demand that drives hairdressing standards.

For me, this whole journey starts in the period between 1970 and the late 1980s, maybe it was when Vidal Sassoon created his line of hair-care products in the early 1970s? Most London salons had their own line of ‘self’ branded hair-care products for sale, but I think Vidal Sassoon was the first to go into major production (with Helen of Troy Corporation), selling in the USA and Europe in 1980. This was the beginning of celebrity hairdresser branded hair-care and beauty products. John Frieda, another big name in the UK, followed suit in the late 1980s. Today there are a plethora manufactured by global beauty companies like: Procter & Gamble (Vidal Sassoon), L’Oréal (Jean-Louis David), Estée Lauder (Bobbi Brown – Makeup Artist) and Unilever (Tigi for hair salons, Toni & Guy)…

Then there was Toni & Guy who franchised their business in the late 1980s – obviously they had their own branded hair-care products! In my view, it was Toni & Guy who not only improved hairdressing standards in the provinces, but also pushed up the price of hairdressing, and they increased competition on the high street. I won’t talk about Unisex (1960s), but that too plays a part.

Over the last five years or so we’ve seen the massive rise of social media which has had a profound impact on television, celebrity culture, mainstream journalism and of course the general public. The image of the self, including the selfie and user-generated photos, take on a new meaning and importance – everyone and anyone can suddenly become a celebrity by going ‘viral’! The public demand for high quality hairdressing hasn’t only arrived, but it may have exceeded the supply! Hence, “Only 17% of clients returned to the salons more than twice.” …The general public aren’t getting the celebrity service they now demand, so they are looking elsewhere for better. They are salon hopping! Actually, they should be complaining.

There is another explanation though:

Firstly, I’m always very suspicious about surveys and survey results & analysis. Phorest, who conducted the survey and who asked the question, are a salon software business – so they do have a vested interest and they will have an angle! I’ve a strong feeling they will say that if you use the Phorest Salon Software, you will be able to identify what’s going wrong and grow your business?

With greater competition on the High Street, salon owners are under more pressure to maximise their income from floor space, so they are renting out chairs to freelance hairstylists, therefore these salons may only be able to accommodate a ‘walk in off the street’ clientèle? …Walk-in clients are not usually regular and loyal. It all depends on the freelance to experienced staff member ratio.

And don’t forget the old adage, “a hairdressing salon is only as good as its worst stylist!”

Cover Image: Bruno’s book of haircutting (Couper les cheveux soi-même) by Bruno Pittini. Copyright & published 1976, this edition by Sphere Books 1979 – My copy is the last one left (I think). The book is a step-by-step guide to cutting your own hair, so, if you’re tired of expensive visits to the hairdresser…

Bruno Pittini (deceased) and I did a couple of fashion shows together in Paris in 1980/81.