How to attract new clients to your salon

Winning new clients comes down to three things: being easy to find, easy to trust and easy to book. Get those right, give people a reason to return, and growth follows.

Be where clients are already looking

No two new clients find you the same way. They Google you, scroll social and ask friends, often all at once. The salons that grow combine a strong online presence, credible reviews, well-judged offers and easy booking, rather than leaning on any single tactic. Before you spend anything, get clear on who you’re targeting: their age, the treatments they want, what they typically spend. A professional booking a lunchtime blow-dry needs different messaging from a bride planning her wedding package, so tailor what you say to each.

Get found on Google and on Treatwell

Ranking near the top of Google starts with a complete, current Google Business Profile: accurate opening hours, detailed treatment descriptions, the right categories (such as “Hair Salon” or “Balayage Service”) and fresh photos of your work. Update it often, reply to reviews and switch on messaging and booking links, since Google favours active, useful listings. For local intent, target treatment-plus-place searches like “balayage Amsterdam” rather than just “hair salon”.

Your Treatwell profile works the same way, and it puts you in front of people already searching the marketplace to book. Keep it just as sharp: clear treatment descriptions and pricing, strong photos, and your most popular or highest-value treatments set as featured treatments so they’re the first thing clients see. A complete, well-tended profile is more visible and far easier to book from.

Build trust with reviews

Reviews are the biggest trust signal when someone is choosing a salon. A steady flow of recent reviews and a high rating tells prospects you’re reliable, and handling the occasional critical one with grace shows you’re paying attention. Ask when a client is visibly delighted, not as they rush out the door, and make it easy with a direct link by text or email within the hour.

On Treatwell, reviews are verified and sit right on your profile, where new clients see them at the moment they’re deciding. As long as you have a client email address on file, Connect sends a review request automatically a couple of days after each visit, so your review count keeps climbing without you chasing. For more on collecting and using reviews well, see our guide to getting more salon reviews.

Use offers to win first visits and fill quiet times

A first-time offer sparks trial, but the wrong one only attracts discount hunters who’ll never pay full price. Favour bundles over deep cuts: “cut, colour and consultation for €99” feels more valuable than “50% off everything”, which can cheapen your brand. Keep any discount limited and time-bound so it drives action and protects your core pricing. A simple double-sided referral reward, where the referrer and the new client both get something, can work too, since referred clients arrive already sold on you.

To fill your quietest slots specifically, you can enable off-peak offers in Connect, so the discount only applies when you actually need the bookings rather than across the board.

Turn first visits into repeat bookings

Winning a client is only half the job; the value is in getting them back. The simplest way to lift repeat bookings is to stay in touch consistently and remove every excuse to drift away.

Start by getting your existing clients into Connect. Upload your whole list in one go: in Connect on desktop, go to Clients, then Add, then Import from file, fill in the template and upload it back (XLS, XLSX or CSV; each client needs at least a phone number or an email). Clients you upload return commission-free, so their repeat visits don’t cost you marketplace commission.

From there, Connect handles appointment updates for you automatically, all sent in your salon’s name. Depending on which features you switch on, clients receive:

• A booking confirmation as soon as the booking is made, plus an update if it’s later rescheduled or cancelled
• A reminder before each visit: by email 24 hours ahead, by SMS 4 hours ahead, or by push notification
• A patch-test reminder 7 days ahead, where a treatment needs one
• A review request around 48 hours after the visit via email, to build your reputation
• A rebook reminder when it’s time to come back, by email and by SMS if you have credits

Well-timed reminders mean fewer no-shows, and rebooking invites bring quiet clients back before they look elsewhere.

You decide which of these run: switch each one on or off under Marketing > Automated messaging > Transactional. Connect also keeps track of who has opted in to marketing and stores client data securely, so whenever you reach out, you’re working from a properly consented list and staying on the right side of GDPR.

For your most loyal clients, memberships and packages give them another reason to return and give you more predictable revenue. Keep the tiers simple, make sure each one stays profitable once you’ve accounted for the discounts, and offer a trial so clients can feel the benefit before they commit.

Show up on social and in local search

Social media is still one of the most cost-effective ways to stay visible. Instagram suits transformations, TikTok reaches younger audiences with personality and behind-the-scenes clips, and Facebook works well for local community groups. Post before-and-after content with consistent lighting (always with the client’s permission), reply to messages fast, and use a link-in-bio tool to send people straight to your booking page. You can even embed your Connect booking widget directly in your social profiles, so a profile visit can turn into a booking on the spot.

When you want to reach beyond your followers, targeted ads put you in front of nearby, high-intent clients. Facebook and Instagram let you target by location, age and interest, while Google Ads catch “near me” searches from people ready to book. Keep the radius tight, around eight to sixteen kilometres, lead with what makes you different, and give any campaign a couple of weeks of data before you judge it.

Pair that organic and paid reach with the email and SMS campaigns you can run from Connect, so the clients you win stay in your orbit rather than booking once and disappearing.

Make booking effortless

Every extra click between “I want a booking” and “booking confirmed” costs you clients. Offer mobile-friendly online booking with real-time availability and a guest checkout, show treatment durations and prices upfront, and answer the phone quickly. A card-on-file and cancellation policy protects your higher-value bookings and cuts no-shows without adding much friction.

With Treatwell, you can add the Connect booking widget to your own website, so clients book a real-time slot in a couple of taps without leaving the page. And when you’re fully booked, switch on the waiting list: when a cancellation frees a slot, you can fill it from clients who are already keen rather than leaving it empty.

Your 30-day action plan

Here’s a four-week roadmap to put all this into practice.

Week 1 (Foundation): Audit your Google Business Profile and your Treatwell profile for accuracy, photos and featured treatments. Settle your target keywords. Upload your client list into Connect.

Week 2 (Credibility): Ask your last 20 happy clients for a review with a direct link. Switch on automated review requests and reminders in Connect. Schedule two weeks of social posts.

Week 3 (Promotion): Announce a first-visit or off-peak offer across your channels. Turn on rebook reminders so quiet clients hear from you automatically.

Week 4 (Amplification): Run a small, tightly targeted ad campaign. Add the booking widget to your site and switch on the waiting list. Track what’s working and shift budget accordingly.

Keep an eye on a few numbers as you go: new client bookings per week, your cost per acquisition, and how many first-timers rebook within a couple of months. A weekly review lets you pivot quickly towards whatever’s actually working.

Log into Connect, upload your client list and switch on automated messaging, then let the follow-up run itself. New clients, fuller calendars, and a stronger season start here.

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