How Hair Salons Can Use A Beauty Blog To Attract More Clients, Build Relationships, And Bring In Cash!
To Cash In With Your Salon’s Beauty Blog, follow this Recipe:
1. Get Started…
2. Get Found!
Directions:
What Is A Salon Beauty Blog?
As a salon professional, your beauty blog is a series of articles on topics relevant to your services, products, and point of view. Your articles could be about natural hair care, hair color, extensions, weaves, and braids – the products and services you provide your clients.
Your beauty blog can include tips, opinions, facts, points of view, stories, experiences… as long as they are on-topic.
Why Keep A Blog?
People wanting your services will find your posts. A well-written, informative article can show potential clients that you know what you’re talking about and are their best choice. Your blog can also keep your current clients informed, connected and loyal to you.
If you don’t have a professional, on-topic blog, you might think about starting one. WordPress is a great platform to use. If you do have a beauty blog, here are some tips to help your prospects find your articles.
Getting Your Blog Posts Found!
Search engines like Google and Bing will naturally find your articles and index them. However, your interested prospects and clients may never see them.
Why Not?
There are hundreds, even thousands of articles on just about any topic you might right about that has to do with beauty, hair, nails, skin… On the Internet, you are competing with the entire online world!
To overcome this barrier, you must make it easy for the search engines to put your article high on the page when your prospect or client looks for a topic you’ve written about. That’s called…
“SEO” – Search Engine Optimization
The best way to make sure that your prospects are able to find your blog articles is to use Keywords. Used correctly, optimizing your Keywords is an important part of creating a blog article.
This list will walk you through the steps for making sure your ideal prospects who are searching for what you offer will find your blog posts – which are a direct path to YOU!
Identify Your Keywords
Keywords are the search terms your target market naturally types in the search bar for what they are seeking. Make a list of 5 topics you’d like to write about. If someone searched for that information, what words might they type in the search bar?
For examples, check out our Getting Found On Google post.
Make Your Keywords Specific
Let’s say you want to write about “Natural hair care.” That is a general search term. Lot’s of hairstylists and product companies write about that topic. Make this phrase more specific to you by adding your city and state. That’s called a “long-tailed keyword phrase.”
Now your Keyword phrase becomes: “Natural hair care in Richmond VA”
Write Your Blog Post
This long-tailed keyword phrase gives you a focus for your post. Each post should have ONE focus. The best article length is about 600 words. In those 600 words, stay on topic.
Follow this pattern to write your post:
1. Headline: Use your Keyword phrase.
2. Eye-Catching Intro: Catch their attention and state what your blog is about. Use humor, curiosity, or be informative.
3. Tips: Come up with 3, 5, 7, up to 9 points you want to tell them. Be clear and brief. Keep your paragraphs short. Each tip should have its own sub-headline that engages and informs. For examples, just look at this post or any other Salon Plaza Blog article!
4. Wrap-Up: Make one statement that the main point or emphases the importance the tips you gave. This summarizes and reminds the reader what they just learned.
5. Offer and Call-to-Action: What action do you want them to take? What offer can you make to attract a response? For instance, you could end your article with:
“Call now to make an appointment. New clients will receive 10% off your total bill when you mention this article.”
Get Found With SEO
Make sure you’ve used your long-tailed keyword phrase in your blog post. For instance, if your keyword is “Natural hair care in Richmond, VA”, it’s best to put these words in the headline (title) of your blog. You can also use the phrase in the first line of your post. Turn it around like this:
Headline: 7 Tips For Natural Hair Care in Richmond VA.
Intro: If you live in Richmond VA, these natural hair care tips will keep you looking beautiful any time of year.
It’s a good idea to mention the city and your keywords in a few other places in your post. But don’t overdo it! Use the same word 5 times MAX. Related words are better than over using the same words.
Think about SEO, but keep your post like a natural conversation.
Upload Your Article:
Copy and past your blog post into your blog platform as a new page. Each post or article has its own page.
Add formatting. Be consistent in the size of your subtitles. Use 2 accent colors and 2 font styles at most. Don’t overdo the ‘creativity’ of the formatting to keep from looking like you’re still in grade school!
Add A “Meta Description”
Your WordPress platform will ask for the blog’s summary. This “meta-description” will be visible to the search engines AND your prospects. Start with your Keyword phrase and make the description engaging – with 155 characters or fewer.
Add Related Images
You should add at least one image. Generally, 3 is tops. They should help to get your key points across.
TIP: The search engines can read your file names! Before you upload the images, save them with your Key Word Phrase, plus one descriptive word about the image. A photo of a brush that is good for your natural hair could be saved as:
“Natural Hair Care Richmond VA brush”
Your blog platform will ask for “alt text” and a description. Use the phrase here too!
Alt Text: Best hairbrush for natural hair care in Richmond VA.
Description: For the best natural hair care in Richmond VA, be sure to choose a hairbrush that is gentle with your hair like this one.
Now your post is optimized, on-topic, and ready to bring in new clients. In your WordPress blog, click “Publish” and watch what happens!
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Let Us Know How You Do!
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