Business owners and managers can all use more money, time and customers. Cross promoting helps them achieve all three. Salons and health clubs make a perfect marriage when it comes to cross promotion. After all, looking good and feeling good go hand in hand. Working with a strategic partner saves both time and money.
Getting Started
A partnership works when it makes sense geographically and when both are willing to work at it. Start with a simple game plan. Give each new fitness club member a gift certificate for a free haircut when they sign up. Mark it with a six-week expiration date to create some immediacy and incentive to use it.
It is a great idea for salons to hand a "goody bag" full of fun stuff to new clients. Include something special from your strategic partner like an introductory one-week pass or a free personal training session.
Offer an ongoing 20 percent discount on hair services to fitness club staff. Remember, they are in front of a lot of people and can create tons of positive word of mouth. Gratis Mondays for salon employees are a great idea. It is a low traffic day at clubs and salons are frequently closed so salon employees can take advantage.
Work your counter space by displaying your strategic partner's sign and making their marketing brochures available. Put together a flier for employees to hand out during dead hours. Feature special offers, contact information, location and website.
Look for opportunities to create buzz. A table or show space usually costs around $100 to $200. By sharing with your partner, you can attend twice as many of these each year. Do a contest and give away a joint prize--a free one-month pass to the club and a free haircut and blow dry. Collect names and email addresses. If space allows, bring a top stylist to do "quick cuts" with the purchase of a product. Health clubs can offer a "sign up now" incentive. Play some music, have a party. Attract attention. Do not miss the opportunity to use database marketing. Take advantage of one of the many inexpensive email marketing services. Send an e-mail within one week extending the show special and thanking everyone for stopping by your booth. These e-mail programs make it easy to incorporate a printable coupon.
If You Fail to Plan
The key to marketing is to put a plan together. Especially working with a partner, you will never get off the ground if you are always "trying to get together" to plan the month or quarter ahead. Do all the work at one time. Sit down midsummer when business is slow and brainstorm the year ahead. Plan to have any art work before the end of the year. Keep it simple. If one of the two of you is creative, it can be done with a simple computer program and local print shop. Here is an example of what a six-month promotional calendar might look like.
Everyone can use a price break in January. Offer new salon customers half off a haircut and blow dry and 50 percent off annual membership fee at the fitness club. Remember you are cross promoting here, so you will be handing out coupons at the fitness center for haircuts and at the salon, customers will be invited to save 50 percent off the annual club membership. Each location can display a counter sign for their partner's offer.
Think pink in February with sweetheart specials. Offer your fitness members two for one haircuts when they bring a friend who is not already a customer of the salon. The fitness club can do two for one memberships for new members referred by the salon.
Get behind March with a VIP special. Create something fun for 10 top customers. Let your strategic partner come up with a great idea to show your VIPs the gold star treatment.
April is business expo month. Start promoting gift certificates and memberships for Mother's Day 15 percent off. Create a referral coupon and really play it up. Call your partner in front of the customer and let them know you are sending "Mary, who is one of my best clients" over to talk to you about a club membership or gift certificate.
June is about getting in shape for summer. Offer free one-week passes to the fitness club for salon customers and get them thinking about getting bikini fit. Offer free manicures for new fitness club members and a free manicure with pedicure to club members to get "sandal ready".
The VIP Club
People love to belong to special groups. Once you have your cross promoting really working, create an insiders club or loyalty program. Identify those who have become customers of both businesses and make them part of a club. Source a company for custom cards that identify their club status. Offer "insider" monthly specials. If you want to get really creative, talk up the club with a few other store owners and get them involved by offering VIP specials to your club members to bring new customers through their doors, too.
Tags: fitness club, strategic partner, club members, great idea, salon customers, your strategic, your strategic partner