Hopefully after this hot summer you have enough energy to continue working on your (new) business! To grow your beauty business, you could probably use some more new clients, right? But there's the question: how do you acquire new customers? And how do you make sure they keep coming back? We've got 10 inspiring ideas from directly from our own experiences.

- By Desi van Dijk

A first impression is formed with customers within seconds and is hard to change after that, so it's important that the first impression is perfect. This applies to your salon, your online performance and how you present yourself. It goes without saying that your salon is in order and looks neat, but a beautiful website and well-maintained social media channels are also a must.

Your social media channels also ensure that you can be found by new customers, but that's not the only important thing that needs to be taken care of. A personal touch and giving just that little bit extra will stick with customers, so it's important that you too, as a beauty professional, are well presented. After all, you are your brand.

Word of mouth is still the most effective form of advertising. If your friend looks great and is very enthusiastic about her treatment, then you'd be curious too! So make sure every customer leaves with a great result and a nice feeling, because when they have a great experience, they'll want to refer their family and friends to you, or tag your salon on Instagram. 

Additionally, it's important that your existing clients share their good experiences online through positive Google or Facebook reviews, where you'll be more findable and new clients will be more likely to book with you. Wondering how to deal with reviews and how to make sure you keep receiving positive reviews? We covered that in this blog!

It sounds like a logical step, but it's always good to mention this: make sure your client schedules a new appointment before they walk out the door. At checkout, ask when you can schedule a new appointment, tell them that the schedule fills up pretty quickly and that you want to make sure he or she can't be helped because of an overflowing schedule!

With this tip you will not only acquire new customers, but also increase your sales!

You can expand your offerings by selling makeup in addition to treatments, allowing your customers to ensure that they look confident even in the weeks between seeing you. And, by buying their makeup from you, you will see your customers even more often! Bonus: a 24/7 confident and well-groomed look also makes for good word-of-mouth advertising for you ;)

Sound good so far? You can become a reseller of our makeup too! Send an email to sales@mrshighbrow.com & we'll tell you all about the starting order, makeup sets and margins.

With a savings system you'll give your customers an advantage with their next treatment(s). Think of a stamp card, where the customer gets a 50% discount on a treatment after having booked 5 treatments or give the tenth treatment for free. To counteract all the paperwork and stamping, you can also use a digital loyalty program or savings system like the app MyStamp. Not only will this make new customers come back faster, it is also way more attractive to existing customers. You can read more about savings systems here.

The beauty business is incredibly dynamic, so it's important that you step out of your comfort zone, and in addition to offering the treatments that are indispensable to your brow menu, it's crucial to keep innovating. Clients are often curious about new trends and will want to try a new treatment every now and then. For example, do you already offer Brow Lamination?

Keeping yourself challenged is important and it's good to continue to educate yourself from time to time. We at Mrs.Highbrow have developed the most sought-after treatments into educational courses so you can take an online training for Henna Brows, or for Brow Lamination and Lash Lift. Or the all-round Brow Stylist course teaches you the basics with all the tips & tricks.

Want more information about the online courses? Then feel free to send us a message via the chat function on this website.

As we mentioned earlier, it is absolutely necessary to give a good first impression, and your Instagram feed is essentially your salon's online business card. Especially in the beauty industry, an up-to-date Instagram profile is a must. On your profile you should at least show what services you offer, customer reviews and beautiful before & after photos of, for example, eyebrows and eyelashes. Learn how to take the best Instagram photos is in this blog! Make sure you're easy to find for (potential) customers by choosing a logical name and make sure your bio contains your contact information.

Networking. It may sound a bit daunting or challenging, but it is in itself quite easy to meet - both online and offline - people in your field! Online, think of certain Facebook groups for eyebrow specialists, PMU specialists or nail technicians, for example. Offline you can look for companies with similar target groups, such as gyms, clothing stores or tanning salons. Of course, do not immediately select your direct competitors. But especially with companies with similar target groups, you can ask if you can put your business cards or flyers there for potential customers. In exchange, you can hand them over to you.

Join an online platform like Treatwell. Especially if you haven't been open long, this is a great way to attract regular customers. You'll get your own personalized page on the website of Treatwell and a photographer comes along to take professional pictures of you and your salon.

A profile on Treatwell makes you more visible online and new customers can easily find you. You pay Treatwell a commission of 35% only for the first visit of a new customer to the salon. For repeat visits it is free.

You can choose from a simple subscription (€299) to a premium subscription (€699). You can read more about it here.

Advertise for free while you're shopping, stuck at the traffic lights or taking the kids to school by having your salon's logo and website printed on your car! You make yourself easily visible and will quickly attract new customers.