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ä Staying Connected to Older Clients in the Digital Age
Beauty Insider
by Marissa Porcaro,
PBA Director of Marketing
As marketing strategies head down a more
technical path, it’s astounding to see how
many people can be reached with the click of
a button. An equally important result of this
is who is potentially being left out from this
technological reach.
It’s common knowledge that many
ageing Americans are resistant to diving into
various types of modern communication,
but smartphones, tablets and apps are here to
stay; so how do you overcome the potential
challenges to keep lines of communication
open with your older clients? Or, are they
truly being underestimated when it comes to
digital forms of communication?
While direct mail communications are
effective in that they typically reach your
clients’ mailboxes, the costs associated with
designing, printing and sending postcards for
appointment reminders or to keep in contact
with clients who haven’t been in for a while
could possibly exceed the benefits.
Electronic forms such as email or social
networking sites can truly assist in keeping
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costs under control, with the added benefit
of potentially having the ability to track how
many of your emails or Facebook messages
have actually been read.
Several recent studies have looked into
online communication accessed by various
age groups whether it is strictly email or
social networking sites such as Facebook or
Twitter. According to a 2013 Pew Internet
study, 52 percent of adults surveyed between
the ages of 50-64 use social networking sites,
as well as 32 percent of those surveyed ages
65 and over. This is a far cry from the 18-49
age group in which 80 percent on average
access social networking sites.
As a means to close this gap, many salon
owners are taking advantage of this rise in
interest among older generations, seeing it
as an opportunity to help teach them social
media advantages and how convenient it can
be to keep up with their salon of choice.
Robin Spence, owner of Bella HairSpa in
Jacksonville, Florida, is one of these proactive
salon owners who has implemented a
business practice of providing iPads to clients
while they are in their stylist’s chair. According
to Spence, they go through a “show-andtell
with Facebook at the chair,” finding that
many older clients already have an account
to keep up with family, but her salon uses
it as an opportunity to have clients “Like”
their site, get familiar with the news feed and
everything it has to offer.
For those who do not have an account,
they provide informational how-to cards
which walk them through the process of connecting
to their Facebook page from home.
Despite an increase in social media
access by those over 50 during the past few
years, email currently seems to be the most
effective at reaching older clients due to the
percentage using email on a regular basis. A
separate 2012 Pew Internet study on email
and internet use found that 53 percent of
American adults ages 65 and over access the
internet in general with 86 percent of those
surveyed using email.
Pat Helmandollar, President of Savvy
Salon and Day Spa in Cornelius, North
Carolina, has found that email is their best
form of communication so long as it is simple
and to the point. Although, she did admit to
having an older client recently ask when they
will be coming out with an App she can access
from her smartphone; a shining example
that there are older clients out there who
have fully embraced modern communication
styles and the convenience they truly provide.
Despite this notion that there doesn’t
seem to be a one-size-fits-all marketing form
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for reaching older clientele, there are onestop
shops that allow you to reach out to individuals
in a customized way. Kathy Alexander,
owner of Salon Nouveau in Tucson, Arizona,
has turned to Demandforce, one of many
comprehensive marketing programs available
to salon owners. This allows her to connect
with clients, young and old, any way she
needs to, based on their personal preferences.
“It is completely customized to the wishes of
our guests. If a guest wants a reminder text
two hours before her appointment, we will
do that. If another prefers a reminder phone
call, we will do that instead.”
Whether you use electronic communications,
are sticking to more traditional
marketing, such as postcards and phone calls,
or all of the above, the most important thing
to remember is to keep the lines of communication
open between you and your clients.
Just as you accommodate them from behind
the chair, keep that same mentality in your
marketing strategies and don’t push them to
accept anything they aren’t comfortable with.
Marissa Porcaro is the director of marketing for the Professional Beauty
Association. PBA advances the professional beauty industry by providing
our members with education, charitable outreach, government advocacy,
events and more. PBA is the largest organization of salon professionals with
members representing salons and spas, distributors, manufacturers and
beauty professionals/NCA. Visit probeauty.org or call 800.468.2274.
NORTHWEST STYLIST & SALON | MAY 2013 | 7