Email marketing can be an extremely effective way for salons to reach existing customers and attract new ones.
With the right email marketing strategy, salons have a huge opportunity to increase bookings, drive retail sales, collect reviews, and grow their business.
In this article, we will share 13 powerful email marketing tips tailored specifically for salons to help triple your business. Whether you are just getting started with emails or looking to improve an existing campaign, these tips will guide you to email success.
Importance of Email Marketing for Salons
Email marketing is important for salons because it allows direct communication with clients in a personalized way. According to statistics, email generates 42 times the revenue compared to Facebook and Twitter combined.
Beyond increased revenue, effective email campaigns improve client retention, brand loyalty, cross-selling opportunities, and lower marketing costs over time.
With the ability to segment lists, target customized offers, drive repeat bookings, and stay top of mind between appointments, email marketing pays off exponentially for salons willing to put in the effort.
Consider that 80% of consumers sign up to receive emails from brands they love. Salon clients are no different. They want to hear from you, as long as you send valuable, relevant content. The ROI of getting email marketing right makes it well worth the investment.
Speaking of investment, I always recommend using email marketing platforms as they are packed with useful tools to make your email marketing life easier.
1. Collect Emails for Appointment Booking
Collecting customer emails for appointment booking provides wineries with both marketing and operational benefits. With permission to continue the conversation, wineries can nurture leads toward becoming loyal patrons.
Rather than third-party booking systems, have an in-house solution capturing emails at signup. Train tasting room staff to emphasize the value of joining your mailing list for event invites, new releases, and wine education. Incentivize signups by offering 10% off their first purchase.
Send a targeted welcome email after appointments thanking guests for visiting. Include photos from their tasting and suggestions for similar wines they favored to buy online. Mention upcoming events at the winery they might enjoy based on preferences shared during conversations.
With first-party email capture, keep communications flowing after the initial visit. Email nurturing guides appointments towards becoming informed, invested customers over time through valuable content that keeps your brand top of mind.
2. Send Welcome and Thank You Emails
The post-appointment experience is vital for conveying gratitude and nurturing new relationships. Yet many wineries squander this opportunity losing sales and brand affinity over time.
Start by sending a welcome email to first-time appointment guests introducing your winemaking philosophy and origin story. Share links to a few similar wines they enjoyed for easy reorder purchasing. Extend a coupon for 10% off their initial order.
Follow up every tasting with a thoughtful thank you email. Reattach their customized tasting sheet listing all wines sampled. Provide food pairing recipes featuring the standout bottles they raved about. Attach a survey link to submit formal appointment feedback and suggestions.
Additional touchpoints like happy birthday messages, special event invites, and new release announcements nurture connections over time. However, the initial post-appointment communication sets the trajectory of future affinity and conversions.
3. Segment Clients by Service Type
Rather than taking a one-size-fits-all approach, wineries should segment appointment attendees based on the type of tasting or tour booked. Customize future messaging aligned to the specific interests and budget levels signaled by their initial service selection.
Group exclusive wine club members touring special reserves into premium segments. Promote new sommelier-curated shipments and VIP access to rarefied vintages. Segment couples enjoying a wine and cheese pairing into foodie buckets then share gourmet recipe content.
Distinguish novice drinkers there to learn the winemaking process through educational sessions. Send beginner wine terminology cheat sheets and introductory flight options to match approachable palette preferences seen during their visit.
Capture detailed client activity at every touchpoint. Identify the triggers that influence customer behaviors most positively. Then deliver hyper-personalized email follow-ups based on the granular profiles assembled via CRM and list segmentation.
4. Promote New Styles, Trends, and Products
Email marketing provides wineries with the ideal channel to announce new wine styles, emerging varietal trends, and expanded product lines to engaged patrons. Subscribers welcome insider access to the latest developments not seen by the general public.
Producing a new vintage? Spotlight fermentation methods, oak barrel sourcing, and extended bottle aging through video tours inside your cellars. For limited releases, share the exact quantity produced and tasting notes from early samplings so recipients can preorder bottles ahead of thirsty crowds.
Observing greener preferences among patrons? Promote new sustainably-farmed estate vineyards or biodynamic agriculture practices via infographic explainers. Amp excitement by contrasting the improved terroir and harvest quality against previous vintages.
While social media provides a broader reach, email enables promotional messaging with more teeth. The buyer intent signaled via past purchases means pitched products and topics resonate better, leading to higher sales conversions. Early email access drives demand, mindshare, and exclusivity around new releases.
5. Highlight Special Deals and Offers
Wineries can leverage emails to highlight special deals and offers to incentivize purchases from subscribers with proven buying propensity. Rather than blasting sitewide sales to the general public, targeted email promotion of exclusive savings and perks carries more weight with an invested audience.
For example, announce a 24-hour flash sale of award-winning Cabernets normally $75 per bottle now 50% off for email list members only. The urgency and scarcity will spark action from recipients who recognize outsized value. Or showcase limited-edition specialty wine gift baskets packed with tasting favorites now shipping free through the holidays when subscribers use a VIP promo code.
Reward member milestones like birthdays and loyalty anniversaries with special achievement coupons. A creative idea is “Back It Up Tuesdays” – on the first Tuesday of each month, offer previous year vintages of rare pour reserves at steep discounts to make room for the newest stocks. Subscribers appreciate insider access to surplus still in its prime at clearance cost.
Sending exclusive savings by email allows targeting promotions precisely versus mass market dispersion. The restricted offers are distinctly reserved for subscribers’ eyes to keep your brand top of mind as they await and redeem the next irresistible deal.
6. Send Birthday Offers and Discounts
Birthday promotional emails represent low-hanging fruit to delight subscribers, strengthen loyalty, and generate incremental sales. A personalized email with exclusive savings tied to their special day makes recipients feel valued as more than just a number.
Depending on list size, send batch or individual Birthday Greetings highlighting subscriber tenure milestones like 3 years with your wine club. Include a coupon for 20% off their purchase valid for 30 days so they can grab bottles and celebrate properly. Offer complimentary tasting passes if their birthday falls within a month of the email send date.
Get creative remixing classic birthday freebies. For example, provide a voucher for one free bottle from your tasting menu – enabled as soon as the recipient visits your winery to “blow out the candle” with a toast using their birthday pour.
Heartfelt birthday wishes coupled with exclusive promotions not only make loyal customers feel special but also drive higher conversion rates and order values from recipients appreciative of your thoughtful gesture. Just be sure to stop sending birthday emails once they unsubscribe so gamification doesn’t backfire.
7. Share Seasonal Look Books and Inspiration
Capitalizing on seasonal opportunities in email marketing is wise for wineries aiming to align wines with the changing times of the year. As the calendar flips to new months, update promotional imagery, flavors, and activations to match ever-shifting consumer mindsets.
For example, refresh email templates in spring with bright, airy designs featuring patron parties on the picnic grounds under blooming vines. Spotlight lighter style wines like a floral Rosé or refreshing Sauvignon Blanc perfect for warmer months. Share seasonal small-bite recipes ideal for outdoor unwinding with each sip.
Come December, unveil a holiday gift lookbook filled with wintry and festive bottles ideal for party hosting, client gifting, or cozying up next to the fireplace—radiate warmth by highlighting fuller body reds and aged reserve options. Provide pairing guidance on wines that complement traditional holiday meals. Offer free custom engraving and gift wrapping to minimize purchasing friction.
While wine quality remains consistent over the months, contextual cues influence situational appeal. Match email creatives, wine recommendations, and limited offers to the seasonal mindset subscribers embrace at a given calendar juncture.
8. Utilize Automation for Appointment Reminders
Missed appointments from forgetful guests represent lost revenue and negative experiences for wineries. However, staff lack the bandwidth to manually confirm every booking. Automated emails eliminate no-shows through friendly nudges at scale.
Tools like Mailchimp integrate with your booking calendar, automatically sending reminder emails at set increments before each scheduled appointment. First, ping guests 7 days out from their selected time slot, getting the event back on their radar early enough to reschedule if needed.
Follow up 2 to 3 days pre-visit recapping salient booking details – date, start time, confirmed attendees, parking instructions. Reiterate any required pre-payment or dress code policies to minimize onsite friction. Finally, send a last call reminder the morning of especially for larger groups reconfirming headcount.
Most email marketing platforms make it easy to automate your campaigns according to any chosen triggers, like the one in the example below.
Automated reminders provide a world-class customer experience through exceptional follow-up care, reducing empty slots from forgetful guests. Studies show confirmation emails decrease no-shows by over 20%, translating directly to tangible revenue recovery and fewer disappointed tourists turned away on arrival.
9. Send Cart Abandonment Emails for Online Booking
Frustration brews when thirsty wine lovers fill appointment calendars only to bail before confirming their booking. Wineries lose revenue from calendar blocks remaining unused and turn away later requests that could have been accommodated.
Combat orphaned bookings by automating cart abandonment emails when folks select times but don’t finish their reservation. After just 10 minutes, send a friendly nudge reminding them slots remain on hold along with an easy link to wrap up scheduling.
Sweeten the message by including a coupon for 10% off add-on tasting experiences like a food pairing flight or vineyard tour when they complete registration in the next 24 hours. For particularly popular slots, you could even open up double time slots if abandoned bookings fail to convert after the follow-up sequence to capture backup demand.
Booking abandonment revenges anticipate and combat disappointing cancellations from unfinalized appointments lingering in no man’s land. Friendly automation keeps your calendar filled and appointment revenue unlocked.
10. Build a Loyalty Program with Exclusive Perks
Loyalty programs that reward return guests’ uniquely catered experiences inspire lasting connections with your winery. Use emails to nurture VIPs by giving insider access, surprises, and delights based on tenure milestones and continued patronage over time.
For example, after a tourist couple’s fifth visit to your tasting room over a few years, elevate them to “Premier Circle” status visible on their loyalty ID cards granting 10% discounts on reorders and wine club memberships.
Send a special welcome email detailing unique benefits like priority notifications on rare releases, free tastings on their anniversary, invitations to new vintage launches, and even discounted stays at your on-site vineyard cottages.
Further, establish tiered loyalty levels based on continued purchases, whether wine club subscriptions or wine and food pairing experiences booked. Identify advocates who organically share your brand in reviews and social media content.
Wow, loyal supporters enhancing the winery’s reputation with handwritten thank you notes, complimentary estate grapevine adoption, and invitations as VIP guests for annual crush celebrations.
Email allows cost-efficient, personalized administration of otherwise complex loyalty rewards at scale. Thoughtful tiered perks cultivate emotional connections with delighted supporters as the winery brand intertwines ever deeper into the fabric of their lifestyles.
11. Spotlight Featured Stylists and Services
Email marketing represents a free and effective channel for wineries to highlight their lineup of tasting experiences and showcase resident wine experts facilitating memorable visits. Rather than keeping talented staff hidden behind the scenes, profile their credentials, specialties, and service philosophies to get guests excited about booking the perfect on-site adventure.
For example, announce new wine and food pairing classes led by your executive chef sommelier woven between 1-ounce pours of rare finds from the cellar. Describe the culinary journey from the vineyard to the kitchen the chef will narrate between precision courses.
Or introduce newly added private barrel tastings guided by the winery’s chief winemaker himself. Profile his pursuits traveling globally to prestigious wine regions to refine palate discernment and blending artistry over decades now poured into the bottles patrons will sample.
Compelling service copywriting transports the imagination to exciting moments soon delighting the senses on property. Vivid staff spotlights feel like insider word of mouth generating appointments specifically requesting the star stylist by name to lead their tasting.
12. Provide Sneak Peaks and “Behind-the-Scenes” Content
Email subscribers crave exclusive behind-the-scenes access to winemaking processes typically hidden from the public. Sneak peek content builds excitement and affinity by pulling back the curtain on the artistic efforts required before bottles reach their cellar shelves.
Share brief video clips touring the crush pad during active harvest seasons showing grapes dumped into fermentation tanks. Timelapse the pressing, skinning, and first stages of barrel aging set to dramatic music once primary fermentation commences transforming sugar into alcohol.
Release episodic video journals documenting the year-long journey of featured vintages from soil to stem to fermentation and finally bottling. Interview winemakers about distinct terroir and seasonal impacts on the grapes’ development. Discuss oak selection and deliberate blending decisions to achieve complexity and balance.
The insider access makes subscribers feel like VIPs observing the fascinating wine science at work firsthand. Drama and anticipation build allegiance leading up to eventually sampling the hand-crafted elixir once perfectly aged and ready for optimum enjoyment. Sneak peeks by email turn patrons into invested fans.
13. Measure Email Metrics to Optimize Campaigns
The pathway to continuously improving email performance begins with accurately monitoring key engagement and conversion metrics. Quantify opens, clickthrough rates, and revenue impact by campaign to guide data-driven optimizations.
Tools like MailChimp shines light on granular metrics otherwise invisible without analytics. Track subscriber growth over time, automation triggered, scroll rates measuring content consumption, links clicked, and conversions by offer type. See total email revenue influence monthly and segment metrics by loyalty tier.
Let data determine the ideal send cadence and days. Test subject lines for open rate lift. Experiment with different calls to action based on performance. Gauge preferences on discount levels that move the needle. Confirm which special events and new releases create the most buzz by the interest signals registered.
Rather than flying blind, allow email metrics to illuminate the precise combinations of timing, content, and offers most compelling. Continually refine based on feedback loops to align communication with the underlying subscriber view into their interests.
Wineries can catalyze growth by optimizing the post-visit experience through targeted email nurturing. Personalized welcome and thank you messages after appointments lay the foundation for an ongoing relationship.
Segmented promotions matched to service types and observed wine preferences encourage reorders. Automated confirmations reduce no-shows while sneak peek content builds fan affinity. As metrics analysis guides strategy, wineries turn casual visitors into brand devotees through memorable email follow-up.