Flaunt it if You Got it!

Your smile lines rock. Your pedicures leave clients speechless and your nail art is so detailed nobody in the salon can recreate it. So when was the last time you got a little press?

Even if you have a full book, good public relations ensures that when openings happen they will be filled quickly. It also makes it possible to attract new hires that will make you proud.

The time might be right to start putting together a press pack. A basic press pack will contain a short bio that outlines your training, awards, photos, and specialties. A list of quotes is a nice touch. These can be tips editors can use in stories or sidebars of articles. A salon menu and any other printed materials such as past articles or tear sheets will round out the packet.

Write a letter to the local fashion and beauty editors of the newspapers within driving distance from the salon. Introduce yourself and offer your services in the case that the editors need an expert for an article. You may also offer to write a small guest piece. These pieces would be informative and not about the salon. They are designed to position yourself as the expert that you are. Browse through your trade magazines. Make a list of the writers it contains. Make contact with professional writers and let them know you are interested in participating in future articles.

Be ready when the opportunity arrives. When the phone call comes, be prepared by having a list of a few short articles you have prepared previously. Start working on this now. You can get someone to help with the writing if you are uncomfortable with putting it together. Start snapping pictures in the salon. The best pictures are active candid shots of nail techs performing services on clients. Take many pictures in a high resolution. The better the resolution, the better they show up in print. Get clients to sign a model release so that you can use the pictures whenever you want. Try different angles and back up the media they are stored on.

Write press releases. If the salon does something noteworthy—canned food drive, charity event, barbeque, etc.—send a press release to all of the local newspapers. You can find simple samples for writing press releases on the internet. Take a look at the Internet for inspiration. After editors see several press releases, they start to get a feel for the salon and you. You will be surprised at how many will pick up the phone when they have a story to do—and call you.

So start getting ready now. You never know when a writer, editor, or journalist will be calling. It could be the big break your salon needs to get noticed. Need more pointers or guidance on garnering press, feel free to email me iNails at hotmail dot com and I’ll be happy to point you in the right direction.

When Bad Days Strike!

Bad days have the potential to bring out the worst in us. Stack the deck in your favor by adopting some of the techniques professionals use to lessen the effect on your business. http://tinyurl.com/5zycfx Your future income depends on it!

What a BeautyWriter Does on the Weekend

People ask me what I do and I tell them, "I own a little salon spa and I'm a writer." That's all true. But what do I do? Hmmmm... The short answer is...whatever suits me!

What suited me this past weekend was far from what was supposed to be. I am in love with distance. Precisely, the distance of the marathon. About ten years ago I asked my husband, "What would you say if I said I wanted to run a marathon?"

His response was the same as always. "Whatever you want."

And so I did. My first marathon was a mass of blisters and soreness, punctuated by the powerful endorphins that pumped through my body at mile 24. I was hooked and still am. I was due to run a marathon this past weekend and had been training for months when a serious medical issue brought everything to a halt. Ever the optimist, I still registered for the half marathon.

My family made me promise that I would not be stubborn (a tall order for me) and that I would take it easy and not push it too much. I dutifully promised. So what I needed was a new agenda. The plan became to meet as many people as I could and enjoy the run.

What I found was that it was my all time worst finish time (next to last in my age group) but it was so much fun. I found so many interesting people along the way. Oddly enough, some of the folks I met were from the beauty industry and others, well, not. But did I mention how much fun I had?

I'm going to veer a bit from my beauty platform over the next few posts to share some of their stories with you. These are the stories of people like Ralph, a surfer traversing the country and raising funds for injured vets in his newly restored, red Woody. How cool is that? Check his blog out at www.SurferRalph.com and see what he's up to. I met Stacey at the Expo. She is a spa director. Small world, huh?

There was a lesson in the deviation from the original plan. In being driven to constantly improve my finish times, I was missing out on the beauty of the race. I was missing out on the beauty of the people who ran along beside me. I was missing out on the landscape and local flair. Well, I probably won't abandon my urge to improve but I will take time to enjoy the road.

So if the juice still flows to charge my laptop, and work doesn't overwhelm me, I'll be back to share some of the highlights of OBX2008. Until then, one foot in front of the other and enjoy the beauty in everything.

Sunday, October 5th, 2008

It's a pleasure to meet you.
If you would like to chat or follow me online, just go to www.twitter.com/BeautyWriter and you find me tweeting away between appointments. You can also add me on facebook and myspace too. http://www.tinyurl.com/4cypjs or www.myspace.com/sandinmysuit
While you are at it, tuck away my name and and email address:
Erin Snyder Dixon iNails@hotmail.com
If you are in the beauty industry, I want to know you. If you just love anything to do with inside and outside beauty, I want to hear from you too!
My passion is uniting the professional beauty industry with the consumer in a way that lets us enjoy the pleasures in life. That means enjoying each other's company and taking the experience home.
Over time, I run into a lot of people who think that the spa experience is just out of their reach. It's surely not. Aside from the healing human touch, you can recreate the experience at home.
People will often say, "Doesn't hat hurt your spa and salon business?" and the resounding answer is "no".
The more people who learn how to destress in a healthy way, the better off we all are. Many of my clients were do-it-yourselfers for one reason or another. Busy Moms, workaholics who couldn't get out of the office, or men who thought they just didn't belong in the salons.
Well, I'm here to tell you- professionals and clients alike- that there is a big need out there. I would like to show you both how to find each other and get more out of that relationship over the years.
So, Don't be stranger. Email me, twitter me, or friend me on another space. If I'm not there, send me an invite to your network and I'll join in on the action.
Till I get to chat with you again, it's been fun,
Erin Snyder Dixon "BeautyWriter"
iNails@hotmail.com
BeautyJournalist@aol.com