Your website is often the first impression potential new clients have of your salon. That’s why it’s so important to avoid common salon website mistakes that could turn customers away and make you lose revenue. After all, your website works for you 24/7, so increasing salon website traffic and conversions is critical.
In this blog, we’ll review ten frequent errors salon owners make on their websites and easy ways to fix them. Optimizing your online presence can help you attract more appointments and grow your business daily.
10 Salon Website Mistakes To Avoid
1. Not Having a Website at All
It may seem obvious, but over 40% of salon owners don’t have a website. With one, you can connect with 90% of potential new clients who search for businesses online first.
We get it – building a website seems daunting and expensive. But having an online home for your salon is table stakes these days. You need that digital space to bring fresh leads and keep your business thriving. If you want to learn more about designing a website, visit our blog: The Ultimate Guide to Designing a Salon Website.
You have a few options to get a website up and running:
DIY website builders: User-friendly platforms like Squarespace and Wix make it somewhat easy to create your site without needing to code. You do, however, need to have some design skills and an understanding of the salon website SEO practices to make your website work for you.
Web design agencies: Hire a freelancer or agency to custom-build and design your dream site. It may take months and cost over $10,000, but it will be fully customized to your needs.
All-in-one marketing platforms: Companies like Glammatic offer done-for-you websites at very affordable prices. Plus, we offer other marketing services – basically your one-stop shop.
The first step is simply getting any website live. You can optimize it over time. No online presence means leaving money on the table in this digital age. Learn more about how to build a salon website the right way for you.
2. Not Optimizing for Mobile
Did you know over 70% of website traffic comes from mobile devices? Most people are visiting your site on phones, not desktop computers.
Yet, it’s easy to only think about the desktop experience when building your salon website design. Be sure to view your website on your mobile device. Check how the design and speed look on a phone.
Key areas to evaluate on mobile:
Booking visibility: Is your “Book Now” button or call-to-action prominently displayed?
Branding: Is your logo and branding clear and readable?
Images: Do photos and videos look high quality?
Speed: Does each page load within 2 seconds? Slow mobile sites lead to high exit rates.
Optimizing for mobile should be a top priority, given usage stats. Don’t make a key website mistake here.
FREE Website Audit
3. Slow Page Load Times
Continuing our mobile discussion, site speed is critical. With short attention spans, fast page loads keep people engaged and create the perfect salon website optimization.
Slow load times lead visitors to click away and find another salon’s site. Quickly losing people’s interest means you also lose potential appointments.
Ideally, each page on your site should load within 2 seconds on mobile. Test different pages yourself to see if they meet this benchmark.
If your website is slow, look into optimizations like:
- Image compression
- Too many videos
- Minifying code
- Using a caching plugin
- Upgrading web hosting
Every improvement to reduce load times helps keep visitors on your site longer. Those extra pageviews could convert into booked appointments.
4. Cluttered Design
Another salon website mistake we see a lot is that when building your salon website, it’s tempting to cram in loads of information. You likely want to showcase everything your business does.
But take the visitor’s perspective. They usually care about finding 1-2 key pieces of information, like services or booking.
Cluttered sites with too much text and imagery overwhelm people. It makes it harder to find what they need.
Focus your homepage on primary user goals, like:
- Listing your services
- Contact info
- Steps to book an appointment
You can include extra information on other pages for visitors to dive into. Remove distractions from key pages to enable visitors to take desired actions.
5. Poor Visuals
Bad Images is a big salon website mistake! Salon website aesthetics and investing in professional photos and videos pay off by making your salon shine online. However, quality visual content costs money that some business owners are hesitant to spend.
Great images grab attention and help you stand out from competitors. They also bring your salon to life on your website and other marketing materials.
Think through what visuals would be useful:
- Salon interior and exterior
- Headshots of team members
- Products you use
- Examples of hairstyles and services
The initial expense delivers value for years by defining your brand’s aesthetics and showcasing offerings. To learn more about branding and visuals, visit this article – Salon Branding 101: How to Show Off Your Salon’s Unique Style and Personality
FREE Website Audit
6. Not Showcasing Your Uniqueness
Most cities have multiple salon options. You need to promote what makes your business special compared to others nearby.
Figure out your core differentiators. Do you excel at specific services? Take an educational approach? Have an artistic vibe?
Whatever your salon’s personality and strengths, highlight them upfront on your website. For example, the colors and fonts you use, logo design, and messaging should all align with your uniqueness.
This helps you stand out online when prospective customers are evaluating multiple salons. Give people reasons to choose you over alternatives.
7. Boring Content
You may think packing as much content as possible onto your site is best. But what matters far more is that your content is engaging and relevant.
Instead of writing generic descriptions, use salon website best practices and create pages tailored to what visitors want to know. Useful topics include:
- Explaining your services in an enticing way
- Fun product details or recommendations
- Appointment booking process that is simple and easy to do
- Bios for stylists that make them relatable and help to build trust
In addition to service info, consider adding a blog. Writing posts around hair care tips and trends shows your expertise. Visitors appreciate the free advice.
8. Not Optimizing for SEO
All the website optimization matters little if people can’t find your site through search engines like Google. Fortunately, you can take steps to improve search visibility.
Search engine optimization (SEO) allows your salon’s website to rank higher in local search results. Higher positions mean more website traffic.
SEO tactics range from improving technical site elements (like speed) to creating targeted content around keywords people search for.
You can start with quick wins like:
- Adding meta descriptions so your site snippets stand out in results
- Including city and service names in page titles and content
- Regularly publishing new blog content to attract search engines
- Regularly doing salon website updates to show your website is active
Few competitors focus on SEO. By optimizing your presence, you can surpass other local salons in search results.
FREE Website Audit
9. Lack of Calls-to-Action
Calls-to-action (CTAs) are buttons or links prompting visitors to take immediate action. Yet many sites need more CTAs to guide people.
The most obvious CTA is a “Book Now” or “Request Appointment” button. This should be prominently displayed on each page. Make booking frictionless.
Beyond appointment booking, add CTAs to:
- Contact page with phone, email, and directions
- Services page so people can learn about and choose offerings
- Staff bios so visitors can learn about and request specific stylists
CTAs remove doubt about the next steps. People want to know how to engage with your salon – tell them directly on each page.
10. An Outdated Site
Creating a website is the first step. Maintaining and updating it is equally important.
Stale websites send the wrong signals, implying you’re out of business. Keep info like staff and service listings current.
Adding fresh content also tells search engines your salon is active. Search prioritizes sites that regularly publish new pages and posts.
Don’t just set up your website then forget about it. Revisit it every month to:
- Update text or replace poor photos
- Add new service or product descriptions
- Publish a new blog post
- Promote current deals or events
A website is never “done”. The sites that rank the highest stay relevant by constantly adding value.
The Key Is Taking Action
Avoiding these ten common salon website mistakes helps your salon website convert more prospective clients. But you don’t have to tackle every issue at once.
The key is picking one or two areas to improve each month. Even small, incremental changes add up in the long run.
A website that captures your brand personality and makes booking easy builds trust with new visitors. It shows you’re a modern, digital-first business ready to exceed customer expectations.
If you need help further optimizing your website or executing other digital marketing initiatives, we’d love to chat. Reach out to schedule a free digital strategy session to discuss your salon’s goals.
Let’s grow your business together by maximizing your online presence.
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