A client’s experience can be greatly affected by the salon’s ambiance. One often overlooked way you can create the right vibe for your salon—and even increase business—is by having appropriate music for customers.

(The right) salon music can make people spend

  • Clients are actually more likely to purchase expensive items when a salon is playing classical music as opposed to pop hits.
  • Music genres that are perceived as more sophisticated can also make customers assume a store is high-end. While classical music might be appropriate for a sophisticated, upscale salon or spa with older clientele, it might actually drive away young, hip clients from a trendy beauty salon.
  • At the end of the day, customize your playlist for the clientele you are trying to attract.

Put aside your musical tastes

  • Your clients should be the only people influencing the salon music you play. Gather some clues—what types of people come in for services? How do they dress? Are they old or young? Chic and avant-garde or minimalist and classic?
  • One foolproof plan is to have stylists ask clients throughout the day what they’d like to hear. You could also take a poll and look out for any trends in clients’ answers in order to build your playlist more effectively.

Search Spotify for inspiration

  • When in doubt, look on Spotify to generate a few ideas. There are numerous hair salon playlists to pick and choose music from so you can make a playlist perfectly tailored for your clientele.
  • A few years ago, Redken created its own channel and playlist on Spotify to build up their salons’ vibes and appeal to youthful clients. Some of Redken’s background music choices were even thematically tied to certain products and events, making their playlists double as marketing tools. Not a bad strategy to follow!

Make sure you’re licensed

  • It’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of creating your own perfect playlist for clients, but make sure you’re properly licensed to play the music first.
  • The United States Copyright Law is in place to protect artists’ rights so that their songs isn’t distributed or played in public without proper compensation.
  • There are serious penalties for not correctly following federal copyright laws, so don’t skimp on your research of salon music licensing and what type of license you need for your business.

There you have it! Follow these simple steps in order to perfect the atmosphere of your business, bring in more clients, and build the best hair salon experience for everyone involved.

Looking for tools to help you get started? See how StyleSeat can improve the way you run your business.  

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