Why Social Media Matters in the Barbering World
The social media world might make you cringe. You might be totally uninterested in what the latest influencers are doing, why those TikTok videos are so funny, and why Facebook is saturated with all kinds of political posts. In fact, social media might be the last place you want to be—and that’s totally fair.
But as a barber, you’re kind of required to be there.
Hear us out.
Social media isn’t just cute puppy photos, girls trying on expensive outfits, and your Great Aunt leaving you message after message on your personal FB wall asking you to come visit more often.
Social media is the most powerful form of digital marketing out there right now, and ignoring this fact is only going to make growing your business harder.
If that sentence didn’t quite hit, read it again. If it’s still not hitting, consider this.
About 3.5 billion people are considered daily, active users on social media—that equates to about 45% of the population. Facebook, the market leader, is used by (roughly) two-thirds of American adults, and about 90.4% of millennials, 77.5% of Gen X, and 48.2% of baby boomers are on social media regularly.
In other words, no matter who your market is, social media is where your audience lives—if you’re not running a strong social media presence for your brand, you’re basically shouting into a void hoping your clients (potential and current) are hearing you.
With social media, you’re basically given a direct line to your customers—and that’s something you should absolutely take advantage of.
Not sure where to start with this, exactly? That’s OK. You don’t need to be a total social media pro to get this going, you just need to be willing to give it a try.
Our advice? Start with our 101 intro right here—The Barber’s Guide to Social Media.
This easy-to-read guide will give you a fresh perspective on social media and teach you how to enact some new digital marketing strategies ASAP.
Still not sold on social being a big part of your business? Keep reading—we can bet you’ll be on board after you give the rest of this article a scan.
Digital Marketing & Brand Identity
We said it before and we’ll say it again—social media marketing is currently the most powerful and effective form of digital marketing. You don’t want to sleep on that.
But more importantly, it’s also a huge part of your brand’s identity. Social media campaigns, activity, and the all-around setup are pieces of your brand identity puzzle—how you interact with people, how you design your pages, and what you post on your social media platforms all tell a story about your brand. You want to make sure you’re taking advantage of this cohesive piece of your brand identity puzzle.
Networking
There’s no denying that everyone is on social media. (You remember those statistics we pointed out earlier, right? Can’t argue with those). Social media creates a digital world where the doors of networking are wide open.
You’re granted access to mentors, educators, and partners that you might never have had the chance to access if social media didn’t exist. Social media gives you the chance to connect with other barbers, keep up with what’s trending, and learn so much about your industry—that’s something that can only benefit your business in the long run.
Customer Communication is a Key Factor
Maybe most importantly of all, your clients (potential and current) expect you to be on social media. And further, they don’t just expect you to have some semblance of a social media account, they expect you to use that account. Social media is the way of the world—it’s where people look for your business information, get an idea of your brand, and further, where they expect to communicate with you.
If you’re not active on social media, we can guarantee that your customers are going to notice—and it’s likely they’ll be more inclined to work with someone who can communicate with them directly through the platform of their choice.
The good news? You don’t have to have a degree in digital marketing to make a wicked social media strategy. A solid strategy is all about leveraging your brand’s identity with consistency, planning, and some solid creativity.
If you’re interested in more social media advice that can help skyrocket your barbering career, we’ve got the ultimate solution for you.
Subscribe right here for access to our regular newsletter so you can get all the deets on when our blog posts are dropping, what’s hot in the industry, and even some barbering gossip.
