Shortcuts Software recently released a booking application for Facebook, and also partnered with Dermalogica, to present seminars in early November educating beauty professionals on how to start their online social marketing.
The seminars have toured the east coast of Australia; in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney, presenting to small groups, educating salon owners how to get online.
With social media the new word-of-mouth marketing, Shortcuts has observed that the beauty industry seems reluctant to move into the arena despite being a powerful advertising tool.
Shortcuts Software’s strategic planning manager, Tricia Norman, said social media marketing is a key medium to increase brand awareness online.
“[Yet] only 22 percent of the industry has developed a website for their business, so diving into social media can appear overwhelming,” Mrs Norman said. “The average consumer spends three hours on Facebook so spa owners can contact their clients in real time, with success.”
The company recently launched a booking application on Facebook for salons and spas. The application, which Shortcuts says is a world-first is specifically targeted to salons and spas who want to connect with their customers through social networking.
Shortcuts Software CEO Rebecca Randle said clients want to use the internet to interact with their customer online and to allow online bookings for their clients.
“The Shortcuts BookME is [a] powerful and efficient online booking software but some of our clients, like small businesses, are unable to access it because they do not have a website,” Mrs Randle said. “An online booking application on Facebook gives clients an opportunity to have an online presence without having to spend time and money to develop a website for a company.
“The BookME application on Facebook is great because customers make a booking straight to the actual appointment book rather than a request-based system, which improves efficiency for the company and the customer,” Mrs Randle said.