Like it or not, using videos in your salon marketing has become more important than ever. Platforms like Facebook and Instagram are encouraging every business to create and post more videos (they naturally get more reach than the average photo) because that’s what people want to see on social media now.

From Facebook Live to IGTV, videos are not going away; they’re only becoming more important. That’s because videos show your clients the “real-life” behind your business. They get to see you and your personality and staff and connect with you in a way that photos don’t allow them to.

This could either be very good news or slightly concerning news, depending on how comfortable you are with videos. If have haven’t done many videos before or you’re camera shy, you might be relying on photos to promote your salon.

But videos are the future, and you need to embrace them if you want to build your brand, your client base, and your social media engagement.

This blog post will inspire you with ideas and inspiration in creating fun salon videos that your Facebook followers will love. I hope that you’ll feel encouraged to try out videos (even if you’re scared) and confident about exactly what to film.

Don’t worry, everyone feels awkward on video!

When I chat with salon owners, one of the things I hear a lot is: “I know I should be doing more videos, but I really don’t want to!” A lot of business owners haven’t gotten over that mental block of being on video.

In fact, I put up a poll in my private Facebook group for salon owners, asking them what is standing in their way about doing videos.

“I’m camera shy” was by far the number 1 reason:

I completely sympathize. It took me a whole year of being in business before I felt confident enough to post a video of myself on Facebook. But I am so glad I got over my fear.

In our marketing, it’s so easy to post stock photos, photos of your work, or graphics with text on top of them. It’s easy because we don’t have to be vulnerable. We’re not “the star” of these photos.

Even when it comes to photos, I know it’s hard to show photos of yourself (especially if you have been hiding for so many years). If posting photos of yourself is difficult, it’s ESPECIALLY hard to get on video. I’m an extrovert and I always wanted to work in television. And even for me it was hard. 

I was scared of people that people I would see video and judge me. and I felt weird-looking and thought I sounded awkward. 

But I promise you that once you do that first video - you will sweat before press “publish” - it gets SO much easier from there.  You’ll see that you get tons of love and encouragement from your friends and family. You’ll see that your clients and followers LOVE your video and want more.

And the day after you post that first video, you’ll feel more confident and ready to do more, longer, and more “authentic” video. I promise that it gets easier and you’ll even learn to love them.

For my own video journey, it’s been a couple years, and now I’ve been doing a 30-45 minute Facebook LIVE once a week. I honestly never thought I would get to that point. EVER. 

Instead, now I know that video is the best way to create a real connection with my community, and to educate. Not every one of your followers is a “reader”. Not everyone learns best by reading Instagram captions, Facebook text, and blog posts like you’re doing now.

A HUGE amount of people prefer to learn and get inspired through visuals, especially VIDEO. And I know that you have a huge amount of knowledge and love to share with the world, don’t hide it! 

If you need a little bit more inspiration, think more about who will be watching your videos - how you can help, guide or inspire them - than yourself. If you make that your goal, you can’t go wrong. 

And think about taking baby steps for your videos. You don’t need to jump into a one-hour live video on your first try! Start out with really short, pre-recorded videos that just take a couple minutes to make. They don’t need to be perfect! In fact, the less time you spend making your video, the better you’ll feel because you can just get it over with!

If you’re still unsure about how to do those “baby steps” and what to film, keep reading!

7 ideas for videos your followers will love watching

Okay, now let’s get to filming! If you’re excited about making videos work, but you’re not sure what to actually put in your videos, don’t worry! These 7 video ideas will help ease you into videos without getting stressed: they start out really simple, and as you get more comfortable on camera you can do longer videos.

This is pretty similar to my own “video journey”. I started out with just a quick video intro to myself (which felt awkward but people loved it!) and then graduated to doing longer videos, and then even live videos!

Take a look at some of these ideas and see if you can incorporate them into your Facebook marketing.

1: Make a 30 second video of you talking to your phone and introducing yourself. Give a little bit of personal detail and just have fun. 

If you’ve never done a video before, this is the perfect place to start. Remember that friends, family, clients and Facebook followers will LOVE seeing your face in their news feed.

Post the video to Facebook and on your Instagram feed. Keep the description simple and say something like “Hi everyone! I’m Stephanie from Sunny Salon. I’ve been pretty quiet and focused on work, but I really wanted to introduce myself and say hi! It’s been a while! <3” 

Trust me, you’ll get an enthusiastic response and feel much better about doing videos after this.

Here’s an example of a fun intro video from Be Bronze Studio. (Note: your video doesn’t need to be professional edited - keep it simple but let your personality shine through!).

2. Do a one-minute video talking about your current seasonal promotion

This video takes a bit of pressure off of you to just show yourself, plus your viewers will love feeling like they’re getting the “inside scoop” about a promotion going on.

You can do this video by introducing yourself and your promotion with your “selfie” camera, then flipping your phone around and showing your salon, your promotions, your products, etc.

Here’s an example of a fun promo video from The Extensionist:

3: Do a two minute talking about the benefits of your favourite service

See how we’re slowly graduating to longer videos? This one’s a fun video to make because you can talk about something you’re passionate about, and you are starting to turn to educational content, which your clients and followers really want to hear!

For this clip, you can put your camera on a tripod or have someone at your salon hold it so it’s steady. Make a few notes ahead of time about 2-3 points you want to go through, but you don’t need a script, in fact it’s better if you don’t have a script. 

If you’re still not feeling 100% ready to go on camera, you can film your service, and then edit your video to include your voice describing how it works/the benefits, or add in a text overlay like Ici Paris Skin Care Clinic:

4: Do a “narrative” tour of your salon

I’m actually surprised I haven’t seen more of these “tour” videos on salon Facebook pages! They’re perfect for pinning to the top of your page so it’s the first thing people will see when checking you out.

You might think it’s uninteresting to give a salon tour because you see it every day. But TRUST me people want to see the inside of your business! Show them the details they might not have known about. Introduce them to your team members. Talk about some of your little-known services.

For this video, you can just hold up your camera phone and walk around your salon narrating what you’re showing. It’s so simple but powerful!

Check out this fun tour video from Eco Spa:

5: Film a video of you working on a client

People LOVE watching you work on video. It’s mesmerizing and a chance to educate as well! You might think that no one cares, but TRUST me! Everyone loves watching a good spray tanning video, makeup, balayage, nails etc. If you put your camera on a tripod and speed up the video using an app like Lapse, you can even do a fun time-lapse, like Blondies of Melbourne:

6: Make a quick “tutorial” style video

Little “beauty hacks” - I’m sure you have a TON of them that your Facebook followers would LOVE to see! How do you blow-dry your bangs in the morning? How do you fill in your eyebrows or highlight your cheekbones? What’s the best way to exfoliate before a spray tan? If you share your knowledge (even with the most simple things!) in a video, I promise people will love it.

A simple video showing how to get “Beachy waves” will get a ton of attention, like Drybar did here:

7: Do a 10 minute Facebook Live answering the most common questions you get asked as a beauty professional

I saved this one for last because I know that live videos can be terrifying. I put off doing live videos FOREVER because I just couldn’t bear the thought of saying something stupid or completely blanking - and not being able to take it back. 

Facebook Live videos get SUCH better reach, engagement than regular videos. And I promise once you do your first, you’ll feel SO much better and feel confident about doing another.

So go live on your Facebook page (learn exactly how to do it here) and do a quick 5 minute video about something your really knowledgable about. Answering common questions is easy because it takes pressure off of you. I find “Question and Answer” style video are especially easy to do. 

Here’s an example of a longer-form video answering a common question, by Blushington:

A few tips for filming great videos (even if you’re still nervous)

So you’re ready to bite the bullet and post your first video to Facebook. I’m so happy that you’ve decided to take the leap!

The most important tip I have for you is: "don’t overthink it”. Don’t try to make your video perfect, with a memorized script and amazing editing. Real and raw is best - and I PROMISE you that people really do want to watch your raw, imperfect videos.

Here are a few other tips to keep in mind when planning for your video:

• Start with short videos then move into longer videos. The first video example I gave you above is literally a 30 second clip. If you start out easy, it will only get easier from there!

• For equipment, if you’re just starting out keep it simple: a camera phone will do. Once you’ve been doing videos for a while you might want to invest in a mini phone ring light or a larger ring light for them.

• Everyone single one of us feels awkward and unattractive with a weird voice in our videos, you’re not alone! I recommend you don’t watch and rewatch your videos before or after posting. We are always more self-critical than anyone else is.

• Although you don’t need professional equipment, good lighting does make a big different to the quality of your video. Film near a window (with the light in font of you, not behind you), outside, or in a well-lit room.

• You also don’t need a professional microphone. Just make sure that there isn’t too much background noise if you’re filming inside your salon.

• Having an extra hand makes such a difference! Get a friend, family member, staff member etc to help with your video. They can hold your phone, give you feedback, and keep your energy up!

• If you’re stuck for ideas of what to film, think about what are the things you’re most passionate about (it will be easy to talk about, and your energy will shine through). What are the things your community, clients, and fans want to know? What are the most common questions you get asked about hair, nails, skin, beauty? What’s a common misconception in your industry?

• Often the most simple, basic videos turn out to be the most popular. You’d be surprised! Don’t try to make a masterpiece. Simple is often best.

• Imperfection can be your friend. People are tired of seeing corporate, businessy, “polished” things on social media.  They want real and raw videos showing the real you.

• Even if you do “screw up” in your video, that can be gold! Showing that you’re a real human that stumbles on your words, draws a blank, or even mispronounces a simple word (guilty!), can grow such a connection with viewers.

How to edit your videos

The great thing about the video ideas I gave above is that you don’t need to edit them. Real, raw, and unedited is perfectly fine when creating videos for Facebook.

However, once in a while you might want to create a more polished video (maybe if you’re creating a Facebook Ad video) that stitches together multiple clips, text and music.

I’ve tested a lot of different apps for making videos (you can find my blog post about it here), but by far my favourite is Quik. You can download the Quik video editor app on iPhone or Android, which makes it easy to create a polished video in 3 minutes.

Here’s how to do it:

1. Film or gather several different short video clips or photos on your phone. You could do a combination of you talking to the camera, video clips touring your salon, photos of you work, etc. Quik works best when you have multiple short clips to work with (10-20 second each is fine)

2. Download Quik and select which clips you want in your video (they need to be already on your phone)

3. Choose your video size - I prefer Square videos because they look good on mobile, desktop, Facebook and Instagram

4. Choose a video template from Quik’s many different options. Different templates give your video a different “vibe”

5. Edit the placement and timing of your clips. You can move them around until you’re happy with the flow.

6. Edit the music. Quik already comes with a pretty good music library. Make sure it’s soft enough that we can hear you talking.

7. Add descriptive text - maybe a bit of text about a promo you’re doing or your services.

8. Remove the Quik logo at the end to make your video look more professional

9. Download your finished video onto your phone and share!

What to do with your videos once you’ve filmed them

Whether you’ve edited your video or you’re just using the original, you need to share them! Video is such a powerful tool for promoting your personal brand as a beauty professional, and growing your business. You want to share them in as many places as you can!

Here are some ideas for where you can share your new videos (I recommend doing as many of these as you can!):

• This one’s pretty obvious but I wanted to put it out there: post the video to your Facebook business page! Include a fun, friendly description and explain what the video’s about.

• Pin the video to the top of your Facebook page so it always shows up at the top

• Share the video to your personal page and update your friends and family about your business (they will love it!)

• If you’re allowed to, share the video in local Facebook groups and introduce your community to your business that way

• If you have a Google My Business page for your salon (which I highly recommend!), share the video as a “post” on your page. People who search your business on Google will find your video!

• Upload your video to your salon’s Youtube channel.

• If you have an “about” page on your website, embed the video as a Youtube video on your about page.

• Post the video as an IGTV update (check out my blog post about IGTV for salons here)

• Share the video to your Instagram feed

• In your salon’s next email newsletter, include a link to your video with a photo preview (you can’t embed videos in email unfortunately)

• Last but not least, why not create a Facebook ad with your video? I’ll show you how to do that in the next section…

How to turn your best video into a Facebook ad 

If you follow my blogs and videos, you know I’m a HUGE fan of Facebook ads. I think they’re one of the most effective, affordable ways to get more clients and appointments.

And lucky for you, video ads are by far the BEST type of ad for grabbing attention and converting Facebook “browsers” into “buyers”.

So, now that you’ve gotten over your fear of videos, and you’ve spent some time filming and posting your videos in different places, why not create a Facebook ad with them?

(If you want to learn in-depth how to build effective Facebook Ad Campaigns, download my FREE eBook about salon Facebook ads below!)

Here’s how to turn your best Facebook video post into a high-performing ad:

1) Open the Facebook Ads manager and create a “Get messages” ad

I know that most of you are used to “boosting” posts on Facebook, but I’d love to introduce you to a very powerful tool: The Facebook Ads Manager. You can access it by going to facebook.com/adsmanager on your desktop or laptop.

Once you’re in the ads manager, click the green “+ Create” button, and choose “Messages” as your campaign objective.

This means that we’re going to have people send you a message in order to book an appointment

2) Choose your target demographic

On the next page, you’ll need to choose your target audience - who you want to see your ad on Facebook.

Choose your age range, gender, and choose a radius around your business (for example, 5 miles).

Under that, you’ll need to put in your budget. I recommend you start with $5 a day for the next 3 days.

3) Write the text of your ad to be attractive to new clients and get them interested in your offer

On the next page, you’ll need to write a description for your video. You’ll want to introduce yourself, call out the name of your city, tell people about a current promotion you’re doing, and tell them to “Message you” in order to get more info and book an appointment.

4) Upload your video and ad a “Send Message” button

Now it’s time to add your favourite video of the ones you’ve already created. Upload your video and don’t forget to select an attractive thumbnail and add captions.

After that, you can add a “messaging” button to the bottom of your video. This is how people will get in touch with you to book an appointment: They’ll click the “send a message” button under your post, start chatting with you/your page through messenger, and then some of them will book an appointment.

In conclusion

Video has become one of the most important things you can do to attract more salon clients online. There are hundreds of people in your city who are your PERFECT clients, but they need to feel a real connection with you before they try you out.

Video is by far the best way to start forming genuine connections on Facebook and Instagram. If you start with short simple videos and push past your camera shyness, I promise you’ll learn to love videos.

Through video tours, educational videos, tutorials, and more personal clips, you’ll start forming real bonds with people online that will then love to become loyal customers.