You may be the world’s most skilled tattoo artist. You possibly can whip up a mind-bending tattoo design in a few hours, and your creativity knows no bound. However, without getting out there…without selling your shop… you will not get where you want.
Marketing is an important aspect of doing business, and it’s the juice that powers small businesses to become globally recognized empires like Amazon. So, if your tattoo franchise is struggling to pick up speed, this article contains the information you have been missing out on.
We will discuss a few best tattoo shop marketing ideas you can try out. Ready to rock? Let’s boogie, then.
Best Tattoo Shop Marketing Ideas That Will Make Your Business Stand Out
Here are a few practical marketing ideas that your shop could benefit from:
1. Referrals
You hate sales pitches, don’t you? Salespersons, at times, can come off as pushy and uninteresting. For that matter, you might want to try a subtle strategy; referrals. Using your customers as a walking banner is not only an effective way to generate sales but an inexpensive approach as well.
So every time a client leaves your shop, especially if they are so happy about your job, ask them to recommend your shop to those within their circles.
2. Spruce up your shop
Looks do matter when it comes to the tattoo business. People who get tattoos are fashionable and will most likely be hesitant to enter a shop that looks rundown. So you need to spruce it up and hang some colourful and bold tattoo paintings on the wall. Get the best furniture if the budget allows.
Possibly the most important, the location needs to be modern. The beauty of having a modernistic, stylish, and good-looking shop is that the pictures will sell you more on social media and Google maps.
3. Go digital
Many people flock to social media for inspiration on what kind of tattoos to go for. What’s more is, many social media users are more inclined to get a tattoo. This is one of the core reasons to set up a page for your shop is essential.
Social media promotion will only be successful for those who post excellent quality content frequently. There’s more; you need to share good quality pictures and avoid filters to retain the authenticity of the work.
Don’t focus too much on posting. Reply to threads and offer advice as a way to build relationships. With time, you will gain a successful following without the need to spend a lot of money-unless you publish adverts. Here is a list of websites that will help you with your social media.
Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest are the best platforms to spend your energy on. LinkedIn will only be ideal for you to create your professional page and interact with fellow artists.
4. Offer discounts
You need to cultivate a habit of dishing out discounts, gifts, and other tempting offers. This is a time-tested strategy that keeps clients loyal to your shop. For this method, it would be better to work with advanced tattoo shop software with a customer management system that gives you a clear history and details of each client.
With the full picture of each client's spending at your shop, you can send them customized offers and discounts. Software systems can also greatly streamline day-to-day business operations from payroll to appointment and payments.
5. Attend tattoo conventions
Tattoo conventions are frequently attended by tattoo artists, ink lovers, and publishers. So, while you won’t get many customers there, the chances of forming long-term relationships with fellow professionals are high.
Through conventions, you’ll learn the new tattoo designs, equipment, and styles that haven’t gone mainstream yet. Furthermore, contests are held at conventions. If you get a chance to showcase your dexterity, publishers might want to feature your designs in their prints. And that is a golden chance for your shop's name to pop in front of many eyeballs.
6. List your business on Google My Business
Like car washes and gas stations, tattoo parlours also need physical residence. The beauty of that is that you get to list your business on Google My Business. Now, when someone searches for “tattoo shops near me,” yours will pop up amongst the options.
Essential tip; don’t just list your business and stop there. You need to upload top-quality photos of your work as well as a picture of both inside and outside your shop. Also, since clients leave a review on Google, ask some to write something positive about your business if they are satisfied.
If you can’t ask for positive feedback from your customers directly, write it on print or stickers and plaster it inside your shop.
7. Improve your skill
Do you know why some tattoo artists command top dollar for their work? Their skill is simply unmatched, and customers don’t mind queuing up. So if you keep working on your tattooing skills, soon, you won’t need to market aggressively, and your customers will do that for you.
Bonus ancillary tip: It always helps to keep a couple of tattoo consent forms handy for your clients.
Final thoughts
Customers will never know about your tattoo business unless you make them aware of it. And the only way to do that is through marketing. As you’ve seen, there are many ways to do that.
However, the best approach should be to combine different strategies. This way, you will not lose out on prime opportunities. Happy inking sessions.
Author Bio: Ashley Johnson drives content strategy at TattooPro.io, a cutting-edge cloud-based software solution for tattoo studios. She's inspired by the hustle of the artists to create more.
