Salon owners always describe how their love and passion for owning a salon wasn’t tested when setting it up, but truly tested when it comes to completing the daily tasks to keep it going. There are many applications available that can help ease the stress of managing a salon. For salon owners just getting their feet wet, it is a good idea to start with these applications before investing in salon POS systems or salon software packages. Here are the top picks.
Salon Bookings Apps
There are many salon booking applications that can help give you a snapshot of what automation can do for your business. It is best to start with applications so you know what salon software to go with when you are ready to make a full investment. Zolmi is one of the most popular free salon booking applications that have a wide range of tools that can help manage appointments, inventory, and point of sale operations. We highly recommend trying Zolmi before you invest in a salon software package.
Salon Marketing Apps
There are many different free ways you can help market yourself digitally. There are very few marketing applications that focus specifically on the salon industry itself, but there are many that focus on helping get the word out. If you are looking to design print collateral, Canva is available to help create useful prints with very little graphic design knowledge needed. Fiverr is a great application similar to Craigslist to help get your services out to the masses. There are many essential business applications that can help boost your online visibility as well. Google, Yelp, Facebook, Instagram, and Bing all offer free profiles to get your business listed on their websites. This can help draw organic traffic to your website and increase your client base.
Salon Inventory Apps
Inventory management is a critical business process for salons. Salons need to have adequate amounts of products on standby as services get carried out throughout the day. A paid salon inventory software will have many more features than free applications, but again, free applications are a great way to get a free trial. Sortly, Inventory Now, and Delivrd are some of the most popular inventory management software that allows for many inventory management tools to be used.
Salon Accounting Apps
Many small business owners don’t have the disposable income to hire an accountant or outsource it. Your business’s finances may just have to be a new skill you’ll have to learn. Luckily, there are applications available to help balance out your books more easily. These applications vary based on their tools and the scale of their services. The most popular accounting applications are Xero, QuickBooks, and Sage.
I hope this helps!