How to run the perfect flash sale this spring

Flash sales are one of the best ways to quickly boost sales while attracting new clients to your business. Since spring is one of the most popular shopping seasons of the year, it’s a great time to run a flash sale and win over clients who want to refresh their looks and treat themselves to some self-care. Use these best practices and ideas to help you run a successful flash sale and get fully booked this spring. Let’s dive into the four best practices that’ll help you create and run the perfect spring flash sale.

4 flash sale best practices you need to know

1. Define your flash sale discount strategy
2. Prepare your staff and product inventory
3. Prepare your flash sales ahead of time
4. Track the performance of your flash sale

Define your flash sale discount strategy

First, decide what you want to achieve with your flash sale discount. This will help you  define exactly what services to discount, when, and by how much. For example, you can: 

• Get more clients by offering a price drop on your most popular services. If your aim is to fill your calendar fast, this is a simple way to do it. You could offer a 33% discount on your best-selling hair treatment for one weekend to drive sales fast; or if it’s a longer service, run the discount for a week to give clients time to book.
   
• Put the spotlight on specific services by discounting just one service per week. You’ll get more engagement from clients; and you can use the lowered prices to generate interest in your new or high-value services. For instance: offer a discount on balayage for a week to secure high-value bookings, then follow with a discount on all-new massage services the next week to generate interest. 
   
• Build client loyalty with discounts on spring packages, like bridal or prom bundles. Packages spread out over multiple appointments are a good way to keep clients coming back to your salon or spa for more and secure long-term business – such as a three-step bridal package with hair and makeup trials in the weeks leading up to a client’s wedding day, then a full-service styling appointment on the day itself. 

Prepare your staff and product inventory

Make sure your staff’s bookable hours are clearly displayed online, and account for a possible increase in business during the flash sale; particularly if you have specialist services that only a handful of team members offer. By taking online bookings, your clients can book in advance, letting you plan your team’s schedule accordingly — so you're always staffed and ready to provide every service you offer.

It’s important to make sure your staff aren't overbooked or overworked – keep their wellbeing in mind, and ensure they have what they need to provide high quality customer service even during busy times.

Plus, if you sell products, use your online booking platform to effortlessly manage your product inventory and make sure to stay stocked throughout your flash sale. 

Promote your flash sale ahead of time

Start promoting your spring flash sale before it launches to build anticipation among your clients. You could even do a week-long countdown to your flash sale to get clients to plan their appointments ahead of time. 

Announce your flash sale with an eye-catching, engaging social media post, and encourage your followers to share the news with potential new clients. You can also send emails and text messages to instantly let clients know about your discounts and inspire them to book. Follow up with reminders throughout the flash sale that make it clear your discounts are time-limited, creating a sense of urgency. 

Track the performance of your flash sale

Keep a close eye on your flash sale’s performance in your online booking platform’s reports, so you can spot any trends among your bookings and identify which services, packages, and products are best-sellers. Use that information to adjust your pricing for even better sales and plan future marketing campaigns around your most popular offerings. 

For instance: if you discover that one of your skincare packages was extremely popular during your spring flash sale, you could raise its price to match its high demand. Or if you learn that your flash sale was highly successful, you’ll know it’s worth planning similar seasonal promotions for the rest of the year.

Start planning your spring flash sale now

The sooner you plan your spring flash sale, the sooner you can start promoting and getting clients excited to book.

Planning a spring flash sale is easier with Fresha: you can promote your offers, display your time-limited prices on your service list, apply your discounts at checkout and track your sales with ease, all from a single online platform built for businesses like yours. Sign up for free now and get your flash sale ready in time for spring.