Salons · Channels

Instagram Ads or a Neighbourhood Postcard? A Guide for Toronto Salons

By Gabriel Macovei, founder of SpotixUpdated 6 min read

Instagram is where a lot of salons show their work, and paid ads there can bring in new clients. A neighbourhood postcard does a different job: it puts your salon in front of households near you, whether or not they follow you. This guide covers what each does well and how to test a postcard fairly.

What Instagram ads do well

  • Showing your work. Colour, cuts and before-and-afters are visual, and a feed is a good place to show them.
  • Reaching people by interest. You can aim ads at audiences based on platform settings.
  • Changing quickly. You can pause, edit or swap an ad the same day.
  • Following up. You can show ads again to people who have already interacted with you.

What a neighbourhood postcard does differently

  • It’s aimed by address, not interest. The card goes to homes in the areas you target.
  • It’s physical. It arrives in the mailbox and stays in the home until someone throws it away.
  • The price is fixed. You know the cost of a spot before you book. There’s no bidding.
  • It’s slower to change. Spotix mails once a month, so you plan the offer ahead.

Neither is better in general. They reach people in different ways, which is why testing one alongside the other makes sense.

Why location matters for a salon

Salon clients come back every few weeks. Convenience is part of choosing where to go, so people who live or work nearby can be good candidates for becoming regulars. A postcard lets you speak to exactly those households. Whether it pays off for your salon is something to measure, not assume.

How to run a fair test

  1. Keep your usual marketing running. If you stop Instagram at the same time, you won’t know what caused any change.
  2. Give the postcard its own way to respond. Use a QR code to a booking link used only on the card, a promo code only on the card, or both.
  3. Count first visits from each source. Most booking systems let you tag where a new client came from.
  4. Follow those clients for a few months. What matters more than the first visit is whether they rebook. Note it in your booking system.
  5. Compare cost per new client. Divide what you spent on each channel by the new clients it brought in.

One month is a small sample. Seasonality, holidays and the offer itself all affect results, so judge a channel on more than a single mailing if you can.

What to put in a salon spot

  • One strong photo of your work
  • A first-visit offer with an end date
  • How to book: a QR code to your booking page, and your phone number
  • Your street or neighbourhood, so people know you’re close by

Choosing a spot size

  • Solo Spot ($247 CAD / month, 1/8 page): one neighbourhood, design included. Use your own promo code to track it.
  • Duo Spot ($397 CAD / month, 1/4 page): two neighbourhoods, design and a QR code. The QR code makes booking-link tracking simple.
  • Full Spot ($597 CAD / month, 1/2 page): full coverage, with design, a QR code and a tracking phone number.

See all the details on the pricing section.