So Me Beauty & Wellness started as a single beauty salon & clinic in Clapham North in 2011 and 8 years later has 7 salons and over 20 Beauty Bars across London as well as branded range of beauty products.
In 2013 with a couple of salons opening their doors just round the corner and having their website traffic overtaking So Me, this triggered the call to compete for customers in a very limited area, they started with some initial steps like loyalty cards but it needed more. So Me approached us to help them with a strategy that will make them more competitive and create brand loyalty as the first step, which lead to redesign and implementations as well with additional challenges.
Consistency 'First' - Adjust the perception.
Our solution started with collecting all existing visual communications and representations of So Me to the public and analyse them. We noticed some inconsistency with the usage of the logo and banners. We had to plan our strategy so that we keep existing customers and attract new ones, as the first phase - to keep within budget and ROI for the client. The logo on all marketing materials was made consistent with its colour palette to match what was already in place in the salon - there was the first shift - as we went for what customers were seeing in the salon as the main identity and re-create everything around it.
Website redesign and rebuild, using data, branding and user centric approach
The next phase started in early 2014, it came with additional requirements as there was a new salon and the current website’s booking didn’t cater for that and it had other weaknesses that affected workflow.
We implemented a platform for the website that we could build a strong foundation on for the site structure and prepare all relevant initial SEO work. With a robust CMS that the client and their can manage as well as provide stability for long term maintenance with their SLA.
The design was inspired by understanding their customers, the core of the branding process and what they would like to see and feel when visiting the site. The idea was to bring part of the ‘salon’ experience to them, see the location they want to go to, the facilities and staff.
Bespoke booking form - improved UX and Conversion
We had to make it easy for users to book online, quick CTA (Call To Action) for both desktop and mobile devices. We created two forms, a quick booking for single services and one for multiple, booking confirmations going only to the relevant location. Add services would dynamically add services to the form, everything was single entry - which saved valuable time.
SEO & Marketing strategy journey - Pre & post launch
We started our SEO work early on, we ran a soft launch - a parallel site which gave us crucial data and feedback from users to improve. All this was carefully planned in our strategy, that became the game changer to rival the competition and overtake many of them in a very short period. Our main aim was to build trust and provide what was expected and a little bit more.
Positive results leading to more growth
Out of the blocks like lightning SEMrush rank in Sep 400K to Oct 200K and Nov 130K, gaining over 270K places in 3 months.
Hard work pays off with a high conversion rate of 49.69% for the goal set.
Contributing to improving the visual identity
Minor adjustments to the logo, to create balance.
