During October, you see a lot of pink in the marketplace for breast cancer awareness. People honor both those who lost the battle and the ones still fighting. Professional athletes even sport pink during the month. In November, you see beards. Called ‘No Shave November’, it’s a month-long celebration of men and facial hair. It’s also an opportunity to support cancer awareness.
If your salon hasn’t joined the party, why not start this year? Read on and find out how you can get your co-workers and customers on board for a cause that’s not only worthy but a fantastic chance for fun.
The History Behind ‘No Shave November’
Before people started celebrating the beard, a group of men in Australia grew mustaches, or moustaches as they’re called in Aussieland. It was 2004 and 30 guys put together an event to raise awareness for two health issues affecting men: prostate cancer and depression.
The original 30 men formed a foundation—The Movember Foundation.
Today, while both events are about raising awareness (and money) for cancer patients and research, there’s a subtle difference between them. If you participate in Movember, you can only grow a mustache. Join up with ‘No Shave November’ and it’s all about the beard.
What started as a campaign to support cancer patients by embracing hair, morphed into a general push for awareness of a range of health issues. And since we’re talking about movements, what better way to move people than by holding a contest?
Who Needs Rules to Grow a Beard?
All contests have rules and you may run into a few guys who balk at anyone telling them when and how to grow facial hair. Once you share the why behind the whole thing, most get with the program.
You’re free to set your own rules, it’s your salon, after all, but here are the rules many other salons use to keep participants motivated (and honest).
Since this event officially starts on November 1st, kick it off on October 31st with a Shave Your Face party. Print up the rules and hand them to customers with a coupon for a $10-15 shave. Donate the proceeds to the charity you’ve selected to support.
- Rule #1—each participant must shave ALL facial hair. This is a clean shave, so nothing more than barely touchable stubble.
- Rule #2—Take a photo of your clean shave and submit it no later than November 1st.
- Rule #3—Don’t shave the entire month of November.
- Rule #4—Submit a weekly beard growth photo.
- Rule #5—Attend the party at the salon on the last day of November.
- Rule #6—Shave it all off on December 1st.
Each week select random winners. As the beards grow longer, make the prizes more valuable. Every time a participant hands over a weekly photo, they’re entered into a drawing for the Grand Prize.
Remember, this is a fun event. No one needs to be militant about trims, haircuts, or tidying up facial hair. And of course, if a guy wants to keep his beard at the end of November, more power to him!
Promoting the Return of the Beard
No matter how fun you think an event sounds to you and your staff, if you don’t get that message across to customers, they won’t feel the excitement. Get your staff involved in creating promotional materials for your salon.
Print flyers and make them available at the front desk. Flyers not only advertise in the salon, but customers can also take them home and post them at work as a way of letting others know why they’re suddenly growing facial hair.
Let creatives working with you design a special t-shirt or mug and use them as giveaways for participants. If you have ladies working in the salon, give them beards to wear. You can find some pretty interesting beards and wigs at costume shops and online. Use social media. Have a Facebook page, Twitter, or Instagram for your salon? Post daily updates and photos (with your client’s permission, of course).
And the Winner Of ‘No Shave November’ Is
Make sure when you promote ‘No Shave November’ you let people know they’re in for some fabulous prizes. Since this primarily a guy’s contest, make the prizes enticing for them. Put together a weekly prize bucket or box of goodies and include things like:
- A $5 Gift Card for the Local Coffee Store
- Moustache Smash Board Game
- Certificate for a Haircut and Beard Trim
- Beard Grooming Products
- Beard Brush and Comb
Work with staff and come up with some fun prize categories. For example, award prizes at the end of event party for the longest, ugliest, and most unique beard.
The Grand Prize should have higher value like a hotel stay, hunting and fishing equipment, bike bags, power tools, or whatever would interest your unique clientele.
Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Too
Okay, we know this is a guy’s movement and all, but why can’t the girls join in the fun? As with everything these days, people got wind of girls participating in ‘No Shave November’ by leaving the hair on their legs and underarms. Those few people make a stink and claimed, “no girls allowed!”
We won’t go into all the ugly details but it wasn’t pretty or kind. Girls, you’re welcome. Drop your razors and join the fun!
Women are just as concerned about cancer other health issues, especially they affect the men in their lives. Whether your salon caters to women or includes both men and women, by all means, let the girls play.
Make the giveaways and prizes appropriate for the ladies, and include a certificate for a wax or manicure, salon products, and coffee gift cards because what woman doesn’t enjoy a free coffee or chai?
Hint: If your more feminine clients aren’t into beards, they might enjoy this campaign.
Giving It All Away
A huge part of ‘No Shave November’ is supporting cancer research. During November, tag a portion of your profits for an organization that sponsors research or supports prostate cancer patients directly. If you’re passionate about caring for people who struggle with depression, why not support that cause?
Donations can come from those $10-15 shaves and beard trim coupons you handed out at the beginning of the month.
You might also sponsor a few fundraisers throughout the month. Make fundraisers fun. For example, you could make Fridays Touch-A-Beard Day and charge $5 for people to run their fingers through one of the fake beards (or a real one).
If you don’t have an organization in mind, you can always send donations to the official ‘No Shave November’ organization.
How Will Your Salon Participate in ‘No Shave November’?
Now that we’ve got you excited about ‘No Shave November’, it’s time to prepare your salon staff for a fantastic month helping raise awareness for people who are battling cancer and other health conditions.
Here at Daysmart Salon, we’re about helping people too. For more information about how we can help your salon run more smoothly, contact us today.
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