Answers, not a newsletter
The questions I get asked
Every one of these is something a studio owner has asked me, written down properly so I only have to answer it well once.
No email wall, no download, nothing gated. If one of them saves you from hiring me, that's a fine outcome.
How much should a salon or spa website cost?
Salon website cost, answered straight, for spas and estheticians too: the three shapes a quote comes in, what you're actually paying for, and the number to ask about instead of the one on the invoice.
Anyone comparing quotes4 min read
Why isn't my salon showing up on Google Maps?
The real reasons a salon, spa or studio is missing from the Google map results, in the order they're worth checking: verification, category, address, listing consistency, and the distance problem almost nobody accounts for.
Salon and studio owners5 min read
Do I really need a website if I have Instagram?
An honest answer for studio owners weighing a website against a full Instagram: what each one is actually for, the bookings a profile can't reach, and the smallest version of a site that's worth building.
Solo studios and new practitioners4 min read
How long does local SEO actually take to work?
A realistic timeline for local SEO on a salon, spa or studio site: what moves in days, what takes weeks, what takes months, and the order the numbers change in so you can tell it's working before you rank.
Studio owners waiting on results4 min read
How do I get ChatGPT to recommend my studio?
How to get ChatGPT to recommend your business when someone asks for a facial or a colorist nearby: how assistants pick which studios to name, what you can actually influence, and the specific things to fix on your site this week.
Studio owners who've started seeing clients arrive from AI assistants5 min read
Why is Google answering questions instead of sending people to my site?
Google now answers a lot of questions on the results page itself. What that does to a studio's traffic, which of your pages are actually at risk, and where the bookings still come from.
Studio owners watching impressions hold up while clicks fall3 min read
Is SEO dead now that everyone asks AI?
A straight answer for studio owners being sold AI optimization packages: what genuinely changed, what didn't, and how to tell a real service from a rebranded one.
Owners being pitched AI optimization, GEO or AEO packages3 min read
Is my booking page enough, or do I need a real website?
Booking platforms give you a page that looks like a website and scores well on the basics. Here's the specific thing it can't do, and how to tell whether that matters for your studio yet.
Studios running on GlossGenius, Vagaro, Square, Fresha or similar4 min read
Is a GlossGenius website good for SEO?
What a GlossGenius site does for you on Google, what it doesn't let you change, how it compares with Squarespace, and a setup that keeps GlossGenius for booking.
Estheticians, lash artists and stylists running on GlossGenius4 min read
Is a Vagaro website good for SEO?
What Vagaro's Listing Page and its MySite website builder can each do on Google, what MySite costs, what Vagaro's own documentation says about SEO, and what to do if you stay on it.
Salons, spas and solo providers running on Vagaro3 min read
What SEO does an esthetician actually need?
SEO for estheticians, in the order I'd do it: your Google Business Profile, matching details, a page per treatment, structured data and reviews, plus what Google's own policies say to skip.
Solo estheticians and small skincare studios4 min read
Is SEO a one-time thing, or do I have to pay for it every month?
One-time SEO for a salon, spa or studio: which parts of SEO are done once, which parts carry on, how to tell them apart in a proposal, and what a one-time SEO service should include.
Studio owners comparing a one-time SEO service with a monthly retainer3 min read
Is Squarespace good for SEO if you run a salon or spa?
What Squarespace does for a salon, spa or esthetician's SEO on its own, what it leaves to you, which plan you need for custom code, and how booking fits in.
Salon owners, stylists and estheticians building or running a Squarespace site4 min read
What SEO does a hair salon actually need?
SEO for hair salons, in the order I'd do it: the right Google category, what Google allows in a business name, its rules for stylists who rent a chair, a page for each service, photos and reviews.
Salon owners, and stylists who rent a chair or a suite5 min read
How do I get clients as an esthetician?
The part of getting clients as an esthetician I can speak to: people searching Google for a treatment. What to set up at no charge, Google's rules on asking for reviews, and when a website starts to matter.
New and solo estheticians building a client base4 min read
How do I add GlossGenius booking to my website?
How to put GlossGenius booking on your own website: the Book Now link GlossGenius documents, its popup code, direct links for one service or one team member, and the button steps on Squarespace.
Estheticians, lash artists and stylists who book through GlossGenius and have, or want, their own website4 min read
How do I add GlossGenius booking to Google?
How to get a Book Online button for GlossGenius on your Google Business Profile: the Reserve with Google setting, what GlossGenius checks first, why a hand-added link blocks the button, and what to do without the integration.
Estheticians, lash artists and stylists who book through GlossGenius2 min read
How do I add GlossGenius to Instagram?
How to add GlossGenius booking to Instagram: the bio link, the Book Now action button, the Facebook page it depends on, what to check when the button doesn't show, and how it works for a team.
Estheticians, lash artists and stylists who book through GlossGenius2 min read
How do I add Vagaro booking to my Squarespace site?
How to add Vagaro booking to a Squarespace site: making the booking widget in Vagaro, putting the Link type on a button, putting the code types in a Code block, which Squarespace plan that needs, and what to check when it doesn't show.
Salons, spas and solo providers who book through Vagaro and have a Squarespace site4 min read
How do I add a booking link to my Google Business Profile?
How to add a booking link to a Google Business Profile, how that differs from the Book Online button a booking platform provides, what GlossGenius, Vagaro, Fresha and Booksy each ask for, and how to remove a link you didn't add.
Salon, spa and studio owners who take bookings online4 min read
How do I add Vagaro booking to Instagram?
How to add Vagaro booking to Instagram: the Book Now action button, the Instagram business account it needs, Vagaro's steps for connecting it, and the booking link for your bio.
Salons, spas and solo providers who book through Vagaro2 min read
How do I add Acuity Scheduling to my Squarespace site?
How to add Acuity Scheduling to a Squarespace site: the Scheduling block for an attached or standalone Acuity account, a button linked to one appointment type, the booking bar, and which parts need a higher Squarespace plan.
Studio owners who book through Acuity Scheduling and have a Squarespace site3 min read
How do I add Square Appointments to my Squarespace site?
How to add Square Appointments booking to a Squarespace site: publishing the booking site first, the booking flow URL for a button, Square's button and embed code for a Code block, advanced widgets for one service or one staff member, and which Squarespace plan the code needs.
Salons, spas and solo providers who book through Square Appointments and have a Squarespace site4 min read
How do I add Fresha booking to my website?
How to put a Fresha Book Now button on your own website: the link builder, a link for one service or one team member, the Squarespace button steps, the marketplace listing the link depends on, and the new client fee it avoids.
Salons, spas and solo providers who book through Fresha and have, or want, their own website4 min read
How do I add Fresha to Instagram?
How to add Fresha booking to Instagram and Facebook: the booking link for your bio, the Book now button through Fresha's add-on, what your accounts need first, what to check when Fresha isn't listed as a partner, and how to take the button off.
Salons, spas and solo providers who book through Fresha3 min read
How do I add Booksy to Instagram?
How to add Booksy booking to Instagram: the Book now button Booksy documents, what your Booksy and Instagram accounts need first, the profile link for your bio, who on a team can add which button, and where to go when the button isn't offered.
Barbers, stylists and salon owners who book through Booksy2 min read
How do I add the Booksy booking widget to my website?
How to put Booksy booking on your own website: where the widget code is in Booksy, the kind of site it needs, where it goes on Squarespace and WordPress.com and which plans allow it, and the profile link to use when a script isn't an option.
Barbers, stylists and salon owners who book through Booksy and have, or want, their own website3 min read
How do I add booking to my Wix website?
How to add booking to a Wix site: Wix Bookings and the upgrade it needs, a booking link on a Wix button, embedding another system's code with the Embed HTML element, what Wix says about that element, and where each booking platform's steps are.
Salon, spa and studio owners with a Wix site, or thinking about one4 min read
How do I add Square Appointments to my Wix site?
How to add Square Appointments booking to a Wix site: publishing the booking site first, the booking flow URL on a Wix button, Square's button and embed code in Wix's Embed HTML element, and advanced widgets for one service or one staff member.
Salons, spas and solo providers who book through Square Appointments and have a Wix site3 min read
How do I add Vagaro booking to my Wix site?
How to add Vagaro booking to a Wix site: making the booking widget in Vagaro, putting the Link type on a Wix button, putting the In Website and Popup types in Wix's Embed HTML element, and what to check when it doesn't show.
Salons, spas and solo providers who book through Vagaro and have a Wix site3 min read
How do I add Acuity Scheduling to my Wix site?
How to add Acuity Scheduling to a Wix site: Acuity's embed code in Wix's HTML element, Acuity's own Wix notes on the mobile editor and Wix ADI, a button linked to one appointment type, and the booking bar.
Studio owners who book through Acuity Scheduling and have a Wix site3 min read
How do I add Square Appointments to Instagram?
How to add a Square Appointments Book Now button to Instagram and Facebook: what Square says you need first, its steps for each, the booking flow link for your bio, and how to take the button off.
Salons, spas and solo providers who book through Square Appointments2 min read
Most of this you can do yourself
Nearly everything in these guides is a Saturday's work rather than a skill. Claiming a Google Business Profile, fixing a primary category, making an address match from one page to the next. It's tedious and it isn't hard, and telling you otherwise would be a way of selling something.
There's no secret to sell. What I sell is doing all of it properly in one pass, in a couple of weeks, while you run your business, then handing you the account and the guides and getting out of the way.
If you read these and decide to do it yourself, genuinely, good. You'll end up ahead of most of the studios I audit, and you'll know exactly what you're looking at if you ever do hire someone.
Beep me
Tell me a bit about your studio and what you'd like to fix. I read every message myself and I'll usually get back to you within a day. No pressure, and if I don't think you need me, I'll say so.