To ward off the summer slump, I run a pedicure promotion called “Do you dare to go bare…barefooted.” I promote my special in the salon and at the local swimming pool and senior center. I entice clients with a summer survival kit, which includes lotion, a file, and SolarOil, and a reduced-priced pedicure ($18, regularly $25). Last summer I gained 40 new clients with this special and rebooked more than half of them.-Allyson Stevens, Le Captain's Salon, Columbus, Ohio
Our manicure/pedicure special for $30 is popular during the summer (manicures are regularly $12-$14; pedicures are $22). We also offer a free pumice stone with a pedicure and a free hand lotion with a manicure. Because sheer colors are popular in the summer, we offer $2 off French manicures. I’m always offering specials to help generate a new interest in new colors. I like to keep clients updated on what’s going on and to keep things changing.-Rebecca Gregory, Just Nails, Erlanger, Kentucky
I run a yearly special in August on pedicures. My regular price is $25; in August clients can but as many as they want for $20. Some of my customers buy a year’s worth. This special helps me get more pedicure business during the winter months, which usually are slower.-Kandice Astamendi, Performance Nails/House of Arnol, Glendale, California
During summer, I offer my clients specials for those toes that will be exposed in summer sandals. If my client receives a manicure and pedicure together, I give her free art on her toes and two fingers of her choice.-Kim Matos, Naughty By Nails, Linden, New Jersey
We offer a ½ price French manicure special during the summer because clients like the natural look. The special is good on natural or artificial nails.-Susan Rogers, Just Nails, Newark, Denmark
To entice new pedicure clients into the salon, we occasionally offer a 50%-off special during the summer. Once we get the client in, we tell her about our Pedicure Club, which is free to join. The client is required to get one pedicure every six weeks; after six pedicures, the next one is free.-Traci Suggs, Great Lengths, Columbus, Ohio