In last week's Salon Success, we talked to Eric Moon, a stylist and educator who's using Twitter and Facebook to book fill last-minute appointments and get referrals. Here are some other innovative ways people in the industry are using social networking sites:

* Maria Bowman, manager of digital media for Matrix (matrix.com), created a “Beauties Who Love Biolage” group on Facebook to interact with consumers. The biggest benefit, says Bowman, is the ability to post questions and get immediate responses: “People are more passionate when they engage with your brand.”

* At Redken (redken.com), senior director of interactive marketing Rachael Weiss says she uses Facebook to update fans on what’s new, host a contest for new fans to get product samples and drive consumers to the website’s salon finder.

* Pivot Point International (pivot-point.com), in Evanston, IL, created a Facebook page for its new Snap Cap “recyclable” mannequin head, who has her own friends thanks to a playful “SWF seeking relationship” ad.

* Catherine Kofler, e-commerce marketing associate for DePasquale Companies (depasqualethespa.com) in Fairlawn, NJ, uses MySpace to promote the New York Streets brand by posting news, messages, promotions and educational videos.

* Patrick McIvor, Matrix’s new artistic director of color and owner of two Patrick McIvor studios in Bethlehem and Allentown, PA, advises the surreptitious use of searched keywords. “I put white text on my Facebook pages’ white background, so anyone searching for certain groups will find my page,” explains McIvor. You can add ‘best salon in Champaign, IL,” for instance; no one will know it’s there but you, and it’ll drive Facebook members to your pages.”

* Ellen Marth, publicist for Nick Arrojo (arrojostudio.com), a New York salon owner and Wella special creative artist, created separate Facebook pages for Arrojo Studio, products, education and cosmetology. She uses YouTube to host videos, which are linked to Arrojo’s Facebook pages.

Share your successes with social media! Everyone is trying to work out the best practices for this new technology and finding out what works for others in the industry is the best way to do it. E-mail me at mhill@vancepublishing.com, connect with me on Facebook, or post on the Modern Twitter page to share your ideas and strategies, and I'll put them together for an upcoming newsletter!

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