6th August 2025
THIS IS SERIOUS! Social media, it is a major part of most peoples lives these days, and whilst it can be informative, educational and inspiring, it can often be downright silly. Unfortunately [we] are being coerced into creating nonsensical videos that seem to be more important than the real important stuff.
This blog is specifically aimed at hairdressers and barbers as the bandwagon for nonsense has been well and truly taken over by them. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy a fun video as much as the next person and I do appreciate the effort that goes into making short clips that suit TikTok, Stories and Reels, but I have a big problem with them as well.
Way back in the dark ages social media didn’t exist and the only way to communicate with friends was by meeting them or calling them on the landline, and the only way of learning about anything (and making career choices) was through watching TV, listening to the radio, and reading magazines and newspapers. Now there are a multitude of options when it comes to discovering and learning about the future, and social media can be a determining factor for youngsters.
my ‘careers teacher’ was appalled when I informed her that I’d like to be a hairdresser. Her answer to that statement was ‘don’t be silly, you have a brain, find a career that uses it, hairdressing is for people who can’t do anything else’. The fact that my careers teacher thought hairdressing was for a certain type of person was insulting back then in the mid 1970’s, but I wonder what she would think now if she scrolled through social platforms and saw the posts hairdressers and barbers share.
My problem is – the constant stream of irrelevant videos is dumbing down what is, in actual fact, an incredibly intelligent, creative and challenging career. Cutting, colouring, perming, styling hair, they all take time (years) to master, and then there’s all the technical information that needs to be learnt, the science of colour, the understanding of the hair and scalp structures, usage of chemicals to alter the hair, the list of things to be learnt goes on and on. And then there’s the need to understand how products, shampoos etc work and how to recommend them for home use, as well as the art of communication (and that’s a huge challenge now with young peoples constant need to be on their mobile, and their shrinking attention span).
But watch a latest viral trend on TikTok or Reels and suddenly hairdressers and product companies everywhere are jumping on it. Therein lies the problem, the fun stuff has taken over, and the serious aspects of this serious career have, in many instances, been forgotten about.
It’s got be addressed if social media is to be used as a marketing tool to generate business and interest in hairdressing and barbering as a career choice. Yes, by all means create fun stuff, but intersperse it with posts that showcase the creativity and the positive aspects of this wonderful world of hair.
We can’t be viewed as the clowns all the time!
#ProForPro #BeProfessional
