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Dec 20
7

7 Steps to Owning a Successful Salon Business!

By | blog, Salon, Salon Business, Uncategorized | No Comments

So you want to own a salon?

Congratulations! It’s a wonderful dream and goal. It is also an expensive, time-consuming endeavour that will require all the business acumen, talent, creativity, and determination that you have.

In the early stages of deciding to build or buy a salon, it is vital that time is taken for careful planning and homework. All of the greatest ideas conceived will—at some point—still require the careful, and sometimes painful, process of putting ideas and numbers on paper.

So why must you do this? To give your dream as much opportunity to succeed as possible.

Starting Up Means Planning and Homework

I have identified seven key planning and analysis tasks to help you in this journey. They cover the fundamental issues that should be addressed before you start to invest your  hard-earned money.

The process itself of building a development plan and financial forecasts is a terrific learning tool. It will either prepare you to go into the salon business, or to realize what key areas you need to watch for to be able to operate at maximum potential.

Not only will this aid in the financial planning process, but it will assist you in closely defining the goals of the salon business and thus help create a clear vision to follow for the whole team who will join in making the dream a reality.

Performing mindful analysis in these seven key areas will drastically affect the decision making process, and may well determine whether or not you should go ahead with your dream as you imagine it today.

Up-to-date and accurate figures are critical in order for the salon to respond to the business needs. Even more importantly, they are the guide that will help you reasonably predict what may happen in the future and thus help in determine the path you will take to lead the company to long-term financial health.

The Seven Key Planning Tasks

  • Define the ‘Vision’ and experience?
  • Determine who the guests/customers will be.
  • Determine where the salon will be located.
  • Estimate the start-up costs.
  • Develop a Proforma.
  • Develop a sales and marketing strategy and plan.
  • Develop an operations plan.

All of these items require careful thought and consideration. If time is not taken to make these decisions, the ability to forecast the success of the business will be limited.

1. Defining the ‘Vision’ for your salon. What kind of experience are you looking to create for your guest?

Are you creating a day spa & salon, amenity salon?  Is it holistic, beauty, or somewhere in between?

Defining the experience is important as it will impact who the salon is going to attract and what kind of physical space and equipment the salon will require.

Perhaps the salon will have a theme. Will it be ‘east meets west’, a salon and spa combined or focused on being a green salon? When this choice is made, it will assist in determining all of the other choices to be made that will affect the guest experience: the things they see and touch, the treatments, and the details that will evoke feelings and emotions. This will create a unique experience that can differentiate the salon from the competitors.

If you cannot differentiate yourself from your competitors—whether physically, by your treatments, or your service—then why will the clients choose your salon over any other salon?

2. Determining who the guests/customers will be.

Take a close look around and see where your guests live. Will your salon be a neighbourhood salon looking to attract the local residents? Will it be a destination/ niche salon known for being green? You need to know or—at the very least—try to predict the demographics of your guests.

Demographics are:

  • Socioeconomic groups, characterized by age, income, sex, education, occupation, etc., that comprise a market niche.
  • The characteristics of human populations and population segments, especially when used to identify consumer markets.

One you have specifically identify who your guests are, you can then determine where they are and then, most importantly, how to get to them. This is essential for determining the marketing plan.

Depending on the experience of the development team and target guest, the next stage in preparation can begin. These two factors: the guest and the experience, will help in planning the physical space of the salon.

3. Determining where the salon will be located, and planning the space.

Salon location

First and foremost: location, location, location. It is an old adage but has always had great truth to it. By finding a fit combining the spa experience with the target guests, specific target locations can now be considered. Where can the salon be located to achieve the greatest possibility for success? What is the population? How much competition is in the area?

Salon Size

The following factors must be considered:

  • How many treatment rooms or chairs will be needed?
  • What will happen in each treatment room, what is its purpose?
  • What common areas will be needed? How big will they need to be?
  • What are the space requirements for reception, storage, and staff areas?
  • How much total space will be needed to deliver the experience you have planned for your guests?

Location and space options

Once you determine how much total space is required, you need to determine how the space will be created: Is it better to build, to buy, or to rent? Can it grow and expand if needed?

These questions are interrelated, as those factors play key roles in the cost of the project and the ability to meet the needs of the guests you wish to attract.

These are the difficult decisions that will be faced, and they will need to be resolved as you collect all the information necessary to determine whether or not your dream is feasible.

4. Estimating Start-up Costs

Many different costs will be required to get the salon up and running. Everything from development costs, construction costs, furnishing and fixtures, and pre-opening costs (including training and marketing) will all need to be considered.

Calculating all of these costs is the first step to deciding whether the business will viable or not. It is not uncommon to see ranges in start-up costs of anywhere from $200.00 to $550.00 per square foot.

5. Developing a Proforma

This is the most often forgotten, or neglected, area of salon development. Many future owners and operators fail to invest the time and energy required to complete a thorough proforma. It is easy to fall in love with the idea of creating a new salon. However it is crucial to look at some realistic numbers to determine if your concept will make a profit.

Proforma means ‘for form’s sake’. So, for this purpose, it is giving form to the salon project before it exists. It is the first close look at a rough estimated budget. Through a combination of knowledge, experience, and advice, an estimate will be generated. This estimate will show what revenue the salon can realistically achieve, and what will be the proportionate share of the expenses. 

Labour is—and always will be—the single greatest expense, as the salon experience is generally a one-on-one personal practice. The planned compensation structure will be critical. Learn what salons of a similar size and scope are operating at.

Be balanced and realistic in your estimates. Good decision making here will serve the salon well.

6. Developing a Sales & Marketing Plan

Sales

How is the salon going to be sold? What are the key messages the team will convey to the potential guests in hoping to entice them to visit the salon? The training of the team is essential. They will need to educate the consumers about why they should choose your salon rather than one of the multitude of others. Will you be focusing on local business or corporate business? What is your sales strategy?

Marketing

Your marketing plan must include the production of both physical marketing collateral (brochures, business cards, and signage) and electronic marketing content (website, social media, e-newsletters, pictures, and videos). Public relations and strategic alliances are also wonderful advocates of the spa business and will deliver results for your spa. Build a plan for customer awareness before the salon is open. You need to have guests coming to your door the first day it opens!

For a new salon operation, the amount of capital investment in marketing will be greater at the beginning in order to create awareness in the salon-goer marketplace, but it should become more efficient and economical as time passes. Never look too closely at this expense line as a place to cut costs. It will always be the lifeblood of the business, as a salon can never have ‘too many’ clients!

7. Developing a Salon Operations Plan

Now your salon has been created on paper, but services still have to be rendered day after day. Investing your time analyzing all the smaller costs required to deliver the desired experience to the guest will have long term benefits to the salon operating at maximum efficiency, both from a service and cost perspective.

In Summary

By examining each one of these seven keys areas, you will have information to help you make your business decisions. What you ultimately decide to do may not match your initial vision, but you will at least be taking an informed approach to starting up your salon.

In the end, all this careful planning and homework will not guarantee you success, but without it you will be just hoping that your great idea turns out as wonderfully as you had imagined.

Need helping starting your salon? Contact Salonprophets : [email protected] or here.

Dec 05
3

The Spirit to Grow Your Salon Business!

By | blog, Salon, Salon Business, Uncategorized | No Comments

Salon

The Spirit to Grow Your Salon Business! 

“The art of progress is to preserve order amid change and to preserve change amid order” 

                                                                                                                                               Alfred North Whitehead

The spirit to grow your salon business may well be strong and thriving. But look at any successful business and you will find the person at the top who will quickly agree that the daily grind of business is largely thousands of tiny, arduous, yet ever so important details. How many of these little details are ever seen by the customer, or often other members of the team? Seldom do they ever see the light of day. Well it simply is not that thrilling, special or often, fun. What we are really talking about here is hard work. In fact let’s call it grunt work and in most cases, no grunt work means no growth. No growth means no hope.

Let me give you an example of what type of work we are talking about. In a highly successful salon operation we worked with the owner of the salon to set monthly standards of operational review. This review for the team members has consequences and rewards but most of all it has the laborious task of looking at the details of the business, intently, and often. Each month the manager of the salon has to prepare labour reports, inventory reports, sales reports, and services reports. What does that mean to the manager? Well each day the manager has to be “aware” of what is happening in the business by looking at each one of these facets of the salon. Looking at a sales summary from the computer to looking at guest evaluations on the service levels to being aware of what products are out of stock or overstocked. Are the appointments being booked efficiently and are the therapists helping out when they are not performing as service? Sounds boring. It probably is, but how else can she be properly prepared and know her business since not only does she need to prepare the report but know what the reports are saying. This orderly approach is a fundamental to know your business and be proactive.

What does this mean to the salon team? Well after the manager has prepared the reports she meets with her supervisors to discuss the results. How and why did they get those results this month? Where did they win, where were the challenges. How did they do compared to last month and last year? What needs to happen to keep up the wins and what needs to happen to change the challenges to wins? Yes, there is more.

The manager and the supervisors then attend a monthly, scheduled, meeting with the owner. There they review the reports talk about the wins, and the challenges. Collectively they decide the strategy to continue to make positive change. Who has to do what, and what needs to happen. Of course this also includes a review of the notes from last months meeting to see how they made out accomplishing the goals they agreed to. Still, yet more.

Well, the people who perform many, if not most, of those countless laborious details, the team, have to be brought in to the loop. So after the meeting with the owner the manager has a scheduled meeting with all members of the team. Here the manager shares how the spa performed, where were the wins, where were the challenges. What needs to happen this month to continue to change and grow? The meeting would never be complete unless the manager also receives some input from the team on what they think needs to happen to continue the growth. The loop is now complete and ready to start again.

Is this glamorous work? Not really. Would you prefer this work or schmoozing with Celine Dion who just walked into the salon? Not much of a choice. Is this work necessary? Absolutely. You can’t possibly expect the business to run right, or grow, if you don’t take care of the business you have today while keeping an eye on tomorrow. This does not mean spending all the time in the office looking at paperwork. It simply means focusing part of your energy on keeping the order of things within the business.

Develop your systems, services and philosophies and constantly review them and improve them. Then start all over again. Constantly communicate and document as much as you can. Write it down, put it on paper, and share it with your team. These are key elements to keeping the order of things. Every team member in the salon needs to know that the salon is committed to being organized, detailed and consistent in the approach to business. It breeds the professionalism and top of mind awareness for paying attention to the details that you desperately want in your team. It is this kind of dogged persistence that must be at the core of your culture to progress and that will keep you ahead of the game, and that new salon down the street. That being said it is not the drive for consistency that can change, it must always remain high, rather the “how” consistency will be achieved.

Change to your salon is what oxygen is to the body. Vital. For survival it must be constant and endless. The real test becomes how to maintain order while embracing the change at the same time. If your salon wants to be around for the long haul you will need to find a balance between these two conflicting yet perfectly integrated ideals.

In the wake of the head spinning change of the life today there may not be a need to even consider Alfred’s ideal of preserving the concept of change.

Just think of the changes we have seen in the last twenty years around the world. New planets and worlds discovered, old countries split while some take new names and how many cells phones are out there now? Although the spa industry in North America is not driving, nor enduring, these types of dramatic changes it has rapidly evolved to have a major presence in the lives of millions on this continent.

After all isn’t the salon business booming with all kinds of new and wonderful spa product popping up everywhere? As this salon evolution has taken place so too has the sophistication of every little part of the business. More suppliers, better computer systems, more and more complex and involved products using every possible plant, mineral and chemical on the planet. New and specialized treatments. Each and every process or activity in the salon continues to be analyzed for a better way to do it. This has produced new, proven and reliable methods of operation that has given some tried and true methods to the spa industry.

Let’s take a well known company to draw a parallel, McDonald’s restaurants. Here is a now global company that found a successful way to do things and have been able to repeat the process billions and billions of times. Wouldn’t you just love to have the same consistency of product and performance that McDonalds has? For the purposes of this example we will not debate the quality of their products but rather focus on the manner with which they do business. No matter where you go in the world, Toronto to Tokyo, McDonald’s customers know that the burger and fries will look, feel, and taste the same. They are a virtual machine. Each and every time a customer walks into their store they know what to expect and they get it every time. At the core their customers trust McDonald’s to deliver what they promise because they have earned that trust time and time again. As the world of restaurants, food and customer expectations have evolved and changed McDonald’s has remained unmistakably consistent. They have preserved order amid change through the art of process and systems.

Yet there is another side to the story. You may or may not be a McDonald’s customer but it is likely you have heard about new menu items constantly finding their way onto the McDonald’s menu. From once the standard Big Mac and French fries, to now with numerous salads and deli sandwiches, where freshness and quality standards are concepts they stand behind. Go to their website and use their Nutrition Calculator. Who would have ever thought of McDonald’s promoting a nutrition calendar 10 years ago? Once again, you may not choose to be a McDonald’s customer but you can certainly appreciate the amazing amount of change that has taken place amongst all of that order. Based on their history these methods certainly appear to be a recipe for success and thus the concept of preserving change amid order has served them well.

They have done this through careful and thoughtful experimentation. They have listened to their customers and they have tried new things. Have they all worked? No. Have they learned from the process? Without a doubt. This does not mean go out today and try something wildly different. It simply means insure the culture of change remains a part of your salon. When is the last time you created a new treatment? When is the last time you sent staff out to be trained or retrained? When is the last time some new paint or carpet arrived in the salon? What is new, special or different today? Most importantly, what are you doing about it in this moment?

It may look a lot safer, and sometimes prudent, to not break barriers or create new ways to do things, but the fact is the opposite is true. If you don’t risk anything you will inevitably find yourself falling behind those that do. You can be the creator of change, or allow change to lead you. Try something new, learn from the wins, and learn from the challenges.

In the end the spirit to grow lives in all successful salons the trick is to find the balance between order and change. Maintain flexibility and consistency. You may not ever find it, or perfect it, but there is there is much learning and joy to be found in the challenge of the attempt.

Do you need help to grow your salon business? Contact us here. 

Nov 29
3

Plan for a Successful Salon Start

By | blog, Salon, Salon Business, Uncategorized | No Comments

salon start up

Plan for a Successful Salon Start

All of the greatest ideas conceived, at some point, still require the careful, and sometimes painful, process of putting numbers and ideas on paper. So WHY must we do this?

The process of building your financial forecasts and a development plan itself is a terrific learning tool to either prepare the potential salon operator to go into the business, or realize what the key areas to watch for in operating at maximum potential.

Up to date and accurate figures are critical in order for the spa to respond to the business needs. But even more importantly they are the guide that will help to reasonably predict what may happen in the future and thus helps in designing the path for the salon leadership to lead the company to a healthy long term financial position. 

These are some of the fundamental issues that will be addressed before you should start to invest your hard earned money.

In the Beginning… Where to Start?

Starting up means planning and homework.

In the beginning stages of deciding to build, or buy, a salon, it is vital that time is taken to carefully consider some of the following items. Performing mindful analysis on key areas will drastically affect the decision making process and may well determine whether or not to go ahead with the dream as it looks today.

Not only will this aid in the financial planning process it will assist in closely defining the goals of the business and thus help create a clear vision to follow for all those who will join in making the dream a reality.

KEY AREAS:

  • What kind of experience are you looking to create for your guest? What is the vision?

  • Who is the guest? What do they “look like”? What are their demographics?

  • Where does the salon (geographically) want, need, to be? Is it a new building, existing building, existing salon?

  • Estimate Start up Costs

  • Developing a Proforma

  • Sales and Marketing Strategy and Plan

  • Operations

All of these items require careful thought and consideration. If time is not taken to make these decisions the ability to forecast the success of the business will be limited.

THE EXPERIENCE

Are you creating a salon and spa, brand specific salon, resort salon? Is it a green salon, holistic, brand specific or somewhere in between?

The experience is important as it will impact who the salon is going to attract and what kind of physical space requirements and equipment the salon will require.

The salon may have a theme chosen for it. Is it east meets west? Trendy uptown? When this choice is made it will assist in determining all of the other choices to be made that will affect the guest visit. Things they see and touch, the treatments, the details that will evoke feelings and emotions, and thus create a unique experience that will differentiate this salon from the competitors.

 

If you cannot differentiate yourself from your competitors, whether physically, your treatments, or your service then why will they want to come to your salon over somewhere else?

THE GUEST

Take a close look around and see where “your guest” lives. Is it a neighbourhood salon looking to attract the local residents to walk on over or is it a specific salon location looking to have the world’s rich and famous find it on the coast of some tropical land? You need to know, or at the very least, try to predict, the demographics of your guests.

Demographics are:

    • Socioeconomic groups, characterized by age, income, sex, education, occupation, etc., that comprise a market niche.

    • The characteristics of human populations and population segments, especially when used to identify consumer markets:

The closer it is identified who they are it can then be determined where they are and then the most important, how to get to them. This is essential for determining the marketing plan.

Now, depending on the experience of the development team, and target guest, the next stage in preparation can start taking shape. These two factors, the guest and the experience, will help in planning the spatial needs.

THE SPACE

LOCATION

First and foremost, location, location, location. It is an old adage but still has great truth to it. By finding a fit between the spa experience, and the target guest, specific target locations can now be considered. Or at least where the salon can be located to achieve the greatest possibility for success. What is the population? How much competition is in the area?

SIZE

How many rooms? Chair spaces? Sinks

What will happen in each treatment room, what is the purpose?

What are the common areas needed?

What about reception, storage and staff areas?

How much space will be needed to deliver the experience you have planned on?

OPTIONS

Once you determine how much space is required you need to determine how is the space going to be created.

Is it better to build, or to buy, or to rent?

Can it grow and expand if needed?

These questions are interrelated to the location and size as they play key roles in the cost of the project and the ability to attract the guests you need.

These are the difficult decisions that will be faced, and need to be resolved, as you collect all the information necessary to determined whether or not this dream is feasible.

START UP COSTS

This is a detailed outlook of what is required to get the salon up and running. A review of everything from development costs, construction costs, furnishing and fixtures, pre opening costs, including training and marketing all need to be considered. Establishing all of these items are the first step is deciding whether the business is viable, or not. It is not uncommon to see ranges in start up anywhere from $200.00 – $550.00 per square foot.

PROFORMA

This is the most often forgotten, or neglected, area of spa development. Many future owners and operators fail to invest the time and energy required to complete a thorough proforma. It is easy to “fall in love” with the idea of creating a new salon. However it is crucial to look at some realistic numbers to determine if this concept will make a profit.

Proforma means “for form’s sake”. So for our purposes this is giving form to the salon project before it exists. Really this is the first close look at a rough “estimated” budget. With a combination of some knowledge, experience, and/or advice, there will need to be an estimate of what level of revenue the spa can generate and then what will be the proportionate share of the expenses.

Labour is, and always will be, the single greatest expense as the spa experience is generally being a one-on-one personal practice. The planned compensation structure will be critical. Learn what salons of a similar size and scope are operating at

Be balanced and realistic. Good decision making here will serve the salon well.

Sales & Marketing Plan

SALES – How is the salon going to be sold? What are the key messages the team will convey to the potential guests in hoping to entice them to visit the salon. The training of the team in educating the consumers on why they should choose this salon rather than the multitude of others is essential. Are you focusing on local business or corporate business? What is your sales strategy?

MARKETING – This area includes everything from the production of collateral, brochures and newsletters, to website, signage and videos. Public relations and strategic alliances are wonderful advocates of the salon business and will deliver results for the salon. Build a plan and start having your awareness begin before the salon is open. You need to have guests coming to your door the first time it opens!

For a new salon operation the amount of investment here is more expensive in the beginning as this process is launching something new and requires awareness by the spa goer marketplace but should become more efficient and economical as time passes. Never look too closely at this expense line as a place to cut. It will always be the lifeblood of the business as the salon will never have “too many” guests!

Operations

The salon has all been created on paper but services still have to be delivered, day in and day out. Spending time on looking at all the smaller costs required to convey the desired experience to the guest will have long term benefits to operating at maximum efficiency both from a service and cost basis.

In Summary

By reviewing each one of these keys areas you will have a strong basis from which to make your decisions. What you ultimately decide to do may not look exactly like you first thought but you will know that you are now taking an informed approach to starting up your salon.

In the end all this careful planning and homework will not guarantee you success but without it you are just hoping that great idea turns out as good as you thought.

Need helping starting your salon? Contact Rob at [email protected]

Nov 18
9

Sky High Salon Customer Service

By | blog, Customer service, Salon, Salon Business, Uncategorized | No Comments

Salon Customer Service

As salon consultants we always get asked what makes one salon better than another, what services do I need to implement to be on top, how do I outshine the competition? The answer is an easy one…. Dazzle your customers with great service. It sounds simple doesn’t it? It’s the way to sky high salon customer service! 

The concept of great customer service is a simple one, but unfortunately it seems to be difficult to implement because so many places have a really hard time being consistently great at it.

We believe that investing in training your staff on how to properly service your clients is a better investment than the latest technology or even re-decorating your salon.

Elevating your salon customer service standards means going beyond being the order taker. It means you have to go above your customers expectations and set an impression that they will talk about for years after.

In this article we will address 5 steps towards achieving great salon customer service. The key is to manage this philosophy each and every day.

5 Simple Steps to having SKY HIGH Customer Service:

1. Treat Every Customer as 10 Potential Customers

Always remember the multiplier effect the minus 30 rule, plus10 rule. What this means is people who have a bad experience are likely to tell 30 other people about that experience, but if they have a good experience they will likely spread the news to 10 other people. In the spa world word of mouth is the biggest form of advertising, so it is important to remember the 10 multiplier. Remember for every customer that walks through your doors, you are not just serving them you are serving their friends and family that they will tell about their experience.

Therefore make every interaction count and make it exceed all their expectations. Address this multiplier affect in your next staff meeting. By bringing it to your teams attention, they will be more aware of their actions when servicing your clients.

2. Training and Education is Key

Do not expect your staff to know your standards through osmosis. You need to continually train your staff on what exactly your customer standards are but also give them specific examples of how to deliver it. For example: be specific regarding the ways in which to greet a customer when they walk in the door. Greet the guest before the guest greets you. Have a standard welcome. Many times spas have a standard greeting on the phone but they don’t have a standard greeting when the guest walks in the door. In fact many times when the customer first arrives we notice the standard fall apart. How many times have you walked into a spa and the receptionist was too busy to greet you right away? Don’t get caught having this happen at your spa.

Education is also essential. Your staff needs to be aware of all the products and services you offer. This means that they should be able to talk with confidence about every product you sell, right down to the benefits and some key active ingredients of each.

Your staff should have experienced all the services you offer so they can talk to your guests about them fluently. Could you properly describe a fabulous meal if you had never eaten it? Your staff can make your menu sound delicious if they have had a chance to experience it.

The better educated your staff is, the better they can serve your customers. When your staff is properly versed concerning all the ins and outs of your spa, it builds customer trust and loyalty. Your customers will feel like their needs are being met and they will feel safe.

Set up training with your product reps at least every quarter to ensure all team members are up to date with the lines you carry. Also have the product Reps perform frequent and regular training on the treatments you offer and make sure there are protocols to follow so there is consistency.

Remember training is not a one time thing and should not only be for new hires. Especially in the spa business with changing technology and trends, it is so important to keep a head of the game. This means that all team members, service providers and reception team members, and even the most seasoned veterans, need to be continually trained and educated. This will give them the tools to best service your customers.

3. Set Sky High Standards and then Evaluate your staff

Take time to go through your operation and set standards for each and every instance where you team comes in contact with the guests. When setting the standards make sure you understand what a good standard is and then decide what a SKY HIGH standard is. You can differentiate your spa from the competition by doing the little things better than everyone else.

Once you have set the standards you want to insure that customer service a part of your staff’s job performance evaluation. It is essential that your team is constantly reminded of how performing sky high customer service is an important part of their job. Having this as part of the evaluation process will keep them on track and consistent.

Make sure you encourage customer feedback in order to give your team tangible feedback. The best way for your staff to know how they are doing is to hear it from the customers. Make your customer feedback forms easy and attractive to fill out. Have a monthly draw for your customers to win by participating in giving feedback. The more advice and feedback you get from your customers the better you can evaluate your team. We always recommend having evaluations set every six months. This is a manageable time for managers and it gives a good period of time to make a detailed assessment on the team member’s performance.

4. Reward their Performance

Recognize outstanding customer service performance amongst your team. This can be through verbal praise in private or at a team meeting. You can also give rewards such as gifts, products or dinners etc.

You can also join the team member’s exceptional performance to their pay. Once an evaluation is done you can give them a customer service bonus that needs to be re-earned every evaluation period. This will keep your team motivated and act as a constant reminder regarding the importance of providing excellent service.

Score Evaluation System:

You can have a score system in place where they need to achieve a certain score in order to earn a pay bonus. You can set these standards and decide what this pay bonus is going to be. We recommend it being anywhere from $0.50- $1.00 or 2-3% service commission, in order to manage your labour cost and it must also be significant enough to make a difference in their pay.

5. Service them out of the treatment room:

Sometimes we forget that the customers spa experience is not just what happens in the treatment room but also the before and after. This means we need to service the customers from the first phone call before they book their service, to making a follow up call after the service is long over and they have gone home.

In order to leave lasting impressions it is important to show the customer you really care and appreciate their business. Give them the time they deserve when making a booking and then show them you care by contacting them to see how they enjoyed their services, or even to inquire about any post treatment questions they may have.

Have a customer service checklist provided for your staff that informs them in detail how every interaction with the customer should be outside the treatment room:

Example:

  • Standard Welcome greeting when the guest arrives. Greet the guest before the guest greets you.

  • Taking them on a tour of the salon before the service

    • Make it part of your policy to show the guests around on a mini tour so they are aware of the facilities and where they are required to be after they get dressed. At this time it is also a good idea to ask them if they have any questions.

  • Greeting them for a treatment in the waiting room

    • Have a standard greeting with a hand shake and make sure they look the guests in the eyes.

  • Escort them back to the waiting room

    • Always offer and serve them water or tea

    • Indicate that it was your pleasure to have them and you hope to see them again

  • Checking out and paying their bill

    • Ask them how everything was and look them in the eyes

    • Ask if they have any questions about products

    • Thank them for their business and say you look forward to serving them again

  • Follow up calls the next day

    • This is a great way to show your customers you care after the visit is over. Ask them how everything was and if they have any questions. State again how it was pleasure to have them.

Dazzle your customers with SKY HIGH salon customer service and you will not need to worry about the competition. Customer service does not cost money, but it does take commitment and dedication from the whole team in order to ensure its success. Every team member needs to be on board because you are only as strong as your weakest link. Make sure you make this a priority in your interview process. Hire people based on their customer service skills, it is easier to train them on the technical part.

When you give your full effort towards creating and sustaining a culture of SKY HIGH salon customer service you will see the smiles on your customer’s face and SKY HIGH bottom line.

If you need help with this or anything else please email [email protected] 

Nov 08
2

Hiring & Training Salon Reception Well!

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Salon reception training

In the previous post we talked about salon reception being the forgotten ones. They are the front end of the business and the first point of contact. Training is often provided for the stylists but the reception team are thrown in to get the job done. Below I offer solutions to making sure that you are hiring and training salon reception well!

THE HIRING PROCESS

It all starts with quality of staff you hire. We often hear salon owners and managers struggling to find “good” salon reception team members. Is it the people or the process? Make sure they have a minimum skill set before hiring. During the interview process make them do a typing test, a phone test and a basic math or spelling test. Look for direct or transferable skills. 

Moreover make sure you are thorough in your interview process. Do you ask situational questions so you can get an idea how they might react in difficult situations?

It is critical to get people with personality to handle the human needs of your guests but it is equally critical to find people who can effectively perform the necessary tasks. Is this person the right “fit” for your salon? Look around your salon and evaluate what types of people succeed in your environment? Look for similar qualities in the people you are interviewing.

Without exception, do reference checks. If you are not the sure after the first one, do another. Do not call their current employer without the candidates permission but don’t be afraid to call an employer listed on their employment history but not listed as a reference. You might learn some important information.

Orientation Training

Spend the time with them when they are first hired. They need to be very clear on all the company policy and procedures. Have a separate reception manual that outlines all of the salons expectations, including telephone protocol, booking procedures, greeting guests etc….

Product Training

It is imperative to include your salon reception team in the product training including the refresher courses. Most often they are the ones closing the deal when it comes to selling retail.

Treatment Training

How are your salon receptionists supposed to explain and sell services when they have never tried them? This is where so many salons go wrong. You need to have your reception team experience all of your services. This not only is a great incentive to them as a perk of their job but it will also pay you back ten fold. In fact why not build it into their compensation plan? You want them to be excited and knowledgeable when talking to your customers.

Salon Reception (ONLY) Meetings

Have a meeting for your salon reception team separate and specific from all other meetings. From marketing initiatives, to operational policies, and special events your receptionist team needs to be on their toes. One of the easiest ways for them to drop the ball is when there is not efficient communication. You need to have separate reception meeting to go over specific things that they need to be kept in the loop with. It also clearly demonstrates you care about them.

Outside Training

Send your team to outside training sessions. They can attend salon reception training courses or customer service courses or even leadership courses. Give them the chance to learn from industry or skill based experts. The more skills they have the better they can serve your business. This is not only for the newcomer to your business but also the seasoned veteran. Upgrading a good team member to a great one is always a good idea no matter how long they have been you. It can also help those experienced team members from falling into bad habits. When you send the reception team to outside training it will help balance those high expectations you have with the support and training they need to succeed. This will show to the reception team, and the rest of the salon team, that you are investing in them and this will once again go a long way in guiding your business to success.

Compensation Check

It may be time to look at the way your reception team is being rewarded. Are you paying competitively? Are you competitive with the doctor or dental office? After all you are competing with them for quality team members. Make sure you know where you stand. After you know you are competitive is your compensation plan rewarding the right behaviors? What we mean when we say this does you plan reward them for just doing the job or is it rewarding them for doing a good job? Does exceptional performance receive recognition? Is customer service and selling linked into their evaluation? Does your evaluation clearly outline what behaviours you support and the ones you don’t?

The best plans tie this all together so that the reception team members know what is expected of them and they are paid to perform according to those expectations.

LEAD BY EXAMPLE

Work along side them one day. Put yourself in their shoes. It does not have to be the whole day but it can accomplish a lot in a short time. Not only will you see the inefficiencies in the business it will show the reception team that you are willing to look at challenges from the receptionist point of view. Do this as often as you can. Even if it is just once or twice a year you will reap the benefits from the moral and operational point of view.

Remember the whole goal of this plan is to set up your reception team for success. When they are successful the entire spa runs more efficiently and the whole operation will reap the rewards. Some of these changes can be ever so slight, yet deliver tremendous results. Starting today take some time with your reception team, continue to communicate, give them positive re-enforcement, and start to do the checks and balances to review their performance.

By following this outline and investing in your salon reception team you can, and will, generate an amazing return! Turn your salon team from the forgotten ones to the memorable ones.

Invest in training for your salon team. Contact Rob here. 

Nov 01
2

Salon Reception: The Forgotten Ones

By | blog, Customer service, Salon, Salon Business, Uncategorized | No Comments

young attractive female receptionist of beauty salon

Peace, relaxation and great hair styles are what we promote. That is for the guest. What we know on the inside is that it is a fierce salon world out there! There is a new salon on every corner with the latest and greatest concept, idea or treatment. With this competition on the rise everyday, salons cannot afford to drop the ball. The guest expectations have also continued to rise as the guests become more and more educated. In truth consumers have so many choices today when it comes to choosing a salon and stylist that they expect, and rightly so, to be treated like gold from the time they make contact, to the time they walk in the door to the time they leave. Your salon reception: the forgotten ones. 

Salons focus a tremendous amount of energy on training their service providers, improving the treatment quality, and staying innovative to keep ahead of the game. However there is a big piece to this puzzle that is most often forgotten, the salon reception team. In reality they are the back bone to running any successful salon, but are the expectations of the salon reception team equal to the time and resources we invest in them?

We call them the forgotten ones because more often than not they are thrown into their job and it is sink or swim, essentially forgotten. That is, unless, there is a problem. A mistake in a treatment booking, or perhaps an inquiry that was not responded to on time, or a disappointed guest who was not handled appropriately? They usually don’t even give them a life line to save themselves. Even if salons are great at training their employees, they often forget to include the reception team in the mix.

Let’s tale a look at the Expectations of the Salon Reception Team:

  • Deliver the Salon Vision to guests

  • Provide an example to the rest of the staff

  • Answering and managing multiple phone lines

  • Making efficient bookings

  • Respond to email inquiries

  • Up selling products and services on the phone

  • Being experts in the salon services offered, the guests want to know!

  • Handling guest check in

  • Handling check out and payment

  • Selling products in the reception area

  • Dealing with customer and staff complaints

  • Handle numerous administrative duties and monetary transactions

  • Manage the staff flow throughout the day

  • Etc, Etc, Etc…….

Typical Investment into the Salon Reception Team:

  • The lowest paid members of the team

  • Least trained members of the team

Operational Impact on Salon Reception

  • Have the highest pressure

  • Have the highest turnover

What is wrong with this Picture?

Clearly our expectations far outweigh our investment we put into setting them up for success. We expect reception to be these highly functional team members yet we do not supply them with the information nor the skills required to deliver a superior result. In order to see outstanding results in customer service, customer retention, increased sales, and overall efficiency in running the salon significant more investment in our reception team is required.

Positive Changes you can make:

There are some easy tactics and policies you can implement in order to assure the maximum potential and output from your reception team starting with the hiring process through orientation and training. If you need help in this area please contact us here.
I will cover off in more detail on these changes in the next post. 

Oct 25
0

Salon Success – Four Key Elements

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salon

Salon Success – Four Key Elements 

I always look forward to the interaction I have with the many salon industry professionals I meet at events throughout the year. Their energy and enthusiasm inspires me to do even more to assist salon owners and their staff in creating exceptional guest experiences and to improve the financial health of the businesses.

I learn more with every seminar I present, and every conversation I have. The more I interact with industry professionals, the better I am equipped to help them. I gain knowledge through every problem I help solve, and every situation I evaluate.

Here we have the four key elements to salon success. These are issues that should be closely and frequently monitored for optimum results.

Salon Success Tip #1: Reception Matters!

Reception staff provide the first and lasting impression to your guests. An investment in time and dollars in your reception staff can have a great impact on your guest’s experience.

Reception staff tend to be the lowest paid, and have the highest turnover rate of any category of spa employee. There are several benefits of recognizing the importance of the role of reception staff through higher wages and more training. Aside from the benefit to the guest’s experience, the most important benefit is that your reception staff will stay in the job longer, and therefor save the owner money by reducing time spent hiring and training a replacement.

The key areas of training include: 

  • Proper phone and in-person ‘script’ or process.
  • Proper dress
  • Thorough software training
  • Reviewing standards and expectations of the role

Remember that your reception staff really can have a positive impact on both the guest experience and your bottom line.

Salon Success Tip #2: Rebooking Counts!

Rebooking is a key area that often gets missed at the conclusion of a service. If your staff are doing mostly colour treatments then this is something that can easily be booked in in advance to assure the client gets the time and doesn’t have to wait to get their colour done. Does your salon offer incentives for pre-booking?

Salon Success Tip #3: Marketing Plans Get Results!

Many Salon owners have no marketing plan and just ‘wing it’ with sporadic promotions and inconsistent messaging on social media.

Other salon owners do have a marketing plan, yet do not follow it so do not gain the financial benefits of the time they have invested in creating the plan.

A third category of salon owners follow a plan, deliver consistent, targeted messages on a set schedule – and reap the rewards!

Which category do you want to be in?

Make marketing a priority and schedule time to work on it. Plan ahead to have promotions tied in to holidays and things like wedding season. Plan them ahead of time so it’s not a too-late-last-minute-panic-rush deal. You need to target your ideal clients. 

Make sure your website and social media pages are up-to-date and that you add new messages and information on a regular basis. Put it on the calendar and get it done. Tweet, post and update. Often!

Salon Success Tip #4: Know Your Business – Know Your Numbers

You can’t survive in the industry just buy hoping you’re making a profit! Do you know what your costs are? Are your staff being paid appropriately? Are you losing money due to product wastage and mysteriously shrinking inventory? Are you missing out on revenue because of under-used space?

Understanding and learning to track your financial information is something you may be able to do yourself, or with the help of a financial or business consultant. Either way, it needs to be done.

Numbers have the ability to reveal what we cannot see by observing the day-to-day activity of the salon. Trends in income and spending can develop over time. Sometimes it takes the examination of months or even years of financial activity to make a problem evident.

These are just a few key areas that will lead your salon success! To book an appointment email [email protected] 

Oct 18
0

Giving Salon Guests Your Full Attention

By | blog, Customer service, Salon, Uncategorized | No Comments

Receptionist Helping Customer at Beauty Salon

Giving Salon Guests Your Full Attention

How we treat and communicate with our guests in spas or salons is a critical factor in their impression of the experience. It has a major influence on how they feel about their visit to your business. But how do we give them our full attention? What are the specific things we can do to demonstrate to the salon guest that they are the most important person to us in that moment?

There are many techniques that can help you to convey that you are giving the guest your full attention, and these same techniques actually do make you give the guest your full attention! When you employ these techniques, you will find yourself engaging with your guest in the best possible way in turn giving salon guests your full attention. 

Be Prepared for Your Guest

You can only give your guest your full attention if you are prepared to do so. It starts with being on time, and continues with being organized throughout your day. Are you able to manage your working time efficiently? Manage your time effectively by planning ahead, setting goals, determining priorities and, minimizing interruptions.

Make sure your space, supplies and equipment are all prepared in advance so you are not distracted by setting up. Convey a professional appearance with appropriate clothing and cleanliness. It demonstrates a respect and commitment to your profession and lets the guest know that you take your work seriously.

Before your guest’s arrival, be prepared by knowing as much about them as you can so you can greet them properly and not need to ask them about past treatments or services: you will be better able to focus instead on their present needs. This includes knowing what services they had, what product they used, and yes: what they spent with you. With repeat guests, make notes about your salon guest and the conversations you had. Read over those notes before the guest arrives. By refreshing your memory about a guest’s planned travel or event, you’ll be able to ask them about their trip or how that anniversary party went.

Being properly prepared can contribute greatly to a positive guest experience.

Your Guest’s Arrival

It’s show time! Make sure you make eye contact, greet them warmly and avoid distractions. It’s the guest’s turn for attention — ignore your cell phone and whatever is going on in the room, and focus all you attention on your guest.

Even the posture you have when you greet your guest matters. Our body language ‘speaks’ volumes about our attitude, energy and focus. Standing up straight conveys that we are interested and attentive.

Maintaining control over your own emotions is very important in good customer service. Do your best to put aside your own personal stresses before your guest arrives. Keeping your emotions in check will help you to deal with on-the-job surprises, changes in schedule, and negative or angry guests.

If you’re not ready and in the right frame of mind, they will sense that you are too distracted to give them your full attention. Make sure you’re ready so that things start off on the right foot.

Get into the mindset that you will treat each guest independently from any other guests that day. Don’t let a negative comment from an earlier guest affect the way you treat your next guest. Each interaction with the same guest must also be treated separately. They may be in a different mood, or have different needs. Responding appropriately to the way they act and what they say on that particular day will demonstrate that you are giving them your full attention.

Listening to Your Guest’s Needs

Listen carefully to the guest’s requests and needs. Ask questions to verify and clarify what you’ve heard. This shows that you were truly listening.

Refrain from sarcasm and critical comments, and be patient with your guest as they may not be clearly expressing their needs, or they may be unsure.

By paying close attention, you may be able to detect hesitation or uncertainty in what they are telling you. If you pick up on those cues, take the opportunity to question them further and hopefully they will reveal their true thoughts about the service or treatment you are going to do. Maybe they just need a little more information to make them comfortable about trying a different service, treatment, haircut or colour.

Give them thorough responses to questions, and make sure that the answer you gave actually answered their question.

When an element of personalization is introduced to your guest, it helps them to feel special. Know the client, products, and services well enough that you can present them to the client in a personalized way – how that product or service is good for their particular needs or how a treatment can be done to best suit the guest.

Being a persuasive speaker can dramatically improve your customer interactions. The secret of persuasive speaking is putting the verbal focus on the target of persuasion (the customer), rather than on the speaker. In practice, it means calling a customer by name, using action-oriented words, the active tense in words or phrases instead of the passive tense and avoiding prefacing statements (like ‘I think’ or ‘I believe’) that express your personal thoughts or opinions. Putting your salon customers at the centre will make them feel more respected and appreciated.

Communicating with other staff and management

The same principals we discussed regarding how to interact with your guest applies also to your engagement with other staff and management. Use these same strategies with your co-workers in order to foster a positive work environment. You are either a positive contributor to your salon work space, or not.

Mental Discipline

You can use all the techniques above to help you stay in the moment, but often it is your own mental discipline that can be your greatest asset. When your mind starts to wander to other areas of work or life, your ability to come back to the present is critical. These mental wanderings can distract you from the technical competency of treating your guest. In fact, they also impact your guest in a subtle but powerful way. You quite likely know the difference of how it feels when someone is completely focused on you or not focused. Two massage therapists can perform the exact same massage, but the one who stays ‘present’ with their guest will always get greater results and long term loyalty. Being present indicates care for the guest, and that is truly what they are looking for and deserve.

Give your guests your full attention, get ‘present’, and they will give back the gift of their loyalty and dollars.

Need help getting results in your salon? Contact Spaformation at www.spaformation.com or reach out at [email protected]

Oct 11
3

5 Simple Steps To Having SKY HIGH Customer Service

By | blog, Customer service, Salon, Salon Business, Salon Management | No Comments

Salon customer service

As salon consultants we always get asked what makes one salon better than another, what services do I need to implement to be on top, how do I outshine the competition? The answer is an easy one…. Dazzle your customers with great customer service. It sounds simple doesn’t it? 

The concept of great customer service is a simple one, but unfortunately it seems to be difficult to implement because so many places have a really hard time being consistently great at it.

We believe that investing in training your staff on how to properly service your clients is a better investment than the latest technology or even re-decorating your salon. 

Elevating your customer service standards means going beyond being the order taker. It means you have to go above your customers expectations and set an impression that they will talk about for years after. 

In this article we will address 5 steps towards achieving great customer service. The key is to manage this philosophy each and every day.

5 Simple Steps to having SKY HIGH Customer Service:

1. Treat Every Customer as 10 Potential Customers:

Always remember the multiplier effect the minus 30 rule, plus10 rule. What this means is people who have a bad experience are likely to tell 30 other people about that experience, but if they have a good experience they will likely spread the news to 10 other people. In the spa world word of mouth is the biggest form of advertising, so it is important to remember the 10 multiplier. Remember for every customer that walks through your doors, you are not just serving them you are serving their friends and family that they will tell about their experience.

Therefore make every interaction count and make it exceed all their expectations. Address this multiplier affect in your next staff meeting. By bringing it to your teams attention, they will be more aware of their actions when servicing your salon clients.

2. Training and Education is Key:

Do not expect your staff to know your standards through osmosis. You need to continually train your salon staff on what exactly your customer standards are but also give them specific examples of how to deliver it. For example: be specific regarding the ways in which to greet a customer when they walk in the door. Greet the guest before the guest greets you. Have a standard welcome. Many times spas have a standard greeting on the phone but they don’t have a standard greeting when the guest walks in the door. In fact many times when the customer first arrives we notice the standard fall apart. How many times have you walked into a salon and the receptionist was too busy to greet you right away? Don’t get caught having this happen at your salon.

Education is also essential. Your staff needs to be aware of all the products and services you offer. This means that they should be able to talk with confidence about every product you sell, right down to the benefits and some key active ingredients of each.

Your staff should have experienced all the services you offer so they can talk to your guests about them fluently. Could you properly describe a fabulous meal if you had never eaten it? Your staff can make your menu sound delicious if they have had a chance to experience it.

The better educated your staff is, the better they can serve your customers. When your staff is properly versed concerning all the ins and outs of your salon, it builds customer trust and loyalty. Your customers will feel like their needs are being met and they will feel safe.

Set up training with your product reps at least every quarter to ensure all team members are up to date with the lines you carry. Also have the product Reps perform frequent and regular training on the treatments you offer and make sure there are protocols to follow so there is consistency. 

Remember training is not a one time thing and should not only be for new hires. Especially in the salon business with changing technology and trends, it is so important to keep a head of the game. This means that all team members, service providers and reception team members, and even the most seasoned veterans, need to be continually trained and educated. This will give them the tools to best service your customers.

3. Set Sky High Standards and then Evaluate your staff

Take time to go through your operation and set standards for each and every instance where you team comes in contact with the guests. When setting the standards make sure you understand what a good standard is and then decide what a SKY HIGH standard is. You can differentiate your salon from the competition by doing the little things better than everyone else.

Once you have set the standards you want to insure that customer service a part of your staff’s job performance evaluation. It is essential that your team is constantly reminded of how performing sky high customer service is an important part of their job. Having this as part of the evaluation process will keep them on track and consistent. 

Make sure you encourage customer feedback in order to give your team tangible feedback. The best way for your salon staff to know how they are doing is to hear it from the customers.  Make your customer feedback forms easy and attractive to fill out. Have a monthly draw for your customers to win by participating in giving feedback.  The more advice and feedback you get from your customers the better you can evaluate your team. We always recommend having evaluations set every six months. This is a manageable time for managers and it gives a good period of time to make a detailed assessment on the team member’s performance.   

4. Reward their Performance:

Recognize outstanding customer service performance amongst your team. This can be through verbal praise in private or at a team meeting.  You can also give rewards such as gifts, products or dinners etc.

You can also join the team member’s exceptional performance to their pay. Once an evaluation is done you can give them a customer service bonus that needs to be re-earned every evaluation period. This will keep your team motivated and act as a constant reminder regarding the importance of providing excellent service. 

Score Evaluation System:

You can have a score system in place where they need to achieve a certain score in order to earn a pay bonus. You can set these standards and decide what this pay bonus is going to be. We recommend it being anywhere from $0.50- $1.00 or 2-3% service commission, in order to manage your labour cost and it must also be significant enough to make a difference in their pay. 

5.  Service them out of the treatment room:

Sometimes we forget that the customers salon experience is not just what happens in the treatment room but also the before and after. This means we need to service the customers from the first phone call before they book their service, to making a follow up call after the service is long over and they have gone home. 

In order to leave lasting impressions it is important to show the customer you really care and appreciate their business. Give them the time they deserve when making a booking and then show them you care by contacting them to see how they enjoyed their services, or even to inquire about any post treatment questions they may have.

Have a customer service checklist provided for your staff that informs them in detail how every interaction with the customer should be outside the treatment room:

Example:

  • Standard Welcome greeting when the guest arrives. Greet the guest before the guest greets you.
  • Taking them on a tour of the salon before the service
    • Make it part of your policy to show the guests around on a mini tour so they are aware of the facilities and where they are required to be after they get dressed. At this time it is also a good idea to ask them if they have any questions.
  • Greeting them for a treatment in the waiting room
    • Have a standard greeting with a hand shake and make sure they look the guests in the eyes. 
  • Escort them back to the waiting room
    • Always offer and serve them water or tea
    • Indicate that it was your pleasure to have them and you hope to see them again
  • Checking out and paying their bill
    • Ask them how everything was and look them in the eyes
    • Ask if they have any questions about products
    • Thank them for their business and say you look forward to serving them again
  • Follow up calls the next day
    • This is a great way to show your customers you care after the visit is over. Ask them how everything was and if they have any questions.  State again how it was pleasure to have them.

Dazzle your customers with SKY HIGH service and you will not need to worry about the competition.  Customer service does not cost money, but it does take commitment and dedication from the whole team in order to ensure its success. Every team member needs to be on board because you are only as strong as your weakest link. Make sure you make this a priority in your interview process. Hire people based on their customer service skills, it is easier to train them on the technical part. 

When you give your full effort towards creating and sustaining a culture of SKY HIGH customer service you will see the smiles on your customer’s face and SKY HIGH bottom line.

Need help with training your salon staff in this area or others? Email [email protected]

Oct 04
0

Inspect What You Expect: Salon Team Evaluations Part 2

By | Salon, Salon Business, Salon Management | No Comments

Salon Team Evaluations

Evaluations are key to the success of your salon business. Making time to review and do evaluations of your salon staff can help you take your business to the next level. As we saw in Part 1 it is key to make the time for this to guide your team to success! Here we have the ‘How To’ of getting your staff evaluations done.

Scheduling Evaluations

Have a formalized procedure for evaluations. Scheduling should be consistent. You might determine that evaluations for different categories of team members need to occur with different frequency. For example: a new employees would be evaluated after a 1 month of a 3 month probation period, and then either every 3 or 6 months thereafter.

Tips for conducting evaluations

  • Schedule the evaluation in advance so the team member knows it is coming. Do not schedule it more than two weeks ahead otherwise they could stress about it.
  • Avoid cancelling or changing the day or time of the schedule evaluation whenever possible. This adds more unnecessary stress into the process.
  • Provide the team member with a blank copy of the evaluation in advance of the meeting. Ask them to fill it out. This will provide you with an opportunity to compare how you think they are performing with how they see themselves performing. This is very worthwhile as it can help to uncover discrepancies in expectations.

Reward the Right Behaviours

A great way to make use of the employee evaluation data is by having the evaluations tie into compensation. Evaluations should be an important part of the daily rewards, compensation, and overall recognition strategies. It is important to make sure that the rewards are in line with actual performance and that the performance that is evaluated ties into the core company principles. For example: If pay is entirely based on individual sales performance, then there is less motivation for teamwork. Create ways to tie together results in financial and operational performance with incentives or bonuses in both cash and non-cash rewards systems.

Genuine & Sincere Praise

Some leaders employ encouragement as a manipulative device. They say what their staff want to hear in order to get them to perform as desired.  Eventually, inauthentic encouragement rings hollow, as people recognize that it’s a management tactic rather than heartfelt affirmation. Over time, people learn to differentiate feel-good platitudes from actual praise.

When standards of evaluation are well-defined and known, recognition and praise can be offered in a completely genuine and sincere way.

Encourage Teamwork

One way to encourage teamwork is by instituting a policy of recognizing the entire team together for overall positive performance evaluations This will motivate the staff to encourage and support each other. For example, the team might need to achieve a minimum average ‘grade’ on evaluations, or all team members team members may be required to achieve a minimum standard in order for there to be a team reward.

Celebrate Success!

Praise and recognition should be given proportionately, with more lavish compliments, rewards, and recognition reserved for outstanding performance. It should also be given in a timely manner so that people know immediately the value of their contribution.

Your team is your most valuable asset in your spa or salon business. Make sure you value and recognize their important contributions.

Need help getting results in your salon business? Contact Salon Prophets at [email protected]