if you’re a salon owner, you know your role is to create the best experience for your clients. From the moment they book with you until when they step outside following their treatment, your customers are in the care of you and your team.
While any type of service industry role requires the highest levels of attention to detail, beauty treatments or hair appointments can be different. This is because they’re often super personal. You’re in the business of making customers look and feel great. Therefore, if there are concerns, it’s vital you have a plan in place to solve them.
Achieving the desired results
One of the main concerns that a lot of salon customers have is whether they’ll get the hairstyle they expected or the treatment they booked. To help get to the point where your team understands what the client is looking for, it’s important that you have a system in place where customers can talk about what they want before their appointment.
You could set up an online form or encourage them to come into the salon for a pre-treatment consultation. These options will allow you to find out what they’re looking for and for you to explain the products you’ll use. For instance, if they’re trying to get a sun-kissed glow, you can talk them through the tan accelerators you use and how to apply them in order to get the results they’re after. If you’re a hairdresser, you might need to do a patch test upfront, and chat about exactly what the client wants in case you need to order any additional products.
Train your team
…in beauty treatments! Prioritising training your team is vital. This will ensure that they’re well-versed in different techniques, treatments, and the best products to apply.
Work closely with your staff so that you can see how they apply themselves to a treatment or hairstyling task and make a note of areas that you think may need attention. Also, create a training schedule so you can book in your team for the next level. Encourage people to explore their interests if they want to branch out into other areas like lashes or nails. Having a range of treatments at your salon could bring more business. Plus your team will appreciate you helping them to grow.
Train your team
…in customer service. As well as being able to use their skills to provide treatments, training is also useful for helping your team address any complaints or concerns that clients have. Knowing how to handle an unhappy customer is vital. No one wants their clients to leave feeling sad or upset.
Sometimes, even with a careful pre-appointment conversation, it can be possible to not deliver the style or treatment that was expected. Getting your staff to be open with you and the management team you have in place is an important first step. You need them to be able to tell you when things haven’t gone to plan.
From there, it’s important to offer a redo, rather than a refund. Redoing means that your staff can fix what went wrong and also means the customer is more likely to return in the future. A refund reduces the likelihood that you’ll see them again and you could lose future business based on word of mouth.
Communication is Key
Encourage customers to provide feedback and build a rapport with them. This not only increases the chance that they’ll come back, but also means that they can tell you what they expect from their treatment. This creates a good relationship and can potentially offset any issues that come up.
Hopefully these quick an easy tips will set you in good stead for your salon, and maybe even inspire you to improve your business!
LL x
*This is a contributed post. As ever, all opinions are my own.
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