4 Tips For Surviving The Holiday Rush

November 30, 2012 by

Whether we like it or not, the holidays are here! While we all would like to think of the holidays as a happy and cheerful time, as salon and spa business owners we all know that it can also mean a time of high stress. Vendors are coming at us at all different directions asking us to buy more inventory to sell as gift items. Clients are clamoring to get in for the next appointment. Weather disruptions often play havoc on our hours of operation and the list goes on and on. Additionally, we also have all of our personal agendas that come during holiday time, like buying presents for family and friends, entertaining and the likes.

As we move into the holiday season, here are some professional and personal pointers to keep you level-headed and calm in the salon or spa this year.

  1. Don’t forget about your internal customer — your TEAM: How are you showing appreciation for your team during the holidays? After all, they’re the ones making things happen on a daily basis. You can get really creative and it doesn’t have to cost a whole lot of money. How about hiring massage therapist to come in and provide chair massages for your team? Or how about hosting a happy hour (I would recommend limiting it to an hour) after a busy day with fun cocktails and appetizers? Sometimes ordering pizza on a busy day will go a long way to show appreciation for your team. You’ll find instant gratification and joy when you give back.
  2. Systems: Learn to lean on your systems during stressful times. After all, that’s what they’re for. I find that a lot of salon and spa owner’s try to add more “stuff” for their teams to do during the holidays and that just creates more stress. If you’ve worked hard during the year to implement systems (ie. pre-booking, retail, and customer service), then all you have to do is focus on them during the holidays. It’s stressful enough making it through the holidays. Now’s not the time to recreate new systems. Now IS the time to lean on your systems, stay focused on them, and have conversations around systems in your huddles and staff meetings with your team.
  3. Productivity: Take a proactive approach to managing your appointment book. Hopefully the phones are ringing off the wall, and if they are, your booking strategy is only as good as your guest care team. Reiterate to your guest care team the importance of booking today, before tomorrow, this week before next week and so on. Don’t be afraid to call a client who’s already on the books and ask him/her to come in 15 minutes earlier so that you can accommodate another guest who is trying to get in. If you ever have days where your appointment book is plagued by last minute cancellations, call a few clients who are booked later in the week and invite them to come in earlier.
  4. Celebrate small wins: Positive energy creates more positive energy. Many salon and spa owners tend to focus on what needs to happen, or where opportunities are being missed. While this is important, your team is really motivated when they hear their leader talking about the good things they are doing now. And no matter how bad things may possibly be, there’s always something good happening in your company. If you have a team member that had better-than-normal pre-booking on a given day, show appreciation by thanking them for their strong performance.  To add greater impact, acknowledge that performance in front of their peers. Did the team have set a company record for selling a bunch of holiday gift sets?  Acknowledge it in a huddle by saying “Spectacular job guys!” or by allowing the team to wear jeans. Your team needs to know that you’re paying attention to the good stuff too.
  5. Take time for yourself: When was the last time you took an entire day off just to recharge? Your company will not go under if you take one day off — I promise. Clear your calendar. Turn off your phone, your iPad, and your computer — and escape. I recommend taking all of these devices to work and leaving them there while you are off. That way you can’t be tempted to pick them up on your day off. You know what relaxes you most. If it’s a quiet corner somewhere in the house where you can curl up and read a book, then that’s what you should do.  If you’re the type that enjoys a massage or facial, then book that appointment today. (Just don’t book it at your salon/spa if you offer those services!)

The holidays don’t have to be stressful. Hopefully you’ll implement some of these easy-to-do tips this year and enjoy a less stressful holiday season. Holiday cheers to you!

Filed Under: Leadership, Productivity Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Social media for salons and spas Part 3

August 24, 2012 by

Five best practices to keep followers engaged

In parts one and two of this three-part series, I touched upon the importance of jumping into the social mediasphere, as well as some basic policies and procedures to protect the interests and reputation of your salon or spa’s brand. This week, I’d like to wrap up this discussion by sharing five best practices for salon/spa social media efforts. Just because someone has “liked” or “followed” your social campaign, doesn’t mean they will anxiously read every post/tweet from here to eternity. On the contrary, they will quickly tune out if your message isn’t relavant and concise.

Here are five best practices to keep followers engaged in your salon or spa’s social media efforts:

  1. Value and Interest: When posting to your blog, Twitter or Facebook, ask yourself if your content adds value and interest to the discussion. Make sure your comment, post or tweet is a valued piece of information.
  2. Personality: In the social media realm, you are encouraged to use your own voice and bring your personality to the forefront. The web is a venue that is relaxed, open and diverse — embrace it. A voice that is over-institutionalized and rehearsed can repel your audience.
  3. Planning: Putting in place a social media calendar of sorts for the year can help to organize you on how to cross promote your material and the times of year when you know you will have big events and may want to do extra posts. Also think about who on your team would be the best person to handle your social media needs and whether that is one person or multiple people. Make sure you are consistently contributing  content. You donʼt want to let your followers down by only posting a couple times a year.
  4. Join The Conversation: Listening and responding to your fans/followers through social media sites is just as important as posting information. Make sure you are responding to posts and questions from your followers and fans. Being a part of the conversation already happening about your company shows you care and creates community. Also realize that it isnʼt just about you are saying, it is also about the connections your fans/followers are making to other fans/followers through your site.
  5. Be Brief And Link When Possible: Ideally, posts should be very brief, redirecting visitors to content that resides on another site. Whenever possible, link back to the company’s website.

I hope this three-part series has shed some light on the very sensitive subject of social media and the salon/spa workplace.

Your turn: What problems or challenges have you recently encountered with social media? How did you decide to hand it?

 

Filed Under: Business Builders, Information Flow Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Social media for salons & spas Part 2

August 16, 2012 by

Five guidelines of social media use

Last week, we discussed the importance of jumping in and embracing the enormous promotional potential that the social mediasphere offers. This week, I’ve put together some bullet points to consider when crafting your social media strategy. The following policy statements and guidelines are meant to assist you in your social media efforts, while protecting the interests and reputation of your company’s brand.

Here are five guidelines for social media use:

  1. Respect Copyright And Fair Use: When posting, be mindful of the copyright and intellectual property rights of others.
  2. Terms Of Service: Social media sites have their own terms of service. Make sure you obey these terms of service or your account with the site may be suspended.
  3. Respect and Ethics: Your company should encourage different viewpoints and opinions, and as a participant in social media, you should too. Be respectful of othersʼ viewpoints. If you disagree and would like to engage in a conversation, do so cordially, logically, and ethically.
  4. Accuracy and Honesty: Double check facts and details before you post — remember, once you post, it is out there. If there is a website you used to gather facts, provide the link for your readers to show accountability. Also, always write in the first person. If you make a mistake, admit it. Your followers will be more willing to forgive and forget if you are up front and quick with your correction. Maintain a high level of quality that exhibits superior grammar, punctuation and spelling.
  5. Transparency and Disclosure: When posting to your blog, Twitter or Facebook, ask yourself if your content is a valued piece of information. There are millions of people and companies on the web. If you want to stand above the clutter, make sure you provide content that is exciting, engaging and stimulating.

Next week in part 3: Best practicies for social media

Filed Under: Information Flow, Leadership Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Social media for salons and spas – Part 1

August 10, 2012 by

Part 1: If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em!

I can’t tell you how many times I’m asked by salon owners across the country what my stance is on social media and how to best manage team members and their activity when it comes to online social media sites. The topic doesn’t usually come up until a team member decides to leave and then communicates to their friends and followers where they are going and where to find them. Or even worse, when a former employee decides to post derogatory comments about their former boss or place of employment. These are very valid concerns for anyone running a business. While we never want to hear anything negative about our business, unfortunately, at some point it’s going to happen. And guess what — It’s legal. (Think Yelp!)

Somebody once told me that when it comes to social media, it will become a problem when you make it a problem. That hit me square between the eyes. How many times do we find ourselves doing stuff like that? We create friction in our own companies and we don’t even realize we’re doing it.

Here’s the deal folks. In my own personal opinion, the best approach to social media as a business owner is to simply embrace it. Go for it! Encourage your team members and networks to engage with the online community through social media. You have more to gain by creating a culture of social media participation than to try and shut it off. While that may be counterintuitive to many, (especially to those control-freak entrepreneurs) at the end of the day you’re fighting an uphill battle if you don’t. Here are some reasons why:

  1. Your employees and your customers are already online. And legally, you can’t prevent them from participating in social media.
  2. Social media isn’t going anywhere. It’s here to stay. It’s time to embrace it and make it work for you and your company.
  3. Like the old saying goes, “Fight fire with fire.” As a business owner, you can participate too, encouraging a culture of connectedness with your customers and your team. If you want to build brand loyalty, then your company must represent itself in the online community.
  4. The National Labor Relations Board has stressed that all employees have certain rights under federal law that social media policies can’t compromise. (For a complete report on employer social media practices, go here.)

Next time in Part 2: Best practices for social media

Your turn: What problems or challenges have you recently encountered with social media? How did you decide to handle it?

 

Filed Under: Customer Loyalty, Information Flow Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

The power of keeping salon/spa staff focused

July 26, 2012 by

Maintaining a sense of urgency is a management responsibility not to be taken lightly. Complacency can quietly infect even the most successful businesses. It usually begins during a period of smooth sailing, when the “business as usual” mentality sets in, leadership relaxes, and the urgency that previously inspired growth and performance wanes. Personal agendas take a precedence over the business’ goals and needs. The team loses focus.

Perhaps more than any other, the salon/spa environment is a fertile breeding ground for complacency. At most salons and spas, a “pecking order” keeps gridlocked and overbooked technicians in square opposition to new technicians trying to get established. In the middle is a mix of rising stars and underachievers…and those who are simply satisfied with their present level of performance and income. If an owner or manager, by choice or necessity, spends a lot of time behind the chair, the grip of complacency tightens. Efforts to rally staff enthusiasm are hit-or-miss. Conflicting personal agendas and a lack of leadership blur the business’ focus.

At Strategies, we get many questions from well-intended owners seeking the magic formula to motivate staff. There is no magic formula, but there is a formula. It’s a process of focusing staff on performance priorities, and devoting the time and attention to establishing goals (and keeping them at the forefront of staff’s daily activities). For example: There is a big difference between telling staff they must improve retention rates, and keeping retention goals and performance data posted. Telling staff to improve, but without clear goals and objectives, is like launching a rescue flare. It rises high and shines bright, and you hope against hope that someone sees it before it falls and fizzles. Setting monthly goals and posting the scores every week — or even every day — keeps everyone focused on growing the business. It’s one ingredient in the formula.

In contrast to shot-in-the-arm motivation that yields short-term results, focus mobilizes your team for maximum short- and long-term performance. Focus brings consistency to client service and technical execution, which directly improves retention rates. Focus also dramatically reduces errors and drives efficiency upward. It propels sales to record levels because everyone is pulling in the same direction. Focus is the difference between “business as usual,” and a high-performance environment.

What are you doing to keep you and your staff focused?

 

Filed Under: Information Flow, Leadership, Productivity, Teamwork, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Why 7 out of 10 new salon and spa clients don’t come back

July 12, 2012 by

You cannot argue with the numbers. From a technical standpoint, the beauty industry offers consumers extraordinary levels of skill and expertise. From a customer service and True Quality standpoint, salons and spas score poorly. No matter how badly you want to refute this assessment, it is impossible to argue with industry-wide numbers that show salons and spas are not retaining seven of ten first-time clients. Interestingly, poor retention remains consistent from value-priced salons right up to upscale, service-intensive day spas.

  • On average, only three percent of owners know their retention rate.
  • Half of these confuse request rate with retention rate — they are not the same.
  • Most have no means to track retention. Even those with point-of-sale computer systems often realize their software doesn’t track retention properly, if at all.

It’s your True Quality score. The overriding objective of every business is to attract and retain customers. The higher your retention rate for first-time clients, the higher your level of customer satisfaction, and the closer you are to delivering consistent True Quality experiences. Granted, you want to satisfy clients on every visit, but client retention tracking begins on the first visit. If your salon or spa fails to perform to client expectations on the first visit, there usually is no second chance. If your business has a 30% first-time client retention rate, don’t even think of using “True Quality” to describe your business.

It’s your salon’s future. Winning the salon/spa business game means building a retained customer base that is loyal to the business. Your retained customer base is by far your most important asset. There is little resale value for used furniture and fixtures. The rules for winning the salon/spa business game have changed. True Quality is no longer an option for owners, but a necessity. The only way to know if your business is moving closer to True Quality is to track improvements in client retention rates. That’s where most salons are in the dark.

What are you doing to retain more new clients?

Filed Under: Customer Loyalty, Information Flow, Leadership, Productivity Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Inside the mind of the entrepreneur

June 26, 2012 by

Entrepreneurs are definitely a special breed. I like to say that being an entrepreneur is both a blessing and curse. We think and move at lightening speed, we aren’t afraid to take risks, and we can virtually see into the future. In fact, our vision at times seems so crystal clear that we often wonder why no one else can see what we see. We implement change and then it’s quickly on to the next initiative. We add and subtract, we move this here and that over there. Employees in our companies who resist change hate how we operate, and find it hard to keep up with our pace. The only time we’re really comfortable (and understood) it seems is when we are around other entrepreneurs.

Just recently, after a string of bad hires in my company which cost us dearly on so many levels, we decided to re-engineer our recruiting and hiring strategy. Okay, who am I kidding? I decided to re-engineer our recruiting and hiring strategy. There it is again, that pesky entrepreneurial attitude that rears its head like a race horse ready to bust through the starting gates at the sound of the gun.

I’ll keep going, so bear with me. The basis of our new strategy was to simply slow down and be more thorough in our interviewing, creating a six-step process to carefully evaluate candidates and find people who share our core values and company purpose.

Since we have strong relationships with area cosmetology schools, we literally interview hundreds of applicants from these schools every three to four months. To support this new approach, I had this brilliant idea to utilize one of my favorite apps to date, Evernote, to help us facilitate our efforts every step of the way. I remember it so vividly, standing in my shower where it seems like most of my ideas come to me. Like a bolt of lightening, this new vision of how the whole thing would work struck me out of nowhere. Everything was crystal clear. I knew exactly how it was going to work. Amped up like I had just had five cups of coffee, I made it into work later that morning and immediately started changing everything. I created the new system in Evernote, and I started telling everyone on my team how it was going to work. I expected everyone to be onboard, totally engaged and excited about my new idea. Almost immediately, everyone was confused. Not only were they frustrated, but so was I! I kept asking myself, “How can something so simple, be so hard to understand?” “What’s wrong with these people?” “Why can’t they see what I see?” These are the questions that entrepreneurs grapple with when implementing change.

I almost caused my Human Resource manager to have a nervous breakdown without even realizing it. It wasn’t until I saw her emotions in a very exasperating conversation that I realized that I was trying to ram rod this amazing idea I had into place without taking into consideration other factors for the process to work. Here’s what I learned out of all of this. Allow me to share four key points to consider when implementing change in your company:

  1. Slow down and allow others to catch up
    What we owners typically forget is that we’re usually six months ahead of the rest of the pack. We’ve already had time to think and process the changes that we want to happen. When we introduce our ideas and change initiatives to our teams, we have to allow them time to process the information and catch up.
  2. Share and then listen to what others have to say
    Just because we think we have an amazing idea doesn’t mean that it’s the only idea that should be used. Tap into the brain power of your team. Often times they might share your vision but have an even better way to execute. When this happens, you might be surprised how fast your vision becomes a reality because you now have team members who are just as excited as you.
  3. Frustration is often part of the process
    Charles Darwin said, “It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.” Change is hard. It’s human nature to want to stay comfortable. Understand that when we initiate change, it requires energy. Part of the change and learning process is frustration amongst those that are involved. Think of it as a type of sorting process where we must “sort” through the information, process it so we can figure out where it needs to go and where we fit into the new model. If you go into it knowing that there will be frustration, you’ll be better prepared to handle the process.
  4. Be prepared to communicate your vision over and over again – Why? What? How? and What if?
    This ties nicely into #3. To overcome frustration, be prepared to communicate your idea to those who will help you make it a reality. This is where we must put our sales hat on and sell our team on what we’re trying to accomplish. Help them see how it will benefit them, the clients and the business. If it’s a better way to do things, communicate how it will look. Paint a picture for everyone to see. If you can answer WHY this important, WHAT it is that you’re trying to accomplish, HOW the whole thing will work, and IF we do this, then we will enjoy these things; you’ll move much more quickly and with less resistance.

Your turn: What was the last entrepreneurial “Ah ha” moment you had? How hard was it to implement the change or idea that you had? Where did you get stuck? How did you overcome objections?

Filed Under: Leadership, Staff Retention Tagged With: , , ,

How to avoid negative behavior

June 7, 2012 by

How many times have you found yourself justifying a decision by saying, “We can’t do that or they’ll leave.” Or, “The last time we did that, we had two people quit.”

Many times we make decisions influenced by fear. As a result, we end up not taking action, perpetuating a problem that clearly needs to go away.

Here’s the deal. So much of our time and energy is wasted on negative behavior and implementing command-and-control initiatives that don’t get us anywhere. Instead, why not try a different approach?

As my coach Daryl Jenkins (a Certified Strategies Coach) once told me years ago: “Instead of worrying about whether or not team members will leave, why not use that same energy to focus on creating an environment where people want to stay?” Now that’s some good advice!

What have you done to show appreciation for your team’s accomplishments lately? As much as we all have room for improvement, there is definitely a lot of good that is happening right now in your company. Shine the light on that and watch what happens. Just like negative energy spreads like wildfire, so does positive energy.

Chris Murphy is a Certified Strategies Coach and owner of Maximum FX Salons Spas in Austin, Texas.

When’s the last time you acknowledged a staff member or the entire team for an accomplishment? What happened as a result?

Filed Under: No-Compromise Leadership Tagged With: , , , ,

Three keys to creating the ultimate salon or spa experience

March 29, 2012 by

A friend and fellow entrepreneur once told me when it comes to going to a salon, it’s important that the stylist get the cut and/or color right every time. If you don’t get that part down, you can forget about everything else. However, when you consistently get the cut and/or color right, then it becomes about everything else, the experience.

Salons and spas throw the word “experience” around like nobody’s business. “We charge higher prices because our clients pay for the experience.” “Our clients come to us because of our great salon experience.” What the heck does that mean? While every salon/spa has their own way of doing things, many owners and managers have no clue what matters to their clients.

In my salons, the experience starts with the initial point of contact. How the guest-care coordinators greet our clients is important, including their words and tone. We often tell new team members to “smile through the phone.” When a client comes into our business, we have a two-second rule. That means that when clients walk in the door, they are warmly greeted within two seconds.

Next, we offer a complimentary stress-relieving treatment. After a thorough consultation, we begin the service ritual with a scalp massage and stress-relieving shampoo. We also give clients a hand massage while their hair is blown dry. We expedite the checkout process by offering to reserve the next appointment while our guests are “in the chair.” We finish with a quick makeup touch-up, before we escort our guests to the front.

We’re often asked how we’re able to incorporate so much into the salon visit and how we deliver this experience to every guest, every time.

It comes down to three things: culture, accountability and systems. As a team-based business, our staff understands the importance of team service. They understand that everyone is responsible for taking care of the guest. Period. From the guest care coordinators to the salon interns. That’s our culture.

Next up is accountability. Everyone is responsible for ensuring our commitment to the customer is kept. It’s that simple.

The third thing is systems. Systems create the foundation and the support to create consistency. Consistency breeds loyalty. With systems in place, we can always focus on the client.

We all like to think that we provide superior salon and spa experiences for our guests.

Can you answer “yes” to these two questions?

  1. Would I pay full price for the services we offer?
  2. Is the experience worth the price every time?

I can answer, “Yes” and “Yes.” If you can’t, start thinking about culture, accountability and systems.

Your turn:  How does your culture support your vision? Let us know in the “Speak your Mind” field below.

Filed Under: Customer Loyalty, Information Flow, Productivity Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Guest Wake-Up: How much is in your glass?

November 1, 2010 by

This recession is an economic storm that just doesn’t seem to pass. We keep hearing and reading about in the news. Most of us have never experienced anything like it. Pay close attention to those around you and you’ll observe some interesting behaviors. Tough times bring out conduct indicative of the dominant dispositions that we possess. What is your dominant disposition? Are you naturally a pessimist or an optimist?

What is optimism? Webster’s dictionary defines optimism as a disposition or tendency to look on the more favorable side of events or conditions and to expect the most favorable outcome. On the contrary, Webster’s defines pessimism as the tendency to see, anticipate, or emphasize only bad or undesirable outcomes, results, conditions, problems, etc.

Which one are you? And more importantly, how does your disposition affect those around you? How we behave, the words we choose, the opinions we share and the conversations we have, energize and shape our company’s culture. Leadership sets the tone for company culture. How do I know this? Well, I was one of those leaders that was always harping on what wasn’t working. The leader that always questions why our numbers aren’t good enough. The leader that always points out the flaws, the mistakes, and the reasons why this won’t work, or why that won’t work. It’s a mindset that can poison a company’s culture faster than you can imagine. Before you know it, you find yourself surrounded by a sea of people whose morale and dispositions mirror your own. It’s a kind of behavior that we often criticize our team members of possessing. We find ourselves asking, “Why are they so negative?” And then we wonder, “Why is no one motivated?” We wonder, “Why is morale low? Why isn’t my team engaged and full of energy?” It’s a vicious downward spiral for a company that’s on the path to self-implosion. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Monday Morning Wake-Up Tagged With: , , , , , , ,