As a beauty salon owner, you are both an artist and a business person. As an artist, you make sure the services you provide are always of the highest quality - and as a business person, you make sure you profit off of them. You are probably as busy as you can be managing your salon, and have no time for additional activities to help increase revenue. Are there any possible ways to make more money - in less time? Well, you came to the right place, because we know there are - and we would be delighted to share them with you!
Cross-selling is defined as a sales technique where you cleverly persuade your client to purchase something more than just the product or service they initially came for.
For example: you are providing your customer with an excellent manicure. During the process, you mention how great it is to prepare your nails for such a treatment by using a good nail conditioner, and how the manicure will last much longer when done on well-conditioned nails. When the customer pays for their treatment, the receptionist casually asks the client if they would like to try a new line of nail conditioners that just came to the salon. Having your words in mind, the customer decides to give it a try.
Or another example: you dye your client’s hair, giving them the blonde of their dreams. During the treatment, they ask you how to maintain that beautiful colour. You provide an extensive guide, explaining how important it is to keep it hydrated and protected from the heat and sun, as lifting hair’s shade is always an aggravating process. You are knowledgeable and educative, ask a lot of questions about their current hair routine and overall seem really engaged in the process. You also mention how important it is to occasionally wash blonde hair with a purple shampoo that will keep its tone cool. You explain the colour theory, how violet neutralises yellow shades and how crucial it is to find a good purple shampoo that will not dry your already processed hair or give you too much pigment, causing violet undertones.
At this point, your newly blonde client may already ask you for a product recommendation herself. You can show her the special shampoo, conditioner and deeply nourishing mask for blondes. It is highly possible she will buy at least two of them, as she wants to maintain her dreamy colour - and to feel like a blonde girl all the way (yes, that is also a marketing technique). And the purple toner? It is more probable now that they will purchase it from you, after all you are the specialist, they would not risk buying such a specific product from a department store. Anything for the golden locks, am I right? They already spent quite the fortune to lift their hair, it would be unreasonable to waste it by a lack of proper care.
With the art of cross-selling, it is very important to treat every client personally. There are some that will gladly take your recommendations, treating them as part of the service, but there are also those who do not want to spend a single penny more than necessary. Those may get offended when offered a retail product. You have to carefully observe your customer’s behaviour and even make notes in order to remember such detailed data.
Tip: Take care of the environment and your well-being and don’t waste time writing information on sticky notes. Invest in a solid notebook or even better - get yourself a salon management tool, such as Booksy, that allows you to add notes to clients’ profiles.
Is your receptionist swamped with work? Does the phone ring continuously, while she cannot even take a breath? Or maybe you do not have a receptionist and are forced to pick up the phone calls yourself? One way or another, you should consider investing in an online booking system. First of all, it will unweight your receptionist (or you), allowing them to focus on greeting and serving clients in the salon. Secondly, a lot of people prefer this way of making an appointment. Some would-be clients do not take a salon under consideration unless it has an online booking option. It would be wise to look for a tool with online booking capabilities - without your engagement and even after your working hours. Some more advanced salon software programs offer this option - Booksy is one of them. It is an investment that will save you a lot of money in the long term.
Does your salon have accounts in social media networks such as Facebook or Instagram? If no, consider creating them, at least on one of these platforms. For younger generations, businesses without social media accounts are questionable - they are used to being able to see photos, prices and online interactions of any company they look up. Being present on the World Wide Web is a necessity. You do not have to spend half the day posting online. Put quality over quantity, find your unique approach and frequency. Also, find your style of expression - and be consistent about it. Fit the tone of your posts to your salon’s style and be genuine - that will build trust and help your audience identify with your salon. Your social media accounts will be a perfect place to inform your existing and potential customers about current sales, new treatments, events, and so on. You are more than welcome to post photos of your best works, clients’ selfies (of course, with their consent), seasonal salon decor - and new, flashy retail (we'll talk about it in a minute).
And if you feel like delegating the task to a digital assistant, Booksy comes to the rescue yet again. It lets you create and publish your post in a matter of seconds - just select a category, pick a template and a background, add hashtags and you're free to share the post through Instagram, Facebook or Messenger. How about that?
You offer only the best products you truly believe in. They have the finest ingredients, proven benefits and you have been using them successfully for years. You know why they are the best. But what about your clients? Taking a good-looking photo of one of your retail products (or a particular line, for example - shampoo, conditioner and mask of one kind) and adding it on social media with an upbeat description of its benefits and special ingredients is an excellent idea. That way your customers may want to purchase your retail even before they come to your salon! Vibrant, informative explanations of your products can intrigue and get clients hyped to try your retail straight away. Moreover, it shows your expertise and that you do not only sell a product, but you also believe in its formula.
Do you sometimes wish you could clone yourself in order to take care of all of the aspects of owning a salon? Or at least to have a personal assistant you can rely on no matter what? It may not be possible to duplicate yourself, but there is an option to have such a helper - in the form of beauty salon software. There are many of them on the market, however, only a few can provide you with as many functionalities as Booksy. Employee management, stock control, online booking, marketing campaigns, reports and statistics - and that is not even the end of it. With such an assistant, you can easily delegate some of your tasks onto your little digital helper.
Be confident with the retail you sell and learn how to promote it in the most appealing way possible. Leave your mark in the social media world and start your relationship with customers there. Finally, do not overcomplicate your life and utilise what modern technology gives you. Online booking, management software - those tools are here to help you. Make sure to choose the best and therefore give Booksy a try!
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