With the changing tides and fresh opportunities ahead, here are three easy steps to grow your clientele. This simple system for growing your business is designed for beauty professionals. And all of the advice comes directly from Qnity, an award-winning financial consulting company, who has worked with over 1,000 mes directly from Qnity, an award-winning financial consulting company, who has worked with over 1,000 different small business owners.
This information is also available via a 30-minute webinar, which features the same steps for industry experts who want to expand their client base. Click on the Booksy YouTube channel to review the online video or continue reading to learn these helpful hints.
The Qnity team has worked with a host of household names, including Paul Mitchell, Wella, Estée Lauder, and J.P. Morgan. From small to large businesses, this financial consulting company uses educational tools, consultations, and visual aids to help businesses create more structure and increase their financial prosperity.
So, keep reading to find out three tried and true methods that will earn more attention from clients, while engaging them in a way that supports your business over the long term. Take careful note of these three action items to grow your clientele. And start reaping the benefits, just before the busy season fully sets in.
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According to Candice Gliatto, a lead educator and financial coach for Qnity, sometimes it's hard to ask your loyal customers for referrals. Candice adds that from inside her Bay Area based space named Citrus Salon, even she can get “a little bit shy” around customers. But through careful practice, it’s easy to create an authentic script to ask clients for referrals.
The key trick is to make sure to ask for referrals in a way that makes you feel confident and passionate. Because the most important step in gaining referrals is by continuously asking. In the beginning, make sure to start off in your inner circle with loyal clients and friends. But make sure to expand and reach out to family members and friends of your initial network.
“You start small to gain a lot of momentum. Start with the people that are the closest to you. Be very specific on who you ask for a referral, and use an offer. But don't always make it all about the money. You don't have to offer a huge discount—maybe just offer something kind of fun and exciting,” Candice said.
Also make sure to earn more referrals by building your online reviews. “So, there's referrals where you're asking people to send others to you. But then there's also an online review, which is another form of a referral,” she said.
Nowadays, online reviews have become paramount to setting up a solid digital reputation. Reviews help industry experts get noticed. So, ask clients to leave a review, which can lead to more sales and inform more people about business, while convincing new customers to reach out to book an appointment for your services.
The next step to help grow your clientele involves customer retention, said Candice. Customer retention is particularly important to every service provider because it’s a great way to keep a schedule filled. But then, it also helps industry professionals to build truly amazing relationships.
A key way to gain more customer retention is to prepare. And make sure to give clients a wow factor. “Think about who's coming in today. Who are they going to see? How can you prepare so they're blown away when they come in? And then, follow up after the appointment. What can you do to make sure that the next time they're in your chair, you’re able to impress them?” said Candice.
Candice added that one important way to impress clients is simply by remembering their names and important details about each client. It’s possible to use the Booksy database to save relevant information that comes up during a session. Make sure to add and save those notes about your clients. That way, you can refer back to those conversations that you had before.
There are certain clients who are simply a joy to work with. Make sure to truly connect with those customers. Help yourself create a job and an environment that makes you happy. Taking that simple step increases revenue, guest loyalty, customer retention, and client engagement. And all of those features are highly important for growing the business, said Candice.
Implementing customer retention methods is also great for guests. It makes them feel appreciated and acknowledged. They come back and they get a closer relationship with you. And that close relationship with the salon or barbershop will mean even more to them because they're proud to be your client and a client at your spot.
The final tip that Candice offered to grow your clientele is to always give a great consultation. Remember that client consultations are your opportunity to discover what your client truly wants. Be ready to ask thorough questions every time a client is in your chair to make sure you always receive the perfect end result.
“We know that the reason our clients tend to move on to other salons or spas is because they're looking for a change. But we're all capable of offering that change. It's just we might not be asking the right questions. So, make sure that, especially for your existing guests, you're giving them a consultation just like you would for a new guest,” she said.
For new clients remember “three times is a charm.” So, it takes three visits for one of your new clients to consider your salon or your spa their place. It’s okay for them to think of you as their new stylist the first three times that they’re in your chair.
Just be prepared to think of something new during each of those three visits that you might be able to offer—including a great consultation. New clients might need some suggestions to get them excited for something new to try. And this makes some stylists or barbers nervous but it invites clients back into your chair, which in the long run helps you grow your clientele.
There will be clients that you haven’t seen in a while, because some clients will wander. And they might get nervous that you're mad at them for leaving. So, they feel like they can't come back unless you open that door. “When a lot of those old clients come back—it’s very important to reach out to them, so that they have an opportunity to keep coming back,” said Candice.
For those who don’t already know, Qnity is run by a father-and-daughter team. And their award-winning work includes providing financial advice to some of the top salons and spas all over the country. Over the past year, Qnity has been working closely with industry experts who needed help navigating through some serious financial obstacles caused by the pandemic.
To continue learning more from Qnity, consider signing up for their upcoming webinars. The next webinar is titled “Building a Profit Improvement Plan.” And it will take place on October 25h. After that, prepare for their webinar titled “The Three C's of Financial Management (Closure / Clarity / Confidence),” on December 6th.
Take advantage of the exclusive education that’s available via this Qnity and Booksy partnership. But remember, it comes to a close towards the end of the year, even though the recorded sessions will still be available via the Booksy YouTube channel.
