Salon Today - November 2008 - (Page 34)

Growing Pains Beauty Association, suggests simply asking them. “Engage them in the process of structuring your referral program by forming your own focus group. Propose some of your program ideas and ask them what incentives would interest them the most. Would they like a free massage for so many referred clients or a speciﬁc dollar discount?” You can even be more creative. Host a seasonal or holiday fashion event with music, hors d’oeuvres, a fashion show and mini services. “To offset costs, partner with a local boutique or restaurant/caterer in your shopping area. Have all partners invite their VIP customers, and invite those customers to bring their friends,” says Masterson. Converting those new clients into regulars is a key success strategy at Daired’s. “We carefully measure retention and our managers review individual statistics with service providers on a weekly basis,” Ogle says. “We don’t browbeat but, rather, coach them on how to generate strong retention ﬁgures, what retention means to our overall business, and how satisfying it can be to know clients like you.” The salary-based salon uses the retention ﬁgures as part of the measure by which an employee can gain a new pay structure. Other measures include newly retained clients, retained clients, retail, pre-booking and sales of conditioning treatments. “We constantly discuss what’s being done and how they can improve,” says Ogle. Right after the ﬁrst of the year, Andre Chreky SalonSpa identiﬁed their top 25 clients and gave each one a $100 gift card as a thank you. “They were so appreciative of the gesture and, as a result, ended up spending even more with us this year,” says Paula Cassidy, spa director. In his observations of different salons, Larry Kopsa, a partner of Kopsa Otte CPA, an accounting ﬁrm that serves the beauty industry, says some of the strongest retention programs are the simplest. “Owners come up with these complicated, elaborate point systems, but I really like the simple ones that sell themselves,” he says. “I have a salon client who displayed an image of a cool TV with the slogan, ‘Ask me how you can win this!’ Clients who pre-booked their next appointment were able to submit their name in a drawing for the TV. But the beauty of the program was that clients were asking their stylists what they needed to do.” Bigger Bang for Your Buck With lean times ahead, it may be tempting to slash your advertising and marketing budgets. “Don’t,” warns Gordon Logan, president of International SalonSpa Business Network (ISBN) and CEO of Sport Clips. “I would advise owners to be even more aggressive if you can. While everyone else around you is cutting back, this is a chance to step up and gain some market share. Keep your name and your brand at top-of-mind awareness in your market.” But as you are closely examining your budget, it’s a good idea to look at your advertising costs and determine how effective you are being with your dollars. What does each of your programs cost and what are you gaining for those efforts. “Have you been running the same ad for the past ﬁve years?” asks Masterson. “It’s time to look at the impact of your past efforts and consider trying different strategies.” While Victoria Thomas Gentry, owner of VAIN in Seattle, Washington, has scaled back on traditional newspaper advertising, she’s ramped up in other areas. In the technology-focused Seattle, her salon blog has had tremendous success. Blogging at least three times a week, Thomas Gentry focuses on topics of importance to her salon community, “from hair-related information to topics related to VAIN to celebrating cool things that our clients are doing,” she says. “I’ve become obsessed about topping the Google search engine for Seattle salons, and our blog has done much to help that.” Thomas Gentry is also more likely to say “yes” to any community events. “I’ve recently said ‘yes’ to neighborhood sidewalk sales, to >> “Continued education keeps our skills and service ideas up to date. This sets our work apart from the other neighborhood salons.” —Andrea Nierhoff, Shear Pandemonia, Glen Ellyn, Illinois 34 | November 2008 www.salontoday.com http://www.salontoday.com

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Salon Today - November 2008 Contents Editor's Note Reception Fashion Sense Marketing Roundtable Decor Spa Menu Dream Team Pinch Proof Growing Pains Products Owner to Owner

Salon Today - November 2008

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