Introduction
The modern beauty market is full of various services. It seems you can find anything. And, well, you do. The 21st-century customers are happy because the beauty industry offers so many benefits and products. Simply amazing!
Yes, it is pretty good, but now you need to work hard to select the best of the best. Well, more often, the best of the average. That is why beauty salon customers are lost. On the one hand, you can easily find any procedure. But on the other hand, there are too many service providers. So finding the one to suit your needs best is a challenging task.
Beauty salons are in the same situation. There are a lot of people who would like to get professional services. But so many competitors offer just the same procedures you do. Is it so pessimistic?
Of course, no! There are several ways to attract even the most sophisticated clients to your beauty salon. Use effective marketing, create a catchy name, think about a loyalty program and affordable pricing. Once you have coped with attracting your first clients, there is another step to take. Retain your customers! Client retention is the only right way to receive a loyal audience that will come back.
The most important and exciting task is to motivate the person who visited you once to make an appointment again. How to retain clients? Here we can draw an analogy with how women plan their marriage. After a luxurious wedding, you have to maintain the relationship. It is the only option to create a happy family. Then, sure, to save it.
In the beauty industry, customer retention is the same important as their attraction. Today, we will talk about simply boosting your salon client retention rates, minimizing your effort and expenses.
Complaints are the best way to escalate your business. But, you have to know how to handle them effectively. So, never be afraid of clients' complaints. We will show you how to use them in your favor.
Customer review is feedback about a particular beauty salon and specialist. Work with them effectively, analyze the reviews, and you will create the image of a caring, respectable place. Clients trust the beauty salons that want to listen to them.
We have already written several articles on this challenging topic. You can create a loyalty program and set up an appointment scheduling software.
How to retain beauty salon clients
Beauty salon clients are a sophisticated audience. They want to get the best procedures and products, not to bother about trifles. So, you, as a responsible beauty salon owner, have to think about every detail in advance.
The crucial mistake of many aspiring entrepreneurs is a lack of strategy. They attract a client, then forget about him forever. Unfortunately, this method won't work.
Working with clients is a complicated and responsible job. When communicating with beauty salon clients, you have to understand their psychology. What is even more complex is to use it to satisfy guests.
A constant flow of customers is a perfect situation. Many beginners wonder about it. But do you know that it can ruin your business? Yes, unfortunately, it's not a joke. The customer flow is a desirable thing only when the audience is loyal. People tend to save and use your special offers to minimize their expenses. For example, you have launched a 20% discount for the first laser epilation session. You have got 20 guests, and only 2 of the visitors became your loyal clients and returned. What does it mean? It means that you've lost money.
After you've attracted a new client, work on his retention. The main task of a reliable beauty salon is to satisfy its guests with the best quality services, products, and even equipment. So work on customer retention if you don't want to get only one-time customers.
A one-time client is an unforgivable luxury.
And a repeat customer is the heart of a beauty salon. They bring their main revenue. According to the latest research, customer retention is 5-12 times cheaper than attracting new clients. So the primary thing to know is how to stay ahead of the curve and deal with clients most effectively.
TOP 10 customer retention strategies
We have prepared ten handy pieces of advice to help beginner business people with customer retention. These simple rules will make you an expert in client psychology. Use them to make one-time clients your loyal ones. The rules are so easy but so effective. Try at least some of them to see how well they work.
How to retain beauty salon clients:
Pleasant atmosphere. Your targeted audience likes sophistication and comfort. There are so many various designs and styles to help you with creating desirable aesthetics. Just choose the one that suits you and your company. A clean beauty salon with a cozy design and professional staff will lead your startup to success.
First impression. You've got just one chance to make the first impression. A good deal of research has shown that clients create their first impression during the first 7 seconds. It means we don't have much time to make them like you. And the best is that we don't need a lot of time. Teach your team the simple rules of effective communication in a beauty salon, and it will be half of the task.
Photo zone. Creating a small area with beauty-related decorations will increase your sales. Make sure the location looks esthetical and beautiful. It will motivate your clients to post about the beauty salon on Instagram. Native ads are best to promote your business fast and for free.
Original beauty products. Try to pack your beauty studio with unique and quality cosmetics. Make your guests feel special and double the average check without any effort. Plus, you can sell cosmetics. It also greatly helps with sales.
Entertain the audience. Adults love the games as much as kids do. Just take a look at LA, where casinos and poker have been trending for years. This example must not be the most useful for its users, but giveaways and special offers your beauty salon can conduct will be. You can launch a few lotteries on social media. Instagram will work very well. Remember that your audience appreciates visual content.
Loyalty program. Thank your loyal customers for believing in you and your idea. For instance, why not offer a discount for every 3rd service or Instagram review. Offering a free service for attracting a new customer is also a good way of beauty salon promotion.
Support employee growth and professional development. You have to pay attention to teaching your employees new hair dyeing techniques and their understanding of client psychology. Both factors are equally important.
Your team is your leading advertising. Pay attention to the appearance of your staff. Does it mean employees have to be models? Of course, no! The only thing they have to do is to stay simply beautiful. It means tidy clothing incorporates colors, pretty and calm makeup, together with a well-made hairstyle. It may sound a bit complicated, but there is nothing difficult. For example, you can establish a dress code, select a few corporate colors to suit your company, and choose the uniform following them.
Monitor the process. Control is significant. Sure, it doesn't mean you have to spend hours to make sure that everyone does a good job, no. The best idea is to optimize all the routines, so you know who does what. Then you can create small competitions, choose the employee of the month, etc. Be creative, but do not overload your staff with too many tasks. Remember that social media and online presence are the items that have to be well-controlled.
Understand your actual value. First and foremost, assess yourself adequately. Appreciate your education, professional skills, and time. Customers understand how much a professional service costs. Too low prices can play against your beauty salon.
Handling customer complaints effectively
Dealing with customer complaints is a significant challenge you will face with. Even if everything is done perfectly, some people won't like the service, the specialist, or the place. A beauty salon owner has to learn how to deal with customer complaints. Make sure you and your staff are fully aware of the ways a complaint has to be analyzed.
When a client doesn't like your service, it means you have a way to improve it.
Algorithm of dealing with complaints in a beauty salon:
Accept the complaint. Pay attention to what a client tells you. Never argue or interrupt.
Give the immediate answer to the issue. A positive reply is essential. Make a client sure that you will solve the problem and that you are interested in it.
Record the complaint. All the complaints you receive are good to record carefully. It is your best helper in improving the service and understanding how the team performs.
Clarify the details. If the primary answer wasn't enough, negotiate the issue collectively. Then set a strict deadline and give your answer before its end.
Formulate an answer. Sometimes words will be enough. But in most cases, simply answering won't help you to solve anything. If the situation is complicated, consider offering a discount or even a free service. A small present will work very well. It won't cost you much, and the guest will remember the situation positively.
Fix the mistakes. After you've received, analyzed, and solved an issue, be sure never to repeat the same situation. If you make the same mistake again and again, any strategy won't help.
Give feedback to the client and staff. Notify the guest about the outcome of the situation. Explain that you will work better, so it will never happen again. Then, talk to the staff. Let them know that the problem which has occurred you will try not to repeat at any cost.
Conclusions
Customer retention is a tricky business. Clients do not forgive even tiny mistakes. That is why following the simple rules we have collected for you is a must-have. Sure, you can add your life hacks and ideas, but the most important is to understand that your guests are the prominent people in your business, so treat them with respect.
EasyWeek booking app will be glad to optimize all the beauty salon routines to give you more time for more critical tasks. Our team is working for you, so the beauty salon owner and staff can relax. We wish you only the best of luck with your new beauty business! Stay tuned.
