Are you ready for an assistant now? Whether you’re a booth renter, a salon suite owner, or a salon owner, it's great to implement an assistant program into your business to multiply the work you’re currently doing, maximize the guest experience, and make more money.

If you find that you’re consistently 80% booked and you're having a difficult time double booking, this might be the right time for you to find an assistant. The assistant could be a beauty school student or a licensed professional looking to get their foot in the door at your salon.

The Cost of Hiring an Assistant 

In 2020, the average payout was $13.28. And with the increase of prices in everything since then, I foresee that going towards $15 an hour, which is going to probably be normal for an assistant. An assistant actually can get paid very well in a salon environment if they're getting that hourly pay.

Goals for Working with an Assistant

There are many reasons why you might want to work with an assistant. Here are just some of the reasons you can consider:

1. To provide more services for your new and existing clients and maximize the guest

experience

2. To make more money

3. To focus more on the technical portion of your job

4. To help your business run more smoothly

5. To help them build a book of business

6. To help boost your social media content

The Assistant Onboarding Process

When you hire a new assistant, it's really important to clarify the expectations that you have for them. They should understand: what are the daily tasks that need to be done every day? How often should they be checking the laundry? How often should they be checking to see if you need more ripped foils or cotton?

They should know how to arrive. Do you want them to arrive 15 to 30 minutes before the actual schedule? Is there some type of routine that they need to do when they arrive? How about the way that they look when they arrive? What is the desired attitude, energy, and dress code?

You should also discuss the closing routine. What are the tasks that they need to do before they are allowed to leave? Coming up with a daily checklist can be incredibly helpful.

Now, as they are starting with you as an assistant, they're also still getting acclimated to the culture, so it's really important to have these conversations, too. What is the desired dialogue when it comes to talking with clients? What is the atmosphere like? What is it like working with the team and what does teamwork mean? Getting your assistant acclimated with how you work as a team is crucial, and can be very helpful if they ever transition into being a stylist on the floor.

Showing Your Assistant How to Assist

It’s also important to show your assistant how to assist. How do you want to be assisted?

When it comes to shampooing, make sure you’re telling your assistant exactly how you want your clients to be draped. Is it towel, cape, towel? s there a clip around their neck? Maybe after that shampooing, do they get a clip in their hair? Is the towel wrapped around their hair? Make sure that there is a system for every single thing that you're doing.

Show your assistant what checking in and checking out look like. Do you always offer a beverage to the client? Do you ask them to sit up front and relax before you're ready? Or do you bring them directly back to a station and get them draped? What about checking out? Is there a certain way that you want something done? Maybe you’re speaking about retail before even going up front to check out. Maybe there’s a front desk. Maybe there's not a front desk. What does that process look like to you?

What does your ideal perfect ticket and check-out look like? If you get your assistant to be on board with this dream picture of what you want the client's experience to be like, then you're both working for a common goal.

You might even go over how you introduce yourself. Are you shaking hands? Are you waving? Do you hug people? Whatever it is in your salon, that really creates that vibe and that culture that makes your salon unique. Make sure that your assistant is really holding that sacred and following suit with what you want.

What is something you could have your assistant do to be involved while you’re working? Is it taking pictures? Is it taking video? Is it holding your tools? Is it keeping your station tidy as you’re working, or helping you with the sale process for your retail? Be as thorough as possible of how you want them to assist you.

Training Programs

As a salon owner, do you have a training program for your assistants?

For me, my goal is to get them to assist our top stylist and build a book of business for up to six months. After six months, when they are ready to be a stylist one, they already know our culture and there's no uncomfortable transition from being an assistant to a level one.

One of the things that we do for our training program is have headsheets. As you're cutting, your assistant could be taking a headsheet and writing out exactly the angles that you're taking. That way, if they have questions, you can speak about it later.

You can also have them help you with formulas. Ask the assistant: what level am I starting at? Is there any gray that you see in the hair? Has it been color-treated, chemically treated, mechanically damaged? What volume of developer do you need to get you to where you want to go? What would you mix up and why?

Get them involved with the consultation, as well. Have them observe you, the questions that you're asking, and the solutions that you're coming up with.

When it's a little bit slower, the assistants can start taking models or studying the color and product lines.

Reviews

It's really important that you create a 30 day, 60-day, and 90-day review to reflect back on what is going well and what needs to be worked on.

Probably within 30 days or even 60 days you'll be able to tell if the assistant is a good fit, if they’re adopting your way of doing things, your culture, and your brand. Your reviews will be a great opportunity to set boundaries, explain what the assistant needs to work on, and offer positive reinforcement.

Leading by Example

When you’re training an assistant, they’re observing everything you do and say, so make sure you're watching your attitude. If your assistant sees you talking ill of a client, they’re going to start doing it, too. Make sure that you’re very cautious about any negative talk. If you need to vent, your assistant may not be the best person, especially during that 90 days of getting them on board with your culture.

So really watch your attitude about how you’re speaking about your team and your clients. Make sure that you're buttoning up on how you look and how your atmosphere looks. It's really important that we’re taking things to another level when we've got somebody else that's looking up to us.

If something happens that you don’t like, like your assistant speaking about things with your clients that you don’t think is appropriate, for example, make sure that you resolve that issue right away. Pull them aside privately and say, “Hey, that's not how we do things here.” People need that feedback. If you don't talk to them privately right away, they're going to continue doing it because they don't know.

Ultimately, you're learning to be a mentor just as they are seeking your mentorship, your leadership, and your guidance. It does take time. To help, start listening to leadership podcasts and reading books about leadership.

Whether you're in a salon suite, or if you’re a booth renter or in a commissioned salon, you have the opportunity to have assistants, and it could catapult your finances to another level. That’s why I encourage people to become a mentor and to find an assistant.

Listen to this episode of Beauty Business Game-Changers Podcast here.