Are you ready for an Assistant?

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.

How to Build Your Clientele Faster

As hairstylists, we’re not taught to be marketers, but I do believe that marketing should be our number one priority. Whether you’re first starting out or reinventing yourself, you’re building a clientele. You’ll always be selling yourself, your services, and your products. And I believe there are three areas that - if you can master them - can help you build your clientele, improve customer retention, and increase profits:

●      Marketing strategies at the salon

●      Marketing strategies in the community

●      Marketing strategies online

 Let’s look into them one by one.

Salon Marketing

Referral Programs

One form of in-salon marketing we’re doing is a referral program. It’s important to make referring as easy as possible for your clients. If it’s too complicated, they’ll be overwhelmed and won’t refer you. So to make referring a no-brainer, have lots of marketing materials available to help you speak about the referral program. We started using mirror clings with QR codes that take people to a page that includes our referral program. Another option is just to hand people a card or put it in their gift bag when they’re leaving.

Welcome Gifts

Another thing we’re trying right now is a welcome gift, which is meant to create a wow factor for new guests. Our welcome cards thank our guests for choosing us and offer $10 off their next service with an expiration date of two months. We also offer free eyebrow waxes and deep conditioning treatments, which are simple, quick services for us to offer but add a lot of value to the guest experience as a reminder that we care about them.

Following Up

It’s also important to make sure you follow up with new clients. I love sending a text message the next day thanking them for their visit and offering to answer any questions they might have. It’s an easy thing to do that adds another layer to that “wow” experience and helps us stand out from other salons.

Loyalty Points

One more great marketing strategy is loyalty points. Loyal customers spend 67% more on products and services than new customers, and a loyalty point system is a great way to reward and incentivize your existing customers for visiting you all year instead of someplace else. Currently, we offer four tiers of points. For example, for 1,000 points, the customer gets a free travel-sized deep-conditioning treatment. It costs us five dollars but it’s a great extra little thing that gets the customers excited. Plus, we can write it off as a business gift.

Cross-Promotion

Another area we’re always working on is cross-promoting, because if a client comes in for only one service, you’re missing an opportunity for them to take advantage of all the services you can provide. All it takes is having the right conversations during the guest service experience. As you’re doing their eyebrows, you can be talking about their lashes, their hair color, informing them about your full menu. Because the more that they can stay in-house spending their money and time with your salon, the less likely they’ll leave the salon to go somewhere else.

A great way to cross-promote is to do a salon tour, which is an easy segue into showing what else you offer. Know that cross-promotion takes teamwork on everybody’s part, keeping everything neat and organized, and maintaining a team mentality where everybody supports everybody.

The Guest Experience

Now let’s talk about the guest experience. See, guests value their experience more than they care about price. And there are so many ways to elevate the guest experience, which gives you a 42% higher chance to up-sell your services, 33% more chance to improve retention, and makes you 32% more likely to improve customer satisfaction.

So how do you elevate the guest experience? Cultivate your relationship with your clients. Listen more than you speak. Engage in conversations. If you’re not sure what to speak about, talk about what you know best: hair or lashes or whatever service you’re offering.

Offer thank you gifts. Recently, we did a customer appreciation promo where we sent every guest home with a homemade sugar scrub, which added an extra unexpected surprise they loved.

Write a thank you card or a birthday card. Offer services that center around what’s going on in their lives to show you’re listening and you care. For example, if you know somebody’s wedding is coming out, you can reach out to offer lash extensions or spray tans.

When a client changes things up, like trying a new hair color, for example, reach out to share your excitement and check in to make sure they’re happy with their results. It shows you sincerely care.

Rebooking

And last, but not least, make sure you’re rebooking your clients, which is one of the fastest ways to grow your books. I know there’s been a lot of controversy about this, but at least in the beginning, you need to be rebooking to provide convenience to your customers and ensure a predictable income for yourself.

Community Marketing

When I left to open up my own suite, what helped me most to rebuild my clientele was being present in the community. This can mean a lot of different things depending on your demographic, market, brand, and vision. For me, I would show up to weekly events to start building relationships with people. You can get involved with the city’s Chamber. Meet up with other local business people. Find where your target market shops and eats. Check out events. Be social. Put yourself out there.

Most importantly, get visible. You can host events in your own salon or open a pop-up bar someplace with a lot of foot traffic: anything that is going to allow you an opportunity to meet face to face with somebody. And when you do this, it’s not just about passing out a generic business card. Focus on building relationships. Have a real conversation, more about the other person than yourself. Listen and take an interest. The more consistent you are with getting out there in the community, the more clients will come in.

Online Marketing

Facebook Groups

One thing my team is great at is being all over Facebook groups, responding when - every day - people ask “Who does lashes? Who does spray tans? Who does facials?” Make sure your team knows to tag each other. That teamwork can help get your name out there. You can also get into Facebook groups to post pictures of your work.

Email and Text Marketing

It’s also crucial to get an email and text marketing strategy. We send out emails weekly to our customers that lead them to our blog, another great way to add value and educate your clientele. Plus, the more information you offer on your website, the better your SEO and the higher the chances you’ll be found on Google.

Text marketing is an even more valuable way to get in front of your existing clients, letting them know when you have last-minute openings, what promotions you have going on, and so on. There’s nothing more valuable to clients than to hear about these things straight from the stylist. You can even send voice messages to your top customers.

Social Media

Now, social media is a beast of its own. But one thing that many people are missing in the beginning is understanding who their target market is. On Instagram, you can look at your insights and see exactly who your demographic is, who is following you, and what age group they’re in. This can help you determine what type of images to post.

The key to social media is being consistent as well as searchable. Use hashtags relevant to who you serve and your area. Try to post photos that showcase your work that are striking enough to cause people to stop scrolling. Think about how to create those beautiful images. You can use the high-quality camera on your smartphone to take portraits of clients or models. Pay attention to details, making sure that the thing you’re showing off - hair, lashes, nails, whatever it may be - is what pops in the photo.

Make sure that your bio is clear and concise, explaining where you’re located, who you serve, and what your specialties are. Have a link to your bookings if you can. Everything should be as clear as possible because online users’ attention spans are shockingly short: it only takes 2.6 seconds for people to either stay or leave a page.

So think about what the “wow factor” will be on your page. I believe it’s through images. Even if you don’t have a big portfolio of your own yet, you can post other photos from Pinterest or stylists you admire and add a caption about how you find it inspiring. That way, your feed will be filled up from the very beginning. Just make sure that any time you post other people’s work, you give the proper credit. That way there are no hard feelings.

Online Reviews

And, of course, you have to be on Google and Yelp. Don’t be shy; make sure you consistently ask customers for reviews, as many people will find you just through Google or online reviews.

General Marketing Tips

There are plenty of clients out there; they just don’t know who you are, what you do, or if you’re the right fit for them. That’s where marketing comes into play. Especially because, for numerous reasons, we tend to lose about 10 to 25% of our clientele every year. So we have to have the right strategies in place to wow our existing guests in addition to attracting your ideal clientele into the salon.

The most important thing is to stay consistent. If you try it once and don’t get the instant results you’re looking for, it can be discouraging. But it takes time to build the momentum you need. And starting off with fewer clients isn’t a bad thing. It gives you the opportunity to maximize guest experience, hone in on your craft and skill, introduce them to other services you offer, and really establish your relationships.

 Another important tip is to always test and track the various marketing strategies you try out. When something isn’t working, don’t scrap it right away. Try to do some tweaking to improve it. With time, you’ll find what works for you.

How to transform your career

We’re about to enter into the fourth quarter. The year is winding down. The whole “New Year, New Me” movement is quickly approaching.

We’re also facing a very transitional time within the beauty space as some people are entering the industry, some are leaving it, and some are getting really specific on the services they want to offer and extra particular about the clients they want to work with.

In other words, it’s a time of change.

With change comes opportunity. The opportunity to really hone in on who you are as a person and as a beauty industry provider. An opportunity for self-betterment and growth. An opportunity to transform your career.

This week, I’m giving you three key steps you need to take to get you on the right track in order to do just that.

Step #1: Brainstorm

First things first. Put pen to paper. I have found that getting a piece of paper and simply writing down everything that’s in my head allows me to create space in my mind and organize my thoughts.

As hairstylists, we are artists. And with that creativity often comes disorganization. Sometimes, we’re a hot mess. And that’s okay!

But, I want to encourage you to take all that mess out of your head and dump it onto paper.

Ask yourself questions like:

• How does your morning routine look like?

• How does your evening routine look like?

• What does your current schedule look like?

• What would your ideal schedule look like?

• What people are in your life right now?

• Do you want all those people to remain in your life?

• What are the things in your lifestyle that you really enjoy?

• What are the things in your lifestyle that you don’t enjoy?

• What do you want to achieve in your career?

• What is the worst-case scenario if you go in that direction?

• What is the best-case scenario if you go in that direction?

Write down the answers to all those questions. It may look messy, but what matters is that you’re getting these thoughts out of your head and onto paper.

Next, I want you to think about your vision of the future and what it is you want to accomplish, and start crossing out the things that don’t fit with these goals.

Then, start adding things that DO fit until you have clarity on where you want to go and what you need to do to get there.

Step #2: Mindset

Life isn’t always easy. It’s going to throw curveballs at you. Relationship issues, career issues, financial issues… You name it.

That’s why having the right mindset is so important. But what does that mean?

It means being intentional.

So take one minute out of your day, preferably in the morning, and ask yourself who you want to be that day.

For example, you could say:

“Today, I’m going to be courageous. I’m going to be strong. I’m going to be wise. I will pursue what I want. I’ve got this.”

It’s so important to indulge in this type of positive self-talk. If we say these affirmations to ourselves, eventually, we will begin to believe them.

I truly believe that if you start your day by setting your intentions, it will help you overcome the challenges that you will inevitably encounter.

Step #3: Action

Now that you have set your intentions, it’s time to create an action plan. What will you do that will allow you to become the person that you desire to be?

Taking action could look like...

• Practicing self-care by eating healthier, exercising more, and getting more rest.

• Getting better at your craft by seeking out mentors who can help you improve your skills.

• Surrounding yourself with supportive people who encourage you and cheer you on as you are pursuing your dreams.

… etc.

But, remember – this part isn’t always easy. And you won’t see change happen overnight.

It takes constant practice. Practice that will eventually become a habit.

But I promise you will be surprised at how much you can achieve if you stay intentional, focused, and consistent.

We cannot become who we want to be by remaining who we are.

I believe that we can either be brave and lean into our calling or pull back because we are scared. So, who are you going to be today?

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