Salon: The Guest Experience

I was recently teaching a class and in closing, I had an interesting question. The question was, "What keeps my clients coming back to me when they can just do their color at home and order hair care products off of Amazon?" The question weirdly caught me off guard because I had to pause and think. What does keep our clients coming back to us time and time again? What is holding your client back from trying to find a new stylist or just ordering their color and styling products online? The answer is nothing, if you are not providing them with the best experience that you have to offer then you are not making yourself valuable.

Consultations are a wonderful way to meet a new client and communicate what it is that they want and figure out if you and your new client will work well together. After the first time seeing a client do you stop doing consultations every time they sit in your char? I know for myself, for the longest time, I would not continue to consult with clients. Especially the ones that I had been seeing for years. What was the point right? Well my friend, I was missing the point. The point is to make sure you are offering them everything you possibly can. Are you asking them if they want change? Are you asking them if they want to try to switch up some products for the change of season? I know personally I saw some of those clients at the store with a sassy new haircut that I had not done. I had not offered the change or tried to change things up. I learned the hard way to keep it fresh each time ALL of my clients sit in my chair. Yes, we all have those clients who do not want change but you never will know if you don't even ask.

Setting goals is a very important part of what keeps a client coming back. Typically if a client comes to you, they are looking for a change. Sometimes the change is tiny, like a tiny trim and a little brighter highlights or even just a root touch up. Sometimes the change is huge, I like to set seasonal goals for clients. Often times but not always my blondes like to be a little brighter in summer and go a little darker in the winter. I set them up with multiple appointments and we talk about what we are going to be doing and where they will end up. I really believe that doing so allows your clients to understand that you have a vision for their hair. We are artists and we want our canvas to always be beautiful and reflect our best work. With my bridal clients I will lay out an entire year of colors and cuts so that they can see that the end goal, being the wedding, will turn out just perfect. 

Mood Boards are wonderful tool for all of us. Pinterest is a great site that is easily accessible to even the low tech clients out there. I personally love to use mood boards for brides so I can get as much information about what the vibe and mood of the wedding is. When I tell my brides to do a mood boards they think I am some sort of genius but really I am just cheating, so that I can be ahead of the game. I recently started doing mood boards with my cut and color clients as well. I originally tested the mood board idea out on a client that was having trouble communicating exactly what she wanted. I had her send me a bunch of cuts and colors that she thought would work and when I looked at all of them I finally figured out what she really wanted. Our lingo doesn't always mesh with our non hairdresser clients so your best bet is a picture to get some ideas. 

Showing true interest in their lives  and not just talking about yourself is an important part of a client's experience. I make it a point when I first meet clients to write down little facts. I write down their job, their partner's name, their partner's job, their children, their children's name, ages of their children and even sometimes their animals. I am totally cheating here again but you finally remember after a few times and you definitely win brownie points for remembering that stuff.

I cannot emphasize enough how important prebooking is. Prebooking is setting yourself and your client up for success. Your client will have fresh hair that is always on point and you will have appointments filling your books. On the rare occasion you will have a client with a crazy schedule that it is nearly impossible for them to prebook but I promise that eventually that client will be calling you a lot sooner. That same client might just start prebooking their appointments in the future because you got too busy to get them in at the last minute. Trust me you want to prebook, a client that walks away with their next appointment booked feels like they accomplished something and that makes for a happy client.

The experience that you give to your client should leave a lasting impression on them, enough for them to want to refer you to their friends. Treat every client as if it was their first time in the chair and give them your full attention. It is in the details that keeps people coming back. Create that experience so that your clients cannot see any other way than to trust you with all of their hair care needs.