Farewell 2015!

Can you believe it’s this time again! It’s been a busy year and quite frankly, it has flown by. For us at Salon Tracker, 2015 has been great, packed with lots of fun-filled events including our debut exhibition at Professional Beauty North, in which we actually got to meet some of you in person. Our software packages have advanced and we have really enjoyed helping you guys to improve the management of your salons throughout the past year. We know for some of you the year isn’t over yet, as you’ll be jam-packed up to Xmas with people wanting their last minute tans, lashes and highlights. However, we hope that after the hustle and bustle this week you all have a fantastic and well-deserved Christmas and we wish you all the best going through to the New Year. Salon Tracker have some exciting new features to come in the Spring so keep posted. We’re really looking forward to working with you over the coming months and hopefully, meeting a few more of you at Professional Beauty London in Feb! So, here is to 2016 and another successful year!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Salon Tracker x


**We are closing down for Christmas on 23rd December 2015. We will be back in the office on January 4th 2016. Should you require assistance during this time, please telephone 0113 3508230 and leave a voicemail or email info@salontracker.co.uk.**

Salon Tracker Software: Intelligent Marketing Tips for the New Year

You may have seen recently that we’ve done quite a bit of posting on New Year planning, looking at how to improve your business using salon software and also how to market in 2016. We’ve mentioned SMS marketing, competitions, promotions and offers. Having said that, we know how busy you guys will be in the salon this close to Christmas and so we don’t want to bombard you with a wordy blog packed with information during this time. Instead, we thought we’d create something a little more helpful and so have come up with some snappy, quick fire marketing examples that you can refer to when it comes round to your January planning!

SMS

For those of you that are already Salon Tracker users and have our SMS marketing feature, here are a few examples that you can create using our message templates. However, there is no reason why any of you who don’t currently use our salon software cannot take these ideas as a basis to set up the campaigns yourselves in an alternative way.

Hi <<Forename>>

[Happy New Year! Do you like us on Facebook? Click here <<link>> to follow us and enter our competition for the chance to win 25% off your next treatment]

<<CompanyName>> <<CompanyTel>> T&Cs Apply


Hi <<Forename>>

[Happy New Year! Fancy a 2016 makeover? Begin here with our updated treatment list and receive 10% off selected services]

<<CompanyName>> <<CompanyTel>> T&Cs Apply


Hi <<Forename>>

[Sparkle in 2016! Book your appointment today and receive 10% off selected treatments]

<<CompanyName>> <<CompanyTel>> T&Cs Apply


Hi <<Forename>>

[Need a bit of pampering after the Christmas Party season? We’re offering <<%>> off <<treatment>> on <<date>> Book now to receive your discount!

<<CompanyName>> <<CompanyTel>> T&C’s Apply


Hi <<Forename>>

[Get Glam in 2016…we’re offering a FREE <<treatment>> when you spend over <<£>>! Call <<CompanyTel>> to book today]

<<CompanyName>> <<CompanyTel>> T&Cs Apply


Hi <<Forename>>

[Got any friends who are looking for a beauty change-up this New Year? Refer a pal and receive 10% off your next treatment. Click here for more details <<link>>]

<<CompanyName>> <<CompanyTel>> T&Cs Apply



Social Media 

Your social media networks are the fastest methods of communication in which to reach a client. Status posting also costs nothing and so is a quick and easy way to market yourselves free of charge. Here are some example Facebook posts that you can use to promote to clients and gain that extra footfall throughout Jan.


**January Competition**…to enter comment with JANCOMP below this post for the chance to receive a £5.00 off voucher for your next treatment. Winner announced on 31st Jan!


**New Year, New Look**…to enter comment with JANCOMP below this post for the chance to receive a 25% off voucher for your next appointment with us. Winner announced on 31st Jan!


**Refer a Friend**…recommend our salon to a pal, get them to quote your name on appointment arrival and the two of you will receive 10% off your next treatments!


**New Year, New Services**…we’ve updated our treatment list! Book an appointment before 31st Jan to receive an exclusive discount!


We hope these tips come in useful! Have a fantastic countdown to Christmas & here’s to a successful 2016!


Salon Tracker x

Salon Software Q+A: What you need to know if you’re thinking about salon software for 2016!

Why do I need a computerised system in the salon?

It is important to computerise your business and keep up with modern technology to compete effectively. Salon software will make operations cleaner and more efficient as it implements a certainty element. It also allows your calendar to be accessible 24/7 with online booking, therefore aiming to improve the business and increase profit, even in your absence.

As well as bookings, what else can they do?

Salon software systems effectively manage every aspect of your business allowing you to store endless information, track appointments and communicate with clients under one easy to use, personalized system. There are also services such as marketing, automated stock management, performance reports and online and Facebook booking. Software allows you to incorporate everything as a combined impact so that you are saving time and money in other areas of your business.

What are the business benefits of using a salon software system in general?

There are numerous business benefits of using salon software but most of all it will save you time that you can be spending elsewhere. Managing figures, reports and cash flow can be a tedious process, which is where software management can give you a helping hand. All you are required to do is generate a customised report and your figures are complete.

The marketing function will also be beneficial for your business. Salon Tracker’s marketing suite encourages regular contact with clients via SMS and email marketing, whether this is showing thanks for their custom or offering a promotion tailored to the client profile. Contacting clients on a regular basis heightens familiarity which leads to increased customer loyalty. The features also enables you to contact customers directly which can help turn around last minute cancellations. In addition, the tool can be used for appointment reminders, consequently reducing the amount of missed appointments.

How easy are they to use?  Do you need to be a computer whizz? Is training available?

Our Salon Tracker system has been designed so it is easy for clients to use. Even someone who has hardly operated a computer before will be able to use it with ease. We offer free training, support and updates for all employees within the salon so if any problems do occur through usage, we will be on hand free of charge… there are no hidden costs.

What is the single biggest advantage of having a dedicated software system?

It is very important to have a dedicated software system provider in order to ensure you have the reliable support you require to develop your business. Salon Tracker is constantly evolving with new features, releases and updates which should be available to every user free of charge. This will help constantly improve your service and help you build positive relationships with clients. We are so confident in the software that we offer a free trial, free support and free training. All of the features within our system have been designed to help us fulfill our mission of making salon life easier.

How is your system different to competitors?

Salon Tracker prides itself on its customer service, support and updates being FREE. We are so confident in our product that we even offer a free two week trial beforehand with no obligations to ensure our software suits your business goals.

What are the costs involved?

Salon Tracker offers three flexible packages with software and hardware options to suit salons of all sizes. Our ‘Standard’ package is £499, the ‘Professional’ £899, and ‘Enterprise’ £1299. There are no additional monthly costs but an annual license fee of £199. We also offer the above packages on a monthly subscription at £30, £60 and £90 PCM with no upfront or additional fees.

Salon Tracker Software: How to plan for Jan!

After the busy Christmas period, we all know that sales throughout Jan deplete a little, as everyone is a bit strapped for cash and tend to tighten their purse strings. However, during the quieter months whilst you have some spare time, there is no better time to analyse previous business years, evaluate, and plan for the year ahead. Here at Salon Tracker we have thought of a few things that salons can take in to account moving forward in to 2016!


Evaluate Previous Years

Some of you may have salon software and therefore can run reports and charts for analysis at the click of a button, others of you may still be using paper KPI trackers and reports. Whichever it is, January is a good time to observe the reports, to see what worked well, and what maybe didn’t. You can then use this data to forward plan and identify any key areas that may need work or any sections of the salon where improvements are no longer necessary.


Run Over Pricing

During your analysis of previous years, you need to ensure that you are evaluating your prices and also comparing those to that of competitors. Also, make sure that your prices reflect your services. For example, there may be certain technicians that have worked in the salon for some time and your loyal clients don’t mind paying that little bit more for their treatments. Having said that, you don’t want to offer your services at too low prices either, as the last thing you want is clients believing that your work isn't up to par and also you don't want to be labelled as a cheap-salon service. However you also have to make sure that you aren't charging so much that clients find your services too un-affordable that they go elsewhere for their repeat treatments.


Marketing & Offers

January is always a great time to market and offer discount, as every company is renowned for doing this early on in the New Year, especially as everyone is a bit strapped for cash. On the days that you’re quiet, for example a Monday/Tuesday, offer discounts on a few selected treatments, as by doing this it will make the offer seem a little more exclusive as a pose to discounting your entire treatment list.  In terms of marketing and promotions, run monthly email and SMS campaigns, for example a good idea would be to start a monthly newsletter promoting new services, information on new staff members and any special offers. Another fab idea for some extra salon promotion would be to partner with local photographers or universities who may need hair stylists for their shoots.  If you're currently training new technicians, you could advertise for 'styling models' then collaborate with the local photographers & students, as you then should receive a copy of the artwork for free which you can use for salon display!


Salon Aesthetics

Clients who are impressed with the experience that they receive when visiting your salon are more likely to return and also spread the word to friends.  As we have said before, the experience starts when a client walks through the salon door. Your salon décor, layout and level of cleanliness is therefore really important.  If all of this is up to scratch, it instantly impresses a client and should encourage them to recommend your salon. Your digital aesthetics is also something to think about.  How is your salon website and social media accounts looking?  Use January to give these a little re-vamp...post client photos online, select the best photos of your salon technicians' work and share these on your social network accounts.  You could even create landing pages for each of your technicians' on the website, so when clients are booking online they can see an example of certain technicians' work.  This being especially beneficial if it is a first-time client, as reviews and testimonials are key in terms of winning that client over and getting that sale.

Improve Business Presence

Create a blog and let your staff members share their beauty stories with clients. A great way to improve SEO (search engine optimisation) for your website and also beneficial in terms of offering advice to clients. Reviews are another great technique, as again you can hashtag the brands of the latest products, contributing again to the SEO for your site and also, the sales of your retail products. Something else to think about, how many places is your salon listed on the web? Ensure that your salon is listed on all the top local business directories to make sure that you have as much publicity as possible. If online isn't for you just yet, produce and hand out some business cards.  You can get bulk cards printed for quite a small cost at places such as Vista Print, and this is a simple and effective way to gain added exposure for your business.  Hand them out at reception after treatments so that clients can pass them to friends.  You can also ask local businesses if they wouldn't mind displaying one in their shop window, as you might just gain a little extra local business by doing this. 

Complimentary Promotions

Mini promotions on your website, Facebook page and other social media accounts are great in terms of networking and word-of-mouth promotion for the salon.  These don't have to be anything too costly either.  You could just have a competition running throughout January where for each person that enters, there will be a daily winner that is entitled to a free £5.00 voucher of a 25% off coupon for their next treatment. Followers who subscribe to your feeds can stay informed of any businesses competitions and will be more likely to book an appointment with you.  Complimentary gifts are also a great way to win clients over in terms of their loyalty towards you, as little extras after appointments are the things that make your salon stand out from the crowds. These could literally be something as simple as a free product sample or sweets in reception.  A little gesture goes a long way. 

January Return Vouchers

Introduce vouchers that can only be used from 1st to 31st January 2016.  These are a good way to promote a 'bounce-back' in custom and improve the footfall in the salon during quieter periods. Start handing them out now throughout the busy Christmas season and promote them on your social media pages to ensure that your salon starts off the New Year with a bang. 

We hope everyone has a fantastic Christmas and that some of our ideas will come in useful for a great start to the New Year!


Salon Tracker x

Salon Tracker Software: How to plan for trade shows and why you should think about it now

Christmas is in full swing and I’m sure all of your salons are bustling with clients coming for their festive treatments all ready for the big day. Some of you may know, however some of you may not, that we are exhibiting at the Professional Beauty London show next February at the Excel. Even though it seems ages away with all the Christmas hustle beforehand, February will come around fast. Therefore when you have a spare minute, do a bit of research in to the potential trade show events that you may want to visit after the New Year, as Jan and Feb are great months for future planning! For those of you who are thinking of attending the February Professional Beauty show, we can’t wait to meet you all and so we just thought we’d give you a few tips on how to prepare for a trade show & why it is so useful to attend one.

There are two types of trade show goers. The first are people who know that they want something, the second are people that are there to enquire and browse. However, trade shows are always busy and there is so much to see, so it’s handy before to download a floorplan and gage the companies that you may want to visit before you actually attend. So having said that, the first tip is;

Do your Research!

Aside from having a look at the show plan before the event, you should also research into places to stop for breaks, where all the local facilities are and also, your transportation! There are so many different stands that you may wish to see and you have to take into account the traffic of those stands and where they are positioned in relation to one another. Plan breaks throughout the day, as this gives you time to reflect on the companies that you have already seen and allows you to alter your questions accordingly for the next brands that you are to visit. If you are one of those show-goers who isn’t sure what they are at the event for, then a good idea would be to plan exactly what it is that you want to get out of your visit. It is important that you make an itinerary for the time that you are there, whether it be one or two days. Trade shows are busy and time is limited at each stand due to the high volume of traffic, therefore work out which stands you need to visit and for how long.

Improving your Retail Product Range

At the majority of trade show events, you’ll bag yourself a couple of free goodies. A brilliant way to trial and test the products that are on offer. You can take samples back to the salon and do some first-hand primary research with your clients by seeing what they think of the product samples. This is great in terms of choosing your retail product selection, as by getting client feedback before you go to the suppliers, you have more knowledge of the products that are going to be popular. Obviously the other benefit is you get a couple of freebie gifts for yourself, winner!

Team Building Exercise

One of the biggest challenges in any business is maintaining a happy and motivated team, and a great way to do this is to give staff members’ ownership of a project. After creating a vision for your event (which show you will attend, the purpose of attending and what you wish to get out of the event) why not select a few staff members to go with you to the show and give each a certain area to focus and gather research from. After the visit, organize a team meeting to discuss the show findings. This could just be something at the salon with some nibbles, or a meal out somewhere. Whichever it is, employee bonding is really important within any business and it is a great team building exercise to allow employees to present back to one another what they discovered from the event.

Take Notes

When at a trade show, you retrieve so much information and your head will be bombarded with information from the day, in such a short space of time. So, to ensure that you remember everything, take some notes along the way. 9 times out of 10, you will receive leaflets from the stands that you visit and therefore you can make little references on those alongside the brand information. This will help to prompt the subject of your call, should you contact a particular company after the show.

Network!

Take your own business cards, as after all you may be there to view the likes of salon software and retail samples but remember that the staff on the stand are still normal salon-goers. You never know, you might just bag yourself a bit of business too!  Another benefit is that companies will remember you if they can attach something like a business card to your lead form, which is great in terms of call backs after your enquiry.

If you are a salon and it is your first time visiting a trade show this February, drop by our stand J1 and we will be happy to give you advice on how our salon software will work for you. For further info, visit our website www.salontracker.co.uk where you can also request a no-obligation FREE demo and trial.

You can register for your Professional Beauty London ticket FREE using the link below https://registration.n200.com/survey/0njm506qcs1za?actioncode=NTWO000194OBY

Hope to see you soon and a very Merry Christmas!

Salon Tracker x

Some of our favourite looks for Christmas 2015!

 

 

How important is customer service at the salon to you and your staff- REALLY?

This is a true but anonymous example of a friend who encountered a bad experience at a salon which in turn neglected her need to return. Make sure this isn’t you or your colleagues...

The hair salon in question was visited by one of my friends Caitlan* who was due to spend £475 for luxury micro ring hair extensions. As one would assume, with quite a large investment, she had high expectations. Caitlan* really values customer service. She’s one of those kinds who religiously tips over 10% at restaurants, more if it’s great service.

Firstly Caitlan* arrived at the salon and was not greeted until she had been sat down for about 15 minutes. When she had finally been greeted, there was no further engagement except who she was and what she wanted. Now she loved/ loves her extensions and the treatment itself went great. However, she seemed really distressed as we discussed the event.

Caitlan’s biggest problem was she found that the salon were constantly nattering about other clients, the state of their hair and the things they complained about. She also said her hairdresser texted her friends back about 9x throughout the 4 hour stint which elongated the process somewhat. She found this irritatingly uncomfortable and afterward, and was therefore, anxious about her return for maintenance. Her hairdresser was the salon owner.

Needless to say, Caitlan* researched another hair extension specialist and never returned to the salon after this experience. She has had the hair extensions in for 2 years and they have lasted well. This means the original hair extension specialist who charged £80 every 10-12 weeks for maintenance has lost at least £640 in maintenance costs from this one client.

This really is something to think about! You might wonder why we are writing a blog on this, stick with us! Salon management software isn’t only for booking services and treatments. You can improve your staffs abilities and attitude with the endless access to reports, targets and performance. Here are a few ways you can manage your staff and really help them succeed in your working environment.

First of all you need to prioritise and make a plan of what it is you would like to improve at the salon with regards to staff, be it their attitude, retailing or overall performance. Consistency is key so if you start with a new development programme, make sure you are managing expectations.

KPI’s and Performance

Even if your employees have regular clients and are always booked out, this doesn’t mean they are underperforming on other business fronts. Are they selling retail or ensuring they rebook clients before departure? Are they, like the above, using their phone midway through doing treatments? With Salon Tracker you can not only delve into overall business KPI’s but individual staff strengths and weaknesses. These features are so important since as a business owner, it’s also your responsibility to encourage training and development. Everyone has an ‘Achilles Heel’ when it comes to work, but it is essential that salon managers know what this is and how to nurture it and in turn, motivate and turn this into a positive.

Aim with targets

Researching your KPI’s is great but not if you aren’t going to put anything into action. Key point indicators are exactly that, indicators of what to do next! A salon management system will allow you to track targets and monitor consistency through your reporting function. As long as you know the catalyst for underperformance and how to develop this, you are being a great manager. 

Don’t let them get stuck in ways

Not many people like change but switching things up is so important once in a while to prevent complacency. Junior staff who haven’t been with you as long can usually be trained to a result you require, and are usually looking for ways to improve and deliver. Ensure that all staff respect your decisions with training development, regardless of their serving time. If they are insulted, why not use them to train in strong areas to improve overall performance of the team.

Countdown to Christmas: How to keep the atmosphere alive at Advent

Hasn’t the year flown by! Tomorrow we’re officially in December and the countdown to Christmas is real. So, 24 days to go until the big day, we bet you guys are gonna’ be jam-packed at the salon. But just remember, in the hustle and bustle of the busy period, it is so important to keep your customers satisfied and to also get them in the Christmassy mood. As after all, the happier the customer the healthier your tills!

Here at Salon Tracker we’ve thought of a few ways that you can have a bit of fun throughout the month of Advent and also how to manage clients during peak season.

Daily Advent Social Media Tips

Many of you will have a salon page on Facebook and at Christmas, there is no better time to use it as everybody is online bagging cyber deals, keeping up to date with friends and sharing their Christmas pictures. Why not for every day of December in the lead up to Xmas post a little beauty tip? If you feel like you might be stuck for time, you can always use a social media management site, such as Hootsuite or Spredfast? Spend an afternoon planning your posts, schedule them using one of the mentioned sites and away you go. And make sure to #hashtag! The benefit of posting a beauty tip everyday means that you can hashtag key words and brands to ensure that as many people see your post as possible, which also equals an increase in brand awareness for your salon, cost-free!

Salon Advent Calendar for staff & clients

As well as keeping your clients satisfied, it’s important to ensure that your staff are also just as upbeat, as happy staff is the key to appreciative clients. Personalities and moods rub off on others so to ensure an ‘atmosphere of Christmas cheer’ all round, why not introduce some little Xmas freebies for staff and customers. Theme it to Advent and for staff, maybe it is that you create a large Advent calendar and keep it in the tea room? Then every morning when your technicians come to work they get to pick a sweet out from whichever day of Advent it is. It doesn’t need to cost much, the calendar could literally be a make-shift collection of 24 little jars or bowls with the letter 1-24 stuck on them and you could just fill them with sweets or Christmas choccies? Similarly, this could also work for clients, but instead of having the whole Advent calendar on display (as it may be a bit too big for the front desk of your salon), you could have a jar of goodies in reception and have a ‘__days till Christmas’ sign displayed alongside it. Again, this doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg, you can pick up small Christmas themed black boards for under £5.00 online, so you can chalk the message and alter it each day of Advent.

Secret Santa

If you haven’t already organised Christmas goodies or awards to give out at the Xmas doo, then Secret Santa is always good for a bit of fun between employees. Create a theme with a set spend amount so that it isn’t unaffordable for anybody and then get your staff members to pick names from a hat. Some ideas for themes could be ‘everyone spends £5.00 and has to get something funny, something Christmassy and something edible’. Another idea would be to set a minimum number of presents to be bought for a certain price range, so this could be ‘5 presents for £5.00’. Have a little brainstorm with your staff but this is sure to contribute to the festive feeling!

Managing waiting lists wisely

As well as the surge in booked appointments, the demand for walk-in gaps also increases during the holiday season. Excellent for business profits and brand reputation, but equally salon staff are left with the job of managing the waiting clients so that they still have a pleasant experience from the offset of walking through the salon door. So, having said this, the best way to win clients over is to offer them a couple of complimentary freebies and ensure you have plenty of up-to-date magazines. You will always offer tea and coffee on an ordinary day but jazz this up a little throughout Advent and perhaps offer a glass of bucks fizz instead, complimented with a mince pie or mini yule log cake. These can all be bought for a small price at big-chain supermarkets and at this time of year many have bulk offers on so you can do it on a bit of a budget!

We hope some of our ideas come in handy for you in the lead up to the big day and that you have a fun-filled salon of success this Christmas…Happy Advent!


Salon Tracker x

Staff motivation and incentive in the salon leading up to Christmas!

Christmas time at the salon means all hands on deck! Staff really are expected to step up at this time of year meaning that their stress levels may well be on the increase. All of the extra pressures can sometimes lead to demotivation, but a great way to ensure alleviation and to prevent this is through incentivising staff! Not all salon owners who are starting out can offer commission on their products but we’ve come up with a great way to highlight your appreciation for your employees’ effort and hard work all year- End of Year Awards!!

First let’s address some of the most important awards and remember to insert your own “gift” to what you can afford! We’ve gone with a top three as an example but you can adapt this depending on what your salon achieves.

A great way to incentivise staff throughout December is to enlist everyone into a competition. Tell staff they will all be entered into a competition where their colleagues will nominate them for who deserves the ‘Outstanding Service’ award! Nominations will be counted up on Xmas Eve and the winner will win; (insert your gift here) a weekend away in a luxury B&B at the Lake District for themselves and a +1!

Another award could be for the most ‘Profitable Stylist’. You could use your salon software provider to delve into each staff member’s takings, both for products and services. This is a great one because it encourages staff to push as many retail products and gift sets as they can throughout the lead up to Christmas. A (insert prize here) cash bonus prize is a great incentive for this or maybe a night at the theatre and dinner at a scrumptious local restaurant.

For the one who ‘Always exceeds their target’, why not send them on a (insert gift here) spa weekend to give thanks for their efforts month on month to always hit and exceed their goals. Praise and recognition towards staff is such an underrated company value and can impact positively throughout the entire business, so you don’t just have to offer expensive prizes to your profitable stylists. Ensure everyone is awarded at least one gift! Some ideas are as listed below along with prize ideas!

‘Stressed out Sally Award’- A massage or a Jo Malone candle!
‘Clumsiest Clown Award’- A good luck charm bracelet!
‘Pretty Perfectionist Award’- 2 x MAC lipsticks.
‘Always on the phone!’- Selfie stick or personalised phone case!
‘Biggest Smile Everyday’- A big bunch of flowers.
‘Miss Agony Aunt Award’- winter warmer gifts like tea mask and chocolates!
‘Most Creative Hair Do’- An I-O-U voucher for their next hairstyle change!
Miss Clean Freeeeak’- A mani/pedi to recover those tired Cinderella hands and feet!
‘Miss Always Early’- An entire weekend off work!

As you can see with some of the above gifts, rewards don’t always have to cost an arm and a leg. For your “funny awards”, we recommend offering little gifts which match the title of the award or personality of your employee. If you really can’t afford to offer to get your team individual pressies then how about a Christmas lunch or party? This doesn’t have to be anywhere fancy and you can go to your local ‘Revolution’ for a 3 course Christmas Dinner from just £18 per head! If that fails then a Christmas card written from the heart is always a great gift to receive. A few nice words to show how much you are appreciated and how your efforts have contributed to business over the last 12 months never goes a miss!

We hope our ideas help!

Salon Tracker x

How to upsell your salons retail products this Christmas!

The key to upselling retail products in any business is to get your clients to see the value behind every product you are selling, both visually and practically. Retail sales are through the roof at Christmas as opposed to January, so prior to Christmas is a great opportunity to capitalise on the event as much as you can. Here at Salon Tracker we have come up with a few ideas that you can try out around Christmas to upsell your retail products and increase business profits!


Christmas Gift Table

Visual merchandising is everything in terms of upselling your retail products at Christmas. Do you have a creative mind amongst the salon team? If so, set them a task to bring their artistic ideas to the table by creating a display with ‘Christmassy’ effect. The more appealing the display, the better the chance of those products flying out of the door. Make sure that the display is in a key sight-line, so that it will grab the customers’ attention and attract them to view the products. A spectacular arrangement of products will catch the eye of a client any day over a small shelf on the wall!

Add on’s at the till

If you currently use our salon software, you can generate reports of your bestselling retail products for the year and think about displaying these at the cash desk, to appeal to customers whilst they are paying for their treatments. Even if you don’t have software, I’m sure you have a good idea of consumer buying habits when it comes to your retail products, so get those best sellers high-lighted! Especially around Christmas time, clients might be inclined to buy one of your products as a gift for someone, so capitalise on this opportunity!

Baubles containing gifts

Novelty Christmassy accessories are another big seller when it comes to retail products, especially during the festive period. Anything that looks a bit glittery and pretty will appeal to your clients, and again, will make great stocking fillers! You can get hold of some clear baubles on EBay that you could put samples inside or put some ‘mini’ retail products in…great also for hanging on the Christmas tree if your clients are in to modernised décor!

Demonstrate the Products
Certain treatments involve products which tends to be the easiest product to sell since they can visualise the benefits. Skincare or hair-care are great products to upsell for longevity and prolonging treatments. Always make sure you give a good sales speech as to how products can benefit the client!

Events!
Holding an event is one of the easiest ways to upsell retail products. Mini treatment nights with a ‘refer a friend’ campaign is a great way to create enthusiasm within the salon and extend your target audience to friends of clients. If you invite clients to have a treatment with their friends or partners in the salon, then they are more likely to spend that little extra, as it turns the salon treatment in to a social event where the clients may not mind spending that little bit extra!

So I’m sure there’s something here that is worth a go to help you boost those retail sales…we hope that you have SUCCESS this XMAS!

Salon Tracker x

13 Christmas Marketing ideas for your salon!

Every now and then, we all get writers block, but you guys are lucky because we are here to help! Our aim with this blog is to give you inexpensive ways to market your salon as we approach this busy time of year! So whether you have big or small businesses with lots of budget or no budget, we urge you to read on, because we have something for everyone to enable you to cash in on the festive spirit. 

• Think about a place where you can be effortlessly yourself and write about your passion in hair, beauty and all things industry related. Sounds great doesn’t it? Well this could be you if you start a vlog or blog. It’s also a great way to sprint your salon up to the top pages of Google and other search engines and all it takes is some creativity and a little research.



• We have highlighted the importance of salon reviews in one of our previous blogs surrounding Facebook but it’s not just there where we urge salons to get reviews from. Google+ and other online directories like Trust Pilot all help to establish a base following.

• Link up with local businesses and cross promote one another. For salons you could access nearby florists, bridal gown shops and gyms etc to up-sell each other’s products. This can help you in the long run as opposed to just immediately. 

• This flows nicely into competitions. Why not try running a local competition and include other businesses in your nearby area? This allows you to share audiences amongst each other and therefore encourage more individuals to get involved. Christmas is a great time to run competitions. It allows consumers to save money around the festive period if they do win the prize which is all the more reason to get involved!

• Offer a referral programme! This is one of the best and easiest ways to gain a new customer simply because clients trust their friends. You can spend thousands on marketing but a referral is an honest and unbiased view point from someone external to the business.

• Are you using social media to its full ability? If not try to focus on three channels and then work onward from there. Most channels are free but do offer paid advertising and I would strongly recommend this route too. Just ensure you read up about it prior to doing so. We have some great ‘How To’ blogs that you could research into for paid advertising. 

• Showcase current offers, gift cards, promotions and retail products around the salon and discuss them as often as you can. A great area to upsell is at the reception desk when your client is paying. This could be upselling gift cards as stocking fillers or even be a gift from the salon that you throw in for the festive period.  

• Salons are known to be busy around the festive period so your answer machine message should be as bubbly and engaging as possible. All the more reason to put your most popular Christmas promotions and opening hours on there.

• Is there anything else festive you can upsell? Christmas is a great time of year to bring in Christmas drinks, mince pies and Christmas themed cupcakes- this could even be charity related over the festive season.

• Use the window for window shoppers! This is a fantastic place to market the best treatments and services you offer- so go all out! Think about Xmas gifts and popular treatments around this time of year and add a little sparkle to give it the WOW factor.

• Is it possible to offer a gift wrap service for your retail products? We just love this idea because it’s not something that everyone can do but it wonderfully sets you apart from your competition.  

• Are you using your SMS marketing to the best ability… implementing subtle Christmas reminders is a great way to keep your audience engaged? Tell them about gift options you have or even Boxing Day sales treatments you are planning on introducing. We can guarantee you will book up sooner rather than later. 

• Over the past year we have accumulated quite a few salons offering “flash” treatments. What we love about the idea of a flash treatment is that it allows you to get in and out while you are Christmas shopping! Obviously not all salons like the idea of offering fast services so why not try the ‘two treatments at once’ approach. The idea that we can get our brows and pedicure done simultaneously is great around the Xmas period! It allows us to lay back and relax while we get two treatments done! Great way to upsell other treatments too!

Christmas promotional ideas for the salon!

With Halloween, Bonfire Night and autumn festivities just out of the way, there’s no time like the present to throw yourself into your salons Christmas promotions. Year on year, the festive season proves to be a huge money maker for many salons but you need to be prepared for the January slump too! Here’s a bit of inspiration to keep your ideas fresh and eclectic this December.

 Percentage off treatments on 1st day of advent

As we have discussed in our blog posts before, you don’t want to be renowned for giving too much discount too often, as then clients can then become accustomed to these prices leading to a refusal to pay full price. However, a one-off discount on a significant day, for example the first day of advent, could be a great way to increase those sales throughout December rather than cramming them into the final two weeks. You can do this through your salon software programme or use alternative advertising methods such as your social media pages or the good old poster in the window to notify clients early of your advent deal!

Black Friday Promotions

Black Friday is a huge opportunity for all businesses to capitalise on. Most large retailers offer Black Friday offers to price match competitors and reap in those pre- Christmas sales. It is also usually the last discount day prior to Christmas which means people are out to buy, buy, buy! See what discount competitors are offering and don’t be afraid to beat their offers if it’s for one day or weekend only! Ensure you promote these offers, through your salon software marketing feature, multiple times especially the day before Black Friday! Your salon should be high on the list of priorities for your customer to visit.  

Christmas Freebies

There’s nothing like a complimentary gift to give to clients when they come for their winter treatment, even if it’s just something as simple as a free mince pie with their tea, or a nice hot choccy! A lot of salons also have sweets at the cash desk on a regular day; why not theme these up a little bit and have candy canes instead, or Christmassy chocolates like Quality Streets to get clients in the festive mood.

Social Media

Get people talking about your salon!  The best thing about social media is that the messages are delivered instantly and on a mass scale.  Your social media platforms are the best and fastest way to connect with your clients and target audience, to share incentives and to create news about your salon. Launches are another great way to get people talking, whether this is through competitions on your Facebook page or new product launches. Team these with a wintery themed picture and it is sure to attract some attention.  The more publicity you can generate for yourselves on your social media accounts, the better the chance you have at improving your client base!

Salon Decor

Ambience is everything when it comes to a client remembering your salon. Especially during the Christmas period and into the New Year, you have to create an impression that will WOW client and prompt their return.  Over the Christmas period, ensure you trim up with appropriate decorations.  If your salon is usually decorated classically, make sure that your Christmas trimmings reflect this.  Likewise, if your salon is ultra-modern then make sure you go for some contemporary sparkle.  When it comes to the start of the January, ensure that your salon has had a good tidy, is newly organised and is ready for all your New Year services.  After Christmas, everyone is in the ‘New Year, New Start’ mind set, so make sure that your salon indicates that you as a business are also fresh & prepared for the year ahead.

January promo vouchers

January is always a bleak and slow month for everybody and at best we all know that salon sales dwindle off until the Valentine’s Day period.  A good way to increase custom in January is to create a ‘new-year return’ voucher/coupon.  Hand these out to clients in December when they come to pay for their Christmas treatments, offering them something like £5 off their next £50 spend in January or 10% off spends over £40, valid from 1st to 31st Jan.  This is sure to put a spring in the step of your customers and you should see a good return on investment by getting a few extra’s through the door at the start of the New Year.

Hope this helps, Salon Tracker x

Managing your salon reception in busy periods!

We’ve said it before and we stick by our word, a salons reception area is the most important part of “closing a sale”. Everything from the cleanliness, the attitude, communication and information the client is given at this point. With the run up to Christmas fast approaching, we thought it the perfect time to highlight the importance of your salon receptionist’s role/s and how you can ensure they manage your salon reception rather than the reception managing them.

The salon receptionist holds key responsibilities within your business, firstly being their appearance and professional manner. For your salon to be taken seriously by people of all walks of life, your reception staff must have a professional and positive aura. Now obviously you cannot foresee complaints, delays or other similar issues but you can train your staff to react to these occasions.

Staff should be approachable, knowledgeable and efficient, especially in busy periods. This holds high importance in your salon and the above three pointers are linked. To be efficient, your staff should be trained to know all treatments, timings and staff like the back of their hand. This allows them to act with authority, even in your absence. 

Your reception should feel comfortable.  What we mean by comfortable is, at home. Your client should have plenty to do in the occasion of you running behind which is why most salons are stocked up with magazines and newspapers. Can you ensure that your reception staff stay on the ball with complimentary tea, coffee and juice? Phone chargers are another little addition that you could invite into the salon for clients to feel at home. Most importantly is there somewhere for them to sit and hang their coat or put their umbrella if it rains? 

Your client’s safety is another thing in the hands of te receptionist. Have they had the required skin test? Do your hairdressers and beauty therapists know everything they should about this particular client? The receptionists should include all the relevant information needed to ensure the sales process is a strong and safe one. 

A clean and tidy reception and display area are so important. Are your staff on top of cleaning up after every client and on an evening? It’s absolutely imperative to stay on top of this since it could be a make or break for people when they decide if they want to continue with your services.

Meeting and greeting clients is one thing, but are staff tailoring every meet and greet appropriately? How you speak to a 9 year old little girl differs completely to how you would speak to a 90 year old woman. You may need to speak a little slower and explain things more which is where excellent customer service comes in.

Underrated things that hold huge importance in the salon are things such as checking and making appointments. So many errors occur when things haven’t been double checked, which is where you should ensure staff are relaying information back to the client for client, receptionist and therapist benefit. Information might include the cost of their treatment and the date and time of when they have booked. Also what is the typical duration time of the treatment so your client knows for parking etc. Give as much information as you can to help out more so. 

Even if your staff are not specialist therapists or hairdressers, the reception is key to product upselling so they should use the correct terminology and offer all the benefits.  Salon products do tend to cost more money because of the ingredients so the potential outcome of using the product does need to be explained. The reception area is a great time to do this! 

Salon Tracker Software's upcoming feature; the fingerprint rota and why this is so important during the Christmas Period;

Around the festive season, your salon will be exceptionally busy, therefore as a salon owner you are juggling with time and you struggle to oversee every single client that comes through your door, let alone your staff. Especially at this time of year, you have certain requirements within the salon to ensure that it runs smoothly in a fast-paced environment. One of the biggest factors during this busy period is your staff. You need to be able to see that they are acting professionally in a peak season and also, arriving and leaving work on time. So having said all that, we just wanted to tell you about our latest feature, due to be released in our next software update; the 'Staff Rota'.

Many of you may already currently use our fingerprint reader, to sign clients in for appointments and to keep their records safe. Our upcoming feature will allow all staff members to log in and out with their fingerprint, to avoid misbehaving or getting colleagues to sign in for them. A great way for you as salon owner to ensure visibility and authority remains consistent, should you be absent from the salon at any point or when you go away for a length of time, such as a holiday. The fingerprint rota will provide you with that peace of mind that you can leave your salon in safe hands without having to worry about malicious behaviours, as everything will be accurately tracked and visible on instant reports.

The rota will accurately track the duration of staff shifts, also highlighting lateness, meaning that you can follow up staff members accordingly. For multi-site salons, this feature is exceptionally useful as records generated by the Staff Rota can be accessed at salon headquarters or when on the move, via our Site View feature. Again, at Christmas this will be so useful, as if the multi-site does apply to you, then you are going to be distributing your time across all of your different sites and so would struggle to track the activity of every individual staff member at each salon. Combine the fingerprint rota with our Site View feature and you will no longer have to worry. Reports generated from the Salon Tracker system will instantly identify which staff members have signed in and out of the salon. Staff won’t be able to alter the times either, as only an administrator (salon owner) will have access to the fingerprint sign in and out times, therefore if they don’t clock in…you know that they weren’t there and therefore can act upon this to find out why.

Should you wish to receive more information about our Staff Rota feature, then please feel free to call our office on 0113 350 8230, or alternatively go to our website www.salontracker.co.uk where our packages and their features are detailed.

We hope to hear from you soon and look forward to helping you to improve your Salon this Christmas time.

Salon Tracker x

Children in Need at the salon!

Children in Need is fast approaching and here at Salon Tracker, we aim to help our clients to raise as much money as they can for the event. Salons are a really great place to fund raise because you have a wide accessibility to your target audience. Sometimes half the battle of fundraising is actually deciding what to do, which is where we come in. Below you can find multiple fun campaign ideas that you can run in your salon! Enjoy!

Back to school!

There are mounds of people who seek to learn all things hair and beauty. Is it feasible for you to open your salon for an extra day for one week only to do an expert masterclass? All entry tickets can be charged at £5 for the day with all sales being donated to Children In Need. You can even charge for tea and coffee throughout the day or cupcakes etc with full donations going to Children in Need.

Roll out the red!

If lessons aren’t particularly for you, why not think about hosting an event where you can offer a few activities for your clients to partake in? This could even involve children of your clients by having mini pamper days for them and their friends with treatments such as glitter nails and tootsies, hair cuts, mini facials and mummy and me packages! 

Playing Dress Up!

Add some zest to the event by getting all staff to dress up! With it being Children in Need, you can be as creative as you like. Think pajamas, superheroes, celebrities, animals or eras in history! Make sure you tell all of your clients why you are dressing up. It’s best to hold a sign asking politely for donations so clients do not feel obliged. State the cause and maybe some statistics about how their donation will contribute.

Cake stall

Having a cake stall is a fail-safe idea and a great way to raise extra money throughout the course of the day. If you ask staff and family friends nicely they might be willing to bake and donate to the cause so that you can offer clients a mini snack during treatments. This is also a great time so give clients a bit of information about the cause (make sure you use your sales techniques)! 

Complimentary treatments

Are there any treatments that you can offer to clients throughout the day as a way to upsell? For example with every pedicure you could throw in a foot massage and ask clients to rate it out of 10 with a monetary prize. Hopefully everyone will rate you high since all donations would go to charity!

Raffles and Lucky Dips!

Another great way to engage your clients. Offer raffles and lucky dips throughout the day with a fantastic prize of one of your bestselling 3 treatments. Make sure you take all of the contact details and email addresses of your clients so you can thank them for their participation and welcome them back at another time.

We fully support BBC Children in Need’s vision! Every little helps!

Halloween Marketing & Promo Ideas

If your salon isn’t cashing in on the nations love of Halloween, you’re missing out on a great opportunity for consumer spending! Now second only to the Christmas holiday season and being right around the corner, if you feel like your salon needs an extra boost for some sales it might be time to try these last minute marketing tips. Whether you have our Salon Software or not, something here will be relevant and worth a try! Check out our ideas below…


CREATE AN ATMOSPHERE

In order to sell any retail products or treatments that are linked to a certain festival, the ambiance in the salon is really important, as it is key to improving the buying habits of consumers. Offer out free confectionery, complimentary Halloween drinks and on the actual day of Halloween, maybe have all of your employees in fancy dress to help create the mood. Focus on your window displays, decorate the salon with Halloween decals and themed decorations, as this will let clients know also that you are offering Halloween treatments and promotions by drawing attention to the festival.


RETAIL PRODUCTS UPSELL

All salons and high street stores will be competing this week to sell out their remaining Halloween products. But, why are your retail products any different to another salons? A great idea here for upselling would be to market your products in a more visual way, it’s like the saying ‘a picture says a thousand words’. For example, you could create a photo book with the help of your employees, showing a few ‘Halloween looks’ and then list the retail products used for those particular styles underneath. This would help especially if you have a list of Halloween treatments, as it will also act as a book of inspiration for clients who want a treatment especially for their Halloween night out! Also, the display of those Halloween products is crucial. An idea would be to create a display table, in which you could arrange all of your retail products/gift packages and surround them with Halloween themed accessories. Or, you could create a bit of fun by having the retail products in large bins and again cover them with Halloween decorations, just to add a bit of humour to the salon!


EXCLUSIVE OFFERS/HALLOWEEN COUPONS

You are all probably doing this and all have your own Halloween offers, treatment lists and loyalties ongoing. It is however the promotion of these in which you need to focus on, so that you make sure that consumers visit YOUR salon and don’t go elsewhere. Be sure to promote these using our ‘back to basics’ in which we discuss below…


BACK TO BASICS....

The obvious, yet fail safe marketing techniques... where it might be that your campaigns just need that little bit of refreshing.


MOBILE & WEB APPLICATION

Going back to marketing basics. If your salon business is visible on smartphones, tablets and iPads, at current, these are taking over our world. Clients want to book appointments on their mobile, browse your services whilst they commute to work or read a newsletter over their morning coffee. With your salon app they are 1 second away from signing up to your best Halloween offers and you can instantly promote these on the app through push notifications.  Be sure to use some quirky phrases and graphics to improve the advertising of that campaign!


SMS & EMAIL MARKETING

Another marketing original! Do you currently have SMS or Email marketing? You don't even need to have Salon Software for this either, as you could just do a one-off campaign using a business email address. If you are currently using this style of marketing, then this is without a doubt the next fastest way to reach clients after the mobile app. Last minute offers, for example ‘10% off all Halloween treatments’ or 'a free complimentary Halloween product with treatments over £50' are a couple of examples that could apply to all appointments that are booked before the 31st of October.  A quick and easy way to get those extra sales, especially for those walk-in clients that need a quick-fix style on the night!

POSTAL MARKETING

The good old paper letter or flyer is also a great option for local salons to use in promoting services to the surrounding area. An alternative way to advertise your salon services and offers, if you aren't quite ready for the digital side of marketing just yet! You could get some Halloween colour themed paper and decorate the letters with arts & crafts to add that festive effect, creating the same mood that an image on a mobile app or email would. Simple, and another effective way to personally market to clients.


So, I hope this has helped any of you that need a couple of speedy ideas for extra promotion at the end of this month!  Hope it is a busy one for you...

~HAPPY HALLOWEEN~


Salon Tracker x

Halloween Make-Up Ideas!

With Halloween just around the corner, we wanted to offer some Halloween makeup ideas for you to practice before the big event! The scarier, the better, but we’ve included some pretty ones too- just in case!

Salon Tracker x