That’s me Alan above with new salon punk reporter, writer and solution expert Tamara. Tamara is from Georgia in Europe, English is her third language (Russian her second) she is brilliant at salon marketing and I hope you agree been delivering some fantastic stuff for you recently. If you agree … let her know.
Anyway…
Maybe it’s me but the conversation I had was frankly ridiculous.
A friend called me from the salon industry to tell me he was selling all three of his salons and taking a job somewhere. He told me the salon business is dead and nothing works. He then went on to tell me this recession will destroy thousands of salons!
‘People have no money and wont spend’ he said!
Each time he spoke I had to fight back a response because frankly for someone that has now been in business for the past 27 years I’ve seen almost everything and this downturn is no different.
If no one is spending money on their hair, how come almost everyone on the streets has great looking hair rather than uncut, uncolored, untamed, matted, dreadlock like hair?
What he really should have said is ‘no one is spending money in MY SALON!’. So why didn’t he say that? Simple, if he said that it would make him look and feel incapable of running his business when speaking it over with me. Yet the reality is his salon does brilliant hairdressing but totally crap marketing.
When I say crap I mean in in the kindest way of course.
There are two ways to market your salon.
1.The right way
2.The wrong way
So being a pal of mine that I can say almost anything to I asked him…’tell me how many thing do you do daily to market your salon?’
‘Tons he’ replied.
‘Like what?’ I said.
He told me this.
‘each day I arrive at the salon (he slaves 7 days a week) I open my facebook account and post offers and any other new stuff in the salon we are doing’
I said…’and?’
He said, ‘and what?’
I said, ‘and what else do you do?’
He told me, ‘ once a quarter we use the local paper when it’s quiet to pull some new people in (huge mistake) and we also use Yellow Page’
Anything else?
‘Not that I can think of’, he replied.
- No wonder he is selling up!
- No wonder his salon empire sold for peanuts!
- No wonder he can’t pay himself whilst his staff gets paid!
And as I travel around time and time again I see salons that are stone cold dead with a capacity of just 25% of clients rather than 90%.
Not only have I been in the salon business since 1989 but I have been a super consultant to some huge businesses for over the past 12 years.
One client I worked with had a salon that was on it’s knees. Not only was the salon on its knees, staff had walked out, the taxman was coming to her home, she was working 7 days a week and frankly she looked like death, in a dark place ready to close.
When she came to me she asked about selling and closing. I asked her where would she get her income from if she did that? Her answer was she had no idea.
Kind of crazy right when you have a house full of young kids and a lot of things to pay?
I asked her would you like build your salon fast, create new business, find lost business and double your business over the next few weeks?
Of course she replied.
Well there is just one rule … DO AS I SAY!
My 27 years in business has shown me this…. There are always more than one way to skin a cat and there are always more than one way to take a salon to market. In fact I can boast nearly 250 ways to take your salon to market .. easily!
So she did as she was told. Within four weeks her income had risen by just under 55%. By the end of the first year she had gained control of her business, gained control of her staff and best of all, gained control of her marketing. In fact she was so impressed not only did she pay me well but she went on to copy and rip off everything I had created for my salon owners and sell them as her own.
That’s fine and another story but worth saying… I’m proud to say my salon marketing solutions are the most ripped off on the web for a reason…. THEY WORK!
So does your salon have to be slow or can it be packed out? ANY salon can be packed to the hilt with paying clients. Any salon can have their phone blown off the hook. Any salon can have enquiry after enquiry, after enquiry. I don’t believe there is a single reason why any salon should be quiet despite a downturn.
The fat is clients still have their hair done in a downturn but do they have it done in your salon? If they don’t the chances are, your marketing isn’t what it should be.
Do this right now (if you can)
Write down 15 things you do each DAY to market your salon. Don’t say you don’t have time, if you don’t have time you are stuck and will end up broke. Make time and do it.
List them … 1 to 15!
I’m willing to take a bet here that if you do anything daily it’ll be the least effective or not the most effective way to market your salon.
So much talk about getting on Facebook and building groups etc. I can tell you right now … Facebook cannot be ignored but if you use Facebook only for your salon business your salon business will be struggling!
There are 7 critical things EVERY salon including yours needs to do right now to survive, thrive and prosper during lean times.
There are 5 things you need to know on how and why you can be a client’s first choice despite cash being tight.
There are always reasons for being quiet, for clients not coming into your salon. Don’t see this as the end of business, see it as a wake up call for you and your salon business.
The brilliant Salon Marketing School is helping salons just like yours to turnaround, breakthrough and grow like crazy despite the times we are living in. It’s no wonder my salon marketing stuff is the most copied on the planet … it works.
The only difference is with the copy is ‘they don’t have me’.
If you need turnaround help it might be easier than you think, all you have to do is ask.
Here’s to a brilliant next 7 months in 2012 … its possible, very, very possible!
Alan Forrest Smith
