If you want to really impress an employer then don’t just talk about your specialist treatment skills and your talent for customer service. Go beyond your competitors by proving that you’re a top salesperson as well and you’ll make yourself a serious asset to any business. With these three attributes it would be almost impossible not to hire you.
Product sales are critical to any salon or spa. In fact, recent evidence shows they can make up 45% of a salon’s profit.
And yet I regularly hear beauty professionals say they don’t know how to sell. It’s as if they fear retail. But there’s really no reason to fret over your retail target. These products are paying your salary! Let me show you how to banish the fear.
A new state of mind
Change how you feel about retailing by changing your mindset. You’re not trying to force clients into shelling out for something they neither need nor want, you’re using your knowledge and experience to help them.
Speaking as a salon owner, I think we have a duty of care to inform our clients about the products we’re using on them. We’re also doing them a disservice if we don’t suggest a homecare routine to follow when they leave us. After all, clients pay us money to help them look and feel the way they want. Naturally, they want to feel that way all the time but they can’t visit us every day, so we’re offering them the next best thing – how to continue the effects at home.
Channel your inner Doctor
You’re prescribing rather than selling. Listen to your client’s issues and use your knowledge to help them find the right product. Teach them the right technique for using it. By doing so, you build your client’s confidence and establish trust between you.
That’s why it’s very important that you only recommend what’s right for the client and manage their expectations about what they can achieve. If they lose trust in you then they lose trust in your salon.
Avoid the awkward
If you’re worried about feeling nervous in front of the client for fear of rejection then an effective strategy is to leave the suggested products at the counter for the reception staff to complete the sale. There’s no potential for embarrassment for either of you with this method. Many salons also offer samples to help clients make an informed decision, so check if that’s possible where you work.
Retailing in our industry is a combination of great service, your personal knowledge and your ability to educate and help others. It’s a long way from ‘the hard sell’!