Price €5 all net profts go to Marie Keating Foundation

Sun Protection is a ‘hot’ category of the cosmetics industry, topping a half billion dollars in annual sales in the US alone and growing at 2% per year.  Less than 5% of these sales are transacted in spas and salons, so why are you letting your clients buy their sun products from pharmacies, department stores, supermarkets, on-line and at airports?  Why are they not purchasing all their summer products from you?

Do you educate your clients about the importance of sun protection?  According to the National Cancer Institute, 42% or adults don’t use sun protection, so immediately there is an untapped market for you.  Educate your clients; ask them to consider this hard fact – of all cancers, skin cancer is the most common, making sun screens their number one skincare priority.

To Maximise your Summer Retail Product Opportunities:

-          Introduce a ‘Holiday Package’ of treatments.  Once a client mentions going on holiday, suggest she books the package.

-          Double check your product knowledge:  know how to use the products, how long they will last, how your brand compares to others, how it can be used in conjunction with other brands, what size the bottles are and know the prices.

-          Train your therapists to retail, when the client comes in for her appointment, introduce her holiday retail requirements.

-          Ask for the retail sale, if you don’t, she will buy the products you have recommended, but from somebody else….

-          Change your window/ retail displays and merchandising for the summer months, making sun products very prominent.

-          Use your product information; educate your clients, highlighting the unique selling points of your brand.

-          Run a competition, for example, whoever sells the most number of sun products over the summer months gets the prize.

-          Stay focused, Summer Product sales are too good and opportunity to miss

If you want to successfully rent space in your salon, here is what I suggest:

Check your lease and double check with your landlord that you are permitted to sublet.

Do some research, for example – what services would compliment your brochure?  Have your clients expressed an interest in treatments you are not currently providing? What treatments are your local competitors doing well with?  Are there any gaps in services in your locality?  What are the latest trends?  Is it more cost effective for you to sublet space than to introduce new services yourself?

Which is more beneficial to you and your salon – to sublet the space for a rent or to do a percentage split on revenue?  Personally, I prefer to rent space, as I like to promote and market my business, rather than somebody else’s.  If I am working on a revenue split, then the responsibility to get the clients falls on me.

Make your arrangements as professional and business like as possible:

Draw up a written contract outlining your terms and conditions, making this document as specific as possible.  Be very clear about what you are providing and how much you are prepared to assist your new tenant. For example, are you including reception cover, marketing/advertising or access to your database in your rental fee?

Insurance is very important, you will be providing public liability, but you must get copies of professional indemnity insurance from the tenant, as you cannot be responsible for their work.

Is the room available for rent per hour/day/week?  What is the minimum availability?  Charge a deposit, which you can return when the person decides to leave.  Your landlord charges you rent whether you are there or not, so you must do the same.  For example, if you are renting a room to a massage therapist every Thursday, she pays whether she uses the room or not, as you are holding it for her.

Rent must be paid in advance, preferably by standing order.

Get references about anybody you are planning on allowing to work in your salon.  You have worked long and hard to establish your business.  The idea is to add to your business in every way, not to have any disruption.

Ask your Solicitor to double-check your contract, to ensure you haven’t omitted anything important.

Find tenants who have a clientele to bring with them, that way their clients become yours and vice versa.  I suggest getting one tenant in one day per week, and over the months find a second, third and so on.  If your salon is open five days per week, aim to get five new tenants providing a range of services new to your salon, thereby expanding your business, without any cost or investment on your part.

A room sitting idle in your salon doesn’t make any improvements to your bottom line.

Successfully subletting a room can seriously generate more revenue for you, both in the rental income and in new clients coming through your door.

It’s definitely worth a try!

Liz McKeon is a successful Business Coach and Trainer, specialising in the Beauty Industry.   For information about upcoming Business Workshops, check out www.lizmckeon.com or call 00353 1 892 8007

Prior to the talk many of the students didn’t feel very positive with regard to their future prospects especially when they are surrounded by so much negativity at the moment due to the current economic conditions and coupled with their lack of experience.  Liz helped them to see past that and view the bigger picture in a much more positive light and allowed them to focus on what they can achieve with the right mindset.

Sinead Ryan, Tutor at Waterford College of Further Education

It is all the little extras, courtesies and comforts we build in the Service Experience for our clients that raises us above the competition.

not just met, but exceeded!

Customer service definitions:

• Doing ordinary things extraordinarily well
• Adding value and integrity to every transaction
• Being at your best with every client
• Discovering new ways to delight your client
• Surprising yourself with how much you can do
• Treating every client the same
• Going beyond what is expected

For example, the feature of this product is the press down pump dispenser (feature)…..which means that…….it is easy to use and no wastage (benefit)

Know your target market

Know your competition and your competitive advantage

Be a ‘pro active’ business developer

Mine the ‘gold’ in your exisiting database

Stop leaving business on the table – cross sell your services and products

Track progress and results

Learn from your mistakes

Be persistent

Enjoy the sales process

Work out how you are going to sell your products and services and budget an amount for marketing and selling.  Be wise with this budget.

Spend at least 20% of your time working on you business rather than in it.

Get an accountant to take care of compliance, to advise you and to liaise with Revenue.

Get a good accounting and reporting system.

Think obsessively about how others perceive you and your business.  Think about the 3 whats: what’s your presentation/what you’re saying and what you are delivering.

Do spend money where it counts.

Under promise and over deliver.

Exit strategy – the business will hopefully provide you with an income, but try and think about how it’s going to provide you with a pension.

Work hard but make time for your family and friends

Clearing your desk completely or leaving it in good order should become a habit.  A clear desk is a foundation for tomorrow’s work.

If you can take action, do so at once.  Have an effective ‘brought forward’ system.

Paperwork for information – read and then file, throw away or pass on.

Reading information – save it for a marginal time.

• Set a time limit and stick to it.  Say ‘I have 5 minutes – will that do or would you rather fix a time for later’?
• Set the stage in advance – you are very busy with a deadline in sight.
• With casual droppers-in, remain standing.  If they sit down, perch on the edge of your desk.
• Meet in the other person’s office – then you can determine when to leave.
• Avoid small talk when you are busy – it doubles the interruption time.
• Get the other person to the point.  Don’t be afraid to interupt the interrupter, asking them what the problem is.  What is the purpose of his or her call?
• Be ruthless with time but gracious with people.  Listen well.  Be firm but friendly and helpful.
• Have a clock available where visitors can see it, and don’t be afraid to glance at it a few times.  Explain about your next appointment, a white lie is better than a black interruption.

‘What is the best use of my time right now?’ Ask yourself this continually throughtout the day.  The answers must be related to constantly changing circumstances and the needs of the minute.  Planning your day should not be done in a few minutes.  Budget a reasonable time for your daily planning.  Some people like to do it at the beginning of the day’s work.  Others prefer to plan their day the night before.  This has the advantage that you can sleep on it.  Sometimes after a night’s rest, other points for your list will occur to you or you may alter your priorities.

You have to invest time to save time.

Planning should outline in detail what steps have to be taken in order to complete the task.  When you have thought forward, try thinking backward from the visualised point of task completion to the present.  This will help you to avoid leaving out essential steps.  A good plan will always answeer the questions: who, when and why?  Whether you’re in doubt or otherwise, it is wise to check your plans with someone else.  You may be making assumptions that another person will spot quickly.

However, a plan will not make things happen……you will!

The second strategy is the wiser one of the two.  For trust tends to bring out the best in people, and – in some demanding situations – even the greatness that lies within everyone.  Trusting others in this way is sometimes thought to be naive, but that is not the case.  This attitude is grounded on thought and conviction, and it doesn’t require the surrender of your common sense.

Its time to explain to your therapists that ultimately ‘your talent is you’.  That is why talent includes attitude as well as aptitude.  Your attitude to clients is important even on the basic level of self interest.  Others have the power to help or to hinder you, therefore an ability to get on with people is a crucial success factor in life.

To describe a person as pleasant suggests that they are naturally appealing in some way or other usually because of their kindness, cheerfulness and warmth of heart.  Remember to explain that a smile is worth a thousand words.

Send them an invitation about 4 weeks in advance, invite them to bring a friend.  Ask them to RSVP, as numbers are limited

Send a reminder 2 weeks in advance, one week in advance and call 24 hours before the event

If possible, organise a guest speaker

Negotiate with your suppliers to provide goody bags, spot prizes etc

Organise with local traders to provide drinks and canapes, invite them to the event and they can promote their services in lieu of payment

Have special offers ready to sell on the night

Send thank you note to guests for coming along the next day

Based on the financial success of the evening, plan an event every quarter, inviting different clients each time

The target is to introduce your clients to new and high end services and thereby boost your sales.  If possible, ask your skincare rep to attend.  Get your clients to all bring a friend, giving you lots of new prospects to convert to new clients.  Give your team a sales target for the night and incentives for reaching realistic targets.