How ready are you going to be to embrace the key trends your salon will want to be focusing on?
At the APAN Aesthetic practitioners advisory network conference recently, the overriding message was that if you want to stay competitive and in business you need to be constantly up skilling, acquiring new knowledge and skill, refine your business practices and work on your image and etiquette.
With clear direction that the topics of anti ageing, body care, men’s skin care, cosmeceuticals and hand held devices are growing exponentially, salons will have to be ready to embrace the clients looking for these type of treatments, with not only knowledge and skill, but the soft skills that will be required to be able to effectively communicate with these clients.
At the moment, of the $91 billion spent on skincare, only 30% are what they call ‘premium clients’ who spend on the salon prescribed products. By 2016, this percentage is expected to increase by another 20%. That’s a huge $19 billion dollars that your salon can be earning a share of… IF you are prepared.
As an expert in image and branding, I know only too well how important your communication skills, etiquette and presentation are going to be in your ability to build rapport, gain trust and loyal clients in the coming years.
At all times you will need to manage your presentation and image to be:
- Appropriate to your client and the situation. That means how you present, speak, act and show empathy.
- Attractive to your client. This means that you present in a way that endears your client to feel you are professional, knowledgeable, skilled, and pleasing to the eye in how you wear your uniform, how your salon presents etc.
- Goal effective in how you manage your client consultation and before and after sales service.
This takes work, dedication and commitment, and not all salon owners and staff are committed to getting this right, but the ones that do will stand out from everyone else and be successful.
Soft skills are just as important as your other skills, without them you cannot build trust and relationships and loyal clients that keep you in business.
I would love to hear from you, please post your comments below.
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