Think you have it all together? That you’re invincible, next-to-perfect comfy in your zone of success? There is a ton of danger in that comfort because clients like to tell their friends about good experiences in the salon, right? That’s how referrals happen: when something goes great in the salon, we call our friends and tell them about it. But clients also share red flags and bad experiences in the salon too.
Today, we’re reading a tale of two clients who shared their red flags and bad salon experiences. These women don’t work in the industry and have no idea what we share in Thrivers Society or on the Thriving Stylist.
Let’s dig in so you can get an inside look at the guest perspective and how to avoid these major red flags.
Red Flag #1: Your booking options are limited
Let’s start with Jade.
Jade was ready for a haircut. She wanted something cute with choppy short layers. She decided to call a stylist she saw years ago and left a voicemail.
That stylist didn’t get back to her for three days. By the time that stylist called back, Jade was so annoyed that it took three days to respond that she bailed.
That situation could have been easily resolved with that stylist getting Jade’s business, but what got in the way was Jade couldn’t get an appointment.
That stylist lost money because she’s old school and wants to book appointments by text and phone. But if she had an online booking system, Jade could have put in an appointment request and not felt frustrated she had to wait three days for a response.
That’s not to say this stylist shouldn’t take time off. She absolutely should, and props to her for not answering her phone while she was off. But her system is broken because a three-day delay in getting back to new clients tells people like Jade that she doesn’t want to book them.
If you don’t have an online booking system in place, all sorts of things will run through your clients’ heads while they wait for you to respond:
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Will she not call me back?
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Is she mad at me that I’ve taken time off?
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What is her schedule like?
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Does she still do hair?
Why do you have a system in place where clients wait days to even get a connection with you? That’s crazy.
So much can happen in those days they’re waiting to hear back from you. Most will Google another stylist who can talk to them today. That’s how urgent it is.
This world moves too fast now. No one wants to wait three days to hear back from you. You have to have a better system in place, so you’re not tethered to your phone but not leaving clients in the lurch.
Red Flag #2: You aren’t consistent on social media
Back to Jade. She started Googling and found two local salons with solid websites. Jade then looked up their social media and saw on one of the salon’s Instagrams, people were commenting a lot, so that must be a good sign.
That’s how a client’s brain works. It wasn’t that their photos were prettier or the salon looked fancier. She looked at the website, made her own judgment, then looked at Instagram, and saw the work. But her thought process was because other people comment on this Instagram, it must be a good sign.
We, as consumers, trust the opinions of strangers. Jade, a regular lady looking on Instagram, trusted those opinions when she made that judgment call. That’s how a client processes social media.
Jade called the receptionist and asked if anyone could see her that week. They said, yes, Nicole can, Thursday at 4:00 PM.
Jade confirms and goes back to Instagram to find photos of Nicole’s work. But when she looked at Nicole’s work, she got nervous because Nicole’s photos showed looks that weren’t ones she would choose for herself. Meaning Jade was not in Nicole’s target market. Plus it looked like Nicole showed up inconsistently. She’d post a while, then take a break again.
Jade couldn’t put her finger on why she didn’t like Nicole, but she had a sense that the work wasn’t what she was looking for and that Nicole was inconsistent. She made those judgments on Nicole before she even sat in her chair because Nicole’s social media presence was so poor.
Good enough is not good enough, and showing up when you can won’t work. You are losing clients.
Red Flag #3: You’re booking clients with your rookies
Jade called the salon back and told a little white lie, saying Thursday didn’t work anymore and if there was another day that somebody could see her. Turns out, the salon owner had time that Friday, which is great… Except Jade didn’t understand why they passed her off to Nicole if the salon owner was available the entire time. Jade is now irritated because, in her opinion, it looked like they tried to book her with the rookie when the owner was available.
This is the dark side of trying to build up new talent as salon owners. You can potentially lose clientele and money if you’re building up people who don’t make the effort themselves.
If you are trying to build up your newer talent, have your receptionist ask what guests are looking for as far as experience level. A good qualifying question could be, “Have you looked at our social media? Is there any work that stands out to you?”
There were a few hiccups along the way, but to fast forward, Jade went in, saw the salon owner, and loved her hair. Unfortunately, the experience leading up to getting in the chair almost sabotaged the whole thing.
Red flag #4: You have limited payment options
Meet client number two, Mikayla.
After waiting six weeks to see a highly recommended stylist, the stylist texted the day before Mikayla’s appointment to confirm and mentioned she only accepts cash, PayPal, or Venmo.
Mikayla’s reaction? First red flag. What shady business only takes cash, PayPal, and Venmo?
That’s a valid question because what service-based business only takes cash, Venmo, or PayPal? Can you imagine if you went to the grocery store and they only took PayPal, not your debit card? It’s weird.
Red flag #5: You aren’t responsive
Because Mikayla and this stylist are in a big metropolitan city, Mikayla texts back, asking if there’s parking close by.
The stylist never responded.
That was another red flag for Mikayla because she felt the stylist shouldn’t have texted her if she didn’t want to respond.
You can’t be mad if your clients text you after you send them texts to confirm appointments because you set that expectation.
You need to set realistic boundaries and expectations. If you allow your clients to text you, you better get back to them within 90 minutes or less because that’s how text communication works. When you send a text, you know somebody saw it, right? And then you’re mad when they don’t get right back to you. This is the danger of texting with your clients.
Red flag #6: You don’t look like a beauty expert
When Mikayla showed up to her appointment, her first reaction was that the stylist looked like crap. Her hair was in a messy bun like she couldn’t have cared less about coming to work and certainly wasn’t trying to be Mikayla’s go-to beauty expert.
Think about that. Think about how you showed up at the salon last week. Would somebody look at you and think you are her new go-to beauty expert? Because Mikayla felt like that stylist didn’t give a damn she’s there just by what she was wearing.
Mikayla isn’t the sort of person expecting someone to be dressed to the nines. She wanted it to look like they cared. Instead, it came across that Mikayla was just her Thursday at three. Clients pick up on that, especially new clients.
Red flag #7: You offer discounts to some clients
Mikayla got her foils put in, and while she’s processing, the stylist finishes up somebody else. The cash register was near the shampoo bowl, so as the stylist’s assistant shampoos Mikayla, she hears the stylist check out the other client and say, “I’ll knock off $25 today, so your total is $120.”
This was another red flag for Mikayla because when she checked out, $25 wasn’t knocked off for her. She starts wondering if the stylist thinks she’s just made of money, if there was a promotion she missed, or if that stylist cares more about old guests than new ones?
Talk about a knife through the heart, right? It’s a whole new perspective.
If you’re thinking you can’t raise Sheila’s price, well, you just lost Mikayla because of that. Mikayla is offended. She doesn’t understand why Sheila gets such a great discount just for sticking around for a long time.
If you think clients aren’t listening to you, think again. Of course, they’re listening. When you do those discounts, these three things cross new clients’ minds:
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Do you think I’ve made of money?
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Did I miss a promotion somewhere?
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Do you value old guests more than new ones?
All bad options.
Long-term or loyalty discounting makes new clients like Mikayla feel devalued. You might think you’re making Sheila feel valued, but be careful because you’re losing new guests in the process.
At the end of the visit, Mikayla paid cash, loved her hair, but will never go back. This is a prime example of good hair will only get you so far. The hair was good, but the experience pre, during, and post-visit sucked.
There’s always a better offer somewhere else, and once that better offer crosses a client’s field of play, don’t allow them to make the jump. If they can tell you’re slipping, you run a little bit late or long, you’re not as sharp as you used to be, or you don’t seem as passionate anymore, they’ll leave you.
If they feel like you can’t give them a fresh perspective, you’re taking your business and your clients for granted. And those clients will just go find somebody who will woo them again.
Hopefully, this post sheds some light and perspective and inspires you to take a good, hard look at your business.