Major Client Experience Opportunities You're Missing Out On

Hello, my friend. Welcome back to The Modern Hairstylist Podcast. Today, we're gonna be talking about my favorite topic to talk about, which is the client experience. And not only is it my favorite topic to talk about, it's also one of the most important, most taken for granted, overlooked parts of our business.

And I think the reason why it's so overlooked is because we all just assume that we're already giving an amazing experience. And in all actuality, I think it's so important that we, instead of, like, always going towards the sexiest, newest concepts, or only focusing on getting new clients through the door, I think it's really important that we really take a step back and we reevaluate the basics and the foundations of our business that we may have forgotten about, or that we may ta- uh, like I said, take for granted. And so your client experience, which is what we're talking about today, is one of those biggest factors, because it makes the biggest impact in your business. Like, truly, like, your client experience, it makes the biggest waves for your success.

And the reason why is because when you have an amazing client experience, you now have something to market, right? If you don't have a client experience in place, then you don't have anything to market, and then it makes marketing a lot harder, and you have to come up with content out of absolutely nowhere, right? Like, you have to, like, just make up things to post, and you're only relying on your work, which, as we know, in today's day and age, your work is not what's gonna get somebody through the door. It's the client experience.

It's the transformation. It's the before and after of how somebody feels when they walk outside of your door, right? And you can't make that happen if you don't already have your client experience in place to be able to talk about it, post about it, to be able to, um, show somebody online or wherever, however, what that journey actually looks like. And then also, in order to work smarter, not harder on your business, an excellent client experience is what allows you to get those organic referrals into the door, so that way you, as the, uh, the marketer of your business, you don't have to work so hard with your own efforts to get those people to get new client requests, right?

You don't have to work as hard to get new client requests through the door if your client experience is optimized, um, because you'll get those organic referrals, right? You'll get people who are so blown away, and they'll be like, "Holy shit, I need to tell all my friends and my family about how amazing this experience is." Right? And it's a lot harder to get somebody to talk about an amazing experience than it is to talk about a bad experience, right?

And so the foundations that we're gonna be talking about here today, they're really basic and they're super simple. Um, uh, the concepts that I'm gonna be sharing with you, the strategies that I've been implementing beh- in my behind-the-chair business, they are really simple and they're easy to implement. There's no, like, crazy tech or anything like that that goes behind these, although tech can enhance these things, very much so. Um, we're just gonna be going into some really super basic concepts.

So if you're ready to get into it, let's go. What's the tea, friend? My name's Hunter Donia, industry business educator for hairstylists, but my friends just call me Hunty. Whether it be growing your clientele, making more money, or automating and streamlining your systems, in the next 20 minutes or so, you'll be hearing realistic, actionable strategies to create a beautiful career for yourself behind the chair.

So if you're ready to get into it, welcome to The Modern Hairstylist podcast. Okay, my very first strategy, and like I said y'all, this is really simple stuff, but it truly makes all the difference, and again, I think that we overlook this stuff. We, we're like, "Oh, yeah. Our clients love us.

Like, we give a great client experience. Like, everything's fantastic." But I'm gonna, I'm gonna suggest that you come into this with an open mind, okay? And I'm gonna suggest that you really take these basics into consideration.

So number one is giving any new client a tour of your space, or making sure that they are aware of where and how everything works within your building. So for example, something as simple as showing somebody where the bathroom is or where the coffee bar is, I think is so excellent and important. And it's not just for the concept of giving your client the lay of the land. It also shows your client that you actually give a shit about their experience from the very beginning.

Like, you're making somebody feel comfortable within that space immediately, right? And it shows that you even have the effort and that you're laying the groundwork for your client to understand that you are somebody who can be trusted and somebody who really cares about how they're feeling when they're walking into this new space. So making sure that you take some time to give your new client a tour and a lay of the land and show them where everything is and how everything works, um, I think is really beautiful. What I would always do whenever I was in my suite and I had a new client come through the door, I would always, like, give them a really quick little walkthrough before we went to my suite, and I was like, "Have you ever been to a salon suite before?

This is how the concept works. I've been here for X amount of time and it works really well for me. I hope that you enjoy it," right? "And then the bathrooms are right down the hallway here.

There's a water fountain right here, although I'll get you some, uh, bottled water inside of my suite." Whatever it may be, right? Like, just showing people the lay of the land, I think is really important. And now, my other concept that I wanna talk about that goes in tandem with this is not just...

Especially if you're in a suite, okay? Don't let people come to you, okay? You go grab them. So w- what absolutely drives me up a wall and I, it, it d- it drives me nuts, and I think that this is the majority of the way that people do this, so, you know, no offense, no shame to you.

Your clients, especially the first couple times they come to see you, you should not, if you're in a suite especially, you should not expect them to just walk into the building and find you. Absolutely not. You should be greeting them at the door. And that's why having systems in place, and this is where we get into technology, that's why having systems in place where you know when the client actually walks into the door, or parks, right?

And having that communication open and knowing when they come into that front door, um, is so powerful, because then you can go and greet them and you can walk them to your space instead of them just wondering and trying to figure shit out themselves. I never, ever, ever, ever, ever allow my client to just, like, come and find me. Ever. I think it's so unprofessional and I think it's a really easy way to make your client feel uncomfortable from the very beginning.

So try your best to make sure that you're greeting your client at the door and that you are walking them to your own space, whatever that looks like for you and your environment, okay? And even walking them back t-... out to the door when at the end of your appointment and then holding the door for them and then like, like, giving them a wave goodbye or like a hug or whatever it may be for you guys, like, that's also a really excellent nice little touch as well too. Like, walking them up to the front, uh, to the front door for them to leave can also feel really good for your client, right?

It could be a really great way to end things for that appointment. So, another thing that I think is really important, um, is with your consultation. So, number one, and I know that you've heard me talk about this before, sitting down and talking in your consultation, every single client, every single time, I don't care if it's Suzie who's seen you for 10 years or if it's Claire who is seeing you for the first time, getting a stool and sitting in front of them and coming eye level and also turning them away from the mirror. Um, when, when it's not needed for them to look in the mirror, turning them away from the mirror and just looking eye-to-eye on that same level, right, it can make such a massive difference in your- you and your client's feelings and communication.

I know that there are so many instances that I've had when I had my clients look in the mirror during consultations where they are just so wrapped up in how they look and how they feel and their insecurities and how they're judging themselves and their hair that they're just talking and talking and talking and going on and on in so many different directions. When you turn somebody and you make them look you in the eye, it will immediately ground somebody. And it'll demand respect for the conversation, so that way it's a mutual conversation. Plus, sitting down eye level and not standing above somebody or even behind somebody, which is so weird if you really think about it, also kind of disarms the client and it also disarms you, because now you psychologically feel like you guys are on the same playing field and you're in t- this together, versus you standing behind somebody and, like, being above them.

That can all too often make somebody feel uncomfortable, and salon experiences are uncomfortable for a lot of people. A lot, a lot of people. So the m- more that we can do these simple little things, the more that we can calm our client down and have more efficient, productive communication for both you and the client. You both will benefit from implementing these things.

And then asking permission to touch. Now, I don't think that you necessarily have to do this with every single client every single time, although I believe that it could be powerful if you did, okay? But especially for new clients, before you just throw your hands on somebody's hair or somebody's body at all, I believe that it's important to ask permission to touch. People, like I said, have had very uncomfortable, traumatic experiences in their life and in the salon, and like I said, salon experiences can be really nerve-wracking.

And physical touch is something that is no joke, and that fact that we are trusted with that is something that we should not take lightly. And so I think that asking for permission to touch, being like, "Hey, so do you mind if I touch your hair?" or, "Do you mind if I get in here and I take a look myself?" Um, maybe, like, after you started the con- consulation or even, like, before, whenever, as long as it's, like, you know, appropriate and it's the right time to ask, then I think that it could be really, really powerful.

And again, just one of those little things that just makes your client feel really comfortable and respected within your space, right? Okay, the next thing that I think is such a massively missed opportunity for us as hairstylists in our in-the-chair, uh, experience is talking about product, add-ons, and price from the very beginning. I know that we all get it, that consultation, our consultation is the most important part of our client experience. We've all heard it, we all know it, right?

Basic, cool, whatever. But we do not optimize it. We don't make the most out of our time. We think that we are when we're asking a million different questions when in reality it's, like, you should not be asking a million different questions.

Yes, you should be thorough. Yes, you should make sure that you and the client are on the same page, but it should not take you a million years to get through a consultation nor should you be, like, interrogating somebody to get you both to be on the same page. Again, I wanna make sure that I'm balancing this 'cause I know that a thorough consultation is important and I believe in one, but I don't think that you should be spending, like, 45 minutes to an hour with somebody on a consultation. I think max 30 minutes is where you should be going, because you don't wanna stress your client out.

You don't wanna fatigue your client, and you don't wanna make them feel like they have to feel, like, interrogated in order for you and them to be on the same page. So, use devices such as pictures, right? Um, and make sure that you're cl- you're, are, you're working on your communication skills, um, to make it so you can make sure and you are sure and confident that you both are on the same page within a shorter amount of time. Again, it might take you a little bit of time, but I don't want it to take you a crazy amount of time.

And then, using the power and the opportunity of the fact that somebody is willing to sit down with you and share with you their problems. This is the beginning of the appointment. They are walking into this appointment because they are unhappy with their hair right now, right? So, that is powerful.

That is powerful time. And when they walk in and they're sitting down in the consult- in, for your, their consultation and you are going through this stuff with them, this is the time where they are going to share with you and you have the opportunity to ask them what their problems are, what their pain points are, what's going on, and what they really want to achieve, right? So, when you have somebody sharing with you their pain points, what their problems are, what they're looking to achieve, it is always the best time to reflect that back to them and offer them solutions. So, talking about product, the product they'll be taking home, the ones that you'll be re- using on them, the add-on services that you recommend for that day, and what their budget is and what their, what they can expect for their price that day is the perfect place.

That is the time to do it. I promise you, when you start talking about the products that you will be using and recommending for them to take home-... and the add-on services from the v- that they may be able to opt into at the beginning of the service in that consultation, your retail sales and a- and average ticket will skyrocket. I promise you, I have seen it happen a million times, including in my own business.

So, making sure that you're asking them and digging into their daily life and how they feel about their hair and what their problems are and what their routine is, you now have this information and what you should be is confident in your product line, knowledgeable in your product line and the solutions, and you should even have solutions to offer, by the way, to be able to solve those problems. That's what you are when you are in sales in your business, when you're stepping into that role of sales. And yeah, you are selling somebody something. Get over it.

You're a business owner, okay? If sales feels icky to you, maybe you shouldn't have gotten into business in the first place. Sorry about it. Or, maybe you truly don't feel confident that the products that you're using or the solutions or what you're selling is truly what is going to help them, and you have to have that confidence.

So what do we need to make that confidence go up? Is it more education? Is it more product knowledge, right? What do we need to make sure that you are confident that what you are selling is truly gonna make a difference in this person's life?

Because knowledge destroys fear, right? And when we get fearful of selling something to somebody, it's most of the time because we are inconfident in our own ability to actually solve that person's problem. But when you have the knowledge of the product that you're selling and once you work up the courage, right? The courage to actually talk about it and when you utilize the consultation as a beautiful gateway to be able to talk about it, then you can really sell some product and some add-ons confidently.

Even asking for permission to be able to talk about those things can be super helpful. So you can say, "Okay, Suzy, so I hear that you're having a little bit of problems with your dry ends and no matter what you do, no matter what products you use, you just cannot get them to feel sealed and shiny and soft. So, do you mind me sharing with you what my recommendations would be for the products that you should be using and what extra service that we could possibly do today to mend those things when you leave here, but also every day before you come back for your next appointment, so that way you don't just feel good when you're here and you leave, but so that way you feel good every day with your hair? Would you be open to hearing my recommendations," right?

So then you ask for permission. You're not just throwing someb- something on somebody. And you have to realize that your clients are coming to you because they trust you. You are not just there to make them feel beautiful and good that day, because what impact do we make as hairstylists if our clients are only happy the day that they leave and they hate their hair every single day before they come back?

It does not make any sense. So, it's your responsibility to be a salesperson, to solve this person's problems and to raise your average ticket and make more money at home, because you deserve that for solving somebody else's problems. And you can't solve somebody else's problems without selling something unless you wanna take away from yourself, right? So, get real comfortable with sales, and knowledge destroys fear.

So if you don't know, if you, if you don't know how or what solutions you have to solve somebody's problem and, uh, with something that you can sell to them, then I suggest trying your best to work on that. Talking about this stuff from the beginning, not just throwing it at them at the end, or asking the question, "Do you need any product today?" Don't ask them. Tell them, right?

Tell them, "These are the things that I'm gonna recommend to you." Ask them permish- permission to talk about it and then that way, you got your client's permission and then you feel a little bit more excited and less nervous to talk about it, and then you can talk about it and then it's up to them at the end of the day, and you can let them know that. You can say, like, "Hey, so these are my recommendations. Um, I know that it might be a little bit, but don't worry, I'm gonna write down all the information that you need about them.

These are prices of everything. What are your thoughts? What do you believe that you can afford to bring home today? Or what do you believe that you are prepared to take home today, right?

What would be priority for you?" So many ways that you can go about it, right? Just talking about it from the beginning instills the sales process, right, from the very beginning and studies show that somebody needs to be s- uh, sp- pitched to about something seven times before, on average, before they actually wanna opt in to something. So when you talk about it from the beginning and then you talk about it again during the shampoo experience and then you talk about it again when you're styling and then you talk about it again at the end of the appointment, and we'll get to that in a second, that's when you can really sell somebody some freaking product, right?

So, you're asking for somebody's pain points in that consultation. Offer your solutions from the very beginning and say, "How does that sound? It's gonna be an extra X amount of dollars. Um, I'll share with you what the prices of those products later at the, before we check out, then we'll see what you can and what you don't wanna take home."

Right? Like, put that in the beginning. Such a missed opportunity. Last thing that I think can make such a massive difference is your after style consultation.

There's a million things that you can call this. You can call this, like, a post-style or post-appointment, uh, uh, uh, wrap-up, whatever you want. But the after style consultation is when you turn somebody around and they look in the mirror and they absolutely love it at the end of the appointment. Before taking the cape off, before swiping the credit card, sit yo ass back down, look them eye into the eye and say, "All right, Suzy, so this is what we did today.

As you can see, I'm so glad to hear that you love it. This is our plan for next time and my suggested maintenance for you to make sure that you love your hair not just when you leave today, and, but every single day before you come back. And so that way, you're never begging to get an appointment and you just can't make something work with your, uh, time and your book, and then you're stuck with sh- hair that you don't love for a long time, right? My suggestion would be that you come back and see me in three months from today, okay?

You can do that..." by booking an appointment online, and I'm gonna share with you a post-visit email that is going to have all of the maintenance instructions, all of my retail recommendations, and, um, what you need to book and when you need to book it online, after you leave here today. Plus, I send out emails to my clients every month, um, sharing with them tips and tricks, and my online booking link is gonna be at the bottom of that, so you'll have plenty of opportunities to get an appointment with me. Three months from today is when I would like to see you.

So, you can book in two months to, to have four weeks, um, ahead of the time that I wanna see you. How does that feel for you? Or do you believe that you can commit to that? And making sure that you're setting up the plan and planting those seeds of retention at the end of the appointment is so powerful for your retention, especially my high-ticket or low-maintenance service people out there.

I know even curly cut people, I know that y- curly cut specialists, you want your clients to come back more often because they all too often do not come back very often. Even if it's not for a haircut, you can say, "I would like to see you back in three months just for a conditioning treatment." Right? You want, you want to increase frequency of visit.

You want somebody to come back as many times as possible, even if your specialty doesn't necessarily call for it. So, you could also say, "So th- so although we won't be doing a cut, because I know that you want to keep your length and three months might be too soon for a trim, it is gonna be important that if you want to grow out as much length as possible, that if we're not gonna trim it, that you do come in for a professional conditioning treatment." Okay? "So you're gonna want to make sure that you book for this k- k- uh, conditioning treatment to keep up with that."

Right? Doing this at the end of the appointment will 100% raise your retention rate. And your retention rate is so important. You do not want to waste time on clients who are not gonna come back and see you, especially through the price increases.

So this simple after style consultation, before you swipe the credit card, is so powerful. And then also saying, "Okay, and by the way, remember those products that I talked to you about throughout the appointment and the ones that I just used on you? I'm just gonna go ahead and line all of them up and go through each of them and, and review them with you, and then you can decide what you would like to take home. I'll also talk about the price of each of them.

So this is this, it does this for your hair, and it solves that problem that you were sharing with me about this, and it's n- and it is X amount of dollars. This is this product." Yada, yada, yada, yada. Go through all of them.

"What do you believe that you can take home today?" Right? Or, "How do you feel about that?" And then leaving it up to them.

That will fucking raise your everything. It raises your retention rate, it raises your average ticket, it raises your client's experience and satisfaction with you because you're actually solving their problems and you're taking the time, and you're not forcing them to do anything. You are sharing with them the solutions, but at the end of the day, they get to side h- they get to decide how they spend their money. So, these are all really basic, simple, yet wildly powerful strategies and things that I believe that you should be doing with every single client every single time, unless it specifically pertains to new clients.

And Suzy, who's been seeing you for 10 years, she wants this too, I promise you. She's just not telling you. And the moment that she sees a hairdresser offering these types of solutions and this type of client experience, she's gonna dip and she's gonna go to them because she feels like that, that that new stylist actually gives a shit about her. Right?

After a while, we forget that the whole reason this person is coming to us in the first place is for their hair, to solve a problem. Right? So when did we stop solving problems? Why are we not taking advantage of the fact that we are running a business and we have all this beautiful knowledge and education and all these amazing solutions that we could send somebody home with and capitalize upon?

Yet we just stay silent because we're fearful or we don't make the time for it, or we don't think Suzy wants to hear it. When in actuality, Suzy would love to hear the fact that you were thinking about her over the weekend and you were so excited to see her because you had just learned a new highlighting technique at the class last weekend, and you thought it would be perfect for her, and it's gonna be an extra $30. And how would you feel about that, Suzy, if we did that for you? I think you would look so beautiful, and we haven't switched it up in a long time.

Let's do this. Suzy would be fucking lit. She'd be blown away, she'd be so excited, and you'd make more money that day. Period.

Hope this episode of The Modern Hairstyle Podcast was helpful and inspiring for you. I hope that you implement at least one thing, at least one thing, from this entire episode. And so much love. Peace out, girl scout.

Bye-bye.

End of transcript. © 2023 Hunter Donia LLC.