Suite Success Secret #53

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THOUGHT PROCESS:
At the end of every year an organic opportunity presents itself for business owners to look back at the current year and look forward to create a vision of what they want for their business in the New Year.
 
ACTION STEPS:
This is the perfect time for Salon Suite owners to evaluate how the year has gone and get their business in the best shape possible for the new year. 

Take Stock
 
And no – we’re not just talking about retail products or inventory. There are many areas where Salon Suite owners can take stock to determine whether they have all they need for success in the New Year:

• Education – Are there critical technical or business skills that could make your business stronger or help you introduce new services?
• Tools – Do you have the tools and equipment you need and/or are there tools you need to add to introduce new services?
• Salon Flair – Is it time to refresh your Salon Suite and make it more amenable to client services, client education, or retail sales?

 
Look Around
 
When was the last time that you evaluated the marketplace? This is the perfect time to check out what competitors are doing for new ideas, research new salon marketing ideas, take a fresh look at (or even redefine) your target markets and “ideal client types,” and look at the local area to see whether new home or new business development has created sources of potential client acquisition.
 
Keep Score
 
MY SALON Suite members start with spreadsheets and guides they can use to keep track of nearly every aspect of their business. In fact, virtually everything about your Salon Suite’s business is scoreable – or measurable – in some way. Your goals for the New Year should all include tactics that you will track and measure. For instance, let’s say that you want to grow your client base. To reach your goal, you might need to track progress in many areas:

• Growth in number of social followers and email marketing contacts
• Social insights from Facebook business pages showing clicks from social posts to your MY SALON Suite web page, likes, shares, and so on
• Response rate to offers – which offers worked best?
• Word of mouth referrals – are you encouraging clients to refer friends, colleagues, and loved ones?
• Referral incentive program – are you rewarding client loyalty and referrals?

 
In order to meet your goal, you will also need to know your client churn rate (or client turnover rate) since you have to not only have to attract a given number of new clients to reach your goal, you also need to replace clients lost.
 
Plan Ahead
 
You need to plan your promotions and marketing well in advance.  MY SALON Suite members have access to a monthly marketing guide which they can follow with activities laid out ahead of time, or they can use the ideas for inspiration and make their marketing plan even bigger. As you build your own marketing calendar, these are some of the activities you should incorporate:

• which social networks to use (based on target audiences)
• how often to post on social networks
• how often to send client email newsletters
• how to promote limited-time offers
• plans for what you’ll do and when you’ll launch seasonal and holiday-related marketing (Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s day, bridal and wedding, prom and homecoming, December holidays, etc.)

 
it’s easy to see how complex your marketing calendar could become if you truly take advantage of all the marketing channels available to you and the sheer number of holidays and seasons which offer opportunities for you to promote services and retail products! If you leave it to chance, you will likely miss out and let a lot of those opportunities pass you by; planning ahead is critical to your success.
 
Set Yourself Up for Success  
 
The more disciplined you are in ensuring that the tasks needed to run your business effectively are accomplished, the more you will set yourself up for success. At the end of a long day behind the chair, the last thing you might want to do is balance your books or spend time on marketing.
 
Creating good habits as a business owner is critical and that includes setting aside time when you’ll be motivated and energized to do the business tasks needed to make your Salon Suite successful. Likewise, the busier you become, the more likely it is that you may want to think about outsourcing business and marketing tasks so you can focus on client services.
 
As you allocate time for work behind the chair and the business and marketing activities that will make your Salon Suite a success in the New Year, remember to set aside time for yourself, too. Provide for the time you need to get enough sleep, exercise, eat healthy, vacation, spend quality time with friends and loved ones, and recharge your own spirit and attitude. A good work-life balance is imperative to a sustainable strategy for any business owner. 

If you’re not already a Salon Suite owner, the first step in setting yourself up for a success might be discovering a MY SALON Suite location near you and finding out what sets our business model apart from all the rest. Feel free to reach out to us – we would love to show you how you can become a $100K Salon Suite owner!