SalonSalons are very difficult to make successful because of so much competition and getting people to change from the ones they currently use so difficult. This is why if you have a salon business you need to use technologies and tactics that can get you closer to clients and ahead of the competition. Here are some tips for you to apply that will help you to make your salon one of the successful ones.

Use the latest technology

There is new technology available that can help you to manage your salon’s day to day activities. One great example is the Phorest Salon Management software. The software is designed to manage the day to day business of a salon, with everything from scheduling clients and staff, to billing, to marketing included in an easy to use package that is customized for your salon. It leaves you with time to focus on client relationship building rather than being bogged down by the mundane, but important tasks involved with running your business.

Create strong relationships with clients

Salons have always been known as places that thrive on social connections and personal relationships. In fact, many women look forward to their time at the salon to meet with friends, catch up on gossip and hang out with the girls. With the world becoming so active socially, there is a natural fit for the type of engagement typical in a salon culture. So it is important to really push the socializing aspect of your salon. This means getting and staying in touch with them online and working with clients to develop programs for them rather than one off hair or skin appointments.

Develop a long term strategy for improving their looks and lay this out for them in a salon schedule. This approach should be individualized and target specific issues a client may have with her hair or skin. You can incentivize them to commit to a program, by offering discounts for their agreeing to the entire program. Be sure to stay engaged with them during the program about how things are going as they receive their treatments and offer encouragements. If you find them missing appointments offer further encouragement and discounts.

Understand how to set pricing

A common challenge for salon owners is how to set prices. Salon pricing is all over the place with sometimes no rhyme or reason it seems for what is being charged. The key here is to make sure that your prices reflect the value you are giving customers. If you provide high end products that are expensive and your salon services are the best in town, you have the right to charge more. If you do have a high end salon, you should also provide all of the amenities that one would expect at a high end salon, i.e. valet parking, a nice lounge with drinks and snacks and television monitors. Maybe you are considering adding valet parking to your hair salon. Whether you need California valet parking or Minnesota valet parking, you can find great deals that won’t increase your pricing too much. You can always offset pricing by offering discounts for good customers, those who refer others, and families. The goal is to price your services based on their full retail value and then control the pricing based on your terms. So look around at what other salons of your grade are pricing and then figure out how you can match the highest priced one in your area. But whatever your pricing, always look to deliver value to clients.

Make the salon the star

The salon needs to be the reason why customers come to the business, not you or some other employee. A big mistake that salon owners make is either allowing themselves or a talented employee to become the center of attention at their salons. Yes customers will fall in love with a stylist or esthetician sometimes and some are more naturally talented than others, but you cannot let them or you become the star of the show because when you or that person are not able to continue at the salon, your business will suffer. Also, if one person is generating all of the business, when that person reaches his or her capacity, your business will stagnate. The thing to do is to pick all great employees and then train them on your salon’s specific set of exclusive benefits that they deliver to clients in the name of the salon so clients appreciate that it is the salon that creates what they love not just their favorite employee.

Use these strategies to create a salon business that will last forever and have happy clients who come back again and again.