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By Miki Wright, Beauty Superstars
6 Ways Hair Stylists Can Set Themselves Up to Close the Year Strong & Create Momentum into the New Year
It is officially Fall, and really starting to feel like it too. If you were affected by Hurricane Ian, I’m hoping you, your family and your clients, are safe and sound. October is the last month before the holiday rush begins and I really want you to make every second count. I hate to sound melodramatic, but what you do this month, may mean the difference between a great 2023 and a mediocre one.
In reality, what you don’t get done this month, probably won’t get done until you come up for air in January. And by then, it’s probably too late to make a difference.
So what do I suggest you focus on?
1) Block off your personal calendar. What days will you be off during the holidays? When will you do your Christmas shopping - online or local? Are you cooking? When will you get your groceries? Will you travel, or do you have special family events to attend? EX: Your daughter’s school play or taking the kids to see Santa?
2) If you’re not already booked through the end of the year and into January and/or February, start scheduling (and rebooking your clients) now. What worked best for me was to ask, “Did you want to come in before Thanksgiving or after?” And the same for Christmas time. “Let’s get you set before the time you want to come in is full.” Even if you’re not that full right now, why not speak it into existence?
3) Have you gotten together any holiday thank you’s/gifts, gift card, promotions for your clients? What about your decorations? Does your business say it’s about to be holiday time. Pull out your calendar and set a time for decorating - I’d say the weekend/week of November 7th. So you’ll need to have everything in place by the end of October. Make it a fun time, talk to your clients about it, get them excited. Maybe add some packs of hot cocoa if you offer coffee or tea, and whenever the time is right, switch the music to a holiday station or playlist. Even sitting around some festive gift bags with tissue paper sticking out of the top, will put you in the mood.
4) Now that you have yourself, your team (if you have one) and your clients in the holiday mood, it’s time to help them spend some money, lol. What do you have that would make great gifts, that they can get while they’re there and avoid the hassles of the mall? Here are a couple of ideas:
candles,
shower gels,
body lotions,
makeup sets,
satin pillow cases,
skin care,
lip glosses,
your own gift cards?
5) What are your Black Friday plans? Will you work or take off? And while you’re at it, what are your plans Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday? Will you host something in your salon or have an online sale? Do you have an online store to promote your hair care or other products to people near and far? Now’s the time to set everything up and try to minimize as much stress, while you maximize your sales.
6) Raise Your Prices - I shared in depth (in the September To Do List) why I think it’s a mistake to wait until the first of the year to raise your prices - the short version is, because it’s a time when people aren’t trying to spend money (or even come outside). What’s the the best time to raise your prices? My all time favorite, that has the least pushback of any time, is right BEFORE the holidays. They’re in a spending money mood already (think Black Friday, lol) and they want to look great for holiday parties and family gatherings. Most people are not going to skip getting their hair done during that time just because it went up. And by the time January gets here, they will have already forgotten.
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