Ever wondered how the simple act of walking into a salon can transform into an unforgettable experience? Join us as we reveal the secrets behind a front desk that doesn't just welcome but wows, turning every client visit into a VIP affair. We've rolled out the metaphorical red carpet to discuss the art of creating an environment where guests are not just customers, but cherished relationships waiting to bloom. With insights on branded language and the personal touch that makes a visit more than just a transaction, we're spilling the secrets to crafting those raving reviews and loyalty that lasts.
Prepare to be inspired by the magic of a smile over the phone and the power it holds to brighten someone's day. We dissect the "10-5 rule" for immediate engagement and share personal anecdotes on how the philosophy of "givers gain" can turn generous acts into an extraordinary guest experience. Our conversation also navigates the nuances of standard operating procedures that ensure every encounter is reliably delightful. By the time you're done listening, you'll be equipped with an arsenal of strategies to make each guest feel valued, weaving an element of surprise and joy into every salon visit.
Closing out with a flourish, we tackle the finer points of the 'wow greeting' and 'love checkout' processes, ensuring every client leaves feeling both seen and appreciated. Even the challenge of managing unsatisfied customers becomes an opportunity to deepen connections, armed with empathy and the timeless advice from "How to Win Friends and Influence People." With these practical takeaways, your front desk will become more than just a checking-in point; it will be the heartbeat of your business, pumping out memorable experiences that have your guests eagerly returning for more.
Do you have a question for Blondes in Business: Luxury Beauty Business Podcast? Send a text or leave a voicemail at 855.650.3445 or send us an email to hello@thephdprogram.com. We would love to hear from you. Start growing in business and leadership with powerful tools, advice and resources in your inbox every week: Learn more about The PHD Program Events:
Ever wondered how the simple act of walking into a salon can transform into an unforgettable experience? Join us as we reveal the secrets behind a front desk that doesn't just welcome but wows, turning every client visit into a VIP affair. We've rolled out the metaphorical red carpet to discuss the art of creating an environment where guests are not just customers, but cherished relationships waiting to bloom. With insights on branded language and the personal touch that makes a visit more than just a transaction, we're spilling the secrets to crafting those raving reviews and loyalty that lasts.
Prepare to be inspired by the magic of a smile over the phone and the power it holds to brighten someone's day. We dissect the "10-5 rule" for immediate engagement and share personal anecdotes on how the philosophy of "givers gain" can turn generous acts into an extraordinary guest experience. Our conversation also navigates the nuances of standard operating procedures that ensure every encounter is reliably delightful. By the time you're done listening, you'll be equipped with an arsenal of strategies to make each guest feel valued, weaving an element of surprise and joy into every salon visit.
Closing out with a flourish, we tackle the finer points of the 'wow greeting' and 'love checkout' processes, ensuring every client leaves feeling both seen and appreciated. Even the challenge of managing unsatisfied customers becomes an opportunity to deepen connections, armed with empathy and the timeless advice from "How to Win Friends and Influence People." With these practical takeaways, your front desk will become more than just a checking-in point; it will be the heartbeat of your business, pumping out memorable experiences that have your guests eagerly returning for more.
Do you have a question for Blondes in Business: Luxury Beauty Business Podcast? Send a text or leave a voicemail at 855.650.3445 or send us an email to hello@thephdprogram.com. We would love to hear from you. Start growing in business and leadership with powerful tools, advice and resources in your inbox every week: Learn more about The PHD Program Events:
Well, it's another great day to have a great day. We are super excited to be diving into, you know, how can we really elevate our guest experience? What does it look like to have some you know amazing systems in place at your front desk, whether the position is for a hospitality host or for your guest experience coordinator whatever the title is that you give the extraordinary people at your front desk To help make the salon run more smoothly. We are going to dive into that topic today to see what can we harvest to upgrade all areas of the guest experience when they're inside of our salon and spa companies.
Speaker 2:
I love that lens and you know we, Lindsay, mentioned hospitality. So what is hospitality? So when you think of the word hospitality, it's a generous and cruel reception of guests offering a pleasant or sustaining environment. So imagine a great restaurant that you've been to, are a fabulous, high end shopping experience that you have or it doesn't even have to be high end. It's think about how did that, how did it make you feel when you entered into that space? And we want to translate that into how can we make that experience in the salon so grand that when someone walks in the door we literally feel like the red carpet has been rolled out for them?
Speaker 1:
And you know, just imagine what that would feel like and how that would set you apart and really set your whole team up for success inside of your company. And you know, I loved it that you said imagine the greatness. But then I know that we've all at some point or another experienced something less than extraordinary when we are out there visiting another business. Maybe it's somewhere close to you, maybe it's somewhere far away, you know. But I think a good example would be you know, let's say you walked into a busy nail salon and keep in mind there are tons of wonderful nail salons, and this is not to say anything bad about nail salons in general. It's just, you know, a lot of times this is a story that somebody can relate to.
Speaker 1:
They've been in an experience like this before, where you walk in and you aren't even greeted and then eventually, when someone does talk to you, they say, hey, you know, go pick out your color.
Speaker 1:
Or they're like what are you here for? You know, it's like just the most random, abrupt greeting when you walk into that space. And you know, I think probably what's happening for them is you know, they do this 500 times a day and so they know what they need to get done and they're kind of on a mission and they forget. Hey, if we just take that couple, you know the 20 extra seconds that it would take to greet someone in a great way, just the impression that it could leave would really stand out, and especially, you know, in that industry where there's a million it seems like nail salons on every corner, just like there are hair salons, you know, when we can look for ways to stand out and really create that hospitable experience, people just grow to love it and you know it really can create some raving fans. And so that's what we are on a mission to help you do today is really create some more raving fans.
Speaker 2:
So raving fans of it. I love that. And so let's talk about first who is at your front desk. What do we call them? What are their responsibilities? Like at the end of the day, what is their purpose or their why or their mission?
Speaker 2:
Because I think back to my grandmother's salon back in the 90s and 80s maybe before even some of you were born and it was truly a receptionist position right, and there's nothing wrong with receptionist position. But you walked in. Do you have an appointment? Okay, great, you know, Jen will be right with you versus where we like to look at this from a standpoint of like, what is the mission? What is the purpose of having this beautiful person up front? And when you clarify that, it helps you find the right people as well.
Speaker 2:
So the mission of the front desk is to build relationships and offer guest opportunities while supporting the salon team and the mission. So, whatever your mission is at the salon, so to build relationships, I think is the most important part, Because if you really have a team based salon like, you really wanna create that connection among guests. Because when you create that connection among guests, you know they really see the team as a whole, it's not just one person that they feel like they have to stick with that one time. So having that hospitality host, I think, is a beautiful name to call them, because we said the hospitality was generous and you know just something extraordinary Like calling them hospitality host or, you know, guest service experts whatever you feel is right for your space is okay, but I think elevating that language and helping them understand hey, your main opportunity here is to build relationships and to offer guest opportunities, which equals selling. If you didn't think about that is that is when really magic starts to happen at the end of the day.
Speaker 1:
upfront, yes, and you know, whatever your mission is, usually for the whole entire salon, this really does help deliver on that mission and give some great clarity. You know, and I think whenever there's clarity there's a lot more certainty and people can move quicker through the world. And you know, I think another opportunity for our hospitality host or guest service team is really to nail down a branded language. And so you know, really crafting what that looks like for your salon company, you know there may be for you. You might say reservation instead of pre-book, so you might say let's set up your future reservation instead of let's pre-book your appointment. You know, maybe it's when somebody calls in and you don't have any space on your books for the day. Maybe it's that you say we're fully committed instead of we don't have anything available. It's just really looking for some of those touch points that kind of stand you apart, because whether you love them or you hate them, everybody knows that Chick-fil-A is famous for saying my pleasure. And so if you start to create that branded language inside of your organization, you know people love it. It like gives them comfort and peace, they know that they're gonna be spoken to respectfully, and so you know it makes them want to rise to that occasion too and be really respectful to that person who's helping make their experience, you know, exceptional.
Speaker 1:
And so nailing down that branded language, I would say, is one of the keys, and also painting that picture with that team environment. So, you know, always using we instead of I, you know it really does help paint that picture in the guest mind and give them freedom and knowing, you know, guests have freedom. Nobody owns the guest. The salon doesn't own the guest, the service provider doesn't own the guest. The guest isn't owned by anybody. But when they know that there is a team of people that are supporting them, that really wanna see them win and reach their beauty goals and all of that good stuff, it really feels like a deeper connection to a company and it also feels like just more exciting because you know you're not just gonna go see one person you love, you're gonna go see multiple people that you're excited to see and they're excited to see you. And so you know that position really does support that we inside of the salon in a huge way.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, and I think it's a really beautiful place to role play this with your team because it sometimes it can be a new elevated language for them. So just you know, once we played a game where we did elevated language game, where we got buzzers and say this instead of that, and so you know, like, say how you would say it and then somebody can buzz in to say how we would say it the new way. So I think just making learning fun sometimes can really enroll people to have fun first of all, but to learn in a new, different way. And so I love you know you can't just set your brain and language and forget about it. It's something that you want to constantly be working with your hospitality team, your front desk, at all times, so that it becomes a natural language to them. And then, once it becomes natural for them and authentic for them, then it just comes out so, so smooth and it's like, wow, that really does sound good up there. I like that.
Speaker 1:
Yes, I love that. You just said you can't just set it and forget it. That just makes me think of you know, old, and commercials like set it and forget it, you know, and then, like the crowd is like, you know, like that would be amazing if that could happen inside of our salon companies. But the truth is we're human beings, you know, and when it's not intrinsic and natural for us to to use that language already, all it takes is making it fun and getting there, you know, because then they will also start to see different results in their life and see the way that people start responding to the way that they are speaking to them, and so it really does become a win-win. It's like Jen said, making it fun and learning in the process so that you really can get it anchored in and have it be something that is your branded language, that that you kind of, at that point, have set it and forget it, like the, the infomercial, says.
Speaker 2:
All right. So let's talk about the 10 to five rule in hospitality. And so you might be thinking, well, what is the 10 to five rule? And so it really. If you can enroll your team in this, it really. You know, a smile is worth a million words in my opinion, and so the 10 to five rule is anytime you find yourself within 10 feet of someone, you smile and make eye contact. If you're within five feet of them, you also say hello or greet them in some way.
Speaker 2:
So, you know, I just think about like wow, what, what would this world look like if people, if even just 50% of the world, followed this 10 out of five rule, like it would be a really beautiful place to live in. And so just teaching your team the impacts of, you know, a smile, of how they can really transform someone's day, that they might. They might be in a bad mood, but that one smile gave someone the gift of gaining back, you know, a new perspective for the day. And so, you know, I always like to come from the place too, of role playing. This with your team is like answering the trying to answer the phone without a smile, like it's a beautiful day at salon X, yz, and then you know, try to answer it with a smile and you can just always tell that, wow, it's so much more impactful when you share through words with a smile, versus of just no emotion.
Speaker 1:
So true, and you know you might be thinking, gosh, I'm, I live in New York and I can't imagine if everybody within five feet of me said hello every time we were walking down the street. And although this it would be a beautiful, you know thing to experience, you know we really want to hone this in when we're inside of our salon walls and so it's. It's almost like when you're on stage versus off stage. So when you're, you know, back in your connection room, you're kind of off that stage. But when you're on stage, when you walk outside of those connection room doors into the salon floor area or spa, maybe your treatment rooms, whatever it is really exercising that 10 five rule is a beautiful space to be able to, to create, you know, and really what it does is it helps bring out the power of presence, you know, and being present to what's happening around you.
Speaker 1:
I think you know, a lot of times, as human beings are, our minds can get preoccupied with what's next.
Speaker 1:
Sometimes they can even taunt us with what's happened in the past.
Speaker 1:
You know, whatever that might be, when you're, when you're exercising that 10 five rule, it really does help you become present in that moment and you know, when you're present as a service provider or hospitality host or any member of the team.
Speaker 1:
You know there's there's so many positive consequences to that, you know, and consequences aren't negative or positive, they're just what happens, you know, after an event. And so so, starting to see some of the positive consequences of your presence and of, you know, just sharing that smile can really be transformational and it can help you remain more present so that you're not so worried about the future or, you know, haunted by the past. It's a beautiful tool. If somebody you know has experiences anxiety and I know in today's day and age it's one of the most popular terms that's talked about is anxiety, and so really, truly, you know, when you bring this into your company, it gives everybody a gift inside of the company. It allows them to be more present and work on that presence so that they can become an even bigger, better version of themselves inside of this world.
Speaker 2:
I love that. And so let's talk about like givers gain, like I think that's also a beautiful tool to really elevate in your guest services hospitality team is, when you think about givers gain, too is like, how can you give in such a big way to the guests that are coming through the doors at your salon with no expectations in return? And so, like some of the things that we do for givers gain is, we do have a small little love box where you know if someone's having a bad day or you know they've had a death. Or we have this example someone ran a marathon. They were in their 60s and so it was their first marathon. They didn't win first place, but she's like I was so excited because I got third place, and so when she went to check out, we had a little trophy, because you can get really creative at this love box and you can get little trophies from a very cost effective on Amazon, alibaba, and so we had a little trophy setting up for her and like that's what givers gain is all about is like, how can we make this guest truly feel beautiful inside and out?
Speaker 2:
And you know, I truly believe, at the end of the day, that when you live in a space of givers gain. You come from a place of abundance and you know when you're just how. You know here's your cost, here's your price. See you later like that almost comes from a place of being a taker and you know it doesn't make you wrong. It's just like what kind of experience do you want to create for your guests? And I always like to come from that experience of making someone feel a way that they never thought before, that actually helped elevate their beingness.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, man, that is a beautiful picture that you just painted and I remember you saying that it really moved that woman to tears when she, when you guys gave her that, just because you know, just that feeling of feeling so special that you know somebody went out of their way to think about you and you're important to them, and you know it really does create that exceptional experience and and make them feel like, wow, this is a place that I can't imagine not being a part of, you know, and you know, so that can be a great thing to to really kind of just role play with your team, like think about things to look for, you know, and and come up with an idea of what all you want in your love box. Maybe it's like a spray deodorant and you know, some Advil and some, some notes that you could give somebody. Maybe it's some stickers, you know, just random things like that that you know just make, give, bring you some joy, just something to kind of bring a little bit of joy. Some little affirmation cards, you know can really just bring somebody up, you know. And so when we're thinking about bringing somebody up, you know we also want to put some just like some SOPs in place, some standard operating procedures, just because you know that really does create safety and certainty for somebody.
Speaker 1:
If they know what to say and how to say it, then eventually you know, after you've said it a couple of times, it can start to feel natural and you'll, you'll really come up with your flow. And so anytime you're put, you're coming up with a new way of doing things don't expect for it to be, you know, hit it out of the park on the first go around, because we're human beings, we are meant to make mistakes and that's how we learn and grow and bloom from there. And so anytime you're implementing something new, just know, hey, there's that learning curve and let's make it fun and exciting. And you know we'll just get better every time we do it. And so you know one of the one of our favorites ones as our wow greeting. You know and this is something, it's just an acronym that stands for Welcome Back Offerings what's Next?
Speaker 1:
And so you know when they first come in, you want to make eye contact with them and acknowledge all guests right away. Whether you're on the phone or with somebody else, at least make eye contact and acknowledge like, hey, I'll be right with you, even if you're busy. And if you're not, then you can say you know, welcome in, jen, we're super excited to have you back in the salon. And then at that point you would make your offering. So offer, you know, whatever your beverages if you have, you know, a certain spot water right now, or you know a seasonal beverage of choice, make that offering, you know. Then you would also offer you know promos, current products or like new products, sorry, and additional services. So you could say, you know, welcome back, jen, right now. We have some hot chocolate as a seasonal beverage. Would you like to enjoy one during your visit today? And she can say yes or no and say we also have our additional beverage selections, spot water, you know, whatever it might be.
Speaker 1:
And then, just so you know, we have, you know, a gift with purchase going on.
Speaker 1:
We also just got in the new Chroma Absolue or the new, you know whatever, whatever line you carry, whatever the product is, it doesn't matter, just let them know new, because we've got a discount shopper and a brand new shopper are some of the biggest shopping types and so let them know both of those.
Speaker 1:
And then also say, hey, you're just so you know your service provider has time for an eyebrow shaping today, or somebody else has time for whatever offer that, and then say and then let them know what's next. So invite them to shop around or relax, and let them know that their service provider will be with them soon. And so when you, when you get in the groove of doing that, wow greeting. It just is really easy and you know people come to love and appreciate it because they can find out some information. They know you're there to support them. They really can foster that relationship with you. Know the hospitality host, guest service teammate, you know who, whatever that position might be inside of your, your company. But it really does create some comfort for the guests when they come in and experience that wow greeting every time.
Speaker 2:
I love that it's called the wow and love greeting, because love I just looked it up, the definition, because it's such a beautiful word is just filled your feeling deep for someone or something that you like and enjoy very much and intense feeling of deep affection. And so you know, think about it. When you feel love, like how do you really feel inside? It gives you like the warm fuzzies and so like to be able to transfer that over when someone's checking out to actually pay you for the service, to create a space of love for them. That's when, like Lindsay was saying earlier, that's when you truly can create raving fans.
Speaker 1:
Yeah and yeah. And so you know that is. I love that you've looked up that definition of love and because a lot of times, you know, we see that as a value, as a heartbeat inside of a lot of the companies that we work with, is love, you know, and I know it's, it's one of our salon heart beats is is love, and so incorporating that in in the checkout. So we do have our love checkout, which stands for listen, offer, verify, exchange, and so when we're going through that love checkout, you know, when we listen it's, you know how's your experience today? You know what was your favorite part? Really just listening to the guest, and then, once we've listened, then we'll do our offerings.
Speaker 1:
So you know, we'll say you know, sally and Sarah, your co stylist today, recommended these products which would you like to take home with you today, you know, and, and so then that gives them the opportunity, if you know it hasn't already been nailed down before then, and then you'll just want to verify, so verify what their future reservations look, look like. So make sure that they're set up for their next one to two or three visits. And if they're not, just say you know, it looks like your recommended future reservation time was six weeks. That puts us at whatever date. Does this time work well for you? And then that gives them the opportunity to verify that that's going to work with them and it also just creates that safety.
Speaker 1:
And I'm knowing, hey, this is how we do it here. You know, we just we set up all of our future reservations before people leave, because we know that here is one of their highest values, or skin is one of their highest values, or self cares, when their highest values, if they're visiting a company like ours, you know, and so we know that we want to take care of them because it's something that they value. So it's not a question of are you busy? Because the busier somebody is, the more that they need to have that future reservations set up, you know, and then after you verify that you'll exchange. So you'll exchange money, you'll exchange gratitude and you know that's a great way to send somebody off is by after that, the money is really exchanging that gratitude and see, is there anything else that you can do for them today while they're inside of your company?
Speaker 2:
Awesome. So you've been wild, you've been in love now.
Speaker 2:
So you know, every once in a while it's going to happen that you probably are going to have an unsatisfied guest. So you know, hey, having the technology and training with your front desk team of how do we handle or assist unsatisfied guests. And you know, I think the most important need in human beings is the need to be heard. And so you know that comes from the book how to Win Friends and Influence People too is they really talk about, like you know, no judgment against that person, to sometimes just listen to what they're saying, and so to be able to teach your team, like, hey, just have that listening ear, because sometimes, when an unsatisfied guest feels heard, they lower their resistance to what a new possibility could be. And so, like role playing, that I think is one of the most beautiful ways to know how to handle situations like that.
Speaker 2:
And you know, I think just listening and just having a script or you know, to some language of you know I get that I hear you, lindsay. You know that was not our expectation to make you feel that way. You know what are some possibilities or what are some opportunities we can do to make you feel beautiful inside and out today. And so you know, I think just knowing for them how to handle when an unsatisfied guest comes, so they don't shut down, and then you create more tension between guest services and the actual guest checking out or the guest over the phone I think really just create some more love in the environment.
Speaker 1:
Absolutely, and it really is an empowering thing when you know what to say when that happens. It helps diffuse the situation for multiple people. So I love that you know and then, once they feel empowered in all of those different areas, then helping them understand. You know, in that hospitality position how can they impact overall productivity. You know, and because that is something that they really have, you know the power to impact the productivity of the salon based on when guests are calling in. You know how they get them to book in a. You know, maybe the soonest available opportunity or with the additional offerings when somebody comes in.
Speaker 1:
You know if somebody had a cancellation in the nail department or in the you know, skin department or whatever, just making that offering, because some you just never know. You know most 99% of the time nobody's ever going to be offended if you offer them something. But if you're offering you know everybody stuff around them and you're not offering one person something, then they might be offended like, well, do they think I can't afford it? Do they think I don't care about that? You know, and so just become a culture of offering and have a be judgment free, like you're not really tied to the outcome either way on the other side you know it can tell a story about, you know if it's compelling or you know if it's a juicy offer or whatever that might be. But really you know just letting.
Speaker 1:
Sometimes people don't have the education that you offer. You know lash lifts and tents. They don't have the education that you offer certain services. And so just planting that seed if you can just get in that, you know process of planting that seed that really does help support the guest overall and as a guest services team member you just feel like you're helping more people and you're really serving out that mission.
Speaker 2:
And another great way that the guest services hospitality team can impact your, your environment is also like how they show up for team huddle. So if you're hosting team connection, points is what we like to call them. Our team huddles is like you know, call forth what's possible that day, you know. You know I see Jen's really productive. She may need some extra set of hands from 12 pm to 1 pm with Lindsay she's coming in for a highlight. You know.
Speaker 2:
Here are just some things that I noticed. You know we are out of setting spray one, two, three and so, just so you know that you know you might want to think of a different alternative to use or request. Or, you know, educate your guests on today. So I think they can use that standpoint of just educating the team on what's happening that day. Think of it like the quarterback of the football team. They're creating place for the day. And when you really have a team a hospitality team or guest services team that looks at what plays are being played for the day, that's when you get control of your environment and that's when the guest feels like something's different about this place. I don't know what it is, but it feels different and I feel like a better human being from being here.
Speaker 1:
Yes, I love that and you know it also then in turn can help upgrade their pay.
Speaker 1:
You know, because when all the goals are getting hit inside of the salon, then that creates a new budget of you know what's available and so coming up, you know, with some sort of rewards program is a great opportunity in that. In for that role, you know, and so I think really, you know it helps just really foster that team environment and, you know, if everybody is winning on the team, whoever's in this role, it's one of the most impactful roles inside of the salon. You know we like to say it is kind of like the heartbeat of the salon. Everything flows through the front desk, you know, from booking to, you know, really making sure that the guests are having a hospital time while they're with us. You know, with all the offerings, greetings, just everything. You know that that touch point inside of your company is going to be. You know it can be one of your most extraordinary profit centers If you are really pouring the love into it that it needs and looking for ways to really elevate it and take that guest experience to the next level.
Speaker 2:
All right guys. Thank you for joining us today. You know we hope you get a new viewpoint for the mission of the front desk. It's really to build relationships and offer guest opportunities. Take a look at your breaded language role play with your team. Really help them to enroll and see what a wow factor, or wow greeting how that can impact guest experience, how creating a little love at the checkout can impact guest experience. And when you do all those things, that's when your hospitality team is able to create more amazing things for your company than you ever thought possible.
Speaker 1:
All right, we look forward to seeing you again soon.
