Losing customers in today’s tough and competitive and changing business climate economy is especially harmful to our standard of living and our  profession, our salons, and the livelihoods of all members of our team. No business can grow with a hit and miss approach to client retention. Losing just one loyal customer and her family over the course of the year can cost up to $1200.00 in lost revenue. The real damage is that your one lost customer will tell all their circle of friends and relatives about their dissatisfaction. Negative word of mouth publicity is the worst kind of advertisement, and affects everyone. How can we grow a business and our careers and raise prices in this type of environment.”If we don’t take care of our customers, somebody else will.”

The following tips will help you improve your client retention efforts:

Outstanding Work — when you receive compliments from a satisfied customer, you help everyone in the salon. Positive word of mouth advertising is the most effective and cheapest way to grow a business and a career. Make your satisfied customer your good will ambassador. Referrals will always be your score card.

Exceed Expectations — work hard to give your customer more than what is expected, by being a little kinder than necessary.

Excel at Customer Service — know and learn the power of customer service. Work hard at treating people the way you would like to be treated. Work hard to earn their trust and loyalty. People don’t mind paying a little more if you exceed client expectations.

Listen — lack of communication is the number one cause of customer loss. Your initial consultation is critical. Ask a few probing questions, then listen to your customer’s response , then offer your expert opinion. Here’s one example,ask your client

Monitor Your Performance — invite customer feedback, and then track your referrals and customer return rate. If you haven’t seen them in a while, drop a little note saying we miss you.

Smile a lot – you not only want to make your customers look good, but you also want to make them feel good about themselves. Bring out your personality and be a joy to be around.

A Sincere and Caring attitude — about people will help you stand above the crowd. When you learn to like people, you will love your profession. As professionals we have a wonderful opportunity to not only make our customers look good, we also have the opportunity to impact the lives of our customers and make them feel like queen for a day.

I do hope these tips will help you attract and keep an appreciative and loyal clientele.

I invite you to view my educational programs that I know will help you reach higher levels of excellence. Click here