Let’s face it’s been a frustrating winter for us all! We’ve all been there feeling flat! It’s normal! But the smart salon owners amongst us are using this time to get ahead of the competition and up their salon game!
From redecorating to team education; there are lots of potential improvements you can make when you have a few hours on your hands. However one of the biggest improvements you can make is a really unsexy one: sort out your salon software!
Our entire business is based around appointments and clients! So why do so many salons still leave their precious clients and appointments in a paper book? We upgrade our Samsung or iPhone every two years, so why are we are some of us still using the paper diary from 30 years ago?
Bouncing back from COVID, salons need all the help they can get. Now is the ideal time to invest in a system that helps you manage your clients, stops no shows and helps grow your business and it’s clear just how much a good system can add to your business.
We see a massive change for the salons coming from pen and paper: on average after the first six months, our salons are taking 20% more than they were when using paper! We know most salons get one or more no-shows or last minute cancellations a week simply because the client forgot. Our system sends a free reminder text to each client 48 hours before the appointment which stops no shows and last minute cancellations instantly. This adds £30-80 a week to your takings minimum!
Salon systems used to be complex and expensive but with systems such as Slick starting from £10 a month; they are now great value for money: If £10 a month stops one no show then that’s a profit of £30-40 instantly.
Whilst it clearly helps you to earn more by increasing client bookings, these cloud-based systems also allow you to spend more time with clients and more time running your business. With everything from deposits to client contact details to colour notes all in one place, staff can save hours of admin a week.
According to Mark Creed, co-owner of the award winning Idlewild salon in Oxfordshire, “‘New’ makes so many people nervous. We were clinging to the ‘control and security’ of the paper and pencil but we saw clients were getting more and more frustrated with our salon booking process: people want to book at 8pm at night like they can with a hotel. As an owner, I felt we were doing too much admin and not spending enough time behind the chair doing what we do best which is why we installed the Slick system into our salon. I can genuinely state that since we’ve made the switch it’s been a true revelation. Now if a client texts me on Sunday evening asking if there is a slot available on Monday afternoon, I can check my diary live on my phone and book them in. How cool is that!”
Verity Ollerenshaw who owns a stunning new studio in Leeds decided to use lockdown to upgrade: “I finally decided to ditch the diary and I just wish I had done it years ago. The Slick system I use is super easy to use meaning I don’t get behind on clients as I don’t need a desk top to work! I can go home, eat, watch Netflix and then glance at my phone to know exactly what I have in the salon the next day.We laugh now at how we managed to survive with a paper diary. What we love about Slick is the team totally understands hairdressers. They are such a forward thinking brand and you know that being partnered with L’Oréal means they are going to be one of the best in the industry. Education is key for hairdressers so they give each salon free 1-2-1 training and if there is ever a problem, the chat in a click away and there is always someone available like I have a whole family supporting me.”
We work directly with salon owners like Mark and Verity to build a system that works even for the biggest technophobe: think of it as a system built by hairdressers, for hairdressers.
Simplicity is key which is why Slick won a recent award for the Best Ease of Use among all the salon softwares.
Head over to www.getslick.com for more info
