5 Tips for Communicating Better with Your Salon Guests by Sam Villa

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We have all heard it before! There are many different types of personalities out there.

Understanding a client's personality behaviors and adjusting your approach will help you (as service providers) to grow your business! This new found "understanding" will help you offer opportunities based on the needs of these client. In doing so, selling turns into customized recommendations. You relate to your client on a higher level, leading you to actually grow your business and become more successful!

REDKEN success coach and show host, Susan Hite, suggests the use of what is referred to Psycho-Geometrics^®. Psycho-Geometrics^®uses a combination of shapes and shape descriptions to help us understand our own communication and behavioral styles as well as the styles of others. When you study Psycho-Geometrics^®, you will be able to decipher which personality every client has that sits in your chair!

You can relate to your client's individual needs to better service and provide them with a tailored experience. Understanding that every client is different will help you as a service provider to better connect with your clients and offer opportunities in ways that your client will relate to.

For example, you have a client that works very hard at their job. They are often found staying late and often work from home to ensure that they get everything done. They are organized, tidy, and very practical! They do not like surprises and do not make rational decisions.

They tend to take their time to think about something before they act on it! With the Psycho-Geometrics^®theory in mind, here are five great tips to get you started!

During your consultation, make sure it is thorough and that there are no surprises.

Be calm and logical and offer a beauty path that shows the end in sight.
Slow down and give this client time to think. Don't rush in to fill every pause in the conversation.
Do not be surprised if she leaves without pre-booking or purchasing the REDKEN color-extend shampoo you recommended.
These are the guests that you will want to start planting the seeds right away. This is the guest that needs to go home and think about it! Give her some material that she can take with her. Remember, they are the ones that will not act on the opportunity at first, but after careful thinking and evaluating the positives and negatives, they will be back asking for those services or products!
Put it in writing. Write up a custom prescription for your guest and have it waiting at the front desk. Have the specific date that she is due to come in next as well as products you have recommended. Understanding your client and who they are as an individual are only a smart vital part of providing the ultimate client experience! Have an idea of who is coming in to visit before they get there and communicate this with the front desk! Informing the front desk of your goals for the day will make them achievable.

Communicate to the front desk to help "plant the seeds" to for those clients who need time to think or to get one more testimonial before buying!

Photography: Courtesy of Sam Villa

About Expert

Sam VillaBusiness

Sam Villa is changing the industry one hairdresser at a time! Whether he’s teaching in a hands-on class, on the main stage, or reaching his millions of social media followers, Sam changes people. As the 2017 NAHA Lifetime Achievement Award Winner, he is known for doing things differently to challenge, inspire and motivate. His encouragement to stylists is unrivaled, as he genuinely wants each one of them to reach deep to identify how they can make a change to promote their own growth. His talents stretch far beyond his brilliant cutting and finishing skills; his business tips help stylists think about how they speak to their guests to add value behind the chair. “Sharing is the greatest gift we can give one another…to help each other grow and prosper, we all need to pay it forward,” says Sam. With consistent research and a respect for essential techniques, Sam is always on the move for new and unconventional ways of cutting and finishing hair. He shares his knowledge with stylists with the hope that they too will share with others to enrich the industry. Sam is co-founder of the Sam Villa® brand (Allvus, LLC), serving both stylists and consumers with tools including brushes, combs, thermal tools and shears/razors.