It continues to be a difficult time for the industry and the world at large, but even during a global pandemic, there are ways to help the world, help your clients, help your salon community and help yourself.
Over the past several weeks of the crisis, we’ve spoken to an array of hairdressers, educators, salon owners, brands and the Australian Hairdressing Council (AHC) about how to manage each phase of the crisis. Now, whether your salon is open, closed or somewhere in between, we’ve come up with ways you can have a positive impact on the community or just make things easier for yourself and business, by taking their advice.
Make a pledge to try some of these positivity points, and then start adding to the list.
1. Offer complimentary services to struggling clients
As many of our clients lose their jobs, offering a complimenatry hair service can be a lovely gesture to pick them up and make them smile. Plus, in using your hairdressing superpowers for good, this is a great PR move and perfect to utilise in salon marketing. Win-win!
2. Offer take-home colour kits
Whether your salon is open or not, some clients won’t be travelling in to salons regardless, but will need their colour refreshed. Many salons are investing in customised colour kits and application education via YouTube or even personally on FaceTime. While at home colour is usually taboo, a shifting mindset is necessary in these unprecedented times, and your bank balance and your clients’ hair will both be better off if you’re involved in the process.
3. Communicate with your staff and clients
This is the time when community is paramount, so it’s important to use every technological and social media tool available to you to keep your staff and clients in the loop. Continue to check in with your staff and post to your platform, with inspiration, information and communication as necessary.
4. Educate yourself and your staff
The time is here for growth, whether because changing times necessitate extreme skill to navigate them or extra time at home allows for more education or both. Online classes continue to increase so you and your staff can be learning from home, and using the shared experience to keep up contact while growing your creative, technical and business skills.
5. Sell discounted retail products
Retail is a big deal right now, as at home haircare has its moment. Make sure your salon takes advantage of these income opportunities with product discounts, special product packs and at-home delivery options. Many salons have been offering free local delivery to incentivise clients to continue to shop professional and put the salon first. It’s more crucial than ever to invest in time, workload and marketing around selling retail.
6. Make use of industry resources
There are so many resources available for salons, whether it’s from the AHC, which has an array of must-read documents online and constantly updating information on social media, or from your salon brand. Companies such as ghd, piiq, the L’Oréal Professional Products Division, the Kao Salon Group and more are offering recovery initiatives, adjusted award formats, education, online resources and other must-see options of help for salons. Take advantage of the opportunities and resources at your disposal for creative, financial and business aid.
7. Focus on mental health
Most significantly, continue to put your mental health first, and check in with your friends and loved ones to make sure they’re OK too (if you have the capacity). Exercise, unplugging from the news cycle, breathing techniques and necessary, trivial distractions continue to be vital. At a time of anxiety and unrest, we have to look out for both ourselves and each other.
Find out more from brands, salons, hairdressers, educators and organisations about managing through the crisis at www.styleicons.com.au/tag/coronavirus/
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