Do you remember your mother telling you “money doesn’t grow on trees”?

It’s bound to be in your memory somewhere, probably in amongst “wear clean underpants in case you have an accident” and “someday your face will freeze like that“.

Well, like mothers usually are, she was absolutely right!

Money doesn’t magically appear like little green buds on the ends of tree branches, but that doesn’t mean that without a little bit more know how you can’t start growing a whole garden full of profit generating money trees in your salon.

Learning how to generate more profit is actually much more straightforward than you might think, and I’m going to share with you 5 simple business strategies that will fertilise your money tree and put more profit in your pocket.

Strategy # 1 – Attract More Profitable Clients

Before you can start to grow your money tree and make more profit, you need to have the basics in place, and that means knowing how to get more clients to your salon.

Client attraction can be a very expensive exercise so it’s important to do your homework before rushing out and throwing money at random advertising options.

Think about who your ideal clients are (be realistic here), what they want from your salon, and where you are most likely to find them.

One way to attract the kind of clients who want to do business with you is to tap into your current client base and encourage them to refer their friends and family to your salon.

You can do this easily with a simple referral program that rewards both the new client and the existing client.

As well as being effective, this is one of the most economical and easiest ways to build your clientele and therefore your profit.

Strategy # 2 – Keep The Clients You Already Have

Once you get all those lovely new people willing to give your salon a go, it’s absolutely vital to impress the hell out of them and keep them coming back.

It can be up to 91% cheaper to retain a client than get a new one, so making sure that they never want to leave once they are yours is vital to your long-term success.

First impressions are important – we all know that which is why most salons go all out to impress with an in-depth consultation on a client’s first visit.

However, you can’t afford to let your standards slip even after a client has been coming to you for years.

Client loyalty is not as strong as you might think and it only takes one bad experience and your client will be easy prey for your competition.

Every salon visit should be like the first time for your client; with outstanding service, consultation, treatments, and an invitation to return.

Simply meeting client expectations doesn’t create customer loyalty, so you have to devise ways that you and your team can impress the socks off your clients at every visit.

Strategy # 3 – Sell More Profit Generating Services To Every Client

This one is a no-brainer, yet many salons fall into a rut with existing clients.

The mindset becomes “Well, they didn’t want anything extra last time, so they won’t want anything extra this time either“.

Wrong!

The reason many clients move on to a new salon is because they get tired of being taken for granted.

They get the same old service and treatments every time, without being consulted on what changes they may want.

Most people like to try something new now and then, but without spending a little time talking to your clients at every visit, you’ll never get the opportunity to suggest a new salon treatment.

Don’t fall into a rut with your clients.

If you don’t offer them something new to try, they just may mosey on to the competition down the road.

Just imagine what an extra $5 earned from every customer would add up to in profit at the end of the year!

Strategy # 4 – Sell More Retail To Every Customer

There is no such thing as a salon service that doesn’t have a retail product that would make the end result look better or last longer when the client uses it at home.

When your clients are only getting the benefit of professional products when they are in your salon, they’re bound to be disappointed when the results don’t last very long.

Recommending a professional product to use at home is an important part of the solution to fix your client’s problem.

Your clients will be happier with their services when they’re using supporting products that will help them to maintain their great results…and this makes them more loyal to you and your salon.

If you’re not doing it already, try using salon prescription pads with your clients to recommend professional products.

Doing this gives your clients a reason to return, and they are more likely to purchase all the products you have recommended when you have created their personalised prescription for them.

With good retailing practices in your salon, you can substantially increase your profitability.  Get your team together, and explore ways you can become better at retailing in your salon.

Strategy # 5 – Keep Your Clients Coming Back

Do you let your clients walk out of your salon without having re-booked them for their next visit?

If you do, you are letting bucket loads of profit slip through your fingers, and it’s totally preventable.

Not only will your clients extend the time between their appointments if you don’t re-book them before they leave, you risk losing a client altogether if she doesn’t have her next appointment locked in.

It’s far more tempting to try out that new salon “just for a change” if she doesn’t already have a commitment to you.

To add to that, clients feel more valued if they are offered a re-booking before they leave.

If you can increase your client’s return rate from just 4 times per year to 5 times per year you can make an enormous impact on your bottom line.

Just think, with an average spend of $55 and 500 regular clients, this would total up to an extra $27500 in your bank account.  Now, who wouldn’t like that?

Do the sums for your salon and get prepared for a major surprise.

Start generating more profit in your salon!

So that’s my 5 simple strategies to help you to generate more profit in your salon.  It’s not rocket science, and there’s absolutely no reason why you can’t look at ways to implement all of these profit building strategies into your salon straight away.