If you have hired well, chances are that your receptionist is likely to be the most important person in your salon.
If they do their job well, your appointment columns will be fuller, your additional service sales will be greater, your clients will feel happier, and your retail sales will be better than they’ve ever been before.
One of the biggest mistakes in any salon is when the salon owner thinks that anyone will do to manage the front desk.
After all, your receptionist is the face of your salon and creator of the first impression for all new clients.
Your receptionist is much more than someone who simply meets and greets clients and answers the phone. In fact, they should be a person who can:
- turn every enquiry into a booking,
- up-sell services with every booking,
- ensure every client re-books within a suitable time frame,
- sell additional retail to clients,
- promote your special offers and key services,
- sell additional gift vouchers to clients all year long,
- manage and promote your loyalty and referral program,
- manage and promote your marketing programs,
- reduce the amount of dead stock you hold on your shelves,
…and the list goes on! In other words, a super salesperson!
As the saying goes, “You can’t hire a duck to do the job of an eagle”.
So how do you ensure that you end up with a Front Desk Super Salesperson and not simply a Receptionist?
Well, it all comes down to hiring the right person. But to ensure that you do that, you have to be clear about the responsibilities and skills that your new employee needs to have, and this is where creating a good job description is essential.
It’s not difficult to do, and there are plenty of free templates on the internet you can use to get started. However, the most important area to focus on revolves around the skill set required to do the job well.
If you want your Front Desk Person to sell, sell, sell, then you must hire someone who has a proven history of sales. They need to be able to show you that they are self motivated when it comes to selling, and that they love that part of the job.
It’s pretty pointless hiring someone who is sweet and friendly if they can’t bear the thought of selling. You’ll probably never be able to turn someone who isn’t comfortable with sales into a super salesperson.
Once you find the right person for the job, you then need to find out what keeps them motivated and excited. Most people who love to sell, also love to have goals to aim for, so having goals around that position is a very good idea.
They’ll often be motivated by financial bonuses also, so you need to find a way to reward them for meeting and exceeding their targets.
When you have the right person at your front desk; someone who wants to re-book clients, sell more services and products, and get clients to return, you may very well be on the way to turning your business into the highly profitable one you’ve always wanted.