How To: Pricing and Charging for Services in your salon
HAVING A PRICING AND CHARGING STRUCTURE THAT CREATES A THRIVING ENVIRONMENT IN YOUR SALON IS USUALLY THE GOAL..
But are worries about money making pricing conversations harder in your salon?
There are several things worth looking at together: how you set your prices, how the team explain them and how you handle changes to the service.
Your team need to be able to explain a suitable service, its price and any relevant home-care recommendation without feeling that they are pushing the customer.
Let’s look at what needs to be clear for you, your team and your customers.
HOW DO I APPROACH PRICING AND CHARGING FOR MY SALON SERVICES?
Would time-based charging suit the way you deliver and explain your services?
Should I just rework my existing price list and services so the customers don’t feel too confused and stressed about prices?
Are the team going to be confident with the changes in pricing charges and services?
How do I explain a price increase clearly and give customers a fair choice?
These questions can come up when you are reviewing services, revenue and what is left from the work.
And that’s a killer.
For every move you make that you think is positive you are second-guessing yourself and feeling resistance either in your team or from loyal existing customers.
It’s very hard to see gaps in your book and stick to higher prices when the week’s revenue is below target and the rent is due..plus wages again. Let alone money to pay your expenses!
WILL MORE APPOINTMENTS GIVE YOU WHAT YOU NEED FROM THE BUSINESS?
More appointments can help when there is suitable time available and the work leaves enough after the costs of providing it. But if a service already takes longer than you allow for, fitting more of it into the week can leave you busier without enough extra money for the effort.
Look at the price, the time and products involved, and how the team explain the service. If your goal is less time behind the chair, consider whose appointments are increasing too. Those are different decisions from simply filling every gap.
Because the thing is we can’t put sweet cream over poop and expect it to be ok!!
You may recognise some of these reasons for considering another price increase:
Didn’t make customers leave in droves so they are more confident to put a decent increase in place.
The first increase just didn’t work!! The extra money coming in just fell into the deep pit of costs and expenses.
If they are honest about it they didn’t manage it very well with their team. Their team’s habits have gotten in the way of it being a success.
It can feel frustrating when the changes you agreed are not showing up in appointments. But that does not tell you yet whether someone is unclear, lacks confidence or needs more practice.
Your team may care about doing a good job and still need help with this part of the change.
Knowing the new price is not the same as knowing how to explain it when a customer asks a question.
You get what I mean so in reality it’s not such a shock that our team’s confidence working through price increases is one of the most important factors in getting this functioning well….
And a reason you might have found that a price increase did not solve all your problems.
Salon Owner Conversations
CONFIDENCE TO MAKE THE TOUGH BUSINESS DECISIONS
When you are second-guessing a decision, separate what you know from what you are worried might happen. Have costs changed? Is more work being included? Is a particular service taking longer than the booking allows?
Those facts give you something to work with. They may call for different changes, so start with the service and the problem you are actually trying to solve.
TEAM CONFIDENCE
Are you just as good at mentoring your team as you are at doing the best cut and colour?
Do you care to practise leadership as much as you did a new styling technique?
If you want a successful business you need to be just as good at team management as you do at styling hair.
Your leadership makes a difference, and so does understanding where the team need support.
If your team struggles with change and having confidence when it comes to new pricing let’s look at how we can create an empowering and positive environment.
Choose one service and practise the explanation together: what is included, what it costs and what to say if the customer wants something different. Let the team use their own words, then check the meaning is consistent.
Is your money attitude holding you back?
Money can be a hard topic to discuss with your team, your parents or your partner and believe it or not…with yourself.
In your salon how you feel about and manage cancellations, no-shows, customers changing what they are booked in for at the appointment, skipping treatments and pushing out appointments really affects your salon financially.
It’s these financial and money issues that can cause a lot of stress. Resulting in uncomfortable money conversations with others and yourself.
Money stress builds up and can cause major decision-making problems for you.
Stress eats away at confidence and courage.
And when fear rules you are living in the nightmare salon owner life rather than the freedom and lifestyle dream you wanted in the first place.
CUSTOMER GUILT TRAP
Do you find yourself staying behind the chair when you had planned time for the business, making exceptions to the booking procedure or avoiding a conversation about a new price?
You can care about your regular customers and still make decisions that support the salon. Start with one expectation that needs to be clearer, and agree with your team how you will explain it.
Read the Customer Guilt Trap article for more on this.
YOUR NEXT STEP
Choose one service to review. Do the menu description, the booked appointment, the team’s explanation and the amount charged agree?
If they do not, start with the part that is unclear. You may need to change the service allowance, improve the explanation or agree how extra work is quoted. It is easier for everyone when those decisions have been made before the customer is in the chair.
