Now that the holidays are behind us, it’s time to begin gearing up for busy season. Although a lucrative time of year, you probably find yourself feeling a bit strained from time to time. Perhaps one of your New Year’s resolutions is to become more efficient within your organization this season, so that you’re even more profitable than last year?
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You probably have a regular routine that you go through prior to each busy season: You determine which promotions you will offer and when, create sales goals, establish the marketing plan and begin hiring seasonal staff. Having the proper tools in your toolbox will not only increase efficiency, but will also help to ease some of the seasonal anxiety.
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One of your most valuable resources is your staff. Regardless of whether they are veteran employees or seasonal, a well-trained team will be key to your salon’s success during busy season. A quick-to-learn and easy-to-use software program that can automate tasks will undoubtedly turn out to be one of your biggest assets.
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Creating a schedule of busy-season promotions ahead of time is important. Now is a perfect time to determine if you are able to preconfigure within your software the specials that you want to run during specific date ranges throughout the upcoming months. When completing this back-office type configuration, for product related promotions such as a buy-one-get-one half off, make sure that you are able to setup inventory re-order points and quantities, so that you don’t risk running out of stock when the time comes.
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Resolve to be prepared this year by ensuring that you have the necessary tools in place well ahead of busy season!
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During busy season, you will likely have first-time salon guests, so make sure that you are able to electronically collect their demographic info, email address and cell phone number, along with their preferred method of contact. Creating a positive initial experience and marketing to these customers later will result in turning a large percentage of them into repeat customers.
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Ask yourself these simple questions: Does your salon management system allow you to display descriptions of products and equipment, so that your staff have the details needed to upsell lotions or upgrades? Does it allow you to outline policies for each EFT membership type, and automatically calculate first-draw dates and prorated dues? Providing automation of tasks and arming your staff with information throughout every transaction that they process will ensure efficiency at the time of year when it’s needed most.
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Educating guests about tanning responsibly is imperative – does your system allow you to set up a survey so that you can automatically determine a tanner’s skin type? Are you able to configure high-intensity warning messages for equipment that has just been re-lamped? Can you set up regulations in terms of the minimum tanning age and the time that must elapse between sessions? How about creating recommended exposure schedules for each of your equipment types? Anything that you can do to automate your employees’ tasks will be a win-win for everyone!
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It’s also a good idea to take a peek at your reports from last year’s busy season. Were there particular equipment types that were used extensively and created wait lists? If so, you may want to look at adding another tanning system to your mix. Be sure to reference your current lamp usage within your software for all of your tanning beds, as well, so that you know ahead of time if any will need re-lamping in preparation for busy season.
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Resolve to be prepared this year by ensuring that you have the necessary tools in place well ahead of busy season – it will come and go before you know it, and you’ll thank yourself for choosing your New Year’s resolution wisely!
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