I saw this video the other day, and it reminded me of my struggles, and accomplishments. Dr Brene Brown hits the nail on the head when she says that in order to connect with others you have to be willing to be vulnerable. That’s true happiness!

Are You Growing?

Unless you’re a super human being you’ve probably faced some big challenges throughout your life.

Think back when you first tried to walk, ride a bike, balance your check book, or drive your first car? Did you fall down, struggle, and feel a little clumsy? Of course, we all did, and still do to this very day when we try anything new.

I’m sure there are times when you wished life was easier, right?

I know I did when I started my very first business. Everyday seemed like an endless battle with me being the loser. I had many sleepless nights wondering where the money would come from to pay the bills, and the embarrassing feeling of failure. It almost stripped me of my self confidence until I realized that my problems were only challenges that I hadn’t found a solution to yet.

Today however, I receive countless emails from small business owners everyday who are struggling with it all, just like I was.

So here’s what I hope you get from reading this…

We face obstacles on a daily basis (attracting clients, keeping clients, hiring a good staff, making more money, business skills, etc)  because the universe is constantly asking us to grow. Those of us who learn and grow surpass those that do not. You see, life gives you, me, and everyone else exactly what we deserve.

One day I sat down and asked myself… What do I have to become in order to be, do, and have everything I want in life? I realized I needed to learn business skills, marketing skills, communication skills, speaking skills, and sales skills.

So I feverishly began reading books, I went to, and still go to countless seminars; I listened to tapes and CD’s every morning while I work out for 90 minutes. AND I read, read, read every chance I get. I also hired numerous mentors to help me along the way.

Here’s what I discovered…

Our universe rewards us for growing and doing. NOT for sitting, hoping, and waiting!

From birth we’re taught to walk, talk, read, write, and run. And then, all of a sudden we graduate from High School, and or College, and we stop learning.

This was the biggest lesson that I’ve learned throughout my life that I’d like to share with you…

When you stop learning, you start the dieing process. Think about it. Our whole world is designed to either be growing or dieing. No business can succeed if it doesn’t continue to grow, change and reinvent itself. What happens to a tree that stops growing? The leaves turn brown, fall off, and begins to die. When a plant stops growing it withers and dies.

As humans, when we stop learning our universe provides us with two choices…

1.    Big challenges that require us to grow, and learn new skills. This is NOT something you fight.

2.    The second choice  is to not grow. Thinking that you already know everything you need for success leads to an average life at best. People in your field who take the time to grow, learn new skills, and take action will always outperform the rest.

If you’re faced with a challenge in life or business just realize that it’s NOT because you’re not worthy of having it all, you’re just being asked to learn a new skill and become more than you are.

If learning how to style hair was the only skill you’d ever need to make a million dollars, everyone would be millionaires. However, there’s a reason why 67% of all small businesses go under within the first 3 years in business. NOT because they’re not good at what they do, but because they fail to acquire the necessary skills that allow them to grow and move past obstacles.

I’ll never forget what Jim Rohn once said… “Don’t wish it was easier, wish you were better.”

Next time you’re faced with a challenge remember, they’re only obstacles placed on the path of life forcing you to become more than you currently are. If your goals are big, you’ll be faced with big challenges. If you have small goals you’ll be faced with small challenges.

Either way you’re going to face challenges, so why not embrace them as an opportunity to become more than you are.

If you “like” this article please click the like button, and pass this on to a friend. Thanks!

Glen Andrews

How any salon owner can  target their perfect prospects, dominate their local market, and save a boat load of money using Carrier Route Marketing Maps

 Sponsored By West Palm Beach Beach Courier Service

Online Salon Marketing And How To Dominate The Search Engines.

Watch this video now!

current clients
Claudia Diesti

How to Market Your Hair Salon Effectively And Boost Sales Using A Facebook Page

Watch now! AND Leave Me A Comment or Question Below. Was this helpful?

Using Facebook “Deals” To Grow Your Salon

Here’s how this can benefit your salon…

Envision yourself strolling through a local store.  The store could be a local jewelry store,  grocery store, or even a high end retailer.

As you’re browsing, you reach for your phone to see what’s happening with your friends on Facebook. The news feed shares a variety of cool stories. You want to see the latest locations of your friends so you review the “Places” feature on your Facebook application.

To your surprise, Facebook Places provides you with your friend’s information and something a little eye catching. It is showing you additional stores (in your local market) that are encouraging you to “check-in”.

The best part is that Facebook Places provides you, your prospects and clients with a deal. Yes, a simple free application from Facebook could give you 10% , 20%, or 50% off, or even donate to your favorite charity.

Here’s the inside scoop…

Facebook Places, although initially developed to allow users to share their geographical location, has grown. A business owner (You) can now target users on their mobile phones, get them to interact with your salon, so you can offer them “Deals” or incentives to stop in.

C ‘ Mon- everyone loves a deal. Everyone loves saving money. It doesn’t have to be huge savings. It’s just the thought of saving money or getting a better deal that pushes us into action. Facebook Places allows you the option of providing a deal to anyone that “checks-in” to your salon.

A Closer Look at using Facebook “Places” to market your salon

Facebook Places provides you the opportunity to target users who use their mobile phones.

So what’s the big deal?

There are over 200 million users currently using the Facebook mobile application. It is one of the largest segments of users.

According to Facebook, mobile users are twice as active as everyday computer users.

Tapping into a user base that is 2 times as active increases the chance of a sale. Your salon can combine their “Places page” and their “Fan page” for added functionality. The kicker… you’ll end up with another extremely powerful marketing platform.

Imagine… a potential prospect can now search on their computer or their mobile phone, and find the best deals available in your local market!

Facebook Deals

You’ll be able to target users based on their location relative to your salon. However, Facebook wants to ensure you are a “real business”. Quite simply this means proof:

1. You have to have a physical location

2. You have to prove you are the business owner

Facebook is going to lengths to validate business licenses and even electrical bills to ensure that only valid businesses get the opportunity to offer deals.

Once you get accepted to offer Deals, your opportunity of marketing will fall into four categories (deals).

Individual Deals

When you want to offer something special as a one-time offering to new clients, existing clients, or just to encourage more people to visit your store, then this will be the type of deal to offer. Individual deals are a great way to engage new prospects. Get them used to the concept that “deals” will be available when they use their phone at your location.

Loyalty Deals

Do you have clients that you are happy to see each time they walk into your salon? Those clients who spend consistently  with you and  are happy to refer friends, family, and colleagues, you can now reward those customers who invest in your business frequently with Loyalty Deals.  You can offer deals to those clients who have checked-in more than twice and no more than 20 times.

Friend Deals

One customer is nice, but several at the same time are better. What would you offer that customer who brings in 3 or 4 of their closest friends? Would you offer them a free shampoo, free manicure, free facial, free blow dry & style, free highlights?

Charity Deals

Want to support your favorite charity? With Charity Deals you get the opportunity to support the charity of your choice for each person that will “check-in” at your location.

As you consider what deal you might offer, consider the following guidelines:

1. What do your clients want?
2. What will make your clients excited to talk about and share this deal with friends?

Beat your competition by putting Deals into action. By starting a Fan Page, a Places Page, and applying for Deals, you will be able to start generating more sales today with Facebook’s marketing methods. The best part, they’re all free, you just have to take action.

Talk soon,

Glen Andrews

I recently had a coaching call with my members about competing on price, and I thought I’d share a few nuggets with you.

I can’t tell you how many times I get asked… “How can I raise my prices and compete with other salons that keep slashing theirs”?

Let’s take a closer look…

If we line up 100 salon owners and play “Who Gets The Business” game, and you asked every salon owner to step forward if they deliver a good cut, color, waxing, facial or massage – then unless you have a poor inadequate soul they’re ALL going to step forward. The same happens when the question is asked – please step forward if you truly care about how I look.

You see, without realizing what they have done, every one of these salon owners has positioned themselves as a commodity. Commodities are sold on price. So when the buyer can’t see any difference between you, and your competitors, they start asking the price question, and of course, someone in a 100 is more than happy to fill that (lowest price)  position.

Why? Well, either because they don’t know any better, or they’re desperate, or like some of my clients, they’re modeling their business after Wal-Mart and they truly believe this is the best way to run a business (by being the cheapest). They’re hoping when 100 salon owners are lined up against the wall, the buyer will ask… “will the cheapest salon please step forward” – and it will be them.

This hurts me to even see someone think this way. Now, because the buyers don’t know any different, it’s up to YOU to help them SEE the DIFFERENCE. We need to show them that there is a difference. So let’s play the “Who Gets The Business” game with a new set of questions.

•    Do you offer a FREE consultation before each service for new and existing clients?  Now only 75 salons out of the 100 step forward
•    Do you offer coffee, tea, water, wine, or Champaign? – Now we are down to 50 salons
•    Do you offer “on time” appointments? – Now we are down to 40 salons
•    Do you offer a strong guarantee? – Now we are down to 20 salons
•    Will each client receive an amazing “consistent” experience even if they use different staff members? -  Now you are down to 5 salons
•    What question, or series of questions would you ask from here that leads a potential prospect, just to you?

I think you get the idea. You need to direct the buyer to “points of interest” that of course are important to them, and even more importantly, completely differentiates you from your competition. The more these points are of interest to the buyer, the more you can charge.

So when a potential prospect calls your salon and asks about your prices – you might want to say… “That is a great question – may I ask you a couple of questions to calculate that for you?” In the process of asking the questions you will want to make sure that they know what makes you different from everyone else they may be considering. Help them to understand that price may be one of their least concerns.

One of the things that I teach our coaching members when talking to a client on the phone is to make sure the client knows what makes them different. We try to make sure they have at least 4 things that make them different than most of their competition, AND one thing that completely separates them from the competition. When you can do this, you work in a “competition free zone,” and this allows you to charge a lot more than so called bottom feeders.

Hope this helps – don’t let price be what makes you different and don’t let your competitors set your price. Give your clients something no one else does and charge accordingly.

So, what are you doing to differentiate yourself from your competition?
Love,

Balayage

Hi Everyone,

Want to know how to be more effective with your hair salon marketing, and remove all the stress of last minute minutia? You do, GREAT!

• Write down all the promotions that you’ll be running at least 6 months in advance.
• Grab yourself a desk top calendar (something you check daily)
• Fill in all the promotions that you’ll be running throughout the year (especially your slow months)
• Make sure each promotion is complete and ready to go one month in advance (prior to the start of each event)

This will help keep you focused, and prepared. No more… what are we going to do for Mother’s Day.

Let me know in the comments box below if this was helpful, or if you’re using something other than a calendar to keep track of your promotions.

I participated in a local charity event at Forsgate Country Club. We raised over 6 figures for local charities throughout New Jersey.

Forsgate Country Club puts on a charity event in order to give back to the community, and to attract members. This is a win/win for everyone involved.

If you want to grow your client base quickly with FREE publicity, a charity event might be the way to go.

Forsgate brought in Annika Sorenstam (The best ladies golfer in history) and J.B. Holmes (Ranked 25 best player in the world) which brought in tens of thousands of dollars in ticket sales.

This is me and J.B. Holmes hanging out talking golf. He’s one of the nicest guy’s I’ve ever met, with a big heart for charities.

They had some really cool gifts that they raffled off, like…

• A Mercedes Benz for a hundred dollars
• A round of golf with Annika Sorenstam and J.B. Holmes
• They also had hundreds of silent auction gifts to bid on. It was really an amazing event that put everyone in the giving mood.

Annika Sorenstam donated $50,000.00 and helps educate kids about obesity.

Although the weather was an issue in the morning, the rain held off for most of the day.  However, we did get drenched at one point, but I was with these two delightful kids who kept it fun. It was a great day to get away from work, give back, and enjoy the day.

These were the only 2 kids that would take a picture with me (my brother-in- laws daughters) We had a fun time, as you can tell.

What can you learn from John Paul Dejoria and Paul Mitchell?

I’m sure you know their incredibly inspiring rags to riches story. But if you take a closer look I’ll reveal 3 key ingredients that helped sway the odds in their favor, and they can do the same for you.

1.    Paul Mitchell was a creative and inspiring stylist who won many British and international hairdressing competitions. In other words, Paul Mitchell was “top gun” at what he did.

2.    John Paul Dejoria found himself at one point in his life homeless; however, he became the top salesman for Collier’s Encyclopedia, and eventually became the district manager for Redken. John Paul Dejoria became “top gun” at selling and managing people.

3.    Paul Mitchell and John Paul Dejoria started their company on a shoe string budget ($700.00). However, they did an incredibly smart thing, they guaranteed their products! They went around to different salons and made salon owners an offer they couldn’t refuse. They told salon owners to try and sell their products, and if they couldn’t, or didn’t like the product, they could return the products for a full refund.

So what the heck does this have to do with you? Well, everything!

If you’ve been around me for long you know that I’m a strong believer in removing any risk from your clients or prospects by offering a strong guarantee. That’s how John and Paul got their business off the ground with just $700.00

They had an incredible guarantee which removed any risk from doing business with them.

Paul Mitchell and John Paul Dejoria made such great partners because one had amazing hair styling skills, and the other had amazing management and sales skills.

They may, or may not have known it at the time, but this is a formula for success. Whenever you can couple good products and services with good marketing, your chances for success are substantial.

Here’s your success formula…

•    Hire and train a good staff who loves what they do, and they’re good at it.
•    Focus 4 hours a week on marketing, sales systems, and setting goals.

Once you have these two main factors working in harmony, you’ll then have the skills required to allow your business to work for you. However, if you’re missing one of these factors, you’re salon is probably inconsistent.

You should check out our online video training, or our book titled… “The Ultimate Salon Marketing Guide.” We have many products that will help you get consistency in your business.

Talk soon,

Balayage