Do you ever reach out to your salon retail sales rep to tell them about what you’re putting forward as the product of the week? Do you ever let them know how successful their products are or how clients are reacting to them? If you don’t, it’s probably time you should. Strengthening your relationship with your sales rep also optimises your chances of getting a heads up on exclusive product line launches, sample offers and you could even get discounts on future orders… But how do you do that? How do you develop that strong relationship?
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Your Salon Retail Sales Rep Relationship Is A Two-Way Street
Communicate, Communicate, Communicate
Just like your one-to-one meetings with staff, it’s important that you realise that your retail sales rep relationship is a two-way street. Yes, I purposely repeated that.
Let’s have a look at an excerpt from the Salon Owner’s Ultimate Guide to Shaping A Retail Culture in which we wrote:
“When your staff is well educated and believes in the retail products your business holds, they’ll naturally show a professional concern for the client beyond the in-salon experience. From a customer’s perspective, the results given by retail products purchased in your business will automatically be associated with the experience they’ve had with your brand.“
The same principle applies to the relationships you build with your suppliers.
Like any other relationship, communication and trust are paramount. And if you understand this, everyone including your client will end up benefiting! The better your salon retail sales rep understands your clientele and your salon’s mission, the better he or she can recommend appropriate products for you to stock in the future. The better products you stock, the more engaged and enticed your clients will be to purchase those products from you. But for your salon retail sales rep to fully understand your situation, you need to talk to them!
Tip: Don’t know what to say? Why not start off the way you would if you were to build a friendship? Find a common interest, get to learn more about what drives them, why they got in the industry, etc. Connect with them via Linkedin, Facebook or any other social media site that you use for your business.
Get Your Sales Rep Excited And Involved In Your Initiatives
Take for example (now-retired) salon owner Graham Kent of FHC For Hair. Every year, for the past 12 years, his salon would host an annual hair show. It was all about getting his community involved and raising funds for a local charity. To this date, they’ve fundraised £31,000 (you can hear more about his initiative here).
If and when you host events – whether it be VIP customer nights or charity events – make sure you touch base with your salon retail sales rep ahead of time and get them involved (and keep them engaged)! Depending on their level of involvement and the nature of your event, they can help you prepare for the said event, sometimes provide you with product samples, or even help you promote your initiative through their network as well. Don’t leave it until the very last minute to call them though!
Related |Â Should You Throw A Salon Open House?
Give Them Feedback
Did you throw an event? Did you have a “product of the week” spotlight in your salon? Let your rep know what worked well and what didn’t! Provide them with sales statistics if you need to. Build the relationship on openness and honesty, and provide them with feedback on the products you buy and use in your salon.
Remember, your salon retail sales rep is human too! They can’t guess the results, but at the end of the day, you both want the same thing – for your businesses to grow. Why not work hand in hand when possible? 😉
Grow Your Business With The #30Days2Grow Salon Challenge!
Following its smash success in July last year, the #30Days2Grow challenge is back and aims once again at growing your revenue and your client base! Challenge yourself and join thousands of other salons to kick off spring with success!
From April 1st to 30th, 2018. Both registration and participation in the #30Days2Grow Salon Challenge are free. All you need is a little bit of drive, motivation and hunger for success!
Sign up here:Â www.30days2grow.com
For more great tips, check out our full resource on how to set up, run and grow a successful salon business.
Got feedback? What has worked for you? Let us know either in the comments below or tweet us @ThePhorestWord! (Pssst! We’re on Instagram too!)
Thanks for reading! #LetsGrow
