Instagram 101

Posted on July 28, 2015August 20, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

Instagram offers a great social platform, particularly for hair stylists, to showcase their work to their followers. Here are a few tips on how to use Instagram

Follow, and be followed. Before you can start making an impression you’re going to need followers. Spend some time following as many people as you can (especially people who fit your demographic), and a lot of users typically “follow back” those who follow them. It’s the circle of reciprocity on Instagram. Be patient though, it takes a few months to build a solid network of followers, but once you do you will be glad you did.

Take it slow. Nothing is worse than following a stylist that decides to post 25 photos in 5 minutes. You may be excited and want the world to know, but keep it limited and share only your best photos. It enriches your followers experience and benefits you. If you’d like to combine photos, apps like Diptic and Fuzel can create a collage. You can export them straight to Instagram to make photos even more attractive by telling people a story.

Pump the stock brakes. No one wants to see that stock photo you took a screen shot of on your iPhone, pretending it’s your own. They’ll quickly unfollow you if you ever post photos that are stock images. Just don’t do it. Ever.

Choose your hashtags wisely. Please, please, PLEASE! Understand that hashtags are not bullet points to your photo or post, but are ways to search what’s trending online. Use hashtags as keywords to what your photo is about, and have 2-3 hashtags that you use as your own, and use them every time you post a photo. For more info on how hashtags works, see our blog post on it.

Involve your followers. Brands such as Red Bull and Audi have mastered creating communities on Instagram using hashtags and Instagram contests that get users to interact with their products and brand by connecting to their lifestyle and emotions. You could give away a gift card to clients who post photos of their new cut or color. Make sure your clients use one of your hashtags so you can track it, too.

Comment back. It’s important to interact with people in Instagram. It’s a network largely based on the emotions that a photo provides, and that emotions includes conversation (in the form of comments) made regarding your photos. Try to make communication a two way street and people will be excited not just to follow you, but to interact with you. Most importantly, look for comments that may show interest in booking an appointment with you. There is gold hidden in Instagram comments!

A lot of salon professionals who are new to Instagram (or social media in general) are a sometimes gun-shy when it comes to posting photos of their work. All I will say on that is this:

Take pride in how far you’ve come, have faith in how far you can go.

Don’t underestimate your abilities. Your clients love you for a reason.

#How #to #use #hashtags #correctly

Posted on June 26, 2015August 20, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

Unfortunately, most people using hashtags don’t realize what they are used for. Using them correctly can boost the reach of your posts & photos quite a bit. Hashtags are used as keywords for your photos, enabling people on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to search hashtags listed on content they like to find more photos.

A REAL EXAMPLE OF HOW THEY WORK: Lets meet Jane. She is an avid Instagram user and loves following people who post beauty related photos. She’s always looking for the latest look and style, and Instagram is a great way for her to do that in her spare time. She also has money to spend. In this example she just stumbled upon a photo of a blowout at Dry Bar called the “Cosmo Tai”. She just gasped for breath thinking how great that style would look on her. Now lets follow the process of how she finds out more:

By using a consistent hashtag (#cosmotai) Dry Bar has 626 related photos using that hashtag. Now Jane has hours of photos to browse if she chooses. Most likely she will look at a couple that appeal to her the most, and then attempt to find out who she can go to for this look.

Now lets take a look at a hashtag fail. Jane has been browsing Instagram and comes across the same photo, this time with an irrelevant hashtag #cosmotaiplease. Now see how her efforts pan out as she tries to find out more:

From this example you can see how hashtags are meant to be used, and how using them poorly can cost you an opportunity to pick up a new client. Choose your hashtags wisely, and be sure to choose a hashtag for yourself so people can find out who you are. You don’t need to be too explicit in your hashtags. For a reminder, just look at the search results for #costmotai (626 results) vs. the results for similar hashtags (#cosmotaiplease, #cosmotaicurls, #cosmotaiblowout, etc.) which all produced just 1 post.

Let Justin Timberlake show you how not to use hashtags.

Here are some more details on using hashtags:

SO, HOW DO YOU USE A HASHTAG CORRECTLY? The answer is easy: Is your hashtag something that other people are using? Is it based on a currently trending topic on Instagram? Is it part of a niche following for like-minded users to talk to each other? Are you or your salon using it to brand yourself or organize content? If the answer to any of those questions is yes, then go ahead and use the hashtag. Let’s examine each of those scenarios a little deeper.

IS IT SOMETHING OTHER PEOPLE ARE USING? Two great example of this are the hashtags #ff and #fml. #FF stands for Follow Friday. It’s a weekly trend on Twitter and Instagram where users tag their friends with hashtag #ff to encourage other users to follow them. It’s a great way to gain new followers and give props to your friends who tweet about interesting things. Hashtag #fml is a little more vulgar, but it’s used all the time. It stands for F*** My Life. People use it when something bad happens to them – usually out of their control. Come home to find your basement flooded? Hashtag #fml. Out on a blind date with a guy who turns out to be a major creeper? Hashtag #fml.

IS IT A CURRENTLY TRENDING TOPIC? A hashtag is great for being timely and immediate. It lets users know what is going on right now. Broadcast television has done a great job of creating relevant hashtags. For example, during the Emmy Awards a few nights ago, #emmys was a trending topic across Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. If you wanted to see what other people were saying about the Emmy awards, all you had to do was search for hashtag #emmys. You’ll see the same thing during the Super Bowl or the season premiere of The Walking Dead. It’s a way for people across the world to share in the same moment together.

IS IT PART OF A NICHE FOLLOWING FOR LIKE-MINDED USERS? This is usually where I use hashtags the most. For Image Studios, we use #imagestudios and #lovewhereyouwork quite a bit. People who search and use those tags themselves are able to see things that I post and I can do the same. Hashtags help the salon community stay connected, and in this case, the salon professionals at Image Studios. We share reviews and photos. We offer tips when we find a great article or blog post. It creates community.

ARE YOU OR YOUR SALON USING IT TO BRAND YOURSELF OR ORGANIZE CONTENT? This one is similar to the previous example about like-minded users. It’s okay to create your own hastag – as long as you have purpose behind it! Like I mentioned above, we use #imagestudios and #lovewhereyouwork as our official salon hashtags. Notice that these custom hashtags aren’t too long or obnoxious or unrelated to anything. There is a purpose behind them – and they’re great for organizing our content, too.

DON’T ABUSE HASHTAGS. Use them for what they were meant to do. People who make hashtags for every silly little thing are like that girl at the party who never shuts up and everyone wants to punch her in the nose. Don’t be that person.

ABC4 Story about Image Studios 360

Posted on June 22, 2014August 30, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

Nadia Crow from ABC4 interviews Image Studios 360 co-owner Jason Olsen and hair stylist Timothy Muir at Image Studios 360 South Jordan. To view the original article click here.

[iframe height=”2000″ width=”100%” src=”http://www.good4utah.com/story/d/story/image-studios-promotes-creative-beauty-experts-to/33143/DIJ8DPDul06LSSdNiS5nEQ”]

Salon Expense Calculator

Posted on April 23, 2014August 30, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

To help you understand what you expenses are we’ve created this nifty expense calculator. Just enter your actual expenses to see what your daily, weekly and monthly break even is.

Salon Client Intake Form Templates

Posted on February 25, 2014August 20, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

Part of running your salon will include keeping track of your clients and where they came from. Understanding where your new clients come from will help you know how to focus your time and energy in attracting new clients to your salon. Having an intake form will help you gather some of the information, as well as their birthday, email address, their beauty goals, and who referred them. Be sure to take advantage of having their birthday information. For example, you could:

Offer 10% off during your clients birthday month
Send “Happy Birthday” cards with a special discount or offer
Send a gift certificate for them to use for their birthday

In addition, this intake form we’ve created also has a cancellation policy section at the end of it. This states that your time and schedule is dedicated to them, and any cancellations under 24 hours would incur a $25 charge (FYI you can adjust your fee however you like). It also collects credit card information that authorizes you to charge their card in the event of a no-show or cancellation. The act of reading and filling out this form will most likely reduce or eliminate almost any no-shows or cancellations under 24 hours. Sometimes having clients read over something like this helps reinforce your policy as well, and if they actually fail to show up, you’ll be able to charge $25 to cover your time. Remember, your time as a service professional means that you only make money when you are working! When appointments fail to show up, you may have 1-2 hours of down time that you must kill while at your studio, and you’ve forfeited hundreds of dollars in lost income.

Feel free to edit your intake form as you see fit. The one you see here has been used by our professionals with great success.

Click here to download “Intake Form 1” generic PDF that you can print and use without any changes.

Click here to download “Intake Form 2” Word Doc so you can customize your form before printing.

10 Tips for Raising Prices

Posted on February 25, 2014August 20, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

While the need to raise prices is usually good news for your growing salon, it’s not always music to your client’s ears, especially for those clients who have been with you for years (maybe even from the beginning of your career as a salon professional). We interviewed several industry professionals to see what best practices they’ve employed when raising prices successfully and compiled these top 10 steps. We also have a template letter you can display or mail to your clients to help get you started.

1. Be Honest. Don’t try to hide it. Explain to your clients upfront that you’re raising your prices. Be sure to tell them that you’re moving with the industry and increasing your level of expertise, which has improved dramatically since they first started coming to you. You should still try to offer some form of bulk discount so they can save more by purchasing several gift certificates at a discount. This not only gives them a discount up front, it also generates cash for you up front.

2. Thank Your Clients. The first thing you should do when you increase prices is to say thank you to clients. You should sincerely express your appreciation for the risk they took on you when they first came to you, and then be transparent with them about why you need to raise prices. Make sure they understand why you’re asking for more money and why your product(s) and services are worth more now than when they started coming to you. It doesn’t always work, but most clients tend to be understanding.

3. Explain Your Costs. Sometimes you just need to raise your prices. How many years has it been since your last price increase? Explain to your clients why you are raising your prices and how you are using the additional funds they will be paying each visit. If your own expenses are going up, then explain to your clients why that is happening. If you are spending more money on your products and services, then explain to your clients how the additional features will benefit them.

4. Add Features. When you add a value feature to your services, it gives you a reason to increase your prices with your clients. Early clients will understand that they joined you at the beginning stages of your career and that with your improvement and growing skill set, your prices may change.

5. Give a Lower-Priced Option. Let clients focus on value by giving them a second, lesser-priced option to their service. Then there’s a decision to be made, which focuses on the value that your service sets rather than the price increase. This is especially helpful if the lower plan is a little less expensive than what the client currently pays. For example, if you typically do a 5-minute scalp massage with every shampoo, you could offer it without the massage for a few dollars less than your current price.

6. Over-Deliver. First, be sure you can demonstrate that the value you provide is increasing more than the price. This way, clients know that they’re still getting a good deal. As a rule of thumb, over-deliver and really impress your clients for at least 100 days before communicating a price increase. Simple ways to do this would be to add new features to your studio: new furniture, mood lighting, soft drinks, snacks, wine, etc.

7. Add More Value. It’s important to add more value to sweeten the deal. Your services should always be improving, but it’s simply counterintuitive for somebody to pay more for the same thing they got for less before. Justify the price increase by adding features or providing some other type of added value. Some ways to add value include can include eyebrow waxing, eyelash tinting, scalp massages, shoulder massages, makeup touchup, etc.

8. Explain, But Don’t Apologize. As your salon grows, your products and services should be worth more. Briefly explain how the higher price is going to allow you to better serve them. Then move on. If you’ve proven your worth, then they won’t walk away.

9. Inform Your Customers Ahead of Time. Give clients a heads up about price increases at least a few appointments prior to it taking effect. Make sure your price increase notice is posted on your mirror around 2-3 months before the change takes place. There is nothing worse than a surprise price increase!

10. Send a Letter. To help communicate your price increases it may be useful to send a formal letter to your clients as a personal communication regarding the change. The letter should be carefully written so they understand what is changing as well as what they will get out of it. You could even hand them the letter as they are leaving your salon and explain to them that you have something for them regarding upcoming price changes and how it will affect them. And remember, smile and be positive when communicating price increases.

Even if you don’t need to increase prices, Norm Brodsky’s classic piece, “The Case for Higher Prices,” presents plenty of reasons to do so, such as maintaining your brand image. “By not raising prices on a regular basis,” he asserts, “…You’re gradually undermining the perceived value of your products and services. Like it or not, there’s a natural tendency to link quality and price. We’re not saying you always have to charge as much as the most expensive stylists out there, but if the gap between your prices and theirs gets too large, customers will start to regard you as the cheap alternative in the market.

BELOW IS A SAMPLE LETTER REGARDING A PRICE INCREASE:

To my wonderful clients:

I would like to take a moment to thank you for your loyalty to me as your hair stylist, beauty consultant, and friend. Some of you have been with me since the beginning of my career in this industry, but regardless of how long we’ve know each other we have all made lasting memories together at my salon.

As always, I am committed to constantly improving my skills and abilities as your hair stylist to ensure you are getting the best service, the best style, and the greatest experience possible at every appointment with me. And on top of that, I promise to always make you look beautiful J

In every industry prices rise year after year, and I do my best to operate my salon as efficiently as possible without compromising your experience with me. In addition, my skills as a hair stylist are being constantly improved with ongoing education to keep me at the top of my game so you get the very best service possible. As a result, some of my prices will be going up starting January 1, 2014. The following services will slightly increase as follows:

Women’s Cuts : 40+
Men’s Cuts: 27
All Over Color: 115+
Partial Weave: 75
Color Correction: 125+
All other services will remain the same price as before

To show my appreciation for your loyalty I am allowing my existing clients to purchase gift certificates 10% off until January 1, 2014. This will allow you to lock in an even lower rate on my services than you pay now if you choose to do so. To purchase these gift certificates, please call or text me at 801-555-5555 and I will be happy to help you.

Thank you!

Jane Doe
Owner, Studio 101 @ Image Studios

To download a Word Doc of this letter template, click here.

Image Studios 4-Week Online Marketing Plan

Posted on February 23, 2014August 20, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

Online marketing can make your head spin. There are countless options, experts, trends and changes. That’s why we created this 4-week marketing plan with easy-to-use steps so you can start marketing your salon online (or step up your current efforts). By following one clear-cut action per day, you’re online marketing efforts will see huge results.

We’ve created a PDF of the 4-Week Online Marketing Plan that you can print off and use to keep your efforts on track. Download here.

Below is a breakdown of the plan:

Week 1

Monday: Create a Facebook Fan Page. This should take about 30 minutes to get everything setup. Upload lots of photos, info about your services, and most importantly, a way for people to reach you. If you have one already, post something!

Tuesday: Create your Google Places page. Put your business on the map for free with Google Places (places.google.com). Easily add photos, bio, hours, coupons, etc. This will also allow clients to leave Google reviews about your salon. Be sure to list your studio # in the address!

Wednesday: Survey Your Clients. Put together an online survey to find out what your clients think about your products, your service, and whatever else you’re curious about. Sometimes the biggest ideas will come from your clients! Use free sites like Wufoo.com to create surveys in minutes.

Thursday: Yelp Me Out! Create a Yelp account if you don’t already have one (takes about 10 min), add photos of you and your salon, and as many before & after pics as possible. Also write a detailed bio about you and your services. This will help people know exactly what you do just from viewing your profile.

Friday: Get Listed. Spend a few minutes online today making sure your business is listed on every website possible. Sites you want to be on include: Google+, Google Places, Yelp, CitySearch, YellowPages, KSL Local, Angie’s List, Foursquare, etc.

Saturday/Sunday: Create a Salon Menu. Your clients may know what services they like, but do they know everything you offer? A printed salon menu also looks professional and speaks volumes to your ability to market your business. And don’t forget to frame it!

Week 2

Monday: Create a YouTube Page. This should take about 15 minutes to get everything setup. Upload any videos you may have already, and start thinking of videos you can begin making in the future. Download the “Capture” app to easily create videos from your smartphone.

Tuesday: Re-post a review. Take a screen shot of a recent positive review on Yelp or Google and post to your FB/Insta/Pinterest pages. Remember, its not bragging when you’re good at what you do! If you have a really stellar review, also print it off and tape to the corner of your mirror for all to see.

Wednesday: Gather Emails. It will be very boring and tedious, but spend an hour today collecting all of your clients email addresses. This may require some creative thinking on your part if you don’t gather that info, but it is also acceptable to simply text or call them for it as well. Besides, they’ll receive better deals anyway.

Thursday: #Hashtagcrisis. Take some time today and decide on your hashtags, and use them religiously! Many people fail to use consistent hashtags, only to lessen the effect of their posts and photos online. To co-brand with Image Studios, be sure to use: #imagestudios & #lovewhereyouwork

Friday: Send an email. Use one of our pre-designed MailChimp header graphics to send an email to your clients. Schedule the email to send 30 minutes after you are done just in case you decide to change something after it is all said and done.

Saturday/Sunday: Write a Book. Just kidding! You’ve already written it if you’ve been taking photos of your work! For a truly stunning marketing piece in your studio, use iPhoto or artisianstate.com to print an actual picture book for clients to thumb through. It will also help them decide on what style they want.

Week 3

Monday: Schedule Ahead. Choose the holidays you want to market special offers to your clients, and set reminders 4 weeks prior to each one to start planning on what you will do. Some offers can be one-day only, others can be 2-3 weeks before. Plan your entire holiday marketing plan for the year…today!

Tuesday: Tell Your Story. Again. Its probably been a while since you have posted something on FB about your salon and what services you offer. A lot of times clients may only know a narrow scope of things you do. Post your bio on your page – it will serve as a reminder to all your clients (and potential ones) about your business.

Wednesday: Show the Benefits. Post a picture and explanation of a product or service you offer and describe the benefits. To help you think of this, ask yourself “What problem does this service solve for my clients?” Remember, people buy results, not products. What results do your clients see after a visit to your salon?

Thursday: Review your “About Me” info. Make sure all of your info online is updated and accurate on all 3rd party websites. Do you have an updated website, email, or phone number? Do you have a new service you offer? Do you have a service you need to take offline? Do you have an ongoing offer you want listed?

Friday: TXTMEPLZ. More and more clients prefer to text, but is the number listed for you online a cell phone? If so, be sure to indicate that they can text or call you (in that order) and you’ll see a guaranteed spike in text messages as clients message you instead of call. Don’t forget to update all your listings online.

Saturday/Sunday: Got Feedback? Now that you are handing out your “Thank You” notes asking clients for info on their experience, you should now have quite a bit of these. Hang these around your salon, create a “Wall of Fame” where you post them, and even scan them and post on FB, Instagram, Pinterest, etc.

Week 4

Monday: Ask a Question. Post a question on FB to engage clients and attract new ones. Questions could range from “What do you think the hottest hair color is right now?” or “What did you think of Michelle Obama’s dress last night at the awards ceremony” to get people engaged.

Tuesday: Schedule Future Posts. FB allows you to schedule posts up to a year in advance. Spend some time gathering photos, articles, interesting style blogs, etc., and schedule 2-3 posts each week for the next 3 months. Then set a reminder to do this every 3 months so you stay on top of it.

Wednesday: Schedule Future Emails. You just finished your FB schedule, now schedule a few emails. It is recommended to send 1 email a month with updates and special offers to your client base. Schedule 3 months of emails today, and get creative with any of our pre- designed email headers.

Thursday: Happy Birthday. Spend a few minutes going over your client records and see who has a birthday coming up in the next month. You can send each one of them a handwritten card or one of the Image Studios birthday cards, and be sure to include something for them such as the birthday special offer certificate from Image Studios.

Friday: We Miss Your Face. Getting inactive clients back into your chair is 4X cheaper than aquiring a new one. Go through your client records today and mail each of them a “We Miss Your Face” mailer. Be sure to handwrite a little note on a sticky-note and put on it to add a personal touch.

Saturday/Sunday: Record a Video. No one wants to watch a blatent self-serving video – they’re boring, and people won’t engage. Instead, think of creative ways to show off your personality, sense of humor, a thought you have, or even an interview of a client. Post to FB, Insta, and YouTube when done.

Image Studios Business Cards

Posted on February 18, 2014August 20, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

Do you have a business card for your salon? If not, we’ve made it easy to get started affordably with a pre-designed card that looks beautiful and is easy to read. We’ve designed these cards with you in mind – we even left room for you to write your clients next appointment on the front of it. You can print your cards online with Print Place – 500 cards starting at just $23.00! Below is a screen shot of what specifics you will need when ordering your business cards:

When ordering your cards: Be sure to select “4 Color Both Sides” and then select “Aqueous Coating” for the front and back of your card. This will ensure your cards will be printed the correct way (and also ensure that you’ll be able to write on them for your clients appt times).

HELPFUL TIP: Carry these with you at all times – our top salon professionals have a goal to give out at least one business card a day. If you do this consistently you will see results!

To get your free Image Studios business card PDF file with your info on it please fill out the form below and will send you back print-ready files that you can print online with PrintPlace.com:

[wufoo username=”imagestudios360″ formhash=”w8d0pwc1lfwz1e” autoresize=”true” height=”769″ header=”hide” ssl=”true”]

Tips for Selling Gift Certificates

Posted on February 11, 2014August 20, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

Selling gift certificates is surprisingly easy to do if you take the right approach. It gives you money up front, your client has it easy when it comes to shopping for friends and family (give a gift certificate!), and it is a guaranteed way to get new clients in your chair…which could land you many more appointments for years to come.

Below are four best practices when it comes to selling gift certificates to your clients:

1. “Buy 3, Get Yours FREE” Gift Certificate Offer: Keep in mind that we all love to give gifts, but a lot of us like to reward ourselves with a gift of our own during this stressful time of year. Offer your clients three (3) $25 gift certificates that they can purchase to give to friends or family, and if they purchase all three you will give them a fourth $25 gift certificate for free that is theirs to use. They are going to be buying gifts for these friends of theirs somewhere, it might as well be at your salon! Besides, you open the door to retain a new group of clients in January and February when they start calling to use their gift certificates.

2. Use it as an excuse to contact old clients: What better way to reconnect with inactive clients who have not been to you in several months (or even years) by calling them with your holiday gift certificate offer (Buy 3 Get Yours FREE) and see if they’d like to participate. It may also open the door to getting them back in your salon as a regular client. Remember the value of a lifetime client* is worth thousands of dollars. One phone call may help add one more to your books.

3. Stocking Stuffer Gifts: Travel size product, small denomination gift certificates ($5 – $10) and certificates for a FREE brow wax or makeup touchup with their next service, etc., are smaller size gifts you can give away for free to clients and encourage them to give them away as stocking stuffers. Be sure to include your business card with each and every gift certificate you sell or give away – you want your new clients to be able to find you easily.

4. Display Your Offer! When you’re offering gift certificates, don’t hesitate or be shy about it…you should be proudly displaying your offer on your Facebook page, website, and on the mirror or door of your salon. Think for a moment how long your clients sit in your chair on average during a regular visit. Typically this will exceed 60-90 minutes (and even more for some of you). Having something in front of your client during that visit makes it much more likely they will at least ask about it to find out more. If they don’t it makes for an easy way to bring it up during your checkout by saying “You may have seen the special I posted on my mirror during your appointment, here is how it works____________”

Make the most of selling gift certificates – it is another revenue generator many people miss out on.

To order your own set of Image Studios gift certificates, click here.

How to List Your Salon on Yelp

Posted on January 25, 2014August 20, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

3 STEPS TO GET LISTED ON YELP

1. CREATE YOUR BUSINESS PAGE
Go to http://www.yelp.com/writeareview/newbiz and add your business info. Be sure to list as much info as possible to create a complete profile the first time.

If you are on a Mac you can unclick the “Leave Review” box and proceed.

If you are on a PC you will have to leave a review when you do this. Your name will be attached to the review so I wouldn’t leave a review per se, but I would leave a short snippet of what you’d like to say to your clients.

“Welcome to my salon, I am a hair stylist that specializes in __________ and promise that you’ll love every moment at my salon from the minute you walk in until you leave with your new look. Call me today to schedule an appointment” (change it up though or else all 100 of you at Image Studios will have the same introJ)

2. CLAIM YOUR BUSINESS PAGE 48 HOURS LATER – DON’T FORGET!
Yelp will have your business listing live within 48 hours. So you need to remember to go BACK to Yelp.com and search for your business listing. Under the business info is a link that says “Work Here? Unlock This Business Page”. From there it will walk you through these steps:

Step 1: Confirm/Setup a business account.
Step 2: Confirm your connection to the business.
Step 3: Access your Yelp Business Account

3. FILL OUT YOUR BUSINESS INFORMATION
The first and most crucial step after you’ve unlocked your page is adding all the information customers might want to know about your business. It’s not just about keeping customers informed; the more information you put in, the more you’ll appear in searches. It’s easy to edit your info – just hit the “Business Information” link on the left-hand side of the Business Owners page, then click “Edit” next to any information you want to change or add.

Listing Your Salon on Google

Posted on January 21, 2014August 20, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

5 Easy Steps to List Your Salon on Google Places

1. CREATE AN ACCOUNT: If you don’t have a Google account or Gmail account then go here to sign up: https://www.google.com/accounts/newaccount. If you do have a Google account then skip this step.

2. CREATE A GOOGLE PLACES REQUEST: Once you have created a Gmail account for your business, go to http://www.google.com/places, and click on “Add new business”. You will be directed to another page and asked for the phone number of your business. This is only to check if Google Maps has already some information about your company. You will be able to edit any existing information found.

3. ENTER THE INFORMATION OF YOUR COMPANY: You will be directed to another page to enter information of your business such as address, phone number, email address, description, category, hours of operation, payment options, photos, videos, and additional details. Click on “Submit”.

4. VERIFICATION: PIN Verification is required. You can either receive the PIN via phone or mail. It’s easier to do it over the phone, because it takes less than five minutes. Via mail, it takes one to three weeks. Please note that you should be ready to answer the phone. They will call you to the number that you provided.

5. LIST YOUR BUSINESS: Now you just need to enter the PIN and your listing will appear on Google Places.

Google Places will allow you to add information about promotions, coupons, photos, videos, and more. Encourage your clients to leave reviews and post their own photos of your salon when they are there. It would also be beneficial to have them upload photos of their hair (you take the pic with their phone) and they can upload them from their phone to your business listing.

Accepting Credit Cards

Posted on January 17, 2014August 20, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

When starting your new salon it is a good idea to allow your clients to pay with a credit card. Cash is always appreciated, but in todays digital age more and more people prefer to pay with plastic instead of paper. We’ve found that the best way to do this is through Square (www.squareup.com).

Square offers a reasonable transaction fee of 2.75% on any credit card (even Amex). If you’ve accepted credit cards before you will know that certain SkyMiles, cash rewards or travel points cards charge a higher transaction fee than usual to cover the expense of those perks for the cardholder. With Square you pay just one flat rate across the board. No guessing, no surprises.

In addition, the Square app user interface is extremely user-friendly, and even the most technology-impaired salon professionals have no problem using the app to charge cards after 5 minutes of practice on the app.

Signup is easy – all you need is your checking account info, your business name and address, and you can be up and running within no time. Visit www.squareup.com to get started today.

Calculating the Lifetime Value of a Client

Posted on December 10, 2013August 20, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

Do you have clients who have been coming to you for years, and then have other clients who come for a couple of appointments, only to never be seen again? Most of us shrug it off as no big deal, but when you realize the value of a lifetime client (the actual $$$ that client brings to you over their lifetime with you), it may make sense to reach out to past clients you haven’t seen in a while to try and get them back in.

To calculate the value of a lifetime client you would do the following:

Estimate how many times one client visits you per year on average (EX: 5 times per year)
Estimate what your average ticket is (EX: $75.00)
Estimate how long you typically retain clients (EX: 4 years)

So if a client with an average ticket of $75 visits you 5 times a year, then that single client brings in about $375. If you typically retain clients for an average of 4 years, multiply $375 per year X 4 years and you get $1,500. This would be your typical lifetime value of one client. ONE. It’s a little scary to think what you lose when a client stops coming!

With that said, what discounts or special offers would you do to gain just one more retained client? What could you do to contact them to get them back in? Do you know when their birthday is? How about their anniversary? If you have no client info records, that is a whole other topic, and will be addressed in an upcoming blog.

Reactivating old clients and getting them back into your schedule is also the cheapest way to build your business quickly and effectively. They already know who you are, they’ve been to you before, all you need to do is figure out how you can get them back in your chair!

Think of it this way – they are sitting in someone else’s chair. Why? If they are going to sit in any chair, it needs to be yours! Start today with an action plan on how you can make this happen. Your wallet will thank you!

Holiday Marketing Ideas

Posted on December 5, 2013August 20, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

Are you looking for some marketing ideas this holiday season? Take advantage of the busiest time of the year and generate more sales and revenue to help make up for the painfully slow months after the holidays are over.

Black Friday:

Use this day as a springboard to sell gift certificates at a discount or offer a discount to any current clients who book a future appointment in January/February. An incentive now will help motivate people to book that next appointment after the holidays which means you can be confident your schedule will stay booked solid, even after Christmas.

Cyber Monday:

This relatively new holiday has become more and more popular each year that drives people to find deals online. If you have a website or webpage (which everyone at Image Studios has already, contact us if you don’t know where to find it) you can post a deal online that offers clients a discount on product, a % off any gift certificate, BOGO offers, etc. You can have them call you to complete the purchase or you can use an easy-to-use online web form (100% free) called www.wufoo.com to create a form they fill out that will take them to a checkout page to purchase everything online. This takes about 10 minutes to do and all you need is a paypal account to accept payment. Don’t have a paypal account? It’s easy and takes 5 minutes to do, go here to sign up now.

CONTACT ME DIRECT if you want help setting up the Wufoo form and payment page. I would be more than happy to help you do this and you will find it an invaluable tool you can use for future offers down the road. Also, if you want to update your info on your webpage within the salon directory let us know immediately so we can update that for you in time for the holidays.

Christmas Gift Certificates:

This can be one of your most successful ways to sell gift certificates this holiday season. We have pre-printed blank gift certificates (Image Bucks) you can purchase here, or you can use your own. The purpose of this is to sell as many gift certificates during the holidays to your clients. Here is how it works:

You mail four (4) gift certificates to your client (or hand to them in person), each in its own envelope.
Three (3) of the gift certificates are blank except for the dollar value that you choose (typically $25 or $50 value), the fourth certificate is made out to your client for the samedollar value as the other three certificates.
Enclosed with the gift certificates is a letter from you with something like this:

Dear (Client):

The holiday season is coming up quick and I want to help make your gift giving a little easier this year. Enclosed are three gift certificates for $25 each(or $50, whatever you choose). These are for you to give as gifts to friends and family and can be used for (product, service, etc) at my salon. To show my appreciation for you I am giving you the fourth gift certificate (the one you made out in their name) to you free of charge. To purchase these certificates call me at (XXX) XXX-XXXX and I can complete the purchase over the phone. All gift certificates must be pre-purchased for the offer to be valid. HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

You will need to keep track of who calls and pays for their certificates to ensure none get used that were not paid for (since you are sending them blank ones with no names on them). Also, it is important that you make purchasing these gift certificates as easy and seamless as possible. You can take a credit card over the phone using Square or you can create an online form for them to go to where they can complete their purchase online through Paypal. Again, please feel free to contact me if you would like help doing this, it only takes a few minutes and once I walk you through the first one you will be set to do them on your own after that.

The idea of the gift certificate offer is to facilitate the hassle of buying gifts for so many people by putting them right in front of your clients. To show your appreciation for them you offer them a gift certificate of the same value at no charge for them to use. If you do the math you are giving 25% off all four certificates, or three at full price and one for free, whatever way you choose to look at it. Keep in mind that the three gift certificates they purchase to give to friends and family most likely will be new clients who have never been to your salon before. The value of a lifetime client is worth thousands and thousands of dollars, so never underestimate the cost or discount it takes to acquire just one new client. It pays for itself ten-fold.

In addition, these gift certificates will be given at or around Christmas time which means these recipients will be wanting to use them come January or February, typically the slowest time of the year for salon owners. This will help keep your books full after the holiday season. Best of all the gift certificates are pre-paid up front, so you get the money at the time of sale and can set this aside for the new year.

I highly recommend you take advantage of the holiday season to help generate more income for your salon!

Happy Holidays,

Jason Olsen

Salon Banking – 10 Helpful Tips

Posted on October 17, 2013August 20, 2019 by Image Studios Franchise

Small business accounting for your salon can seem like a daunting task, especially if cash flow is tight and you don’t think you can afford professional help. Here are 10 simple tips to help you keep track of your money and avoid being caught unprepared at tax time:

Open a separate bank account for your salon. This will help distinguish between personal and business transactions and make tax filing less complicated.
Organization is key. Consider a large binder, divided by months, to keep bank statements, receipts and deposit slips. This makes for easy referencing and will protect you in an audit.
Avoid using cash. Cash is difficult to account for, track, and prove if the IRS wants documentation of what was purchased. My recommendation? Use business checks or your business debit card to make purchases. For example, If your Landlord ever says that you have missed a rent payment, it’s easier to look back through your bank statements than to search through receipts, if you remembered to get one in the first place.
Save Receipts. Make sure you save all receipts! Let’s say you go to Costco and purchase ink, a garbage can and broom for your salon. Unless you have a receipt itemizing the business charges, the IRS may think you are purchasing personal items. It’s not enough to use a debit card or check to pay for purchases, you’ll need an itemized receipt as well.
Record Deposits Correctly. Take a minute to notate on a deposit slip what checks are being deposited and the dollar amounts. Typically there are a myriad of deposits that happen within a business checking account: loans, personal transfers, income from services, income from product sales, etc. If the deposits are accidentally treated as income when they were actually a loan or a transfer from a personal account, you may pay taxes on more money than you made.
Home Deductions. If you work from home, keep records of your personal expenses, you may be able to deduct a percentage of them as business expenses. These may include rent/mortgage payments, utilities, cell phones, paper, ink, etc.
Keep a Mileage Log. If you want to deduct mileage on your tax return the IRS requires documentation. You cannot count miles driven to the primary work location, but miles driven from your first work location to a second work location are tax deductible. Consider a phone app to help keep track of miles.
Don’t Use Credit Cards. Having credit available can be a lifesaver in an emergency, but according to a study by Dunn and Bradstreet (the #1 credit reporting bureau for businesses), credit card users spend 15-‐18% more when using credit instead of cash. Early last decade when McDonald’s began accepting credit cards, they found the average transaction rose from $4.50 to $7.00.
Bottom line? If you are using credit to earn a 1-‐5% reward you are still overspending! If you are using credit to earn airline miles, Consumer Reports stated 75% of airlines miles are never redeemed. In addition, CardTrak reported 60% of people don’t pay off credit cards every month. So not only will you be overspending, you will most likely be paying interest on those charges! My recommendation, avoid using credit cards if at all possible.
Save I recommend setting aside 20% of every dollar earned (gross amount) into your business savings account for taxes and future unforeseen expenses. This helps ensure you have money to pay Uncle Sam and avoid unforgiving government penalties and fees for missed or late tax payments. This money will also help you avoid using debt for future expenses. In addition, keep at least enough cash in your business checking account to cover one months worth of operating expenses (rent, supplies, anything that is a regular expense, etc). This will help you avoid bank overdrafts, insufficient fund fees, and save you in case cash flow slows for any reason.
Easier to remember now. Go over your accounts at least on a monthly basis, making notes on bank statements, attaching corresponding deposit slips and receipts and filing them in your tax binder.

Many small business wait until the end of the tax year to organize their financial documents, and by then, are unable to remember many details. This hurried, generalized accounting can result in errors and lost tax deductions.

If you follow these 10 simple guidelines for small business accounting for your salon, your year end tasks will be less daunting, you will maximize possible tax deductions, and you will be better prepared to meet tax and other financial obligations.

Jennifer Groberg is a graduate from the University of Utah with a bachelors degree in Finance. She owns her own firm, BookSmarts Accounting, and is a certified QuickBooks Pro Advisor. Jenny’s expertise lies in small business accounting, bookkeeping, QuickBooks consulting, QuickBooks training & cleanup and financial advising.

For small business and salon accounting needs contact Jenny Groberg at(801) 979-9676 or email her at [email protected].