This article was published in Today’s Therapist UK Magazine.

In my role as a business consultant to the health and beauty industries one of my primary concerns when I visit most clinics is how to maximise sales opportunities. We are all aware that there are dozens of different staffing skills that need to be covered from product training and skin analysis techniques, to specific retail sales training. However, one of the easiest ways to maximise sales opportunities is to create a vibrant, well planned and accessible reception area. Every week I walk into salons where the most neglected space in the building is the reception area. Yet this shouldn’t be the case because a well designed reception space can result in a wealth of extra sales.

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Walk through your salon with new eyes.

The trouble with most salon owners is that we could walk through our front doors blindfolded and still do a start up each morning without missing a beat. We don’t see many of the problems or opportunities that exist in every reception area because we never stop and sit where our clients sit. We never stand at our counter like our clients do, nor do we have to wait and look at what is around us. I challenge you to sit in your reception chairs. Can you see all the ugly computer chords under the counter? Can you see the dust or dead insect that was missed when the staff last swept? Can you see what is on special or the newest product to hit the salon? Do you pick up a magazine that is six months old full of advertisements for department store brands that you don’t even sell?

You see many of the things our clients are exposed to every time they enter our clinics we miss because we never place ourselves in their shoes. So when you do stop, sit and think about what your clients see, you might consider a few of these simple yet very effective ideas:

Stock Levels

What do your clients actually think about your clinic?

Are you perceived as a business that does a whole range of services and just has a little bit of product on the side if people are interested? Or, is your business serious about retailing home care products and it is obvious by the way you display your stock and the amount of stock you appear to hold?

If you want your customers to take you seriously when they choose to purchase products, then you have to look like you are a serious player. Having a scarcity of visible stock doesn’t give the impression that you are very serious about this vital part of your business. Salons that have sizable displays and look like there is plenty of stock to choose from invariably sell much more product. It’s a fact!

And there are lots of ways to cheat. Take products out of their boxes and place the boxes behind the actual item to make it look like there is more stock on display. Mirrored shelving gives this impression as well. Don’t line up all your stock in straight lines. Curves and perspex display stands break up the lines and allow the customer’s eye to linger on specific items or displays. Then fill empty display shelving with product information and advertising pictures. The idea is to make it look full.

Displays that work

Over the years I have been very critical about the way small businesses display stock. I have always believed that our clients need to be exposed to our products rather than having them hidden away behind glass cabinets and reception counters. I actually want clients to pick up products, read the box or information sheets, smell and feel testers, discover for themselves how products can help them to look and feel fabulous. For this reason I place product displays not just so they are accessible for clients but even where they are in the way so they cannot be missed! I love placing small table displays in doorways or right beside front counters, almost to the point where customers have to walk around them to proceed through the salon. These displays cannot be missed. They are perfect for bulk displays of excess stock, seasonal products such as sunscreens or promotional packs. Similarly many salons have small tables in front of or beside waiting chairs. Instead of magazines, why not place big bulky displays that customers cannot possibly miss. Encourage them to try testers and read the associated material. Many of them read your magazines because that’s all there is to look at.

The front counter is another ideal product display position. Instead of flowers, other businesses’ cards, EFTPOS machines or price menus, place attractive product displays on your front counter. Every client stands in front of this position twice every time they visit. Once to say they have arrived and a second time to pay. Your counter top is the number one sales space in your salon! Choose excess stock, high grossing items, or products that you are featuring in newsletters or as a staff focus. Counter tops are fabulous because not only do customers get exposed to the products but staff are reminded of these products every time they return to the phone or till as well.

Signage - What to say

My general rule for display signage is to state the following:

• What the product is
• If it is not obvious by the product’s name - What the product does
• The price
• And the saving, extra value or bonus associated with the product on display.

I like borders around most signs I produce as it helps to focus the reader’s eye. I use plain fonts that are easy to read and I try not to use capitals too often.

Shelving signs are also really useful. Tell your clients what’s new, your favourite, award winning or topical. Just recently I was roaming through a book shop looking for a new novel. A small shelf talker told me that a particular book was highly recommended by Jane. So I picked it up, read the back and eventually purchased it. Now I have no idea if Jane is a critic, a staff member or an avid reader. She could even be a fictional character - It doesn’t matter. The point is I was told something about the product being sold. Tell your clients about your products. Let them know what your all time favourite is, what every woman should have in her bathroom…anything that will get them to interact with the product or ask you questions.

Another signage issue that really upsets me are the beautiful pictures of models or products that adorn salon reception areas - Often in a prime advertising position. Rarely do these posters highlight advantages or price, just the supplier’s name. Try creating a purpose made poster of your own that actually advertises a special offer like a value added facial. Hang this directly behind or above your counter and see if it creates some interest from your customers. They don’t cost much and I am sure that if you got just a couple of bookings from it, the cost would be covered. I am not so worried about posters that look fancy, I want them to work by either selling additional services or products!

I have spent all day re-arranging reception areas in clinicss all over the country so they create extra sales. There are loads of different possibilities in every salon I visit. However, here are a few TOP TIPS that I have utilised recently with great results.

1.    Set up your coffee table or table near waiting chairs with your TOP 5 Products for Spring. Literally line them up with a tester and three or four of each item displayed. I often will place a number 1, 2 3, etc. beside each one and have fact sheets to explain the advantages of using each product with their the prices. We don’t discount when we do this but if there is a special offer available it is a bonus.
2.    Let each of your staff choose their favourite product. Display these products with a picture of the staff member and why they recommend that particular product. Challenge each staff member to talk about their product and together determine the number they believe they can sell.
3.    Take a nice, bright photo frame and take out the backing and glass. Place this over a shelf framing a particular product you want to feature. Add a shelf talker that gives product details and watch how many clients go to that shelf.
4.    Move where you currently keep each of your brands. Recently, I convinced a store owner to swap the position of her different brands. Within hours of doing this three clients had asked her when she had put in the new range. Interestingly, she had stocked the brand in question for four years. It’s amazing what a change will do to regenerate customer interest.