Let me ask you a question…

If I just walked into your business as a potential customer and asked you this simple question; “Why should I give you my business rather than try your opposition?”

What would your answer be?

No really, before you read on, try to answer that very question. What would you say? Without thinking too long, what are the words that immediately spring to mind?

When I ask this question in my seminars and put business owners on the spot, I get a variety of answers including:
“I don’t know”
“I need the money”
Or “Because we have great service, exclusive products and we are competitively priced.”

Now although the third answer is a decent attempt, would this answer be too different to your nearest opposition who would also suggest that they have outstanding service, salon exclusive products and very keen prices?

Click the ‘Read More’ link below to continue reading this article.

And so we get to the point of my questioning – What makes your business unique?

You see, the customer is the most logical being on earth. They are not going to deal with a business that offers inferior services or products. They will be looking for a place that is striving to offer them more than they get elsewhere.
So, if you cannot instantly answer my original question of “Why should I give you my business rather than try your opposition?’ then you don’t know what your “specialness” really is. This is a crying shame because if you can’t tell your customers what makes your clinic special, then it’s pretty certain they won’t be able to simply discern what that special quality is either.

Where this makes a difference is in lost business. That’s right, business that didn’t choose you when they rang to inquire, business that didn’t see anything different in your literature, business that passed by your front door because nothing special was advertised for them to try.

So the answer is fairly self - evident. If right now you cannot define your business’ “specialness” in a snappy sentence or two, then spend some time and think it through. The marketing term is called your USP or Unique Selling Proposition. It is what makes you different or better than the rest. It can be anything about your business that you know is unique or characteristic of your individual business.

Perhaps it’s your pricing structure. Perhaps you offer exceptional products. What about the unique services you offer or the specialised equipment available? Your business might be in a tranquil setting, a convenient position, even open late nights or early mornings. You might have won awards, have extra qualifications, be open seven days a week, or just renovated. In some places off street parking, para -medical services or luxurious facilities might be important. Sometimes just a philosophy or statement of intent is enough. For example, I have used commitments statements like: ”We are committed to exceeding your expectations every time you visit”, as a way of telling potential clients where our efforts are focused.

Whatever are your areas of individual “specialness”, it is important to be able to verbalise them in everything you put out to the public. Include it when you answer the phone, place it in your advertisements, on price menus, business cards, when people walk in and inquire. Give your business that point of difference that will help to entice potential clients to you.

After saying all of this, it would be easy to assume that you just have to tell the public what you uniquely do well. But that’s only part of the answer. If you really want to be successful tell the people that you offer what they want. You see the trick is to tell the customer that you offer what they are looking for. So once you have defined whatever it is your customers are after, adjust your USP to say exactly that.

Dominos Pizza wasn’t always huge. They were a small player in the Detroit Pizza market. That was until the owner Al Moynihan decided to ask customers what they were looking for in a great pizza shop. One evening a lady came in dragging two small children, soaked from rain and obviously in a bad mood. Al asked her what she was looking for in a great pizza. Her reply was “DELIVERY!!” The next day Al’s USP was “Dominos delivers fresh pizza in 30 minutes …or it’s free.” Today Dominos is one of the largest pizza makers worldwide. Delivery revolutionised the pizza industry and gave them an incredible USP.

Here are some examples for the beauty industry:
1.    An inner city salon started offering “after work services” late night, Monday to Friday and began attracting professional business - women who wanted the convenience of going to a salon after work.
2.    Another city salon offered “petit” or quick lunchtime services and again gained clients for the convenience factor.
3.    One salon I deal with took detailed descriptions of facials off their price list and replaced it with a statement that declared that they do a variety of facial treatments for age management, acne, dehydration, problematic skin…and that with all of their facials a full diagnostic skin analysis and skin care report was undertaken using the very latest in skin scanning equipment. Then, in consultation with the client, a programme of in-salon and home care treatments will be developed ensuring the best possible results. Their USP was all about being experts in skin.
4.    A salon I see with a tropical rainforest setting has beautiful full colour pictures of the lush, tranquil backdrop in their brochures.
5.    A very successful salon I visit, proudly displays a whole wall of Diplomas and awards with a sign that reminds you that the staff are experts in their field.
6.    A salon I spoke to recently told me over the phone “We do things differently here”. Instead of me just choosing a facial, one of their senior therapists would offer me a complimentary skin evaluation first, “that way I could choose a treatment specific to the needs of my skin.”

Whatever USP you choose, it will always be more effective if it reflects the wants of your customers. Try questioning a few of your better customers about what they like or want in a salon. Then start offering it …..but don’t forget to shout it from the roof tops!